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People

Green Village Philadelphia Staff

Executive Director

Zoe Selzer joined Green Village Philadelphia as managing director in March 2010. She brings a strong background in community building and urban planning to the organization, as well as a deep enthusiasm for the mission. She holds a BA in psychology from the University of Denver and a Masters degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Colorado, Denver. Before pursing her graduate education, Zoe worked for a non-profit in Denver doing green building advocacy and fundraising. Throughout graduate school and beyond Zoe worked on revitalization projects in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. In late 2008 she left Denver and moved to Philadelphia. Prior to joining GVP, Zoe worked at Rutgers University in Camden doing public policy research and community development. Zoe enjoys travel, food, and spending as much time outside as possible.

Business Development Coordinator

Casey Rieder joined Green Village Philadelphia in January 2012. He has developed several startups in both the healthcare and cleantech sectors, and has an understanding of the challenges that entrepreneurs face during the early stages of their company's growth.  Casey studied Ethnomusicology and Music Composition at Dartmouth College and the City University of New York. His experience with startups began when he co-founded a pharmcaeutical data management and consulting firm. While there, he developed a passion for renewable energy and clean technology. He then took a business development position at a biodiesel production firm.  While earning an MBA from Temple University's Fox School of Business, Casey created the business model for a new company that diverts electronic waste from landfills and toxic recycling facilities.  When not working, Casey can be found playing or writing music.

 

Green Village Philadelphia Board of Directors

Co-Chairs

Joe Guagliardo is a partner at Pepper Hamilton LLP and focuses his practice on intellectual property and technology matters. He frequently counsels emerging growth businesses and individuals with respect to intellectual property and technology protection, commercialization and transfer in connection with a wide variety of subject matter ranging from traditional print media to software applications to clean technology. He has extensive business and legal experience working with start-up businesses and supporting business incubators. Joe holds a BA and MBA from Temple University, and a JD from Widener Law School.

Brennan Marion is the Managing Partner of Homsher Hill, a residential land development company dedicated to high quality, sustainable, historic and high open space housing developments. Mr. Marion received his B.A. in pre-law from La Salle University and an M.B.A. from The Smeal College of Business at The Pennsylvania State University. Prior to his career in real estate Mr. Marion worked in the fitness industry, founding an executive fitness company and a fitness and sports rehabilitation facility in Chester County PA.

Board Members

Lindsay Gilmour, co-founder and former board co-chair of Green Village Philadelphia, is a chef, cooking instructor, and owner of Organic Planet Handcrafted Foods, providing personal chef services and culinary education to clients in the Delaware Valley. Born and raised in New Zealand, Lindsay has over 30 years experience in all areas of the food industry in both hemispheres. For more than 20 years she has served local, sustainable and health supportive food to clients and culinary students all around this region. Lindsay is a long time local food systems advocate. In addition to her work as a chef Lindsay is the Farm to Market Liaison for Common Market, a nonprofit wholesale distributor of food produced in the Philadelphia region. She serves on the board of Fair Food Philadelphia where she was formerly manager of the Farm to Institution and Farmer Outreach Programs, building business relationships between family farmers and food service managers at local universities, schools and hospitals. Lindsay is a member and former co-chair of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia.

Diane Gentry is a founder of Green Village Philadelphia. Diane is a resource development specialist for Bryn Mawr College. Diane has worked in the City of Philadelphia for over 10 years, encouraging innovation, entrepreneurial development, and cooperative problem-solving in both for-profit and non-profit organizations, most recently at the Wharton Small Business Development Center. She has a background in program development, grant writing, and do-it-yourself green home renovations including the City's first green roof on a Philadelphia row home.

Karen Meidlinger, Ph.D. is a founder and co-chair of Green Village Philadelphia, and a founder and managing principal of Meidlinger Partners, a sustainable private equity firm. She shares responsibility for all major functional operations of the firm, which include transaction sourcing, structuring, negotiating and divesting, working with portfolio companies, and handling relationships with limited partners. Her deep innovation management and business development experience combined with her passion for making a positive difference to the planet brings a strong sustainability focus to Meidlinger Partners. Meidlinger Partners recently launched, together with Benchmark Asset Managers, a cleantech fund, Meidlinger Partners Sustainable Investments LP. Before this, Karen worked on various innovation management projects at Johnson & Johnson for four years. Karen also spent five years at the Science Center where she ran the business incubation program. She is a former Associate Director of the Wharton Small Business Development Center, holds a PhD in marine ecology from the University of Southampton in the UK and an MBA from the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Karen is an active Friend (Quaker) and currently serves as clerk of the socially responsible investment committee at the Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia.

Bob Pierson is a founder of Green Village Philadelphia. Bob is locally renowned as a local food systems pioneer and is founder and owner of Farm to City, bringing real farmers and real food to Philadelphia area communities through farmers markets, the Winter Harvest Buying Club, and support of CSA farms. Former coordinator for the Philadelphia Partnership Recycling Program, a community based recycling effort. Bob is also a founder and board member of Common Market, Philadelphia’s first wholesale local food distribution enterprise.distribution enterprise.

Karen Randal is the Director of the Office of Business Attraction and Retention for Philadelphia's Department of Commerce...

Patty Rogalski is the treasurer of Green Village Philadelphia and the Chief Operating Officer for 3Sisters Sustainable Management. 3Sisters manages client assets and investment portfolios focused solely on sustainability and social responsible investing. She has over 14 years of experience in operations, financial analysis and administrative oversight. Her prior experience and portfolio includes compliance oversight, accounting, budget planning and analysis, cash management, event planning, start up operations, training program coordination and all general operational activities. She has a BA in Secondary Math Education and an MBA in Finance both from Temple University