Dorothy has over 30 years of leadership experience as a non-profit executive. As a consultant, she is a strategist, researcher, convenor, and advisor that helps people and organizations find and follow their path forward. Her work focuses on organizational and program development and evaluation, leadership mentoring and advising, and interim services. Her approach is rooted in collaboration, justice, innovative problem-solving, and a deep respect for natural ecosystems.
She was the founding Executive Director of The Carrot Project which provides capital and business advising for small and mid sized farms in the US. This organization has supported hundreds of farmers and food businesses each year and was one of the earliest opportunities for sustainable agriculture impact investments. In addition to her role at The Carrot Project, she co-founded the Agricultural Viability Alliance to support agricultural business advisors and advocate for federal funding. Other leadership roles include, as Executive Director, transforming MassRecycle in collaboration with a multi-sector board to create award-winning programs and, as director of development, establishing a professional development department at the Conservation Law Foundation.
She serves on multiple boards all involved in moving capital into the agricultural system, including the Board of Managers of the Flexible Capital Fund, a Corporator at Walden Mutual Bank, the Advisory Board of The Carrot Project, a Trustee of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture, and a Technical Advisor for Northeast SARE.
With a master’s in environmental policy from Tufts University and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Purdue University, her education grounds her in economics and natural ecosystems, and their impact on our food and agricultural system. While working in a biology laboratory in Switzerland, her experiences outside the lab sparked her passion for organic agriculture and regional food systems, contrasting with her exposure to conventional agriculture growing up in the Midwest.
LinkedIn: Dorothy Suput