SHI Staff USA

Florence Reed believes that when people work together, things change for the better. This belief led her to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer in Panama in the early nineties and work for a number of nonprofit organizations. In 1997, Reed founded Sustainable Harvest International (SHI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to working with rural Central American communities to implement sustainable land-use practices. As president of the organization, Reed spends her time guiding SHI forward with Central American farmers, Central American staff, Board members, US staff and supporters, bringing together a wide variety of individuals to create a better future. In recent years she has received an honorary doctorate for her work, along with many awards such as the Yves Rocher Women of the Earth award and Etown E-chievement award.

Greg Field - Vice President (2006)

Greg joins SHI after serving for five years as the Executive Director at Peace Action Maine (PAM), where he was responsible for program coordination, financial management, and outreach. Greg has a background in the academic world, having taught recent US History and History of Technology at Rutgers University and the University of Michigan-Dearborn. While in Michigan, Greg served on the board of several organizations, including the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Ann Arbor and a term as President of the board of the Ann Arbor Learning Community, a community school with a curriculum focused on service learning and an organic farm. When not at the SHI office, Greg spends his time tending his own vegetables in the summer, and x-c skiing as much as possible in the winter.

Sarah Kennedy - Outreach Director (2003)

Sarah Kennedy started with SHI as our Development Director, before moving on to concentrate on working with community groups and individuals who want to learn about the issues that SHI addresses and help others learn too. Sarah has studied at the University of Costa Rica and has a B.A. in International Affairs and Spanish with a concentration in Latin American Studies from the University of Maine. She joins SHI after serving as the volunteer coordinator for a small Nicaraguan organization specializing in education and community development. Sarah works out of a home office in North Carolina and coordinates SHI's Smaller World Program.

Christina Venessa Becherer - Development Coordinator (2007)

Christina graduated from Webster University in Saint Louis, MO with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism and a minor concentration in International Human Rights. In addition to a television news background, she has worked for the Development Department of the Saint Louis Zoo and as a freelance journalist for official projects of the United Nations. She also managed humanitarian assistance projects on an international scale through the R4O Project (Rock 4 Orphans) and currently volunteers her time as founder and director of Pay Art Forward, an arts-based outreach program for disadvantaged youth. In the year before starting work with SHI, her major focus was on investigating and publicizing modern slavery. Due to her international accomplishments, Christina was recently accepted into the prestigious Young Professionals in Foreign Policy, and is active in the UNA's Young Professionals for International Cooperation.

Mary Ann Perlman - Major Gifts Coordinator (2008)

Mary Ann Perlman was born and raised in New Jersey by parents who practiced organic gardening in the days when mosquito trucks sprayed pesticide clouds over unsuspecting suburbia. Mary Ann has BA in Human Communication from Rutgers University, and served as President and Executive Director of Somerset Humane Society in North Branch, NJ. At the Packet Business Journal in Princeton, NJ, she wrote features that focused on corporate social responsibility, and received a New Jersey Press Association Award for articles on Mothers Against Drunk Driving's influence on sagging liquor industry earnings. She has worked as a freelance writer, event planner, tutor, teacher of special needs children, and mother of two. After a rewarding day of working with the excellent supporters of SHI, Mary Ann can often be found hiking Mount Desert Island with her favorite canine, Lucy.

Ruth Sullivan - Administrative Assistant (2008)

Ruth comes to SHI with a background in land conservation, sustainable agriculture and local food systems. She has worked in program and policy development, membership, and outreach for American Farmland Trust, Future Harvest-Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, and Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture. Ruth has spent the last four years running an organic, grass-based livestock farm in Blue Hill, Maine with her husband, and working as the Membership and Marketing Coordinator at the Blue Hill Food Co-op. She enjoys playing the West African djembe, folk dancing, kayaking, cooking, and hanging-out with her dog, Lola.