Bethany M. Dunbar

Tell us a bit about your background and how it helped shape the expertise you bring to CAE.

Bethany M. Dunbar’s background is in journalism and agriculture. She is a former president of the Vermont Press Association, award winning investigative journalist, editor, photographer, and photo editor with some experience in radio and television as well. She is the author and photographer of a book of agricultural profiles and a town history book for the town of Lowell, Vermont. She and her first husband owned a small dairy farm with Jersey cows, which is what led her to concentrate on covering agricultural stories and economic trends. Covering the beginnings of the Center for an Agricultural Economy drew her to want to join this amazing team

What excites you about your work and/or the work of CAE?

I love working with my Community Connections team at CAE because we are building community every day, in ways that might seem unexpected or nontraditional. Our nimble organization allows us to try things others might not dare to do. We emphasize relationships, shared learning, care, and empathy in all that we do. Listening is at the core of our work.

What brings you joy? (work or otherwise)

I find joy in new leadership that emerges within our community and teams. It’s exciting to see folks of all ages and demographics finding their voices and their own power to make changes in systems that no longer function well.

What brings you hope? (work or otherwise)

I find hope in everything CAE does to try to make our local food systems work better for our farmers and our community.