Dr. Erin Silva

The director of the OGRAIN program is Dr. Erin Silva. She is an associate professor of Organic and Sustainable Cropping Systems, director of the Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems, and Clif Bar Endowed Chair in Organic Agriculture and Outreach at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also runs the Organic and Sustainable Agriculture Research and Extension program at UW-Madison. Erin can be reached at Emsilva@wisc.edu.

Kelly Debbink

Kelly arrived in the role of outreach specialist for the OGRAIN program at UW Madison following a master’s degree in plant pathology. She organizes OGRAIN field days and the annual winter conference. Kelly also works to connect OGRAIN with Midwest TOPP, the Transition to Organic Partnership Program, a coalition working together to build a stronger, better connected support structure for transitioning and existing organic producers.

Fun Fact: Kelly spent several years hiking and camping in the Mojave Desert for work as a desert tortoise biologist before returning to school and joining OGRAIN.

Kelly can be reached at kelly.debbink@wisc.edu.

Claire Stedden

Claire supports research and outreach for the OGRAIN program including: developing, researching, and writing educational materials for growers; research and writing peer-reviewed publications encompassing primary research, literature reviews, and meta-analyses; program evaluation and design; project management; and fostering collaborations across the organic grain community.

Fun fact: Claire arrived at the OGRAIN program after bike touring across the US and volunteering at organic farms along the way.

Claire received her PhD in developmental, regenerative and stem cell biology from the University of Chicago, and is interested in the intersection of human health and agriculture from her time in the healthcare sector. Claire can be reached at Stedden@wisc.edu.