Jess’s work at Hedgebrook is a serendipitous confluence of her training as both an organic farmer and chef. Her life is centered around food—growing, preparing, serving, eating. She has a bachelor’s degree in ecology and writing & rhetoric and a master’s degree in environmental studies: sustainable food & farming from the University of Montana. She moved to Whidbey Island to become Farm Manager & Lead Instructor at The Organic Farm School, a non-profit farmer training program. Jess spent a life-changing six months at the Rome Sustainable Food Project, an Alice Waters farm-to-table cooking internship at the American Academy in Rome, where she deepened her appreciation for the relationship between the agricultural and culinary aspects of food. Eating is a universal act, and Hedgebrook’s writers are sharing universal truths. Jess is honored to nourish them as they nourish our world. Her advice: “Cut the flower! Eat the cookie!”