Staff Spotlight: Anna Regalado
In October 2024, the Open Space Authority made history in the hiring of the agency’s first Agricultural Specialist, Anna Regalado. Through this new position, Anna plays an integral role in the expansion and support of regional agriculture as well as relationship building among current and future agricultural tenants to build and maintain productive working lands in Santa Clara Valley.
Anna was first introduced to agriculture at the age of four when her mom rented a community garden plot in San José for her family to grow their own produce. “One of my first core memories is sitting on the hood of our car eating fava beans we grew in the garden,” Anna shared. Anna was also an engaged reader and recalls a book she liked to read as a child by Jacquie Wines titled “You Can Save the Planet” that demonstrated 50 sustainable actions to help the environment and included things like how to compost, recycle and grow your own food. Her early interest in agriculture and the environment led Anna to start her own backyard garden while in high school and to eventually study environmental sciences at UC Santa Barbara (UCSB).
Yet, at the time, the UCSB Environmental Science program only offered a handful of agriculture-focused classes. Anna signed up for as many classes as she could and continued to explore alternative ways to gain experience in the agricultural field. Luckily, UCSB provides students within the Environmental Science department an opportunity to create their own concentrations within their majors, so Anna decided to pursue a food and agricultural sciences concentration that incorporated an internship at the on-campus Biology Greenhouse as well as two agriculture study abroad experiences in Ecuador and Ghana before finishing her degree and landing a job back in the Bay Area.
Her first job involved educating youth in STEM through the UC Cooperative Extension’s (UCCE) 4-H Youth Development Program. “Because there are so many [UC] programs housed within the same office, I was able to get exposure to the Urban Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources, Nutrition, and Small Farm programs and made a lot of great connections who opened doors for me,” Anna said. After her time at UCCE, Anna moved on to Valley Verde, a non-profit based in San José that promotes healthy eating and provides food access and micro-entrepreneurship training to low-income families. There, she worked as the Greenhouse Coordinator and eventually became Greenhouse Manager.
Next, Anna made the move to Veggielution where she focused her efforts on Eastside Connect, a program through which the organization distributes fresh produce to low-income East San José residents. What initially started as a way to provide fresh and nutritious food to individuals during the COVID-19 shutdowns quickly became a way for the organization to connect community members of diverse backgrounds to food and local farmers. “We wanted people to feel taken care of and valued, because that’s what the community deserves,” Anna said. Eventually, Anna moved on to become Veggielution’s Farm Program Manager and focused her attention on coordinating programs at the farm before landing the Agricultural Specialist position at the Open Space Authority.
“I’m really enjoying being a bridge builder between farmers, people and the land; someone that creates connections between others to push the work forward. We may not be the ones directly growing food, but we can connect farmers to the resources they need to do so and strengthen relationships in the process.”
As Anna continues her career within the agriculture field, she looks forward to fortifying relationships with local farmers and being able to share their stories. “I feel so lucky every time I get to hear a farmer share why they do what they do,” Anna said. “It gives me a deeper appreciation for their work and strengthens my respect for the profession. They know the land, can sense things that others can’t and understand what they need to do to be successful with their work.” As Anna continues to build relationships with farm owners and farmworkers, she looks forward to being able to eventually help them on a technical level.
In her spare time, Anna likes to try new things and push herself out of her comfort zone. Currently, she dabbles in a variety of hobbies including ballet folklórico, climbing, biking, swimming, crafting, sailing and baking.