Born onto a small sheep ranch on the Oregon coast, Zoë grew up in hoody sweatshirts and rubber boots – birthing lambs in the spring, watching salmon spawn in the fall, and taming plums, blackberries and tomatoes into canning jars all summer. Her love for food, farming and rural livelihood got its foothold early on and carried her full circle back to her native southern Oregon where she now works as a freelance writer and grows asparagus, raspberries, orchard fruit, and mixed produce for local markets – with the help of her family and a team of draft horses.

Her work in sustainable agriculture has engaged her with numerous non-profits, including Ecotrust, the Agriculture and Land-based Training Association (ALBA), the Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture (CUESA), and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. She is a regular contributor to Edible Portland and her work has also appeared in USA Today, Oregon Coast Magazine, The Oregonian, Grist, the Draft Horse Journal, and Stanford Magazine. She is the author of the online blog, Diary of a Young Farmer.

Before breaking ground on her own land, Zoë spent three years co-managing Sauvie Island Organics, a diversified fresh market farm where she oversaw production and apprentice training for a community supported agriculture program.

Zoë did her undergraduate work at Stanford University where she studied ecological anthropology with a focus on sustainable agriculture. She recently completed her Masters degree with a focus on rural development, food systems and community change.