Our Pillars
Grow
Mentorship, skill-building, and support to help accelerate your career.
Connect
Find people who understand your corner of this industry.
Lead
Leadership development, visibility, and a pathway to shape what this industry becomes.
Our Story
Open Fields Alliance began in 2015 in Atlanta, with a few people finding each other and starting a conversation that hasn't stopped since.
Over the years that followed, those conversations turned into infrastructure. Our flagship Annual Conference became our annual gathering. What started as informal community-building became a national organization: collegiate chapters, a growing leadership development cohort, and thousands of people across the country who no longer have to choose between their industry and their identity.
Today, Open Fields Alliance is a community where LGBTQ+ people across food and agriculture connect with one another, grow professionally, and build the careers they want in the industry they love.
Board & Staff
Meet the board and staff behind Open Fields Alliance.
Board
Staff
Resources
Where to get help right now
Mental health support for farmers and rural communities
Finding an LGBTQ+ affirming doctor
Community for rural and farming LGBTQ+ people
Workplace and professional development
FAQ
What happens at my first Annual Conference?
See the Annual Conference page for the full details on our largest annual event, including information about attending the conference, as well as how to get involved.
I'm not out at work. Is this still for me?
Yes. However out you are is your call - regardless, we've created a space to find people like you at whatever pace feels right. We build our programs so you can engage without being outed to your employer, your school, or anyone else. How visible you are here is entirely up to you.
How do I get involved if there's no chapter near me?
"Chapter" specifically refers to our Collegiate Network - a campus-based structure for LGBTQ+ students, not a citywide or regional one. If you're a student, you can start a chapter wherever one doesn't exist yet. If you're a working professional, Affinity Groups - Nonprofit & Public Sector, LGBTQ+ Women, and LGBTQ+ Allies - are national and meet virtually, so there's no local equivalent to look for. You join the group, not a place.
But you don't have to wait for something to exist near you to bring people together locally. Anyone can host an Open Fields Social in their area - we provide toolkits and grants to help you get one off the ground.
Is Open Fields Alliance connected to Cultivating Change Foundation?
Yes - Open Fields Alliance is Cultivating Change Foundation. We changed our name in 2026. Same organization, same team, same 501(c)(3), same history.
Cultivating Change was about proving other LGBTQ+ people exist in the agricultural sector - and that work isn’t finished; people still tell us that they’ve never met another LGBTQ+ person in agriculture before us. Open Fields Alliance keeps doing that work and builds further: helping people grow their careers and become the leaders of this sector. If you attended a Cultivating Change Annual Conference, you’re part of this.
Is Open Fields Alliance a 501(c)(3)?
Yes. Open Fields Alliance, formerly Cultivating Change Foundation, is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law, and no goods or services are provided in return. The organization's Tax ID appears on every donation receipt.
Where is Open Fields Alliance based?
Open Fields Alliance operates a virtual office in Sacramento, California (1401 21st St #13242, Sacramento, CA 95811), and is a national organization. Our board and staff are located across the country.
Who is Open Fields Alliance for?
Open Fields Alliance is for LGBTQ+ people across the food and agriculture industry. Our community includes corporate agriculture professionals, communications and marketing experts, educators, university extension staff, nonprofit and association staff, and students just entering the field. And yes, we support farmers too. Farmers are the most important part of this equation: the people producing the food, feed, and fiber this industry exists for, even though most of our community works in offices, classrooms, and organizations in agriculture rather than on the land itself. Allies are also welcome here, in support of - not in place of - the LGBTQ+ community this space is built for.