People of PAN
At PAN, we center the values of collaboration, equity, and solidarity both externally through our work, and internally through our relationships. To us, collaboration means sharing our skills in science, communications, and organizing with impacted communities. We embrace and actively seek to bring a wide range of viewpoints, identities, and life experiences to our staff, board, and network. PAN seeks equity by supporting those who are most directly impacted by an ineffective and unjust food and farming system. We encourage their leadership and we work as partners to seek positive change. Solidarity, to PAN, means taking action to stand with others who are dedicated to building a just world. We commit to being a visible ally and take public positions not only on oppression within the food system, but also within the broader social justice movement.
Each person on our staff or sitting on our Board of Directors brings something unique to our work and values. In embracing how this individuality makes us stronger, we’re sharing a series of blogs which highlight the unique characteristics that build upon one another to make PAN the organization it is today.
Corrie Holliday (she/they), Donor Associate
If PAN had superlative awards, Corrie would undoubtedly receive Most Likely to Make Someone Smile. Empathetic and kind, Corrie has the enviable ability to make everyone feel included and part of a team. With strong values and a clear-headed eye on justice and inclusivity, they make our team feel like found-family.
Read on to learn more about Corrie’s work and vision for PAN’s future!
Tell us your PAN story. What brought you to PAN, and what keeps you engaged with this work?
When I originally came to PAN, I was excited about a job opportunity that was a great match for my experience in non-profit fundraising. I’ve always been drawn to work that involves bringing people together on a grassroots level, and collaborating on actions that we can take as individuals to achieve larger goals together. Growing our “power in numbers” makes us stronger.
I didn’t know a lot about our mission yet, but I was hopeful to have a role in an organization working at the intersection of social justice and human rights. Promoting safer farming practices seemed like a meaningful way to do that, across the food chain.
Then I began to work with PAN and learned much more about the historical context. I learned about deadly chemical weapons being commercialized as insecticides after World War II, and the pesticide industry’s “circle of poison” to maximize profits with zero regard for worldwide health impacts. Of course, I learned more about Big Ag’s corporate influence on EPA and other government agencies. And I recognized how everything in our food system is connected, from farmworker protections to Indigenous land rights and global people’s food sovereignty movements.
Imagine a world in which PAN has achieved its mission. What does that world look like from your perspective? How has your life changed?
I would love to envision a world without the oppressive structures, systems and conditions that cause so much pain and struggle. Not only in the food system specifically, but also relating to the economic distribution of wealth, land, and resources, which I see as inherently connected with food production and access. No more starvation or scarcity of natural resources – The soil is fertile, the water is clean, and food is abundant and affordable to all. Sustainable farming feeds local communities, and everyone can celebrate and participate in the harvest.
I imagine a world with more young people interested in being farmers, and where land can be tended with care, not with chemicals, and not with industrialized pressures of production yields and profit margins. Food and agriculture programs are fully funded and prioritized.
I want a world where people are able to have a fulfilling livelihood and adequate time for rest, and no one has to work multiple jobs to pay the bills. Everyone has access to housing, education, and healthcare. There is no prison industrial complex, and no prison labor in our food systems or anywhere else. I envision a world where all people have what they need to live comfortably and safely.
Tell us about your hobbies. How do you spend your spare time? Who do you spend it with?
I live with my partner of five years, Riley, and our two cats Tommy Picklewhiskers and Harvey Milk-Mustache – so I always enjoy spending cozy time with them at home. Harvey is a kitten and Tommy is older but they are very playful together. I’m interested in various paper crafts such as collage art and blackout poetry; I like exploring art that creates new context from found material in surprising ways. I love wandering around thrift stores and flea markets, and finding unexpected oddities. I recently took a beginner sewing workshop and I hope to repurpose my nostalgic old t-shirts into some new projects. I also love singing with friends at karaoke, and taking a walk in the woods. I feel lucky to live in the Bay Area where we have many options to get into nature and smell the redwood trees!
PAN is so lucky to have Corrie as part of our team. We appreciate her hard work and the joy she brings to it. Stay tuned for more in our People of PAN series!
