MaríaElena Alvarado-Rodríguez (she/her/ella) is a Queer femme cultural worker, human-centered operations executive, and community-accountable researcher based in both Southern Pomo / Wappo lands (Forestville, CA), and Borikén (Fajardo, Puerto Rico). In her role as Vice President of Operations with TCC, she stewards the systems and processes that support the organization’s mission and long-term sustainability, overseeing strategic operations & systems development, financial stewardship & accountability, human resources & organizational health, and facilities.

For the last two decades, MaríaElena has been engaged in community food systems, land-based work, nonprofit operations, and community-based participatory research across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Throughout her career she has fostered equitable internal systems and organizational culture, led large-scale field-building research efforts, and provided strategy assistance and capacity-building support to countless food systems organizations. MaríaElena considers her life’s work to be fostering food systems that honor intergenerational ancestral cultural knowledge, center BIPOC communities, nourish the environment, and strengthen Queer community. She is deeply connected to her homeland of Borikén, organizing locally with food sovereignty and mutual aid efforts and promoting local food culture and ancestral traditions.