Staff

Esther Trakinski
Board Member (she/her)
After spending more than 20 years practicing law, Esther shifted her professional focus in 2013 to help train—and hopefully inspire—a new generation of food advocates. In furtherance of this mission, Esther teaches courses about food systems, food policy, and food advocacy at NYU and Fordham Law School. She also works with New York City public school’s Office of Food and Nutrition Services, serving as their first ever Farm to School Coordinator, advises advocacy campaigns that seek legislative solutions to food systems issues, including the successful New York Grown for New York Kids (NYGFFNYK) campaign, helps shape food systems platforms for political campaigns, and serves on the advisory boards of several non-profit organizations and sustainable food start-up companies. Esther splits her time between NYC and Columbia County, where she happily supports the (delicious) local farm economy in the warm months, spends the cold months serving the community as a volunteer member of the Catamount Ski Patrol, and spends as much time as she can all year round taking long walks with her two dogs, Jake and Ben.