2025 Working Lineup

2025 Speaker Bios and Presentation Topics



	Dr. Gordon Walker Dr. Gordon Walker is originally from Cambridge, MA but also spent time growing up on the Northshore of Massachusetts. For undergrad he attended UC Santa Cruz where he got his B.S. in Biochemistry. For grad school he attended UC Davis where he completed his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He then worked Opus One winery isolating wild yeast and pioneering new wine technologies. Worked in biotechnology sales around the Bay Area, then returned to UC Davis where he completed postdoctoral work on fermentation process control. Besides his passion for all things fungi and fermentation, he is an avid chef, forager, and gardener. He resides in Napa, CA. Learn more about Dr. Gordon Walker
	Dr. Christopher Hobbs Dr. Christopher Hobbs is a fourth-generation, internationally renowned herbalist, licensed acupuncturist, author, clinician, botanist, mycologist, and research scientist with over 35 years of experience with herbal medicine. Christopher has a doctorate from UC Berkeley in phylogenetics, evolutionary biology and phytochemistry. He is also a founding member of the American Herbalists Guild. https://christopherhobbs.com/
	Maya Elson Maya is a co-founder of Radical Mycology, and has started Applied Mycology groups in Olympia, WA and the San Francisco Bay area. Maya was the Executive Director of CoRenewal from 2016-2021, where they supported research in Regenerative Mycology. They are the co-founder and Program Coordinator of the Post Fire Biofiltration Initiative, an effort and experiment using fungi to prevent toxins from burned homes from entering waterways in Central California. Maya has also played a central role in four studies that seek to develop methodologies for applying inocula post fire for erosion control, toxin mitigation, forest fuels reduction and ecological regeneration. Maya is currently involved with Maui Bioremediation Group, aiding in the effort to mitigate toxic ash from the recent fires. At UC Santa Cruz, Maya is a mycological consultant and researcher developing educational programs that expand our scientific understanding of the role of fungi for increasing wildfire resilience. Maya developed the term “Mycopsychology” as a modality for facilitating deeper connection with Fungi for personal and planetary transformation, and runs a mycological education business called MycoPyschology Experiences.
	Vellany Pierce Santa Cruz County local and member of the FFSC (Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz) for 16 over years serving many support roles and helping to lead local forays. Vellany is currently the Prime Minister for the group. Always having had an interest in fungi, Vellany is a self taught mushroom cultivator and has worked for Far West Fungi for the past 9 years as spawn lab technician.
	Indy Srinath Indy Srinath is a forager, educator, urban farmer, and steward of both her environment and her community. She is currently transforming a small plot of land in Los Angeles to create a mutual aid model demonstration farm. Her work is centered around the amplification of black and brown communities and food insecure regions. She is the host of NatGeo's TV Series "Farm Dreams" featured on Disney and Hulu.
	Chef Jonny Black Born in the Bay Area and raised in Virginia, Chef Jonny Black was exposed to the diversity of regional, coastal American cuisines at a young age. He received a full scholarship to The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, graduating with honors in 2007. He then moved to New York City, where he strengthened his skills as an opening team member at Allen & Delancey and Corton before joining Per Se as Chef de Partie. After six years in New York and three months staging in Europe, Black saw an opportunity to head west, joining the Quince team in San Francisco as Chef de Cuisine. After three years in San Francisco, Black returned to the East Coast to open Pineapple & Pearls in Washington, D.C., as Executive Sous Chef, helping the restaurant earn two Michelin stars in its first year. Eventually, he was drawn back to California by the opportunity to work alongside Dominique Crenn as her first-ever Executive Chef. There, he oversaw culinary operations for Atelier Crenn, Petit Crenn, and the opening of Bar Crenn—the first of which earned its third Michelin star during his tenure, while Bar Crenn earned its first. In 2019, Black relocated to Monterey Bay, assuming the role of Executive Chef at Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur. With a vision for opening his own family-run restaurant in the tight-knit community of Carmel-by-the-Sea, he spent nearly two years observing the region’s dining culture and gaining a deep appreciation for the hyper-regional seafood and produce of the Monterey Peninsula. That vision became Chez Noir, which quickly garnered national recognition for its refined yet soulful approach to California coastal cuisine. Within its first year, Chez Noir was awarded a Michelin star and was named one of Esquire’s Top 50 Best New Restaurants of 2023. It was also recognized as a James Beard Award Finalist for Best New Restaurant (2023) and, more recently, Black was named a James Beard Award Semifinalist for Best Chef: California (2025). At Chez Noir, Chef Black blends his technical expertise with a nuanced celebration of thoughtfully sourced ingredients, offering a modern, European-influenced take on California’s coastal bounty.
	William Padilla-Brown Founder and CEO of MycoSymbiotics, William Padilla-Brown is a Multidisciplinary Citizen Scientist practicing social science, mycology, phycology, molecular biology, and additive manufacturing. William founded MycoSymbiotics in 2015, and has since developed it into the innovative practical applied biological science business it is today. William holds permaculture design certificates acquired through Susquehanna Permaculture and NGOZI, and a certificate from the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in algal culturing techniques. He has published the first English-language books on cultivating the cordyceps mushroom and regularly leads courses on their cultivation. William's research has been sponsored by several organizations and his work has been featured in multiple publications, including Fantastic Fungi and VICE. He also founded and manages MycoFest, an annual mushroom and arts festival, now on its tenth year!
	Allison Feduccia Allison is PhD, is a neuropharmacologist, psychedelic researcher, and educator. She is the Co-Founder + CEO of Psychedelic Support, a platform for education and connection to psychedelic practitioners, and a scientific advisor for Project New Day and the Etheridge Foundation, 501(c)3 nonprofits dedicated to helping people overcome addiction and actualize mental health through the responsible use of psychedelics. She began researching MDMA in 2004 and has worked on mental health research at UT Austin, UCSF, NIH, and MAPS PBC. Dr. Feduccia has authored 30 publications on psychedelics and mental health in peer-reviewed journals and several continuing education courses and articles. She lives in Santa Cruz, CA where she enjoys cooking, hiking in the redwood forest, and spending time with horses.
	Amanda Janney Amanda Janney owns KM Mushrooms, a gourmet mushroom farm in Santa Rosa, California. She cultivates a unique variety of mushrooms, driven by the belief that there’s a mushroom for everyone to enjoy. The variety KM cultivates focuses on introduces less common flavors and textures, with a strong focus on nutritional and medicinal benefits. A longtime cultivator, Amanda is passionate about teaching others to grow mushrooms and helping them confidently incorporate these superfoods into daily meals. KM Mushrooms can be found in a variety of kitchens: from the bay area's top rated restaurants to the home kitchens of people who used to think they "hated mushrooms." Presentation: Mushrooms 101 In this family-friendly talk developed for curious new-comers of all ages as well as seasoned pros, we will cover the basics of mushrooms. You've heard about the health benefits of mushrooms, you're interested in understanding different types of mushrooms, and you want to eat more mushrooms but aren't sure where to start? This fun and interactive discussion we'll cover lots of topics from classifications to edible mushrooms, an overview of cultivation and tips on how to start growing your own mushrooms, to practical tips on how to help you confidently cook with more mushrooms.
	Chad Hyatt Chad Hyatt has made a name for himself in Northern California and beyond by sharing his delicious spin on wild mushroom cookery at public and private events. Both an expert forager and classically trained chef, he has cooked in a variety of restaurants and private clubs around the San Francisco Bay area, where he can often be found putting on wild mushroom themed dinners and teaching mushroom related classes. Chad dove into mushroom hunting shortly after beginning his cooking career, and quickly gained a local reputation for eating the “weird mushrooms” that nobody else collected. As his mushroom hunting knowledge improved, his kitchen skills began to open up doors to cooking and teaching at various mushroom events in California and beyond. He still has a reputation for eating all of the weird mushrooms, though these days people often pay to share the experience. Cooking Demo
	Wilder Herbertson Wilder grew up eating of the earth (through foraging plants, tending gardens, and the slaughtering of livestock), mushrooms didn’t enter my life until 2018. Since the first time I identified, cooked, and ate my own mushroom find (Coprinellus micaceus, which has a special place in my heart now), I’ve been consumed by it. I’ve been an active member of the Sonoma Mycological Association since September 2018, and of the Mendocino Coast Mushroom Club since 2022. While foraging edible mushrooms for the kitchen was my doorway into the fungal queendom, my interest quickly expanded to fungal ecological roles as a whole, dyeing fiber with mushrooms and lichens, and some cloning and growing of mushrooms at home. Eventually, I couldn’t keep the joy I find in these practices to myself and I began offering guided plant or mushroom hikes and ancestral skill practice workshops (salve making, wild fermentation, mushroom, lichen, and plant dyeing, making cord out of plants, slaughtering support, etc.) in late 2020 and early 2021. It’s my passion to share the gifts of foraging, land connection, and ancestral skills practices with friends old and new. To learn more about my offerings, visit my website at humanbecoming.me where I’ve got upcoming workshops and retreats listed, an online store, a little about me, and more. I can't wait to meet you and share in the forest magic of mushroom dyeing with you! Mushroom Dyeing
	David Poplin David Poplin is the founder of Humboldt Mycology, a psilocybin mushroom company that produces high quality mushroom products along with educational content/ lectures. He studied biochemistry at Humboldt State University which has lead him into understanding many different extraction methods and ideology. His goal is to provide a better understanding on extractions so people have the confidence and knowledge to be able to grow and make their own medicines. Medicinal Mushroom Compounds and Extraction
	Jeff Ravage Cold Fire Project, Colorado Jeff Ravage is the Chief Technology and Science Officer for Coalitions and Collaboratives, a Colorado NGO focusing on all aspects of fire, WUI communities and ecological restoration. He is a researcher in forest mycology and works closely with the Denver Botanic Gardens Sam Mitchell Herbarium of Fungi, as well as MycoReach. Jeff is actively involved in work on carbon offset protocols and consults on biomass utilization and carbon policy for municipalities and agencies. He has lectured and presented papers all around the U.S.A. on fungal techniques for ecological restoration. He actively promotes novel methods of forest mitigation and restoration to achieve the goals of forest health and longevity; much of which is outlined in his book: “The Green Evolution”. He’s always willing to sit down over a frothy drink and discuss forest ecology, lignicolous saprophytes, or aposematic anurans. Fungal applications for addressing wildfire risk
	Felipe & Wendy Bravo Fox Tale Fermentation Project Eleana Hsu Shared Cultures Aixarret Hernandez Mycelium Matters
	Taye Bright Taye is a mycologist, naturalist, and artist guided by reverence for the living earth. She is currently a first year PhD student in the Bogar Lab at UC Davis researching how the composition and function of fungal communities change across environmental gradients, and the implications of these changes for biogeochemical cycling and ecosystem function. Taye earned her BS in Biology from the University of Central Florida, and upon moving to California she fell in love with fungi and has since engaged in various non-profit-led research projects. One of which is a three-year post-fire microbial ecology study investigating the impacts of bacterial/fungal inocula on burned soils in urban-wildlife interface zones. She also serves as a field mycologist for the California Fungal Diversity Survey, a state-funded project working to systematically document macrofungal diversity across California. Taye prioritizes community engagement in the sciences, serving on the NAMA Conservation and Stewardship Committee and on the board of the Sonoma County Mycological Association. She also educates widely about various topics in mycology both within and beyond academic settings, and leads fungal ecology walks throughout Northern California. Outside of her scientific work you can find her in the garden talking with birds, experimenting with mushroom inks and dyes, surfing in frigid Pacific Waters and reading Norse mythology. Community Science and Conservation Workshop: Join Taye Bright for a workshop/discussion about accessible pathways to contribute to the collective knowledge and conservation of fungi through community science. We will discuss approaches to turning our awareness and attention towards fungal diversity, systematically collecting fungi for scientific inquiry, navigating community science platforms like iNaturalist, creating your own local projects to document fungal diversity in places you love, managing a personal fungaria, different resources for sequencing, and ultimately, why we do all of this work in the first place. We will create space for discussing fungal conservation, and how it fits into the larger conversation about what it means to care for and protect biodiversity in the anthropocene. Taye's intention is to facilitate a lively and dynamic discussion where all voices are heard and where you can leave feeling equipped and inspired to uplift the importance of fungi in your community.
	Jess Starwood Jess Starwood is an established author, naturalist, chef, herbalist and educator. She recently wrote and photographed Mushroom Wanderland: A Forager’s Guide to Finding, Identifying and Using More Than 25 Wild Fungi. She is also the founder of SunRaven Apothecary, which offers small-batch handcrafted herbal goods for the journey of the body and mind. Jess teaches foraging, wild foods, and nature education classes for children and adults. She founded The Wild Path, a wild food apprenticeship and educational program in 2020, which strives to connect the community to nature positively and sustainably. She also leads wild food group adventures on the West Coast, Southwest United States, and Mexico. With a Master of Science degree in Herbal Medicine, Jess is pursuing a Doctorate of Science in Integrative Health from the American College of Healthcare Sciences. She has earned the Integrative Psilocybin Mushroom Specialist and Integrative Cannabis Specialist certifications. She is a member of the Culinary Arts Committee for the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) and the editor of the amateur mycology journal McIllvainea. She is on the board of directors for the Arizona Mushroom Society and the Los Angeles Mycological Society
	Sarah-Kate Boylan Sarah-Kate spent her career with Australian Customs Border Protection, eventually becoming the Liaison Officer at their embassy in Washington D.C. building relationships with the USA, International Intelligence & Law Enforcement Agency counterparts. She now leads Lily’s Lighthouse, aiming to transform the lives of children living with epilepsy thanks to the power of mushrooms. To support Lily's Lighthouse Epilepsy Research, visit www.lilyslighthouse.org 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗛𝗥𝗢𝗢𝗠𝗦 𝗦𝗔𝗩𝗘𝗗 𝗠𝗬 𝗗𝗔𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗘𝗥’𝗦 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 – 𝗔 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬 𝗢𝗙 𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚 Educational Talk Where can you turn when traditional medical care has failed you? Could it be that nature provides some remedies where modern pharmaceutical products & therapeutic technologies fall short? After exhausting all conventional options for Lily’s chronic seizures, Sarah-Kate found preliminary research suggesting functional mushrooms could help Lily with her intractable epilepsy. With continuous use of functional mushrooms (a combination of Chaga, Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, Maitake, Reishi, Shiitake & Turkey Tail) alongside anti-seizure medication, Lily went from having an average of 50 seizures a day (!!!) down to one every few months. This miraculous turnaround inspired Sarah-Kate to found Lily’s Lighthouse: a non-profit with a mission to fund further research investigating the efficacy of mushroom-based treatment for epilepsy & offer holistic therapies for children living with the condition. Considering epilepsy is the 4th most common neurological disorder in the US, and that up to 1 in 26 people may be diagnosed with Epilepsy during their lifetime, the functional mushroom therapy research Lily’s Lighthouse is focusing on could improve the quality of life of the 50 million people living with epilepsy today — not to mention generations to come. Come hear how Lily’s story affects us all & how mushrooms could be part of game-changing treatment for chronic conditions.
	Marc A Donsky, Ph.D We have been studying, collecting, and eating mushrooms for over 50 years. Our love for mushrooms and plants as medicine began early in life with our Mom’s Sunday Morning Mushroom Crepes et Omelets, and my Grandmother’s herbal teas. We learned to identify fungi while in high school from Orson Miller’s Mushrooms of North America and Larson’s how to identify Mushroom Series. Backpacking with buddies in Mt Evans (Now Mt Blue) Wilderness we would collect and identify our collections and cook up every species of edible mushrooms we had found. The joy on our Mom’s face walking in the door with baskets full of Ceps et Chanterelles sealed the deal.Marc has a B.S. in Chemistry and B.S. in Biology from the University of Arizona, Tucson: An M.S. in Organis Chemistry and Ph.D. in Comparative Biochenisr\try from University of California, Berkeley, Colorado Denver Our main focus now is our role, as CSO for MYCO REACH; setting up and sharing the MYCO REACH Community Workspace for the “Myco-Curious and Myco-Serious”* and continued development/production of Mammoth Mountain Mushrooms SOAPSLOTIONS* POTIONS* formulations.
	Dr. Dennis E. Desjardin Dr. Dennis E. Desjardin is Professor Emeritus of Biology/Mycology at San Francisco State University, Director Emeritus of the H.D. Thiers Herbarium, and Chief Mycologist for Sempera Organics Inc. He has spent the past 40 years teaching mycology at universities and conducting field studies throughout the world, primarily in understudied tropical forests documenting mushroom diversity throughout Southeast Asia, West Africa, South America and the Pacific Islands. He is a Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, the recipient of the Weston Award for Outstanding Mycology Teacher of North America, and was recently bestowed the Distinguished Mycologist Award by the Mycological Society of America, the highest honor for a professional mycologist. He has published over 160 refereed scientific papers, described over 300 new species of mushrooms, and co-authored two popular field guides, Mushrooms of Hawaii (Ten Speed Press) and California Mushrooms (Timber Press).
	BAND LINEUP Mike Hammer & the Nails Sass N Harmony Trianna Feruza Yeobo Papiba & Friends Apricot Band