Our Team
Marilyn McHugh
co-founder
Marilyn is the founding Executive Director and co-founder of The Hummingbird Project and Cleveland Seed Bank. A biologist and avid seed saver, Marilyn has a Master’s in Public Health from Case Western and is a 2012 graduate of Seed School at Native Seeds/SEARCH. Marilyn is a faculty member at Earth University (Navdanya) in India where she delivers courses on seed saving, soil microbiology and agroecology. Marilyn researches and selects seed varieties that grow well and adapt in our temperate, Northeast Ohio climate and teaches seed saving workshops both nationally and internationally.
Chris Kennedy
co-founder
Chris received his Master’s in Education and has fifteen years of teaching experience in diverse settings across Northeast Ohio and abroad. Chris is a faculty member at Earth University (Navdanya) in India where he delivers courses on seed saving, soil microbiology and agroecology. Chris is a 2015 graduate from the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance intensive Seed School program and oversees all of the educational programming for CSB. He is also a graduate of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s Tree Steward Training program and is passionate about reforestation.
kate sopko
interim executive director
Kate has worked to influence policy and investment decisions toward climate and economic justice through communications and development work with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Policy Matters Ohio. She has produced a series of largescale public art projects, as lead artist of The Fixers (SPACES) and Fallout (MOCA Cleveland), facilitator for City Repair Cleveland (Neighborhood Connections) and arts administrator for Pull!, artist William Pope.L’s 3-day endurance performance held in Cleveland in 2013 (SPACES). Kate is honored to have worked with the Green Triangle to organize several permaculture design certification courses for Northeast Ohio students.
Danielle Jacobs
program and Education manager
Dani received her BS in Biological Sciences from Ohio University in 2019 and started working in the nonprofit sector by joining AmeriCorps and teaching environmental education with Rural Action in the small, rural communities of Appalachia. During her second year of AmeriCorps, she served at the University of Akron Field Station, continuing to teach about environmental topics like biodiversity, plant-pollinator interactions, and climate disruption. She is a certified Volunteer Seed Collector with Project Wingspan and has completed Seed School through the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance. Leading the seed-saving workshops for our popular Seed Library Program, she is passionate about connecting people to nature through informal education and hands-on approaches.
maci nelson
NOWCorps Education and Outreach Specialist
Maci is a NOWCorps education and outreach specialist serving The Cleveland Seed. She's also a writer, poet, hosts The Landscape Nerd podcast and is a project manager with LAND studio. As a Cleveland native and outdoorswoman, Maci pursued a Master of Landscape Architecture from Kent State University in 2020 to learn how spaces are built in Northeast Ohio. Now, she focuses on helping others understand how design impacts the places and spaces we love. As a neurodivergent woman from a neurodivergent family, she works to showcase and make room for the diverse ways people experience outdoor spaces, from the garden to the national park.
Board of Directors
CHRIS KENNEDY
BOARD PRESIDENT
Chris received his Master’s in Education and has fifteen years of teaching experience in diverse settings across Northeast Ohio and abroad. Chris is a faculty member at Earth University (Navdanya) in India where he delivers courses on seed saving, soil microbiology and agroecology. Chris is a 2015 graduate from the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance intensive Seed School program and oversees all of the educational programming for CSB. He is also a graduate of the Western Reserve Land Conservancy’s Tree Steward Training program and is passionate about reforestation.
ANNE LEONE
SECRETARY
Anne earned her MPA in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. Anne is leading our organization’s work to change the seed laws in the state of Ohio. She worked as The Hummingbird Project’s Social Media Director and Outreach Coordinator from 2013 through 2016. She lives in New York City.
LARA ROKETENETZ
BOARD MEMBER
Lara has a Master’s in Biology from John Carroll University and a Ph.D. in Integrated Bioscience from The University of Akron. She is currently in school at Cleveland State University earning a graduate certificate in Nonprofit Management and serves on the boards of several nonprofits. She was the recipient of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History Conservation Educator of the Year in 2017. Lara understands the importance of connecting people to nature in order to inspire stewardship and community action.
MARINA MARQUEZ
BOARD MEMBER
Marina is the branch manager for Cleveland Public Library’s (CPL) East 131st Branch and helps facilitate our partnership with CPL and the Seed Library Program. Marina is a passionate visionary and advocates for all of our programming. She is currently working towards the goal of having a Seed Library in every CPL branch. As a pollinator enthusiast herself, she helps to coordinate our annual milkweed seed collection and recently built a monarch way station at her branch.
THOMAS KENNEDY
TREASURER
Thomas has been a Finance Manager at KeyBank for the last 15 years, and has an MBA in Finance from CWRU’s Weatherhead School of Management. Additionally, he provides expertise, support and advice to The Hummingbird Project and Cleveland Seed Bank regarding accounting, human resources, and strategic initiatives.
