River Arts District Transportation Improvement Project Public Arts Master Planning Project (for Asheville Design Center and the City of Asheville)
Project Management, 2015-2016 – project details found here

Greenbrier Valley Local Food Strategic Plan (for SCALE, Inc.)
Research direction, 2015
SCALE developed a five year strategic plan for the Greenbrier Valley Local Foods Initiative, assessing the local food system, analyzing approaches to building market demand and production capacity, and providing recommendations.

Playground Conceptual Master Plan for Lee Walker Heights (for Asheville Design Center)
Project Management, 2015
This project included the planning, community outreach and design of a new playground for Lee Walker Heights, Asheville’s first public housing complex that will undergo significant transformation in coming years. Project completed in partnership with the Housing Authority of the City of Asheville & Mountain Housing Authority & the City of Asheville.

Campus Master Plan for Art Space Charter School (for Asheville Design Center)
Project management, 2015
Project management of a community-led design process for a redesign of a local charter school in Swannanoa, working with a volunteer design team

Urban Farm and Food Hub Plan, Phoenix Arizona (for SCALE, Inc.)
Research direction, 2015
Working with Cultivate South Phoenix (CUSP), SCALE developed a business plan to help guide their efforts to launch and operate a 14 acre urban farm in a working class and lower income neighborhood of South Phoenix. More info here.

Town of Edenton Public Art Master Plan (for Plato Strategies)
Public outreach, project management, 2014-2015

Local Food Cost Calculator & Putting Local on the Menu (with SCALE, Inc.)
While the farm-to-table movement is underway across the country, one challenge remains in most places: finding a price that works for farmers and buyers. This study highlights eight food service businesses that have made this work, and offers a new tool for calculating the real price difference when buying local.

Food Hub Feasibility Analysis for Northeast Kansas (with SCALE, Inc.) 2013-2014
Project scope included assessment of the feasibility of a regional aggregation and distribution system for a 16 county region in northeast Kansas, including assessment of farmers and food producers and buyers in and surrounding the region.

Public Art Plan for the Town of Waxhaw, North Carolina (with Plato Strategies) 2013
Project scope included developing a public art plan for Waxhaw, including community engagement around public art, assessment of community needs and wants related to public art, and development of public art policy and funding plans.

Community engagement support for the Visual Arts Leadership Team in Fayetteville, North Carolina (with Plato Strategies) 2012
Project scope included analysis of community engagement efforts and feedback around the exploration of the formation of a new visual arts entity in Fayetteville, led by the Visual Arts Leadership Team and Plato Strategies.

Food Hub Feasibility Analysis for New York’s Southern Tier West Regional Development Board (with SCALE, Inc.) 2012-2013
Project scope included assessment of the feasibility of a regional aggregation and distribution system for Southwestern New York’s farmers and food producers.

One for the Verde (with Sustainable Arizona / Verde Valley Land Preservation groups) 2014
Assistance with facilitation of the One for the Verde project, an environmentally focused community development project focused on preserving northern Arizona’s Verde River.

Project Manager for East of the Riverway Planning Project, Appalachian State University, Asheville, NC 2011-2012

Project was conducted for the City of Asheville’s East of the Riverway Planning Project, funded through the Sustainable Communities Initiative, a program of HUD, DOT and the EPA. I served as project manager to complete a neighborhood inventory, needs assessment, community engagement, outreach and skill transfer to community members.
View the East of the Riverway Final Report
Find out more about the Sustainable Communities Initiative
Find out more about the East of the Riverway Project

Farmers Market Affordability Study for SCALE, 2011

This research and analysis looked at farmers markets and supermarkets throughout the southeastern U.S. and compared prices in order to examine the truth to claims that farmers markets and the local food movement are elitist and not for ordinary people. Through visits to farmers markets and supermarkets, interviews with market managers and farmers as well as grocers, the study shows that in the southeast and Appalachia, shopping at farmers markets and supporting the local food movement is more affordable than at traditional supermarkets.

Read the study report here: Farmers Market Affordability Study
Find out more about SCALE

Outreach and Data Collection for HandMade in America’s Appalachian Women Entrepreneurs program, 2011

Managed program feedback and engagement for Appalachian Women Entrepreneurs program: implemented surveys and collected survey data, analyzed results and produced report for funding agencies; managed year-end Appalachian Women Entrepreneur educational conference.
Read more about Appalachian Women Entrepreneurs

Community Outreach for Asheville Design Center’s Planning Study: Revitalization of The Block, 2010-2011

Managed all community outreach and engagement events around the Asheville Design Center’s planning study for the Revitalization of The Block. To come up with holistic design ideas for The Block that honor its history and importance in Asheville, we engaged of property owners, city staff, area designers and the general community in an examination and analysis of the district as a whole. We actively communicated with a number of community-based organizations in the area to build understanding of our mutual goals and to discuss how we can work together to coordinate our planning. Outreach efforts included a series of community meetings, neighborhood presentations and focus groups.

Read more about community outreach efforts for this project in the Revitalization of the Block Final Report, 2011
View the community outreach flier for The Block: Community Meetings for The Block
Find out more about Asheville Design Center’s work in The Block

Research and Writing for the HandMade in America publication, “Harnessing the Power of Big Buildings in Small Towns,” 2010-2011

Research and writing for a publication educating small communities about the potential of restoring, renovating and reusing large, historic buildings as a method for economic and community development. Research specifically focused on the “Show me the Money” section about funding and financing strategies, as well as partnership potential and opportunities for such projects.
HandMade in America offers the publication here: http://www.handmadeinamerica.org/products/publications

Research and Interviews for SCALE’s Research Study, University Purchasing of Local Food and Food Products, 2010-2011

The research and interviews were conducted to contribute to a review for Central Appalachian Network that looks at surface-level common challenges or obstacles and promising trends and opportunities that universities and colleges in Appalachia face when trying to change their purchasing habits to include more local food and food products. The aim is that this research will help propel greater purchasing of locally raised or produced foods by colleges and universities in the region.

Read the final research study here: CAN Research Study #1, University purchasing of Local Food and Food Products in Appalachia
Find out more about SCALE

 

Special Event Coordination & Management:

Southeast Sustainability Directors Network Annual Meeting, 2016
Asheville Venture Local Fair, 2015
Arizona Food and Farm Finance Forum, 2015
North Carolina Main Street Conference, 2010-2011
Small Town Annual Cluster Gathering, 2008-2011
Appalachian Women Entrepreneurs Conference, 2010
HandMade: the Western North Carolina Craft, Architecture and Design Expo, 2010
Appalachian Sustainable Development’s Green Building Home Tour, 2007