Allison is a lifelong horsewoman who has developed her own solutions and intuitive approach to relationship-building with horses, having learned from dozens of trainers, teachers, healers, and her own experience with horses over the years. Her knowledge and skills include dressage, jumping, and eventing; alternative and supplemental healing practices for horses; bitless riding; positive reinforcement and liberty training; natural horsemanship; relating with horses without riding; intuitive communication; and working with horses as guides for personal, spiritual, and emotional growth. She has spent countless hours researching all things horse, completing different trainings, and attending regular lessons and clinics. She is committed to recovery from learned helplessness in both horses and humans, with a vision of freeing all of us from outdated fear-based paradigms and empowering our own abilities to be in harmonious horse-human partnerships.

In addition to Allison’s horse background, she also has twenty years of experience in the nonprofit and regenerative agriculture sectors, including a decade working in a variety of human-rights focused organizations, and 12 years as the owner of her own consulting business focused on supporting nonprofits, small farms, and small businesses participating in regenerative agriculture and local food systems. She has designed and secured funding for many innovative new programs focused on increasing the viability of small organic farms; improving access to local and organic food in underserved communities; and advocating for the use of effective land management strategies such as rotational grazing and other conservation efforts. She managed two different organic farm incubator programs which supported multiple start-up farm businesses, working directly on the farms to provide education to the general public about organic and sustainable farming practices.

As a consultant, Allison has expertise in helping clients identify and clarify their vision, plan strategically for the future, and find funding for their work through the creation of multi-year, detailed business plans and project proposals. She became the leading national expert in USDA Farm Bill grant programs supporting local food systems after personally writing 63 grant applications, securing more than $8 million in funding from more than a dozen different programs, and acting as a national trainer and coach for applicants.

Allison has a B.A. in Women’s Studies and Sociology from the University of Minnesota and a graduate certificate in Fundraising & Fund Development from the University of St. Thomas School of Business. She is also a certified Evolutionary Astrologer through the Forrest Center for Evolutionary Astrology, studied Tibetan Buddhism for 20 years, and has been an avid spiritual seeker since she was 13 years old.