Kelly Larsen

Kelly supports Farms Fund farmers to scale their businesses and achieve land ownership, protecting critically endangered farmland in the Chicago Metro region. She provides technical assistance to establish farm operations and leverage available resources to meet their goals. Kelly has over 20 years of experience in sustainable agriculture, including farm production, design and operations. Kelly’s work has focused on equity including small farm businesses development support through USDA beginning farmer training programs, as well as market channel identification for farmers.

Prior to joining The Conservation Fund, Kelly was the Associate Vice President of Windy City Harvest at the Chicago Botanic Garden, leading workforce development urban agriculture programs and operations. Kelly has a degree in environmental studies from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago and lives on the West Side of Chicago, where she runs a community farm and native gardens with her partner.