On Wednesday, June 18th, the Ontario Farmland Trust hosted its Annual General Meeting. The meeting was held hybrid again this year, with members and friends joining both virtually and in person.
The meeting was overseen by Board Chair Margaret Walton, Secretary Megan Mills, and Treasurer Bethanee Jensen. Executive Director Martin Straathof also highlighted OFT’s 2024 achievements, viewable in our 2024 Annual Report.
The Board extended their thanks to Bethanee Jensen, who has concluded her three-year term on the Board of Directors. Bethanee’s contributions to OFT have been indispensable. In 2021, Bethanee assumed the role of interim Executive Director (ED) in addition to her existing role as Treasurer, before hiring Martin Straathof, OFT’s current Executive Director. We are incredibly grateful for the hard work, expertise, and steadfast dedication Bethanee has provided over the past few years.
Larry Rosevear, a longtime Board Member and passionate advocate for farmland protection, passed away earlier this year and was also honored during the meeting. Larry was with OFT since our early days, serving on the Board and committees for nearly 15 years. We are so grateful for everything Larry brought to this work, and we carry his legacy forward with us.
After the AGM elections, OFT’s new Board of Directors consists of returning board members Mike Douglas, Mark Reusser, Peter Peeters, Krista Chapman, Margaret Walton, Megan Mills, Matthew Colley, Judy Coward, Peter Ghattas, Kalinga Jagoda, and Collette Aeschlimann.
Guest speakers, Asim Biswas and Solmaz Fatholoumi, gave an insightful presentation about their new research project, which aims to quantify Ontario’s changing agricultural land base. The deliverables of their project will offer a comprehensive land use monitoring framework to guide sustainable planning and policy.
Thank you to everyone who attended. We look forward to seeing you next year!
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