Welcome to the
Fruitful Communities forum!
It's been a tremendous year and now it's time to celebrate all the incredible developments that have happened this year.
The program.
5pm - 6pm
Networking
Welcome
Sonia Tyler - Public Relations, Roots Down
The story of Roots Down
Jamie Rosenthal - CEO and Founder, Roots Down
The Fruitful Libraries resolution
Miranda Rupkey - Policy and Research Manager, Roots Down
Introduction to panel discussion
Ted Terry - DeKalb County District 6 Commissioner
Panel discussion
Hosted by Sonia Tyler and Commissioner Ted Terry
Felton Williams - Special Projects Manager, DeKalb County
Teresa Totten - Programming and Services Coordinator, DeKalb County Libraries
Mya Swaby - GreenHive Leader and student at Georgia State University
Tamsin Leavy - Land steward
Jamie Rosenthal - CEO and Founder, Roots Down
Closing remarks
Tres Crow - Swiss Army Knife, Roots Down
8pm-9pm
Networking
The partners
The speakers
Sonia Tyler
Public Relations, Roots Down
Sonia is an "eco-warrior," passionate about fighting
climate change and improving health and wealth within communities of color. She uses her diverse origins and intense curiosity to share the stories she hopes will help heal the world.
Jamie Rosenthal
CEO and Founder, Roots Down
Jamie has been a land steward for almost 2 decades; growing food forests and pollinator habitat while also building programs and policy that protect these community land assets for years to come. His background in landscaping and farming has set him on a mission to blend the two and transform urban landscapes.
Miranda Rupkey
Policy and Research Manager, Roots Down
Miranda seeks to make solutions to environmental issues accessible in a way that is inclusive, inspiring, and actionable. Her greatest passion is working towards social change through policy and advocacy.
Ted Terry
District 6 Commissioner, DeKalb County
Commissioner Ted Terry has been committed to civic engagement and service for many years. In addition to a career with the Sierra Club, he was the Mayor of Clarkston, and is presently serving on the executive board of Georgia Democrats. As Super District 6 Commissioner, he focuses on the environment, housing, being a welcoming County, and urban agriculture.
Felton Williams
Special Projects Manager, DeKalb County
Felton B. Williams, currently serves as the Special Projects Manager/Senior Consultant for Department of Facilities Management-Operations Division (under the leadership of Deputy Director Kevin Buford). At the start of the Pandemic, he was pivotal in the emergency procurement of PPE (personal protection equipment) for DeKalb County when Facility Operations Division became the logical warehouse for “ground zero” storage and distribution which include overseeing/distributing thousands of essential supplies to several county buildings for employees, the public and the entire DeKalb County Government. He is a very dedicated employee of DeKalb County Government, because of his knowledge, and strong commitment to his job, always providing 100% customer service to the public, community organizations, employees, and the entire DeKalb County Government. Mr. Williams, has served in various positions -Senior Contract Compliance Officer; Contract Administrator, Deputy Director Purchasing Administration Division and Procurement Projects Manager.
Mr. Williams is an Alabama native; however, received a higher calling to make the “Peach State” his home to plant fertile seeds with family, friends and community in Stone Mountain. His hobbies include, landscaping, container & raised bed gardening (HGTV binge watching); cooking; walk/run & climbing Stone Mountain and volunteering.
His is graduate of Jacksonville State University (Gamecocks); happily married to his wife Angela and proud father to two daughters (Lauren & Alyson) that are graduates of Howard University. He’s of Christian faith being affiliated with a local church, and an active member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.
Teresa Totten
Programming and Services Coordinator, DeKalb County Libraries
Teresa Totten has worked in, around and for libraries since the 7th grade where she served as a page for the school media center. During her junior and senior years in college, she worked as a Library Assistant for the Eglin Air Force Base Library in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. After earning her undergraduate degree in Business Management/Marketing from Troy State University, she moved to Metro Atlanta and worked in various capacities, including membership services, with Lyrasis (formerly SOLINET) for 20 years (1985-2005). While at SOLINET, she earned her Master of Library and Information Science degree from the Clark-Atlanta School of Library and Information Science and was a member of the last graduating class before the school discontinued the program in 2005. After earning her MLS, she served for 2 years as the Business Research Librarian for the Dow Jones Business Center in the Woodruff Library in the Atlanta University Center (2005-2007). She began her career in public libraries with the Gwinnett County Public Library System where she served as the Assistant Branch Manager of the Centerville Branch for 2 years before joining the DeKalb County Public Library System as the Branch Manager for the Scott Candler Library in 2009. Since joining the DCPL staff, she has also served as Head of Reference at the Decatur Library and was the first manager of the new Stonecrest Library when it opened in 2011. In 2015, she joined the DCPL administrative team as Programming and Services Coordinator. In her current position, she oversees adult program development and implementation, literacy services and outreach services. She also facilitates the Adult Services Committee, Assistive Technology Committee and the Adult Services Roundtable Discussion. Ms. Totten is an active member of the Tau Pi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
Tamsin Leavy
Ecological landscaper
Hello my name is Tamsin. I am a horticulturalist, gardener, educator, dog and cat mom, daughter, best friend and animal activist. I am also the Community Garden Coordinator at Georgia Tech and the owner of Earth Girl Gardening and Design. My undergrad degrees are in anthropology, archeology, and horticulture and my masters degree is in education. Clearly l love education. Lately I have been trying to absorb as much as I can in landscape design, permaculture design, medicinal plant classes and even archery.
For most of my life my gardening skills and knowledge were acquired through my Italian grandfather, my British grandmother, my awesome mother, volunteering on an organic farm, living in a couple of eco villages and a love of the wild. Hiking all over this country has deepened my interest in plants, watersheds, soil health, insect health and so much more. This is what led me from 15 years in education to a horticulture degree at Oregon State University. I've never looked back. My hope moving forward is that i can assist, educate, and even build sustainable, pollinator friendly, food producing gardens in any space available for as many people that are ready to do it and be the change this planet needs
Mya Swaby
GreenHive Leader
Mya is a graduate of the GreenHive Leadership Program and a student at Georgia State University.
Tres Crow
Co-Owner and Swiss Army Knife, Roots Down
Tres is an experienced marketing and sales executive, with extensive experience developing and managing early stage startups.