As a visionary, a leader and someone with a passionate heart to make the world a better, and fairer, place, Jonah Fertig has used his energy, ideas, and motivation to make lasting change in the new, sharing economy in Maine and in New England. In our conversation here, Jonah discusses his work in activism around the country, in standing up for what he believes in (people over profit), and his creating cooperative structures in food and land to help us move to a new paradigm based on an equitable, communal system. Jonah’s efforts have already changed the economy of Maine for the better and improved the lives of hardworking people that live there.

Check out Jonah’s words about his activism roots at 8:45 in combatting globalization, and how this inspires his role in holistic approaches for social change that support local communities, respect the planet, empower people and celebrate one another.

Jonah Fertig is the Director of Cooperative Food Systems at the Cooperative Development Institute (www.cdi.coop). He works with farmers, food producers, cooks, distributors, and community members to develop democratic businesses. He is a co-founder and board member of the Maine Farm and Sea Cooperative and has served as a development coordinator for the nation's first farm & sea-to-institution cooperative. He also works with New American farmers, assisting them in developing cooperatives and helped Somali Bantu Farmers in Lewiston form New Roots Cooperative, the first New American owned cooperative and farm in Maine. He currently sits on the board of the Cooperative Fund of New England and the steering committee of the Maine Food Strategy.

Previously, he co-founded Local Sprouts Cooperative in Portland, Maine and helped develop it into a successful worker-owned cafe. He has been involved in community gardening organizing in Portland and New York City and has taught gardening and cooking in schools and afterschool programs in the Portland area since 2003. He also co-founded the Greater Portland Community Land Trust, the Mayor’s Initiative for a Healthy and Sustainable Food System, and the Cooperative Design Lab. He is a speaker at statewide, regional and national conferences about cooperatives in the food system. He was a 2016 Democracy at Work Institute Worker Cooperative Developer Fellow, a current USFWC/DAWI Chapter Network Fellow, a member of the Democracy at Work Network and a graduate of the Sustainable Food Systems Leadership Institute. He lives with his partner and two kids at Celebration Tree Farm in Durham, Maine.