Leslie Knox
Board Chair
Leslie strives to be the change she wants to see in the world. She has 15 years of experience in community outreach and social service, and mental health and guardianship for the elderly. She has a Master in Business Administration from the Simon Business School with a concentration in medical management. She now focuses her time on urban farming and community outreach. She also serves on several other community boards, including Friends of the Public Market.
Amber Powers
Board Treasurer
Amber grew up in Maplewood and is a proud city resident and supporter of the local environmental justice movement. She holds degrees in Urban Planning from the University at Buffalo and Teaching English as a New Language (ENL) from Nazareth and received a Fulbright Scholarship to work on education issues in Nepal from 2011-2012. With a decade of experience as an ENL teacher and registrar for the RCSD, Amber is now working full time on education design and curriculum development.
Stephanie Benway
Board Member
Stephanie is an ecological landscape designer and educator. She earned a bachelor's degree in Anthropology from SUNY Geneseo in 2008 and developed her passion for the environment while doing archaeology fieldwork from 2007-2014. After completing a Permaculture Design Certification in 2014 she returned to Rochester, NY where she began farming and teaching in urban settings. She now works as the Environmental Program Coordinator for the City of Rochester’s Department of Recreation and Youth Services.
Nathaniel Mich
Executive Director
A lifelong resident of Rochester, Nathaniel joins Taproot Collective with a decade of experience in urban agriculture, community development programs, and nonprofit management. Nathaniel has been a member of the research team at the Food Systems Planning and Healthy Communities Lab, managed urban ag programs at Foodlink, served as the Board Chair of the South Wedge Planning Committee, and was a nationally recognized chocolatier with Hedonist Artisan Chocolates. He is the Chair of the Rochester Food Policy Council and holds a Masters in Urban Planning from the University at Buffalo. Outside of work, Nathaniel is an avid gardener, aspiring potter, and a lover of table-top role-playing games.
Asimi Coleman
Youth Employment Program Coordinator
Asimi is a Rochester native with years of experience in youth development and formal education in Black Studies, Women's Studies, and Epidemiology. Asimi's main goal in life is to dismantle oppressive systems and to create safer spaces for marginalized peoples. She believes all justice work is intertwined and is excited to switch gears and focus more energy around food justice. In her free time, Asimi can be found rolling in circles for hours on quad skates and she dabbles in backyard farming. Tomatoes are her favorite thing to grow each year - multiple plants of different sizes and colors!
Kadin Benjamin
AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer
After studying Digital Humanities and Computer Science at RIT, Kadin earned his undergraduate degree in 2023, and now he gets his hands dirty at a community garden in the North East. Kadin's care to nurture urban agriculture and new cultures of place has guided him to serve with Taproot and City Roots Community Land Trust as the 2023-2024 Rochester Youth Year VISTA!
Taproot is a tax-exempt 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization (tax ID #82-1454431)
© Taproot Collective 2024