Who We Are

A Farmer-Driven Community Advancing Agriculture's Ability to Become a Solution to Climate Change Through a More Sustainable Agricultural Technology Ecosystem

OpenTEAM serves as a farmer-driven, collaborative community of farmers, ranchers, scientists, researchers, engineers, farm service providers, and food companies who are committed to improving soil health and advancing agriculture’s ability to become a solution to climate change through the co-development of an interoperable suite of tools.

OPENTEAM COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS, BUSINESSES, AND INSTITUTIONS

OpenTEAM is composed of a diverse community of collaborators. The farmers, ranchers, scientists, researchers, engineers, farm service providers, programmers and food companies that form this community contribute technical expertise, industry knowledge, and innovative ideas that make what OpenTEAM is accomplishing possible.

OUR TEAM

As a project led by Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment, OpenTEAM seeks individuals with a passion for sustainable agriculture, community, the environment, technology, and outdoor recreation. Learn more about our team and the larger Wolfe’s Neck Center staff!

Interested in working at Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment or on the OpenTEAM Project? See job opportunities here.

LEADERS FROM ACROSS THE OPENTEAM COMMUNITY

The OpenTEAM community includes over 200 skilled problem solvers. Here, we highlight just a few from across the OpenTEAM ecosystem who continue to thread the needle in this space.

Get involved to connect directly with the OpenTEAM community.

COMMUNITY PRINCIPLES

Agriculture is a shared human endeavor. We have a shared interest in providing everyone everywhere free and open access to the best possible agricultural knowledge to improve land stewardship.

Agriculture is a public science. We all have a shared interest in understanding our agroecosystems and advancing climate science, soil health, human health, and all intersecting relationships of our food system.

A shared urgency exists to take climate action. Improving soil health and ecosystem services from farm and ranchland management is a critical step in mitigating climate change.

Knowledge is collaborative. Our shared commonwealth of agricultural knowledge grows cumulatively through the voluntary contributions of individuals, and requires active participation and constant communication.

Free and open exchange of ideas, information and inspiration from each OpenTEAM member will help pool knowledge and circulate resources to accelerate the achievement of our shared goals.

Agroecology depends upon healthy social communities. The First FAO International Symposium on Agroecology for Food Security and Nutrition outlined ten key elements for achieving healthy agro-ecological and social systems: diversity, synergies, efficiency, recycling, resilience, co-creation and sharing of knowledge, human and social values, culture and food traditions, responsible governance, circular and solidarity economy.

Statement on Racial Equity in Agriculture

OpenTEAM is a collaborative network supporting the emergence and continued viability of a global food system that is a resilient driver of healthy soil, healthy food for all, and racial equity to support thriving communities.

Community Code of Conduct

OpenTEAM has adopted the following code of conduct in order to best facilitate an open, welcoming, diverse, inclusive and healthy environment, and to uphold the guiding principles of the OpenTEAM community.

Wolfe's Neck Center Equity Statement

At Wolfe’s Neck Center (WNC) we believe the future of agriculture must be liberating, not confining, and that we must consciously work to undo institutional injustices of the past.

Wolfe's Neck Center Land Acknowledgement

Wolfe’s Neck Center recognizes that it farms on the historic lands of the Abenaki people, members of the Wabanaki Confederation of Native people in Maine.

OpenTEAM is led by Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment

As a place-based institution situated on 626 acres of preserved coastal landscape in Freeport, Maine, Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture & the Environment (WNC) uses its diverse landscape of annual and perennial crop production, grazing, forest, fresh and saltwater, and rural-urban boundaries to connect people of all ages to the food they eat and where it comes from. Through historical regenerative farming practices, innovative soil health research, and visitor interactions, the land is used as an educational resource for the center’s visitors and nearby farmers.

WNC draws upon this rich history of innovation and experimentation to continue its legacy today through collaborative research initiatives like OpenTEAM and the Maine Soil Health Network, demonstrating how local agriculture connects to global environmental systems. Through OpenTEAM, WNC bridges tech tools to scientific research locally, effectively translating this knowledge to farmer understanding regionally and building a pragmatic movement toward regenerative agriculture globally. As WNC creates local networks for better soil health, OpenTEAM is convening global communities to create an interconnected technology ecosystem where resources are shared and leveraged at scale.