Marke Winne, Community Food Security Coalition
From 1979 to 2003, Mark Winne was the Executive Director of the Hartford Food System, a private non-profit agency that works on food and hunger issues in Connecticut.  He is the co-founder of the Community Food Security Coalition where he now works as the Food Policy Council Project Director. As a writer on food issues, Mark’s work has appeared in the Washington Post, The Nation, Sierra magazine, Orion magazine, and Yes! magazine, to name a few. His first book Closing the Food Gap: Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty was released in 2008. Mark’s second book Food Rebels, Guerrilla Gardeners, and Smart Cookin’ Mamas is scheduled for release in October 2010. Both books are published by Beacon Press. In addition to writing, Mark speaks to groups across the world on topics related to community food systems, food policy, and food security. He also serves on the boards of several non-profit organizations in his home state of New Mexico as well as in other parts of the country.

 Peter McDermott, Local Food Cleveland Organizer
Peter McDermott is the founder of Urban Growth Farms, a Network Weaver at Entrepreneurs for Sustainability and the creator of Local Food Cleveland. Whether farming his half-acre urban market garden or helping others self-organize and take action, he works to grow a thriving local food economy and culture in his hometown of Cleveland, OH. Peter founded Local Food Cleveland in 2008 to create a commons where local food entrepreneurs from across the local food system could connect and learn to advance their work. Through monthly networking events that draw over 200 participants and the LocalFoodCleveland.org website, Peter helps individuals and businesses find their place in the local food economy and take their next step. His leading edge is exploring how to scale local foods and re-localization in the midst of declining energy and resource availability.