Jiff Martin
Extension Educator - Food System
Jiff has worked for years to strengthen agriculture and promote local agriculture and food systems in Connecticut. Her current work includes:
- Leading the development of new training and resources for beginning farmers
- Creating new tools and programming to help farmers sell to schools and early childhood centers
- Helping consumers discover local food and farms through outreach and marketing campaigns
Robert Chang
Program Co-DirectorRobert Farms at Echo Farm in occupied Nipmuc Territory, now known as Woodstock CT, where he grows organic vegetables and cut flowers. He is a founding member of the New CT Farmer Alliance and works in policy and advocacy at the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust. He is a proud alum of past Solid Ground training programs and is grateful for the opportunity to serve the beginning farmer community in CT at UConn Extension.
Melanie Desch
Program Coordinator
Melanie comes to the Solid Ground team with a passion for food systems and farming. She recently worked at Mesa Comunitaria, a program focused on removing barriers to food access and redistributing existing food resources to the Windham community. Melanie became involved in CT agriculture by working on several diversified organic farms in Eastern CT, which inspired her to start her own. Nestled into Mansfield Center, Foliota Farm produces cut flowers and herbs with a focus on regenerative practices and the intent to convert as much turfgrass into ag production as possible.
At Solid Ground, Melanie will help coordinate the Ag Mechanic workshops and is helping to develop our Skill Shares, which will connect beginning farmers with key production skills through a series of immersive workshops. She is excited to give back to the program that was so instrumental in helping develop her own business and can't wait to meet more farmers across the state!
Megan Herbert
Program Coordinator
Megan joins the Solid Ground team with deep-rooted enthusiasm for local agriculture. A UConn graduate, she received her BS in Agriculture and Natural Resources, and has since gained further experiences working in many agriculture sectors such as: greenhouse/nursery, dairy, cheesemaking, and orchards. A full-time farmer, Megan operates her family farm, Westview Farm in Woodstock, CT, where she produces grass-fed grass-finished beef, cut flowers, produce, hay, and a pick-your-own sunflower field. With Solid Ground, Megan will be focusing on the Farm Manager Summit, Climate Smart Workshops, and Ag Mechanics series. She is grateful for the opportunity to help serve and connect with farmers and educators across the state.
Shannon Raider-Ginburg
Program Coordinator
Shannon has extensive experience aligning local agriculture, food justice, and education. As a farmer, Shannon has worked all manner of farms from larger certified organic CSA operations to 450-acre Christmas tree farms, to community gardens and urban agriculture. She has developed farmers markets, mobile markets, run her own small farm business and managed agricultural education programs. Shannon has worked with Extension on developing and implementing Farm to School procurement resources since 2017. Meeting the growing school market is a great way to scale up your farm business. Please reach out to learn more!
Becca Toms
Food Systems Communications and Outreach Assistant
Becca has worked primarily with non-profits in the sustainable food and agriculture sector for over 10 years and has been managing social media and communications for over 7 years. She helps this project by making sure the word gets out about the different programs that are available to farmers throughout the state and creating content that is user friendly and easily accessible to the many hard workers that are producing our food. When she's not at the computer, you can find her helping out at Off Center Farm in Woodbridge where she assists with growing flowers, herbs, and veggies.