Tom Spaulding is inspired by farms as dynamic places of cultural, ecological, and economic regeneration.
Tom is president of Angelic Organics Association (AOA), a community land trust and umbrella organization dedicated to social, economic, and cultural renewal through the integration of education, agriculture, and the arts. AOA protects land in perpetuity for organic-biodynamic agriculture, farming education, and land regeneration. AOA holds a creative space for unity and freedom among its members: Angelic Organics CSA Farm (www.angelicorganics.com) and Angelic Organics Learning Center (www.learngrowconnect.org).
Tom served as the founding executive director of Angelic Organics Learning Center from 1998 to 2018. He serves on the Biodynamic Bridging Americas working group. Tom is co-chair of the national USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Advisory Committee, which advises the Secretary of Agriculture. He helped spark or lead numerous alliances and initiatives, including the Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training (CRAFT) in North America, national Farm Beginnings Collaborative, and Illinois Food, Farms, and Jobs Council.
At the 200-acre home farm, Tom coaches the Learning Center’s land regeneration efforts, including holistic multi-paddock intensive grazing (cows, goats, pigs, and chickens). In past years, he assisted the farm with everything from direct seeding and making compost to mowing cover crops and spraying biodynamic preps. Prior to the farm, Tom worked 15 years in international economic and social development and is a national Kellogg Fellow (Group XV). Tom is married to Rev. Dr. Neddy Astudillo, an eco-theologian, and they have three amazing sons.
