Our Board

Chair: Janet Horner

Group Facilitation and Consensus Building Specialist. Coordinator for GTA Agricultural Action Committee. Trainer for OSCIA and OMAFRA as well  as specialist in Small Business startups. Family farm and catering business (Whitfield Farms Ltd).

 

Vice Chair: Ricardo Ramirez

I  am independent consultant and researcher in rural and international development. I am on the board because FarmStart is breaking new ground  and I want to be part of this change. Creating opportunities for new entrants into farming is about providing technical, social, agricultural and  financial skills;  it is about giving people confidence. The FarmStart staff combine these skills and are demonstrating their capacity on the ground. If  you were to meet the new farmers at McVean Farm you will be blown away: they are creative, productive and courageous.  As the project gains  momentum, requests for scaling up and replicating the approach will emerge, this will be our challenge.

 

Treasurer: Andre Hueniken

I have been involved in the food industry for six years, most recently as VP Marketing and Customer Support for Compusense Inc., a local company  with an international reach and many multi-national food production clients. Compusense develops software that is used in the food development  industry. I have seen some good, but also some bad, aspects of the industrial food behemoth.

I am now passionate about local food. Real food. Sustainably produced food. Food grown by farmers who care about their produce, the soil and the  welfare of their livestock. My dream is to see local real food become a staple part of the mainstream shopping basket. I joined the Farmstart board because they have developed inspiring innovative programs that share my values.

In addition to my dream, I bring to the board many years of volunteer board experience as a treasurer, fundraiser and facilitator. I have a legal background and have worked locally as a lawyer and mediator.

 

Member: Karine Jaouich

Director of Operations at the Centre for Social Innovation. Past experience as Director of Operations at Local Food Plus and Operations and Programs Development Manager at FoodShare. Specializes in helping organizations efficiently work through change, growth and development of policy and procedures.

 

Member: Jeff Boesch

I’ve have been farming organic vegetables since 2004 when I did an internship on a CRAFT farm. Since then my partner and I have worked on many farms in Canada, the U.S. and Europe and, most significantly, we ran a 250 family CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) with a friend in Acton Ontario. In the fall of 2009 we finally moved onto a farm of our own to build our own CSA, we now grow organic vegetables for 120 families in Guelph, Hanover and Paisley Ontario. A few years ago I got the opportunity to work with FarmStart as Farm Manager at the McVean incubator farm in Brampton. Being a part of that farm has really reinforced to me the importance of the work FarmStart does. As a board member I hope to help bring the perspective of a new, full time ecological farmer.

 

Member: Cyndi Fleming

Cyndi Fleming is a public sector executive turned small business consultant and entrepreneur.  Her core focus and passion is helping organizations embrace new and emerging technologies like social media and other Web 2.0 platforms to streamline and transform their organizations to compete in our highly connected 24/7 world.

Cyndi brings a multidisciplinary business background, including more than 20 years experience in the public and non-profit sectors leading departments such as Information Management and Technology, Records Management, Privacy, and Corporate Communications. Cyndi has advised organizations on issues that span nearly every aspect of its operations.

A technology enthusiast, photographer, artist, and travel junkie, Cyndi lives on the outskirts of Fergus with her husband and three dogs.