Our Team

Rebecca Busansky | Executive Director

Rebecca Busansky joins BAV as the Executive Director. Formerly a Program Director at the Franklin County Community Development Corporation, Rebecca’s work focused on helping local farms thrive and increasing food access. She worked as part of the team to create and launch the PVGrows Investment Fund, an innovative community investment vehicle which provides financing and technical assistance to farm and local food entrepreneurs primarily in western MA.

She also managed the Mass Food Trust Program since its inception in 2018 which provides financing to increase the availability of affordable healthy food in underserved communities across the Commonwealth. She joined the FCCDC in 2015 to launch the PVGrows Investment Fund, with a focus on developing and maintaining relationships with farmers and local food entrepreneurs, community investors and food system partners.

She has an undergraduate degree from Brown University and has worked in the community economic development field for more than 30 years. Rebecca resides in Northampton with her family where she enjoys all that the beautiful outdoors has to offer in western Mass including hiking, biking, kayaking, cross country skiing and cooking from her garden’s harvest and nearby farms.

Contact Rebecca: rebecca@berkshireagventures.org

Shannon Smith | Director of Lending & Finance

Shannon joins BAV as the Director of Lending and Finance. Shannon is responsible for managing BAV’s lending programs, supporting special projects and overseeing finance and compliance functions.

Shannon’s interest in regional food systems came from years of stewarding a community garden and being a member owner of the Park Slope Food Coop. She believes that equitable access to financial resources for small food producers is key to building community resilience and healthier nutritional outcomes. She enjoys growing food, hiking, and combating the invasive plants colonizing her backyard.

Prior to working with BAV, Shannon held various underwriting and consulting roles in institutional investments, private lending, and financial technology. Shannon earned a Certificate of Graduate Studies in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. She also holds a B.A. in Public Policy and Economics from Duke University.

Areas of Expertise:

• Impact investing

• Loan portfolio management

• Business controls and compliance

Contact Shannon: shannon@berkshireagventures.org

Dan Carr | Outreach & Technical Assistance Manager

Dan grew up on the front range of Colorado. After graduating from the University of Montana, Dan spent a year working on a variety of farms in Europe through Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms. During that experience, he found his passion in regenerative farming.

Dan spent three years as an agriculture Peace Corps volunteer in a remote village in northern Malawi. He worked with farmers to implement agroforestry practices and to start other income-generating opportunities like beekeeping and grafting fruit trees. Returning to the US, Dan worked at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, NY for six years as the assistant livestock manager and the head beekeeper. In 2015, Dan moved to Northwestern Connecticut to help James and Linda Quella start and manage Q Farm, which quickly grew into a highly productive, pasture-raised meat business. He managed the production of sustainable honey, grass-fed beef, pasture-raised pork, chicken, turkeys, and eggs for a variety of restaurants and retail markets.

Dan is now working at Berkshire Agricultural Ventures while running his own farm Beavertides Farm with his wife Marleen, and two young sons Oliver and Orion. They raise grass-fed lamb and meat goats, produce honey and teach beekeeping courses. 

Areas of Expertise: 

• Livestock management and grazing planning

• Regional Meat Processing Systems

• Honey Bee Management

Contact Dan: dan@berkshireagventures.org

Ciana Barnaba | Community Relations & Resource Development Manager

Ciana was born and raised in the Berkshires. Moving to New York City she earned a degree in Sociology and International Studies, from Marymount Manhattan College. In 2016, Ciana received a study abroad scholarship leading her to spend four months in Chengdu, China. Here she studied Mandarin and economics, with particular attention on the role of tourism and food.

Following graduation, she interned at the United Nations World Tourism Organization. The highlight of this experience was the opportunity to assist UN SICA Delegates in writing a sustainable development resolution, later adopted by the UN Economic and Social Council. Completing her internship Ciana went to northern Thailand to work on a coffee and rice farm through Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF).

Returning to New York, Ciana started as Greenmarket Manager for GrowNYC. Ciana worked at GrowNYC for three years managing over a dozen farmers’ markets throughout the city. Ciana’s experience working directly with farmers and diverse communities reinforced that promoting access to affordable, local food in connection to supporting small family farms is her life’s mission.

Areas of Expertise:

• Food access and food assistance programs

• Farmers market management

• Grant writing and management

Contact Ciana: ciana@berkshireagventures.org

Ben Crockett | Program Manager for Climate Smart Ag Program

Ben has worked in agriculture from a young age, throwing hay bales for local farmers, picking fresh peas with his mom, and helping his dad with apple orchard chores. In recent years he has worked as the department chair for Kennebec Valley Community College Sustainable Agriculture associate degree program. Through UMaine Extension Ben became a Master Food Preserver, and has mentored start-up farm businesses in the Hudson Valley with Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming. 

Ben earned his B.S. in Sustainable Landscape Horticulture at the University of Vermont, and recently completed the Climate Adaptation Fellowship for farmers and foresters. In his spare time, you’ll find him concocting ferments, tearing down local ski slopes, or attempting to perfect his breakfast sandwich recipe. Ben lives with his partner Kara in the Berkshires, and regularly explores local trails with their trusty dog Alice. 

Areas of expertise:

• Whole-farm analysis and planning

• Agricultural technical assistance

• Climate adaptation strategies and implementation

Contact Ben: ben@berkshireagventures.org

Jake Levin | Program Manager for Local Meat Processing Support Program

Jake grew up in the Berkshires. After graduating from Wesleyan University, where he studied Art he moved to NYC. While living in NYC and working in the art world, he became increasingly engaged with cooking and the reemerging local and sustainable food movement. While working towards his MFA at Bard he decided to apprentice as a butcher in the Hudson Valley. 

It didn’t take Jake long to realize he had a passion both for meat production and for supporting sustainable agriculture. After deciding to pursue a career as a butcher, Jake moved back to the Berkshires where he could work directly with the farmers in his hometown community. Jake has worked in a variety of capacities as a butcher including managing a whole-animal butcher shop and a USDA inspected dry-cured pork production facility. Jake also sits on the Board of Directors for Berkshire Grown, the Berkshire Food Co-op, and the New Marlborough Land Trust. In 2019 Jake authored a book titled Smokehouse Handbook published by Storey Publishing.

Jake lives in New Marlborough with his wife and two children on the land where he grew up. Besides working for Berkshire Ag Ventures helping to improve our regional livestock systems Jake works as The Roving Butcher where he travels around the country teaching workshops on on-farm slaughter, whole-animal butchery, and value-added meat production. When Jake is not working, he is most likely cooking for his family and friends, preferably in his outdoor kitchen. 

Areas of Expertise:

• Community Building and Networking

• Regional Meat Processing Systems

• Value Added Meat Production

Contact Jake: jake@berkshireagventures.org

Berkshire Agricultural Ventures is an equal opportunity employer; we provide equal opportunity for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, marital status, mental or physical disability, pregnancy, military or veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by state or federal law.