Cathleen McCluskey is the outreach director for Organic Seed Alliance. She supports OSA’s online and print communications, and the coordination of regional and national outreach efforts. Cathleen also serves as the committee leader for the biennial Organic Seed Growers Conference. She has worked on food sovereignty campaigns; helped launch a local seed library; and researches the social, biological, and economic impacts of on-farm genetic diversity. Cathleen holds an MS degree in Agroecology from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and is currently pursuing graduate studies in environment and resources through the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She lives in Teejop, Ho-Chunk Lands (Madison, Wisconsin) and uses she/her pronouns.
Selected Publications
- McCluskey, C. and Tracy, W.F. (2021) Engaging Farmer Stakeholders: Maize Producers’ Perceptions of and Strategies for Managing On-Farm Genetic Diversity in the Upper Midwest. Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8843; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168843.
- Colley, M., Dawson, J., McCluskey, C., Myers, J., Tracy, W., & Lammerts van Bueren, E. (2021). Exploring the emergence of participatory plant breeding in countries of the Global North – a review. The Journal of Agricultural Science, 1-19. doi:10.1017/S0021859621000782.
- Op-ed: How Patents Threaten Small Seed Companies (Civil Eats, 2020)
- Banking on Seeds for Our Future (Edge Effects, 2018)
- Dawson, J., Healy, K., and McCluskey, M. (2017) Organic Vegetable Trials and Plant Breeding Needs Assessment and Strategy for National Collaboration. University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. (Accessed November 2018)
