Our founding board consists of seven seats drawn from the community, partner organizations and staff. Board terms last two years and are elected at the annual general meeting, held in February each year.

2016-2017 Board of Directors

Cameron Stiff, President

Cameron is passionate about the development of sustainable, local and healthy food systems.  He has been working on environmental issues for over 12 years, focusing on climate, food systems, waste management, and community development. He is currently the Director of Finance and Development for Compost Montreal, Treasurer of the Carrefour Alimentaire Centre Sud, and Secretary of the board of the Urban Agriculture Lab (AU/Lab).

Esme Terry, Treasurer

Esme, originally from England, has called Hudson home since 2011. She connects with food in the garden, where she has learned over the years to grow her family's summer menu, and preserve much of it for the icy seasons. As an alternative health practitioner, she uses food as medicine, as the baseline for holistic wellness. She also works in administration for Food Secure Canada.

Vanessa Waters, Secretary

Veteran forager Vanessa Waters shares her knowledge of foraging as a means of empowerment to combat a scarcity mindset. She looks at foraging as a collaborative activity that  requires a deep connection to place.  Vanessa is also an artist, blogger and multi-passionate entrepreneur who enjoys participating in craft fairs and farmer's markets. She believes in the beauty and power of the human spirit. Vanessa volunteers at a female sexual assault intervention centre in the West Island, is a certified reiki practitioner, and collaborator in the creation of Women’s Workshop Weekend. Every fall she leads a foraging tour in collaboration with artist Natalie Doonan founder of le Sensorium funded by the Concordia Sustainability Action Fund.

Carol Outram, Advisory Committee Rep

As the representative for the Advisory Committee, Carol provides a valuable link to experience and specialty knowledge.  Born and educated in the United Kingdom, she has a BA Hons in Textiles and a Post Graduate Degree in Education. “My formative years were spent exploring the rugged Derbyshire countryside – badger watching in the bluebell woods, bird watching and berry picking on the Roman Road, and hiking over the heather-covered moorlands." She worked for many years in Toronto and in the international arena as a consultant encouraging emerging design talent, marketing, and assisting micro-economic development initiatives - including working closely with many First Nation groups. Carol began attending HFC meetings early on and is drawn to the entrepreneurial spirit of the organization. She shares the beliefs of grow local, make local, buy local as well as the love of place of the Town of Hudson. She currently works as a design and marketing consultant from her textile design studio in Hudson. 

Loïc Freeman-Lavoie, Staff Rep

Loïc  (B.A. Urban Studies, Concordia University) is the community and logistics manager of the farm. He has gained valuable experience relevant to community projects through his work with the Concordia Food Coalition, Hudson Food Collective, Santropol Roulant and different experiences on farms and urban agriculture initiatives since 2012. He has an overflowing hunger for making the connection between food and all aspects of life; be it with culture, economics, or the environment. He believes in the potential of the HFC to engage these issues and seeks to do the same with  his involvement. Loïc's passion for food begins and ends with celebration; best shared with others. Any time, any place! 

Sonya Girard, Partner Organization Rep

Sonya is a Graduate of the School of Community and Public Affairs & Human Geography at Concordia University (2013), an NDG urban gardener and a co-founder of Transition NDG. With a long time interest in social and environmental justice issues, she believes that integrating a holistic, participatory approach while weaving stronger relationships, helps facilitate the emergence of creative solutions towards healing our planet’s interconnected crises – from climate change to economic injustices. Sonya considers herself to be a creative artisan of transformation.

Indrek Romet, Community Rep

Indrek grew up running and skiing through the parks and trails of Hudson. After completing his BSc in Psychology at McGill University’s downtown campus, he moved back to Hudson to continue his studies in Ecological Agriculture at McGill’s Macdonald campus. He believes the Hudson Food Collective’s projects will help Hudson become a leader in sustainable development. He is also a co-founder of usefulscience.org; a science outreach website that summarizes scientific articles for the public.