Rachna Vas works as GreenLatinos' Urban and Community Forestry Program Director, with a focus on managing the USDA IRA UCF grant program.
Rachna has a background in grants management, technology and environmental sustainability. She has spent the last several years in the tech sector collaborating with federal and state governments to implement community digital transformation projects, including digital skills training and workforce and economic development programs, especially for rural and indigenous communities. Her experience includes working at Microsoft on innovative AI-driven applications for precision agriculture, irrigation, and herd and fire management programs in the Western U.S. Rachna has extensive experience in sustainability initiatives, including working with local farmers in New York to expand the production of specialty ethnic crops, implementing urban agriculture programs, including food forests, for historically underrepresented communities, and developing STEM curricula and experiential sustainability training for K-12 programs.
Rachna has a Bachelor of Science in Botany and a Master of Science in Silviculture and Forest Protection from the University of Washington in Seattle.
