CalCAN Governance Transition

Posted on Tuesday, October 21st, 2025 by Renata Brillinger

Since 2009, CalCAN has been governed by a coalition of organic and sustainable agriculture organizations that came together to increase our collective influence on state and federal policy as it relates to the nexus of agriculture, climate change, and social justice. 

As the result of an 18-month strategic planning process, the coalition has decided to transition to a network model, believing this to be the most effective and impactful organizational structure for CalCAN at this stage of our work.

CalCAN staff will continue to consult with a diverse range of practitioners, scientists, and organizations within our network to develop and inform policies on the growing number of climate and agriculture issues we work on. We will also continue to support the work of our coalition member organizations and seek opportunities to collaborate, as we have always done.

CalCAN’s numerous policy positions will no longer be decided by a consensus of our coalition member organizations, and we will not represent them collectively on climate policy. Instead, CalCAN will now be guided by a new Stewardship Council who will ensure that our strategies, structure, and resources align with CalCAN’s vision and long-term goals. 

Coalition Member Recognition

We want to express our deep gratitude to our coalition for the years of collaboration, leadership, and vision that these organizations devoted to establishing CalCAN’s role as a leader on climate and agriculture policy. Their credibility and expertise over the past 17 years have undoubtedly contributed to our success. 

  • California FarmLink (since 2016)
  • Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) (founding member)
  • Carbon Cycle Institute (since 2022)
  • California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) (founding member)
  • Center for Food Safety (founding member)
  • Ecological Farming Association (2009 – 2021)
  • Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (founding member)
  • Wild Farm Alliance (since 2016)

Stewardship Council Members

CalCAN is honored to introduce the members of our inaugural Stewardship Council, who will serve as advisors and stewards of CalCAN. 

Arohi Sharma is a Senior Policy Analyst with eight years of experience advocating for policies that promote sustainable agriculture to fight climate change, grow healthy food, and protect water and biodiversity. She has previously served as a legislative staffer on Capitol Hill for the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee and Senator Cory Booker. She holds a bachelor’s in political science from UC San Diego and a master’s degree from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Ellee Igoe is co-founder of Foodshed Cooperative in San Diego, which aggregates local produce from small, regenerative farms and distributes the products to people committed to food justice and/or negatively impacted by inequities in our food system. A farmer herself, Ellee has co-owned Solidarity Farm since 2012. Mother to three, her career background also includes leading outdoor expeditions with young people, urban planning, and co-creating the refugee food and farming program at the International Rescue Committee.

Helen McGrath is a 5th-generation member of the McGrath farming family. She was born and raised in Ventura County and returned in 2013 to support her family’s citrus and avocado farming business when her father, Tom McGrath, was battling cancer. She has worked in the agriculture sector for over 14 years, supporting mutual water companies, Fillmore Basin Pumpers Association, Ag Innovations, CalCAN, Pacific Coast Farmers Market Association, and more. Helen took part in the California Ag Leadership Program and is a member of their Alumni Council. She lives in Ventura with her husband and two sons.

Jo Ann Baumgartner has served as the Executive Director of Wild Farm Alliance since 2001, working with farmers to achieve healthy, viable agriculture that protects and restores wild nature. She has authored many publications on biodiversity conservation and agriculture, including several on beneficial birds and insects, the conservation mandates of the National Organic Program, and the co-management of food safety and conservation. She was also an organic farmer for over a decade.

Leonard Diggs is the Director of Farmer & Rancher Opportunities at Pie Ranch, with oversight of the Cascade Farm Regenerator Program, a 418-acre incubator farm in Pescadero. Leonard instructed agricultural classes at the Santa Rosa Junior College, where he also served as farm manager at the college’s Shone Farm, a 365-acre self-sustaining diversified farm. He has also owned or managed four other organic vegetable farms in Lake and Sonoma Counties, including a three-acre demonstration farm at the California State Fair. He has won numerous awards and took part in the California Agricultural Leadership Program and Castanea Fellowship Program.

Miguel A. García has led bilingual education, technical assistance, and applied research that support soil health, water stewardship, and climate-smart agriculture across California. His work empowers farmers and farmworkers to adopt regenerative practices and build resilience. He has a Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences and a B.S. in Chemistry from UC Riverside and he is also a Certified Crop Adviser. He is currently with the Napa Resource Conservation District and previously with the Coachella Resource Conservation District.

Thomas Nelson is Director of Ecosystem Building at Kitchen Table Advisors. A longtime Capay Valley resident, he founded Capay Valley Farm Shop and has led numerous food and farm initiatives. With an MBA from UC Davis, Thomas brings decades of experience in coalition building and social enterprise to strengthen sustainable farming communities and has worked with many organizations, including Community Alliance with Family Farmers, Community Food Security Coalition, Capay Valley Vision, and UC SAREP.

Torri Estrada is Executive Director at the Carbon Cycle Institute and directs its policy and climate justice work. Torri has worked to advance solutions to social and environmental justice, climate, and environmental issues for over 30 years.  He served as program officer for nearly a decade at the Marin Community Foundation, Environmental Grantmakers Association and the Unitarian Universalist Veatch Program, focused on environmental justice, climate and civil rights. Torri was the co-founder and a senior policy fellow with the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water (where he helped advance the Human Right to Water in CA) and Program Director at Urban Habitat. He holds an MS in Natural Resources Policy and Environmental Sociology from the University of Michigan.

We look forward to this transition as it will bring diverse, new perspectives to build on the strong foundation laid by our previous coalition. 

 


 

Stewardship Council members serve as individual advisors to CalCAN, and do not represent the positions or perspectives of their employers.

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