Desiree Shelley Flores Participant: 2020 U.S. Grassroots Accelerator Accelerating a land and water protectors initiative within Indigenous communities in Virginia. Region Roanoke Area, Virginia Affiliations & Roles Climate Justice Organizer, Mothers Out Front  Board Member, Southwest Virginia Agrarian Commons  Member, Alliance of Native Seed Keepers Desiree Shelley Flores (Monacan), originally from Baltimore, MD, moved to…

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De’Etra Jenra Young Participant: 2020 U.S. Grassroots Accelerator Increasing diverse student representation in food, agricultural, and natural resource sciences and supporting young people to become environmental justice advocates. Region Nashville, Tennessee Affiliations & Roles Associate Professor & Interim Associate Dean, College of Agriculture at Tennessee State University     Dr. De’Etra Young serves as the…

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Tara Rodríguez Besosa Participant: 2020 U.S. Grassroots Accelerator Decolonizing Borikén (Puerto Rico) through food. Region San Juan, Puerto Rico Affiliations & Roles Co-Founder, El Departamento de la Comida OtraCosa Queer Land Collective, Borikén, Member        Tara (she/they/ellx) was born and raised mostly in coastal Santurce in Puerto Rico. Tara graduated from Pratt Institute…

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Rebecca Catherine Frayser Jim Participant: 2020 U.S. Grassroots Accelerator Repairing native land that has been polluted and damaged by industrial industries. Region Vinita, Oklahoma Affiliations & Roles Founder & Executive Director, LEAD (Local Environmental Action Demanded) Member of the Cherokee Nation Tar Creekkeeper Rebecca Jim founded LEAD (Local Environmental Action Demanded) in 1997, and leads…

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Amy Rose Foll Participant: 2020 U.S. Grassroots Accelerator Cultivating the next generation of nature protectors through sharing knowledge in Indigenous lifeways and ethnobotany Region Kents Store, Virginia Affiliations & Roles Founder, Virginia Free Farm  Stakeholder, Va. Dept of Ag, EFOD Taskforce   Amyrose is the founder of The Virginia Free Farm, which works to provide…

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