Urban Agriculture Director
(they/them)
Ash Richards is the Urban Agriculture Director at Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, managing the Farm Philly Program and the City’s first Urban Agriculture Plan, Growing from the Root. As a third generation farmer, their work supports the interdependence and collective determination of residents to grow and produce their own food. In 2008, beginning their career in sustainability and food justice, Ash joined More Gardens! in Bronx, NY as a community organizer, collaborating with local growers to develop an urban farm cooperative led by Black and Latine residents (La Finca del Sur). Prior to their role at Parks and Recreation, Ash worked for the Philadelphia City Planning Commission doing comprehensive and place-based planning and the Philadelphia Water Department’s Office of Watersheds doing green stormwater infrastructure projects.
Ash earned a Master’s Degree from the University of Pennsylvania in City and Regional Planning and has an educational background in geography and agroecology. They have been an ex-officio member of the Philadelphia Food Policy Advisory Council (FPAC) since 2012 and served as Co-chair of the Urban Agriculture Subcommittee from 2016-2021. Outside of work, Ash enjoys outdoor adventures, food experiments, sci-fi and action films and photography, and can be spotted rummaging through local comic book shops.
Farm Philly Garden Educator
(he/his)
David Crutchfield, is the Farm Philly Garden Educator for the Junior Farmer program. David is a naturalist, horticulturist, a student and steward of Mother Nature. From NYC to Philadelphia David has been building and maintaining playgrounds, gardens and open spaces for over 30 years.
Urban Greening Coordinator
(he/him)
Andrew is one of two new Urban Greening Coordinators for Farm Philly. His past work experience and education in conservation, ecological restoration, and social impact strategy combined with his passion for community and urban agriculture made the position a natural fit. He brings this experience to Farm Philly where he is managing the Community Compost Network and Land Access Program. Andrew enjoys the opportunity to engage local community gardeners and urban farmers as they gain access to resources needed to support their work.
Originally from Harrisburg, Andrew moved to Philly in 2010 for graduate school in Landscape Architecture at Temple University and never left. He most recently worked at a local land trust where he came to understand the power of land sovereignty for disadvantaged and disinvested communities. This in turn led him to the Executive Leadership program in Social Impact Strategy at the University of Pennsylvania. Andrew is excited to bring the tools and frameworks he learned at Penn to his work at Farm Philly. He lives in Germantown with his family and their numerous pets. He loves riding his bike in the Wissahickon and along the Schuylkill River, listening to WXPN, and gardening with native plants.
Urban Greening Coordinator
(he/him)
Carousel House Farm Manager
(she/her)
Annie Tickell joined Farm Philly in May 2023 as the Farm Assistant at Carousel House Farm. Before joining Farm Philly, Annie spent 8 years teaching high school in Philadelphia and Oakland, CA. She has also worked as an artisan bread baker and believes in the power of food to connect people to each other, and to our personal histories. Annie is motivated by opportunities that sustain community health – be it physically, mentally, or spiritually – and hopes to explore the ways in which farming can provide healing for institutional harm. When she’s not at the farm you can find her dancing, singing jingles, and cooking lots of food.