Originally from Northern Virginia, Medusa moved to the Chapel Hill/Durham area in 2021 and quickly began meeting the local community. She works as both a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and a Customer Development Executive, blending clinical insight with strategic relationship building.

Medusa is deeply committed to building inclusive and creative spaces. In July 2024, they partnered with SEEDS and launched the Neurospicy Creators Space, a neurodivergent-friendly open studio that offers free art supplies and fosters community through creativity and self-guided expression. Whether crafting pottery, collaging, painting, or playing games like D&D or Machi Koro with friends, she finds joy in connection, play, and shared experiences.

They are excited to contribute to the SEEDS Board and feel especially connected to how SEEDS integrates nature, gardening, and community impact. Medusa believes in the power of shared spaces to heal, grow, and transform lives.

Melanie (she/they) moved to Durham in 2023, and since the moment she arrived she has been delighted by the robust sense of community and solidarity the city exudes. After five years of traveling the east coast as a beekeeper and farmer, Melanie has expanded her purview to become a policy advocate for farmers and farming communities. Alongside her agricultural career, she remains an avid educator and writer; Melanie has collaborated with educators, farmers, and food system stakeholders to develop and apply curricula on farming for school-aged youth and disabled communities, as well as establishing pollinator ecosystems for farmers. Her narrative work focuses on farming communities, ecological justice, and resilient agriculture, and has been published in such outlets as Insider, Wired, and Whetstone. Ever the polymath, Melanie recently became an accredited CPT (Certified Personal Trainer) with the goal of establishing a mobility preservation program serving working class and laboring communities such as farmworkers. 

Melanie's meandering professional pathway through agriculture as a farmer, educator, writer, and advocate have instilled in her a deep sense of justice and compassion. She cares (arguably, too much) about cultivating nurturing environments for communities to explore their connections to the ecosystem around them. When she became aware of SEEDS, naturally she felt compelled to support their efforts in doing just that. Melanie is overjoyed to have been trusted with the opportunity of supporting the necessary work SEEDS does as co-chair of the board, and she is most excited to be of service to the incredible staff and dedicated community around the organization. 

Born in Peru, Paola is a mixed media artist and dancer who resides in Durham since 2005. A fierce advocate for human, social, gender rights and Neurodiversity inclusion, she believes strongly in intentional active community collaboration and participation to increase the levels of emotional intelligence and mental health. She lives in downtown Durham with her husband and their two dogs.

Katherine has a lifelong love for plants, dirt, and the natural world.  She has a degree in horticulture, and turned to wildlife gardening as a way to combat climate anxiety. She’s made an ongoing project of transforming her yard here in town, into a vibrant and diverse habitat for native species.  Katherine is also on the board of Backyard Butterflies, a non-profit dedicated to creating more wildlife habitat in the triangle.  

Katherine served in the Peace Corps in Honduras in 2002-2004, where she helped families and schools plant fruit trees and vegetable gardens to improve child nutrition.  (She realized on a recent visit – to her dismay – she encouraged the community to plant entirely too many mangos!)  In Honduras she got to experience the magic of Blue Morpho butterflies (and also met her husband).   Upon returning to the US, she realized she had an equal passion for people-centered work.  She took a Master’s in Social Work, and has served the Durham community for over 20 years in mental health, community health, and social services.

Katherine loves sharing the joys of the natural world with other people.  She has a long history of organizing plant swaps in unsuspecting community groups because she has more plants than space.  Katherine loves to help friends and neighbors choose the best plants for their yards, replacing invasive species with native plants. She has a talent for plant identification.

Katherine joins the board of SEEDS, excited to promote food security, support arts programs in the garden, and encourage more people to play in the dirt. 

Description to come!