Compass Coffee Talk Episode 23 - The Rodale Family’s Organic Legacy
The Rodale Family’s Organic Legacy
Compass Coffee Talk welcomes Maria Rodale, trailblazing author, publisher, organic lifestyle advocate and former CEO of Rodale Inc., a global health and wellness media company.
Wednesday, April 20, 11:30 am – Noon EDT
Zoom, Admission is Free
Maria Rodale, Organic Advocate and Former Chair and CEO of Rodale Inc
As the third generation of leadership, Maria Rodale imprinted her own legacy on a family of publishing and organic agriculture pioneers who founded the internationally acclaimed Rodale Press, publisher of such renowned titles as Prevention Magazine, Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Runner’s World, Organic Gardening and more.
Maria’s grandfather, J.I. Rodale, founder of Rodale Press, was the first to popularize the term “organic” for food grown without the use of toxic, synthetic chemicals; and her father, Robert Rodale, coined the term “regenerative agriculture,” for practices beyond organic that sequester carbon into rebuilding healthy, sustainable soils.
Building on her family’s work, Maria’s career in organic and publishing has expanded awareness of better agricultural, nutrition, wellness and organic lifestyle practices worldwide. Maria is the author of numerous books, including The Organic Manifesto and Scratch, a collection of recipes from her former blog, Maria’s Farm Country Kitchen. Recently retired as Co-chair of the nonprofit Rodale Institute for agriculture research in eastern Pennsylvania, Maria remains an active board member. Located on 300 acres in Kutztown, PA, the Rodale Institute is known worldwide as a leader in organic and regenerative agriculture research.
About Maria Rodale
Maria Rodale is an author and former CEO and Chairman of Rodale Inc, publisher of books such as Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth, Howard Schultz’s Onward, and classics like The South Beach Diet. She also published the magazines Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Prevention and Organic Gardening,among others. She is the author of Organic Manifesto, How Organic Farming Can Heal Our Planet, Feed the World and Keep Us Safe, and Scratch, Home Cooking for Everyone Made Simple, Fun and Totally Delicious. She has also been involved as a board member and co-chairman of the Rodale Institute, an independent scientific research and education non-profit which studies regenerative organic vs. chemical agriculture. She was Co-Chair from 2007 to 2017 and still sits on the board.
From 2003 to 2011 she was on the board of Bette Midler’s New York Restoration Project. From 2014 to 2017 she served on the Pennsylvania Federal Reserve Advisory council. She served on the board of the Lehigh Valley Health Network.
She has received awards for her lifetime of service and activism, including the National Audubon Rachel Carson Award in 2004, United Nations Population Fund’s Award for the Health and Dignity of Woman Everywhere in 2007, and The Auburn University International Quality of Life Award in 2014. And in 2017 she received an honorary Doctorate Degree from Delaware Valley University. In 1985 she graduated from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA with a dual major in Communications and Art.
About Compass Coffee Talk™
Take a 30-minute virtual coffee break with Compass Coffee Talk™. Hosted by natural industry veterans Bill Capsalis and Steve Hoffman, Coffee Talk features lively interactive conversations with industry leaders and experts designed to help guide entrepreneurs and businesses of any size succeed in the market for natural, organic, regenerative, hemp-derived and other eco-friendly products.
Compass Coffee Talk™ is produced by Compass Natural Marketing, a leading PR, branding and business development agency serving the natural and organic products industry. Learn more.
