Our Board
ALLY GIALKETSIS
Ally is a homesteader, an entrepreneur, and a fur pawrent to 6 dogs and cats. She grew up in the small farm town of Santa Paula gardening with her mom. Ally’s passion for the environment, food systems, and activism blossomed during her years at UC Santa Barbara where she studied environmental studies and history. Since graduation, she has continued to be involved in the environmental community, pursuing advanced training in permaculture, co-founding the Ventura Food Co-op, and serving as a board member or active participant in many other local organizations. After five years of greatly contributing to the growth of one of the largest produce recovery and hunger relief organizations in the nation, Food Forward, Ally has followed her passion to northern Idaho where she plans to engage her entrepreneurial spirit through health and environmental ventures as well as develop a regenerative farmstead with her partner, Mike. When she isn’t working on their newly purchased land, Ally enjoys climbing, hiking, hanging out with the dogs in the snow, and seeking solace in the forest.
Brett levin
Economist, agroecologist and permaculturist Brett recently finished a Masters at Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies specializing in conservation finance. He was a teaching fellow in Agricultural Climate Change Mitigation assisting Prof. Eric Toensmeier, author of The Carbon Farming Solution. He grew up in Philadelphia going to college at Tulane to learn what happened in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina. He works in business development for All Valley Solar, Tank Brain Productions, and BioCultivation an affiliate to Rincon-Vitova Insectaries supplying biological pest control for hemp production. Brett has been a motivator in our trailside urban forestry project the Blue-Green Bike Corridor. Long-term Brett aims to help development diverse agroforestry projects globally.
Nik bertulis
A certified permaculture teacher, wildlands firefighter and emergency medical technician with a degree in ecological design from Colorado College, Nik lives in Oakland. A deep love for non-profiteering led him to co-found several non-profits including Urban Biofilter, PLACE for Sustainable Living and most recently the California Center for Natural History. He also serves on the board of the Watershed Alliance of Marin. Nik studied permaculture with Bill Mollison and has helped develop and teach permaculture and regenerative design programs. As a designer-builder he cofounded the successful permaculture design-build company the DIG Cooperative where he helped pioneer some of the first permitted constructed wetlands and rainwater recycling systems in the Bay Area. Clients include Mexico City’s Ministry of the Environment and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Find Nik tinkering with regenerative living systems, transformative scenario planning and invertebrate macro-photography. His calling is to reinstate abundance for all life via empowering humanity’s intrinsic regenerative potential. Examples of his work can be seen at nikbertulis.com.
Jenny pandol
Fermentationist and Holistic Health Coach are what Jenny does. With a background in western medicine and a career in home health and palliative nursing, she has a unique insight into the diet and lifestyle of patients with various health concerns. This comes together in her integrative approach to health and wellness through individual, as well as group health and nutrition coaching. She gives practical workshops about how to prepare food for health, including fermented foods that support a healthy gut microbiome. Growing up in a farming family in Delano that currently farms conventionally, Jenny hopes that increasing awareness about the benefits of regenerative agriculture and elimination of toxic pesticides will shift the paradigm.
STAFF
Jan dietrick
Jan is daughter of pioneering insect ecologist Everett J. “Deke” Dietrick and has been carrying forward his work since 1990. She founded and directs the Dietrick Institute for Applied Insect Ecology to promote biological control by natural enemies that starts at the root zone of plants. She has presented at numerous farmer meetings and has published numerous articles on ecologically based pest management. She received her Masters in Public Health from University of Texas with an emphasis in human ecology and nutrition. In addition to being President of Rincon Vitova Insectaries, Jan works tirelessly to advance climate change mitigation and environmental justice on the local, regional, and national levels through organizing, activism, and partnerships with strategically focused initiatives. Her knowledge, the networks she builds, and her influence continues to shape policy and action towards a more just and sustainable future. Jan is currently working to develop a demonstration project to evaluate carbon sequestration from diverse communities of perennial cover crops.
Kyra Rude
Kyra runs the show at Rincon-Vitova Insectaries that produces and sells supplies for biological pest control. She studied biology at Purdue University focusing on entomology and moved west for a summer internship at Rincon-Vitova in xxxx. She leads the company in steady growth and recognition in the industry and local community. Her holistic perspective on agriculture and communication and leadership qualities are part of why Rincon-Vitova received the Global Regenerative Business Prize in 2016. Kyra is dedicated to helping people understand the role of biological control in regenerative farming and landscaping. An engaging speaker for newcomers and professionals, she doesn’t miss a chance to educate young people. She helped start field experiences for third graders, insect learning at middle school gardens, and charms scores of children annually. She is a certified Technical Service Provider for the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and on the Board of Directors of the Association of Natural Biocontrol Producers and the Ventura County Chapter of the California Association of Pest Control Advisors.
Adam Vega
The calm force of Adam’s moral clarity, his loyalty to friends and his interest in farming and healthy food systems are uncommon, but those qualities make him a formidable community organizer in his work with Californians for Pesticide Reform, a coalition working to reduce pesticide use. Adam joined CPR core staff in 2018 after working for the coalition for a year as an intern with The Abundant Table in Camarillo where he began his education about healthy soils, organic practices, and the economic challenges for local organic farmers. Adam holds a BA in political science from CSU Channel Islands. He has worked in youth organizing, regenerative agriculture/permaculture, solar technologies, rainwater harvesting, and promotion of Community Supported Agriculture and is the founding coordinator of the Ventura County Coalition Advocating for Pesticide Safety (VC-CAPS). Adam is called to promote farming that supports good health.
bill olkowski
Bill is an “SER”. That stands for Scientific Ecological Rationalist. He also gardens, tinkers, paints, writes poems, and blogs. His BS in Entomology and Plant Pathology and MS in Medical Entomology were followed by a PhD in Biological Control of Insect Pests at UC, Berkeley. His 40 years as an IPM Specialist were about teaching people how to reduce pesticide use. He co-authored the classic resource Common Sense Pest Control and The Gardeners Guide to Least Toxic Pest Control, The Integral Urban House, and The City People’s Book of Raising Food, among other books, as well as scientific papers, government reports, book reviews, technical pest control manuals, and articles in the “IPM Practitioner” and “Common Sense Pest Control Quarterly”. He consulted with government agencies and businesses and started nonprofits including the first recycling centers, the first ecology center, an institute of Antioch College West, a farm-based school for disadvantaged young women, and The BioIntegral Resource Center. His website includes published papers, paintings, some letters, poems and project reports. Bill is currently in Fort Bragg, CA, hoping the world will turn for the better.
RON WHITEHURST
Ron, a California Licensed Pest Control Advisor, with his wife Jan leads a team producing and marketing biological pest control supplies. Their company received the Global Regenerative Business Prize in 2016. Besides guiding people to create and manage ecosystems to minimize pests through “Deke’s Five Features” of ecologically based pest management: habitat enhancement, cultural methods, soft pesticides and beneficial organisms based on sound monitoring, he assembled a database about weeds as soil indicators and is an avid permaculture practitioner, climate activist, community organizer, and meditator. Ron is recognized throughout the agricultural community as a science driven advocate for regenerative and restorative agricultural systems. He has published numerous papers on these topics and presented at countless forums and conferences over the years. His generosity, shared knowledge, and applied practices have become pillars within the community.