Madeline (Maddie) Price grew up in New Jersey suburbia but spent enough time outdoors hiking, birding, kayaking, and gardening to cultivate a passion for protecting the natural world. Maddie became interested in the intersection of environmental conservation, agricultural sustainability, and food justice while pursuing a B.S. in Environmental Studies at Gettysburg College in the “breadbasket of Pennsylvania.” Afterwards, she worked as a volunteer coordinator at the Fox Haven Organic Farm & Learning Center through the AmeriCorps State program, Volunteer Maryland. Maddie also earned a M.S. in Conservation & Rural Development from the University of Kent in England–examining the UK’s shaping of a new, more environmentally-oriented agricultural policy in preparation for Brexit for her dissertation.
As a Harvest VISTA, Maddie now coordinates the King County Farmers Share program of Harvest Against Hunger, based in Seattle, Washington. Harvest Against Hunger (formerly Rotary First Harvest) is a nonprofit that tackles hunger and food waste by building partnerships along the supply chain, connecting farms, food pantries, truckers, and volunteers to increase access to fresh produce across Washington–and across the US through the Harvest VISTA program. The King County Farmers Share is an expansion of Harvest Against Hunger’s farm to food pantry work within King County, Washington. KCFS utilizes grant funding from the King Conservation District to allow hunger relief agencies to purchase directly from local small-scale farmers. As the King County Farmers Share VISTA, Maddie looks forward to using creative capacity building to develop a strong and sustainable local food system.