George Cheney

George Cheney (PhD, Purdue University, 1985) is Professor of Communication Studies at Kent State University. Also, he is an associate investigator with the Ohio Employee Ownership Center, at Kent State. Previously, he held faculty appointments at the universities of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Colorado at Boulder, Montana-Missoula, Utah, and Texas at Austin. George has lectured, taught, conducted research, and consulted in Europe, Latin America, and Australasia. His teaching and research interests include: identity at work and in organizations, employee participation and workplace democracy, globalization and consumerism, professional ethics, and discourses of peace and war. George has consulted with organizations in all three major sectors. George has followed the Mondragon cooperatives in the Basque Country, Spain since 1992, and published a book _Values at Work_ (Cornell U Press, 1999, 2002) as well as a series of articles on their encounters with market globalization and their efforts to revitalize practices associated with their cores values of participation, equality, and solidarity. Currently, George is building on that work as well as collaborating on cooperative projects in several parts of the U.S., including Central Texas and Northeast Ohio. As an engaged scholar and citizen, George is committed to service learning, community-based research, and the practical contributions of the social sciences and the humanities in addressing social, economic, and political problems.

Andrew Smiley

Andrew has over 15 years experience working in sustainable agriculture and food systems, including on- farm production, agricultural marketing, micro-enterprise development, food journalism, farmer training and technical assistance, and even food-service management. Andrew received his B.A. in political science from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. He is the former Executive Director of Baton Rouge Economic and Agricultural Development Alliance, Inc. (BREADA). Andrew is an active supporter of sustainable food systems throughout Texas and the U.S. as an active volunteer with the Community Food Security Coalition, National Farm to School Network, Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (Southern SAWG) and Texas Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (TOFGA), and has applied his passion for gardening, sustainable food systems, small-scale farming, and healthy cooking to his work with Sustainable Food Center in Austin, Texas since 2005. Andrew currently works with SFC as Farm Direct Projects Director, which includes management of several public policy, farm marketing, and food systems education initiatives, including Sprouting Healthy Kids – SFC’s farm-to-school pilot project.

Tanya Ladha

Tanya Ladha has been an active member of the Austin community since she moved here over 10 years ago. After graduating from UT in 2004, she traveled and worked in Central America with a small women’s trade cooperative, which sparked her long-term interest in the cooperative movement. In 2006, Tanya began working at PeopleFund. There, she organized with the small business and east Austin community, hosted economic summits addressing regional challenges and brought together diverse groups in search of common goals.  Additionally, she worked as as a community lender aiding in the growth of small, local businesses and non-profit organizations.  She is now pursuing a dual graduate degree at UT Austin in Public Policy and Business.

Carmen Llanes

Carmen Dolores Llanes is a community organizer and native of Austin, TX. She has worked with a variety of organizations and coalitions citywide and across the country, including Marathon Kids, Sustainable Food Center, People Organized in Defense of Earth and her Resources (PODER), Southwest Key Programs, Texans United For Families (TUFF), Urban Roots, Austin Fair Trade Coalition, the Southwest Network for Environmental & Economic Justice (SNEEJ), and Alma de Mujer Center for Social Change, and is a Green For All Academy Fellow. Carmen has participated in collaborative struggles and victories in Environmental Justice, Affordable Housing, Immigrant Rights, Neighborhood Development, Food Access, Public Education, Police-Community Relations, Voter Empowerment, and Youth Leadership Development. She graduated A.B. Environmental Studies in 2007 from the University of Chicago, focusing on agricultural and industrial trade policies in the U.S. and Mexico, including NAFTA’s immense influence on migration, food production, and the environment. She believes that intergenerational organizing is one of the most powerful tools for creating real social change.