she/her
Bradley Russell
Director of Sustainable Agriculture of Food Systems Program
About Bradley
Bradley Russell is the Director of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Program at Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI), a Maine-based community development financial institution with a mission to build just, vibrant and climate-resilient futures for people and communities in Maine and rural regions by integrating finance, business expertise and policy solutions in ways that make the economy work more equitably.
As CEI’s Director of Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Program, Bradley leads CEI’s work to grow the resilience and profitability of the region’s agricultural and food sector through support of small food and farm businesses with loans and business advising tailored to their specific needs and policy advocacy at the state and federal level. CEI currently manages two federally funded programs to bring affordable lending solutions to the New England food sector. In partnership with Focus Maine, Bradley manages the Tastemakers grant program which supports operational improvements to drive growth for food businesses.
In addition to CEI, Bradley has most recently worked with Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership, High Mowing Organic Seeds and Equal Exchange. Her work in sales and operations for food businesses has provided a valuable perspective on the specific challenges and opportunities of the sector
Bradley serves on the board of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) and on the management committee of MOFGA Certification Services. Bradley is board observer for Tootie’s Tempeh and served for many years at the chair of board of directors of Oke USA Fruit Company. Bradley is native in English language and is proficient in Español. She loves to talk about bananas!
Education
- Leadership Maine, Casco Class 2022
- University of Oregon Lundquist College of Business , MBA, Sustainable Business and Entrepreneurship
- Colby College, BA, Anthropology and Spanish
Community Connections
Thomas Memorial Library Foundation, Board of Directors
Get To Know Bradley
What is your favorite candy or snack food?
French fries
If you had unlimited resources, where would you travel to?
Mongolia
What was your first job?
Making frogs from cow manure for garden decoration
