Emma Frisch, Director & Co-Founder
Emma Frisch is the Co-Founder and Director of PEAKS, a crowdfunding platform that provides changemakers with easy and affordable tools and services to fund the change they wish to see in the world. As a changemaker and entrepreneur herself, Emma’s experience is rooted in food systems research and development. She has worked at every stage of the value chain, from seed to plate; from managing a small farm and CSA program at Millstone Farm in Connecticut to supporting direct, rural-to-urban markets through participatory research with the Food and Agriculture Organization in Kenya, Fair Food Philly, as a Fulbright Scholar with EkoRural and the Canastas Comunitarias in Ecuador, the Majora Carter Group and the Collaborative Crop Research Program at Cornell University. She is a founding member of Groundswell International. As a self-taught chef, Emma opened La Buena Onda Cafe in Nicaragua, and now authors the food blog Cayuga St. Kitchen; her most recent adventure – a cooking show! She’s an identical twin and an outdoor-lover, and spends most of her free time scaling any cliff she can find.
Emma graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania (’06) with a BA in Environmental Studies and Public Health, and a concentration in Food Studies.
Pat Haggerty, Web Developer
Pat’s desire to help great organizations utilize technology to improve their operations led him to Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County where he builds websites and open source web applications. Pat balances his time spent working with computers with time spent outside gardening and learning about the plants, mushrooms, and animals of the Finger Lakes. In another life, he played drums in a rock and roll band.
Katie Gambir, Outreach and Social Media Volunteer
Katherine Gambir graduated Hamilton College in May 2011 majoring in World Politics and Hispanic Studies Honors. Over her six-month study abroad in Argentina, Katherine traveled throughout the country hiking and saw first hand the trials and tribulations of sustainable agriculture. She interned at a global development consulting firm, Dalberg, in New York City, which expanded her understanding of grassroots organizations and international business exchanges. Katherine commends the unique fundraising approach developed by Peaks Over Poverty and believes that grassroots initiatives in sustainable agriculture are the best way to cause a change for healthy families and a healthy environment.
Tucker Doherty, Student Intern (Summer 2012)
Tucker is a junior at Cornell University, majoring in Government. His experience with visual and web design, along with his desire to work with local nonprofits, led Tucker to join Peaks as a way of combining these interests. Outside of the workplace, Tucker enjoys cooking, reading, and managing his own projects on the side as a hobby, including a new website for Cornell students. When he is feeling less productive, Tucker is an avid PC gamer who enjoys playing strategy and action video games.
