Jill Harrison

President of the Volunteer Board of Directors

Jill Harrison has been dedicated to advancing food security since 2016, serving as part of the Community Development portfolio with the Town of Banff. In 2018, she founded the Bow Valley Food Alliance with the vision of uniting existing food support groups and interested parties to work together more effectively and cohesively. Her efforts have encompassed a broad spectrum of initiatives, including community-based consultations with grassroots organizations, nonprofit groups, and institutions, academic research, the creation of the Bow Valley-wide Food Charter, coordinated COVID-19 responses, advocacy, education, fund, and policy development.

When Jill began her work in 2016, food insecurity was a little-discussed issue, primarily recognized by experts and food banks. Today, it is a widely acknowledged and pressing concern. Under Jill’s leadership, the Bow Valley Food Alliance has become a pivotal support network, with its knowledge and experience now serving as a model for other municipalities and food security groups across the region

In addition to her BVFA work, Jill coordinates the Good Food Box program in Banff, the weekly Community Table Lunch, and many ethno cultural and Indigenous food events. She is also co-creator of the Banff Community Social Assessment.

Jill has been living, working, playing, and volunteering in the Bow Valley for 30 years. She is recognised for fostering relationships and collaborating,  rooting for the underdog, and inspiring change. Originally from England, she has an honours degree in English from the University of London.

She can be contacted at jill.harrison@banff.ca

Shauna Kelly

ReconciliAction and Communications Member

Originally from Calgary, Shauna’s passion for food security and food sovereignty stems from time spent picking berries in a small garden with her parents and hands-on education programs.

She has spent the past three years here in the Bow Valley working with The Howl Experience to deliver land and community based learning programs that engage Indigenous and non Indigenous youth in wellness, climate action, reconciliation, and community building.

Through this work, she has partnered with BVFA on food security and food sovereignty education, and she is excited to become more involved through a role on the board.

Laura Clippingdale

Communications Member

Laura is a communications specialist and has lived in the Bow Valley for over 25 years and is well connected within the community.

She has held local board and leadership positions including with the Harvie Heights Community Association, as Vice Chair at the Canmore Preschool, on student councils at OLS and CCHS, with the ARB Council, and as a volunteer at the Whyte Museum, among various other organizations over the years.

Laura is passionate about food security and believes that access to healthy, affordable food is essential for building a resilient and thriving community

Grace Gillman

Projects Member

She has lived in the Bow Valley for 2.5 years, originally from BC, and has been an active volunteer with the Canmore Rotary Club, where she chair the annual Earth Day event, Bow Valley Climate Action board member, the Good Food Box, and the Biosphere, where she now works. She is also supporting the growth of a secondhand market in the Bow Valley that aims to reduce textile waste.

Her passion for food security began when she took over an organic farm on Vancouver Island, and deepened through her environmental science degree, where she dove into the connection between climate change and our food system.

She has sought to merge food systems with her work in the environmental industry, including an internship analyzing drought conditions on agricultural land, and she am currently completing a certificate in plant-based nutrition.

Javan Mukhtarov

Ethnocultural Relations Member

He moved to Canmore 10 years ago. He grew up during a time of great change—the collapse of the Soviet Union and Azerbaijan’s early years of independence. Food was often scarce, and from a young age, he had to work to help his brother and father provide for their large family.

That experience shaped his understanding of the importance of nutritious food as a basic human right. Through his work with immigrant communities and volunteering with grassroots initiatives like Banff Food Rescue and Canmore Food & Friends, CYAN he’s seen firsthand the challenges many people face in accessing food.

He says he is grateful to BVFA team for the opportunity to bring his knowledge and experience to the Bow Valley Food Alliance, supporting its mission to build local food systems that are healthy, socially just, collaborative, diverse, and accessible.

Valentina Bravo

Treasurer

Originally from Chile Valentina has lived in the Bow Valley for 6 years. She is an accountant and tax specialist who has worked with Deloittes and KPMG. She volunteers at ArtsPlace and Theravada Buddhist Community and Monastery in Canmore. She wants to help build strong connections to ensure everyone has access to healthy food, supporting a healthy lifestyle for all.

Lauren Kepkiewicz

Community-Based Researcher

Lauren is a community-based researcher and postdoctoral associate in the Department of Geography at the University of Calgary. Her current research examines food systems and food sovereignty in mountain communities, with a focus on the Bow Valley.

Her work draws from her experience as a research assistant and management team member for the Community First: Impacts of Community Engagement (CFICE): Community Food Sovereignty Hub as well as her participation in the National Farmers Union Indigenous Solidarity Working Group (ISWG), the Canmore Community Garden, the Food Equity and Activist Study Team, the Collaborative Alliance of Farmer Training Ontario, Food Secure Canada Youth Caucus, and Africa Youth for Peace and Development. She has taught undergraduate courses on food systems and has published work in both academic and popular articles and books. Lauren has a PhD in geography with a focus on food studies from the University of Toronto and has been involved with the BVFA since 2017.