Joe Barbaree Email & Phone Number

Athens, Georgia, United States

Serve as a regional leader in conservation and farmland protection in Georgia through farmer technical support, land access, and implementation of key USDA NRCS resources, including RCPP, ACEP-ALE, and outreach program agreements.Lead organizational staff in successfully facilitating more than $2.6 million in new conservation projects, negotiating complex and innovative acquisitions of working lands, and transferring acquired lands to appropriate landowners and underserved farmers.Use farmland access and farmer support tools to break down historic financial and land ownership barriers which have prevented underserved groups in Georgia from fair access to land and resources, especially strategies to support Black land ownership and tenure.Oversee the strategic direction and priorities of Athens Land Trust as a major conservation and social justice entity in the state, including management of complex partnerships, participation in working groups at the local, regional and state levels, development of diverse funding streams, and implementation of the organization's strategic conservation priorities.Effectively steward and protect more than 22,000 acres of critical habitat and farmland across 42 counties in Georgia, ensuring long-term preservation of land and resources for future generations.

Athens, Georgia, United States

Work with a diverse program team to manage and expand rural development projects in at-risk communities of GeorgiaCoordinate the Planning Rural Opportunities for Prosperity and Economic Leadership (PROPEL) program in 14 counties, including strategic planning, technical assistance, and project implementation with diverse coalitions of community stakeholdersManage tracking, reporting, and compliance for three USDA grants, including two Rural Community Development Initiative (RCDI) projects, and a Rural Placemaking Innovation Challenge (RPIC) projectBuild deep relationships with stakeholders in order to support equitable development in underserved communities, including local government, service providers, industries, and community groups

Athens, Georgia, United States

Led the development of community-based research and evaluation of programming through UGA Extension in direct partnership with Extension administration, county agents, and partners in multiple counties of GeorgiaWorked in collaboration with faculty members to research and implement best practices in program development, long term evaluation, and community partnership for UGA ExtensionResearched and generated funding proposals to support research efforts for identified priority areas, including community needs assessments and UGA Extension capacity building

The Plains, Ohio

Led a team of 10 program staff in creating and delivering sustainable agriculture programming throughout Appalachian Ohio and West Virginia in order to support underserved farmersManaged $800,000 program budget and oversaw daily operations, including staff roles and workplans, project timelines, data collection and evaluation, and reporting for numerous private and public funding sources simultaneously, such as the U.S. Department of AgricultureWorked with 400 diversified farmers annually to understand their technical assistance needs in order to develop on-farm education, mentorship opportunities, and comprehensive resourcesDeveloped regional partnerships to research best practices in sustainable agriculture, measure program efficacy, identify new areas of opportunity, and create best practices for replicability across subregions of Appalachia, including long-term research partnerships with Ohio State University, Central State University, and West Virginia UniversityBuilt collaborations between diverse networks of Appalachian farmers and regional markets, including retailers, distributors, public school districts, healthcare institutions, and universities

Cleveland/Akron, Ohio Area

Coordinated the build-out and management of commercial properties in the Cleveland area, including planning, coordination, budgeting, supervision, and expense tracking for all projectsEnsured compliance with legal requirements, codes, and relevant regulations in the City of Cleveland, including rental agreements, building permits, and contracts with trades professionalsPerformed community and market research, including federal, state, and city funding opportunities for economic development and building renovation

Cleveland, Ohio

Served as lead and administrator for all new business inquiries in the North Collinwood neighborhood of Cleveland, connecting startups with business planning, financial assistance, site selection, and incubation - resulting in the launch of more than 40 new enterprises along urban core commercial districtsCoordinated more than 300 existing businesses in the North Collinwood neighborhood of Cleveland with technical assistance based on identified needs, including financing, relocation, building improvements, real estate acquisition, business networking, and marketing Administrated all City of Cleveland economic development programs at the neighborhood level, including management of all business customer files, complex applications and documentation, sensitive information from diverse clientele, and tracking of project timelines and budgeting Developed professional relationships with partners across Cleveland and Cuyahoga County to support neighborhood community development programming, including small business development centers, arts and cultural institutions, community development corporations, elected officials, and philanthropic organizations Maintained annual budgets and project files for a variety of community development programming, providing ongoing updates to local and national funders utilizing metrics based reporting

The Plains, Ohio

Worked independently to assist executive director with creation of funding proposals, budgets, and reports for diverse community development efforts ranging from watershed restoration to social enterprise support in Appalachian OhioManaged writing and submission of all projects under strict deadlines and complex submission requirements from numerous public and private funding partners and local municipalities Coordinated multiple partner calendars to discuss proposal development, budget creation, editing, and submission to funding entities

The Plains, Ohio

Researched, wrote, and secured more than $2 million in private and public funding for multiple projects serving Appalachian communities, including the first USDA Farm to School Grant in southeast OhioIncreased the capacity of local food systems in Appalachian Ohio by partnering with 300 small and mid-size growers to sustainably grow produce, reach new markets, and build long-term wealthExpanded core agriculture program areas to support regional production, wholesale aggregation, and institutional sourcing of local products, including launching a multi-county farm to school project with partners from public schools, government, nonprofits, and producer groupsMaintained extensive rural development partnerships across Appalachian Ohio to achieve sustainable economic development regionally; actively partner with Appalachian Center for Economic Networks, Central Appalachian Network, Appalachian Partnership for Economic Growth, Appalachian Regional Commission and Ford Foundation WealthWorks community

Athens, Ohio

Created pressing news releases and compelling stories for local and national publication pertaining to events in the Ohio University engineering communityCovered school-wide events through multimedia outlets, from speeches by national scholars in the field of genetics to national aviation conferences and breakthroughs in diabetes research

Lodi, Ohio

Worked with summer food program to ensure that at-risk children received proper meals during the summer months in coordination with Ohio Association of FoodbanksManaged medium to large groups of at-risk children aged 6 to 16 daily, addressing sensitive issues that arose and keeping involved with group activitiesTutored students from kindergarten through 7th grade while out of school during the summer to bridge idle gaps in learning, including hands-on environmental science and math lessons

Masters Of Agricultural And Environmental Education

B.A., Communication

Activities and Societies: Lambda Pi Eta, Zeta Zeta Chapter - Treasurer, Dean's List placement - 8 semesters, The Dynamo newspaper - Editor.