OMRI Announces New Staff

(April 9, 2013) OMRI is pleased to welcome several new staff members to help the organization provide a robust and efficient service for the organic community. In order to expand OMRI's resources and provide enhanced support for organic integrity, the organization is actively creating a sustainable organizational and management structure. With this goal, OMRI is pleased to welcome Eliza Kashinsky to the newly created position of Operations Director. Eliza comes to OMRI from Washington, D.C. with an extensive background in nonprofit management. She received a B.A. in Political Science from SUNY Albany and served in various roles at Freedom House, a nonprofit focused on international democracy. Prior to joining OMRI, she was Chief of Staff for the Secular Coalition for America.

In addition, OMRI will support and expand its technological services with the addition of Tim Sawyer as the organization's new Software Programmer. Tim received a B.A. in Mathematics from the University of Oregon. His information services experience includes database and application programming, business and systems analysis, and user support. Tim worked in environmental science, specifically air quality, for nearly 15 years and has experience ranging from building pollution monitoring devices to performing air dispersion modeling.

Finally, OMRI has added two new Product Review Coordinators to uphold fast application processing and keep pace with the growing demand. Taryn Kennedy and Jason Stein have already received extensive on-the-job training, and are now working with applicants on new product reviews.

Taryn holds a B.A. in Agroecology from Prescott College and an M.S. in Soils and Biogeochemistry from UC Davis, where she evaluated greenhouse gas emissions from tomato cropping systems. Her research demonstrated that the practices of drip irrigation and fertigation significantly reduced nitrous oxide emissions compared to furrow irrigation and sidedress fertilizer application. Prior to joining OMRI, Taryn worked as the Outreach and Education Coordinator for the Agroecology Lab at UC Davis and as a consultant for the California Climate and Agriculture Network.

Jason holds a B.S. in Chemistry from Western Washington University and an M.S. in Chemistry from Washington State University. While a student, he performed research in the synthesis of hydrogen sulfide donor molecules. Professionally, he has interned at both the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, working to analyze the composition of lunar regolith from the Apollo 16 mission, and the NASA Langley Research Center, tracking and monitoring tropospheric pollutants in the Hampton Bay region. He has also performed volunteer work monitoring soil and atmospheric pollutants in Eugene.

With improved capacity and a solid foundation for growth, the organization will provide enhanced service and leadership in the organic community. OMRI heartily welcomes these new staff members, and looks forward to continued growth and increased vigilance to support organic integrity.

Contact: Peggy Miars, peggy@omri.org

(541) 343-7600 ext. 102