Rosario Maldonado

Rosario joined The Conservation Fund in 2024 as the Chicago Metro/Midwest Farms Fund Specialist. Her position assists with recruiting farmers into the program and supports the transition of farmers onto newly acquired farms by connecting the farmers to resources, funding opportunities and technical assistance. She provides property management oversight to ensure the on-farm infrastructure is serving the farmer’s production and growth goals and works with local and government organizations to connect with programs that support long-term land conservancy and sustainable food production.

Rosario is an urban agriculture expert with over a decade of experience in crop planning, farm operations, food safety, wholesale market readiness, produce distribution and workforce-development training programs in food systems. She was most recently directing farm operations across several sites within the city of Chicago, totaling 7 acres for the Chicago Botanic Garden; including food hub operations at Farm on Ogden — a living lab housing a community-focused retail space, commercial and teaching kitchens, large-scale aquaponics system and greenhouse production. Her work overseeing Windy City Harvest’s Farm Business Incubator program involved mentoring beginning farmers on scaling production and business development, which led her to the next step in helping producers acquire long-term land and building intergenerational wealth through the Farms Fund program. She holds certifications in Sustainable Urban Agriculture and Horticulture, Local Foods and Entrepreneurship, Good Agricultural Practices in the Food Safety Modernization Act through the Produce Alliance, and was mentored through the Wallace Center Community Food Systems Program.

Rosario is passionate about entrepreneurship, sustainable land stewardship, hyperlocal food systems and the food-as-medicine movement. As an avid nature lover, she enjoys farming, hiking, traveling to as many beaches as possible and enjoying delicious meals from her farmer and chef friends.