Board of Directors

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Founded in 1997, TallGrass sells health foods to stores across Canada with a variety of brands and products including Botanica, Host Defense and MegaFood. A recent winner of the CHFA Supplier of Excellence award and Business in Vancouver 40 under 40 award, Matt is committed to building a successful business with the goal of growing personal, community and planetary wellness.

In addition to running TallGrass, Matt also serves on the Board of the Vancouver Dance Centre and the Fresh Roots Urban Farm Society, and recently served two terms on the Board of the Canadian Health Food Association, chairing the Government Relations committee. Matt lives in Vancouver with his wife Shino, daughter Emma and Milo the wonder dog.

the organizational challenges of financial management and scarce capital to increase financial resilience. In addition to experience in the conventional banking stream, Scott leads a team of funding practitioners at Vancity Credit Union, providing a range of financial services and tools to charities, not-for-profits, social enterprises and cooperatives. A charismatic people leader with highly effective communication skills, Scott has a track record of successfully leading teams and building collaborative internal and external partnerships to achieve strong results.

Tracy has 20 years of experience working as an activist on campaigns for diverse causes ranging from business and international human rights to the protection of ocean and forest ecosystems. As a Sessional Instructor, she had taught International Social Development and Canadian Social Policy for UBC Vancouver and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) BSW sections. She holds a Juris Doctor (Doctor of Law) and Master of Social Work from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelor of Arts in Child and Youth Care from the University of Victoria.

Heather also designs board and committee debriefs and education sessions for WATSON’s Governance Academy and plays a key role in our course development, including our newest course, Chair with Intention™.
Heather holds a Master of Science in Global Governance and Ethics from University College London and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of British Columbia. As part of her MSc program, Heather completed advanced courses in qualitative and quantitative methods and wrote a comprehensive research-based dissertation.
Prior to joining WATSON, Heather worked in the marketing department of a large global engineering firm. Heather interned with Amnesty International and was the content lead for the Bridging the Gap conference on international development at Engineers Without Borders. Heather grew up in Oakville, Ontario and has studied on three continents

Zahra has a Masters in Globalization and International Development from the University of Ottawa, a Bachelor’s Degree in History from UBC, and an Associate Certificate in Fundraising Management from BCIT. She is Chair of the BC Poverty Reduction Advisory Committee, an independent committee that advises government on policy developments related to poverty reduction and prevention. Zahra is on the board of Lookout Foundation and is a mentor with Dress for Success’s Professional Women’s Group. She also sits on a number of City of Vancouver advisory panels and working groups. Zahra was recognized as one of Business in Vancouver’s Forty Under 40 in 2019.
A working parent, Zahra is mother to a vivacious and curious school-age daughter who has been lucky enough to participate in a Fresh Roots summer camp. Though she lacks a green thumb, Zahra is passionate about food security, equity, and capacity building and is very excited to be part of the Fresh Roots board!

For work, she is a research assistant with the Hey Neighbour Collective, working to understand social connection and isolation in multi-unit residential buildings. Through this position, she has developed extensive qualitative and quantitative research experience and has presented findings at several conferences.
In her spare time, she enjoys keeping up with and contributing to various social justice causes. When it comes time to slow down, she enjoys gardening, baking bread from scratch, and bird watching.

Kristi has been providing mid-market businesses with relationship-focused, strategic financing and advice for more than twenty years. Kristi is Managing Partner at Krystal Growth Partners, one of the leading boutique private equity firms in the Vancouver area. Kristi previously served as Founder and National Managing Director of First West Capital, a junior capital firm serving the Canadian mid-market, where she grew that business from start-up to a national firm that funded over $250 million to more than 100 businesses. Kristi is honoured to have been recognized by EY as the Pacific Region’s 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year in the category of Business Disrupter for this work. Kristi holds a Master of Business Administration from UBC, as well as the ICD.D designation. In addition to her work with Fresh Roots, Kristi currently serves on a number of corporate, public sector and non-profit boards, including those of Douglas College, Aisle (formerly Lunapads), LIFT Philanthropy Partners, and the Fulmer Foundation. She also volunteers as a mentor with the Creative Destruction Lab. In 2017, Kristi received the Canadian Venture Capital Association’s Ted Anderson Community Leadership Award

During their time as a student, Ari had the opportunity to engage in a variety of domestic and international research projects centered on the development of sustainable pesticide alternatives. Ari has a deep passion for sustainable food systems and new farmer education. They believe that the future of our food system lies in resource-sharing, mentorship, and collaboration through farmer-to-farmer networks. In addition to their work at TFNFS, Ari is currently an Articling Agrologist at the BC Institute of Agrologists, a proud member of the National Farmers Union, and a board member at Fresh Roots Urban Farm.

During that time, she helped relaunch the SOYL program and ate more salad than she ever thought humanly possible! Inspired by her work with young people on the farms, Rosalind subsequently pursued a career in education. She trained as an elementary teacher, but has been teaching high school French Immersion in Burnaby since 2020. She is very excited to reconnect with her Fresh “roots” as a board member, and to contribute her historical knowledge of the organization as well as her insights into the world of teaching.