Our Team & Directors

Josh has been working in agriculture longer than he hasn’t. At 13, eager to get a job he found employment through the farm labour pool in Niagara. Since then he has worked milking 250+ cows an evening, tractoring in a 3 acre greenhouse, picking cones on a seed orchard on Vancouver Island and more. He’s had a taste of most aspects in agriculture giving him a well rounded understanding. Outside of his work for the NFU, Josh farms small grains he then mills into flour, and grows vegetables and strawberries in Harrowsmith, Ontario.

Joan Brady and her family operate a small-scale, community-facing farm on the shores of Lake Huron, just outside Grand Bend, Ontario. Three generations of the family work together tending a small orchard, berry bushes, a cut flower garden, and a vegetable patch. Joan brings broad agricultural expertise, with experience across the hog, beef, dairy, cash crop, horticulture, and meat processing sectors. Her off-farm work focuses on business, community, and organizational development. A member of the National Farmers Union for more than 20 years, Joan has served in leadership roles both nationally and internationally. She now continues her involvement at the regional level, supporting strong communities, sound policies and sustainable farms.

David Mazur-Goulet is the co-owner and operator of Heartbeet Farm, a certified organic community-supported agriculture vegetable operation he runs alongside Kate Garvie in North Augusta, Ontario. David holds diplomas in Entrepreneurship and Green Business Management from Algonquin College, and a certificate in Sustainable Vegetable Production from the University of Vermont. Member of the NFU since 2014, David has had a number of roles at the local level and continues to share his expertise on various provincial and national committees. David’s background spans heavy construction, renewable energy co-ops, worker co-ops, non-profits, web development, and digital marketing — experience that shapes a systems-thinking approach he brings to problem solving, stakeholder engagement, and helping organizations do more with less.

Claire Perttula (she/her) started farming in 2017. She loves growing potatoes and raising grass-fed beef. Right now, Claire is the Food Justice Projects Coordinator at Malvern Family Resource Centre in Scarborough, Ontario, where she manages Malvern Urban Farm and its accompanying farmers’ market. Claire works with 40+ community members and a staff team of 3-6 depending on the time of year to cultivate 2 acres of public land with lots of diverse vegetables and a new 1200 cell hydroponic microfarm. Claire is also a PhD student at York University studying food systems planning and policy and the succession crisis.

Bio coming soon

Manish Kushwaha is the founder of Gaia Organics, a certified organic seed farm and nursery in the Ottawa region. His work centers on seed sovereignty, farmer-led plant breeding, and building resilient regional food systems through biodiversity and open-pollinated crops. He participates in collaborative research and landrace breeding projects with farmers and researchers across Canada, focusing on crops adapted to northern growing conditions. As a tenant farmer on public land, Manish is also engaged in advocacy related to fair farm tenure, land access, and the stewardship of publicly held agricultural landscapes. As a BIPOC Advisor and Board Member with the National Farmers Union–Ontario, Manish brings perspectives from ecological farming, seed stewardship, and equity in agriculture to support stronger and more inclusive farming communities across the province.

Madeline “Maddie” Marmor (she/her) is a first generation, landless farmer, facilitator, consultant and Circle Keeper. Her practices are rooted in the relational legacies between Native and Non-native restorative justice practitioners. Madeline’s experience grows out of food system spaces like La Vía Campesina, the Nyéléni Global Movement for Food Sovereignty, and the National Farmers Union – Canada. Agroecological organizing, food sovereignty principles and popular education are fundamental to her process and offerings.
She is a graduate of the Conflict Management and Mediation Certificate Program at Conrad Grebel College, Waterloo University, and holds a B.A. in Media & the Public Interest from Western University. Madeline has co-produced podcasts like Sow and Grow Podcast and supported food and farm policy efforts such as the Who Will Feed Us report. Alongside friends, comrades, clients and community members, she has coordinated and organized hyper-local to global scaled events, gatherings, conferences and forums such 3rd Nyeleni Forum for Food Sovereignty, Youth Climate Action Conference, and NFU Youth Retreats. Madeline loves everything floral, growing fruits (trellising tomato plants makes her blood sing!) and earnestly holds space, together with her community, for the emergence of a just, and more equitable food future. A future she thinks is completely possible, if not inevitable!

Stuart is the co-owner and operator of Rooted Oak Farm, a certified organic CSA and market garden supplying veggies to customers and members from Ottawa to Kingston. In addition to his role at NFU-O and on the farm Stuart works with the EFAO as their Government Relations Coordinator.  He also sits on the Policy Working Group for the coalition Farmers for Climate Solutions. He is a former Youth President of the National Farmers Union(NFU) and former Vice president of Canadian Organic Growers (COG). Previously Stuart worked as the Communications and Membership Manager at the Organic Council of Ontario. When not otherwise occupied he helps produce and host the Sow and Grow Podcast exploring the forces that shape Canadian agriculture.