They are well-versed in education, agriculture, business, marketing, and personnel. They are some of WNC’s strongest allies, and they help keep us working towards our mission.
David Bennell is the North American lead for Food and Nature at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development where he focuses on sustainable agriculture, natural climate solutions, and global food systems reform. Previously, he was Director of Food and Capital Markets for the investor network Ceres.
He’s worked for Microsoft, REI and LL Bean in leadership development, product development and sourcing positions. His career also includes working as a funder focused on sustainable forestry, the co-creation of the for-profit social enterprise company CottonConnect, co-creation of an impact investing fund focused on food and agriculture investments and leading the apparel industry NGO Textile Exchange focused on standards development for responsible sourcing of materials.
David created the world’s most-watched sustainability series Sustainability Strategies hosted on Linked In Learning and previously held a five-year adjunct faculty position at MIT where he taught sustainable design and development.
How did you first become connected with WNC?
I first became a neighbor to Wolfe’s Neck Center in 2004, after moving to Maine, while renting down on Lower Flying Point. In 2011, my husband and I returned to the neighborhood and purchased a home together on the same peninsula, intent on raising our family down the road from the farm. Our daughter and son have grown up on the trails, in the barns and fields, and at the farm café and store, and have been to farm camp plus countless farm and member events over the years.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board?
I am honored to give back to WNC, building upon our longtime family membership. As a marketing professional, I hope to support the already excellent marketing communications efforts of the Center, helping to ensure the local community and broader audience are aware of and invested in all happening here. I also hope to partner with the team to drive forward the strategic vision of WNC, building on my passion for the outdoors, land conservation, sustainable agriculture, and youth education to help shape the future of WNC.
What is your favorite thing about WNC?
My memories of time spent with my children and my husband at WNC—on the Farm Loop Trail, hiking and building fairy houses and forts, at the picnic tables at the farm café, indulging in ice cream or wood-fired pizza, on the dirt roads, biking the two miles from our home to visit our barnyard friends or friends and family camping on the bay, in the fields, picking pumpkins, raspberries, and blueberries. The sense of peacefulness and simple human delights the farm elicits bring us back, again and again.
Associate Professor and Program Director – Agriculture Food and Environment
Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, Boston MA
How did you first become connected with WNC? My first university faculty position, starting in 1992 (until 2000) was at the University of Maine. My expertise includes grazing management, and I visited WNC during my first week of work. I have been involved, off and on, since that time.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board? My recent and current work focuses on the food system, from production to nutrition and health. I want to help WNC become a central and important research center that links all of these areas.
What is your favorite thing about WNC? Two things: just being there. And that our kids grew up coming to the farm and still talk about it (and visit).
How did you first become connected with WNC?
After knowing about the farm from living in the area in the early 2000’s, I was reacquainted with WNC’s work in 2019. Dave Herring presented the Center’s programs and how sustainable agriculture could be a tool to fight climate change to a group from my work. I was instantly sold on the mission, and then became gradually more involved as my kids experienced farm camp and my family began to explore more of the great programming that the Center offers.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board?
I’m very committed to finding solutions that address climate change and healthier eating at the same time. With my background in sustainability of food retail, training in environmental science, and time spent working on land conservation, I’m excited to contribute to the long-term strategic planning for WNC. They are fast becoming established as a research center and testing ground for a healthier food future, and I can’t wait to see that extend in its scope and impact.
What is your favorite thing about WNC?
The diversity of the Center is so rich, from teaching young farmers and kids about raising and eating good food, to actually raising a diverse set of crops and experimenting with how to do it better, to driving creation of innovative tools so farmers can play a role in reversing climate change… That is my favorite thing: the energizing ecosystem WNC has built that connects people, good food, and a better future for the planet.
Vice President of Merchandising, L.L.Bean
How did you first become connected with WNC?
I first experienced Wolfe’s Neck Center when my family and I moved to Freeport in 2008. We’ve always felt incredibly lucky to have such a beautiful spot and amazing organization right here in our home town. Our kids attended Farm Camp in the summer and we have enjoyed many festivals, Harvest Dances, and other events at the center over the years.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board?
I am a retail executive with experience in strategy-building and working across functions within an organization to implement key initiatives. I hope to use these skills to help Wolfe’s Neck Center communicate and implement their vision and mission and continue to scale their impact.
What is your favorite thing about WNC?
I love the role that Wolfe’s Neck Center plays in the local community – I’m excited to take part in more events like the Farm to Table series and get to know the talented staff. I am so impressed with the growing impact that Wolfe’s Neck Center is having regionally and even nationally to advance regenerative agriculture practices and help mitigate the effects of climate change.
I am excited and honored to join the Board of Directors!
Vice President, Finance and Real Estate – Hannaford Supermarkets
How did you first become connected with WNC?
After moving to the area in 2017, my family’s first experience with the Center was hiking the beautiful trails.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board?
I hope my experience, skills and passion will be of assistance to the Center in furthering their mission of transforming our relationship with farming and food for a healthier planet.
What is your favorite thing about WNC?
I’m interested in learning more about sustainability and food and appreciate the Center’s educational focus on creating a healthier food system. I also love the trails, the camping/glamping, and the various events held by Center.
Woodworker
How did you first become connected with WNC? I’ve been connected my whole life beginning with the summers I spent here as a child when it was still my grandparent’s farm and summer residence.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board? I moved to Maine in 2010 largely because I wanted to be here in order to help the farm in as many ways as possible. I have always been an advocate for environmentally conscious agricultural practices and my youth, enthusiasm, knowledge of the property and its history, and connection to the neighborhood are all beneficial personal qualities for the organization.
What is your favorite thing about WNC? My favorite thing about Wolfe’s Neck Center is the beauty of its coastal farm landscape that has remained relatively unchanged for over two hundred years and continues to be actively farmed.
Prior to Climate Collective, Anna spent 4 years leading Meta Inc’s (fm Facebook) strategy around the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals; Meta’s investment in Gender Data; and its Global Strategic Partners program, supporting high-impact nonprofits to leverage tech and data for real-world impact.
Large Animal Rescue (welfare & emergency) & Grant Seeker/Proposal Writer for NGOs- Self employed. Also volunteer with Technical Large Animal Emergency Rescue and The American Red Cross.
How did you first become connected with WNC? I’ve been coming to the Farm since I was a baby. I’ve spent every summer of my life on the Farm, going with my Grandfather, as a child, to check the cattle or the hay; learning about forage & soil quality, as a teen, from Charlie DeGrandpre; exploring the woods and learning about native plants & medicinals from my Grandmother.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board? Education, conservation, history and alternative farming practices are all in my DNA, and are all areas I have been very involved in while living on our farm in Tennessee as well as during my summers on Wolfe’s Neck. As my husband and I transition from our lives in Tennessee to Maine, I plan to be even more active in the continued success of my Grandparent’s experiment with organics and other alternative methods on their historic saltwater farm.
What is your favorite thing about WNC? That it not only continues to be relevant, but is now becoming a leader in education and research into alternative agricultural methods and how those methods better our environment- locally, regionally, nationally and globally. AND… that it does all this while still honoring the legacy of Wolfe’s Neck Farm as it was and as it grew to become Wolfe’s Neck Center.
How did you first become connected with WNC?
I first became acquainted with Wolfe’s Neck Center (WNC) in 2009. Wolfe’s Neck Center was a hidden gem just around the corner from our family home. Since then, WNC has been a place where I could shake off the rush of our busy lives, fall into line with nature’s rhythms, and have a space for my family to connect with the greater natural world. I have watched WNC evolve its programming over the years to increasingly provide accessibility to all ages, which gets at its core mission – to provide experiential education about agriculture and sustainability.
How do you hope to best contribute to WNC’s development through your tenure on the Board?
I hope to contribute to continued community outreach and education at WNC. I appreciate WNC’s willingness to pivot and change when needed to meet the demands of the community and at the same time consistently providing an inclusive space where all can engage in farm life, appreciate nature in various seasons, and feel connected to a common good.
What is your favorite thing about WNC?
While I’m typically a warm weather person, I love the trails and freedom to explore the Farm in all seasons, and the peacefulness of the trails on a wintry day can be as magical as a gorgeous summer one.
The USDA funding freeze is hitting Wolfe’s Neck Center hard. We are asking for your help to continue connecting people to agriculture and training the next generation of farmers.
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