Emilie is a permaculture enthusiast and an international development professional with a master degree in Development Studies (with a concentration in sustainable development) and five years of experience working in the development field in the United States, Germany, Switzerland, Namibia and South Africa. She is passionate about food sovereignty and sustainable food production as an alternative to the predominant agro-industrial system and is eager to join the movement for this shift through practicing and teaching permaculture at the community level.

Emilie was first introduced to permaculture in 2007 while working on a community food garden project in Arusha, Tanzania. She later went on to serve in the Peace Corps as a Community Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Volunteer from 2010-2012 in Mpungu Vlei, a small rural village in northeastern Namibia, where she worked with a local community based organization in establishing and managing a community permaculture food garden for HIV positive patients at the village health centre.

Emilie recently completed an Introduction to Permaculture course and received her Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) from Hope Farm in East London, South Africa in January 2015. She looking forward to applying her new skills in designing permaculture systems on two properties in Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A. and in Tagaytay in the Philippines.