Keynotes
Kim Roney
Councilmember, City of Asheville
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Kim Roney
Councilmember, City of Asheville
Asheville Councilmember Kim Roney is music educator, community organizer, and former Station Manager of 103.3 AshevilleFM. Raised in deep poverty in the rural South, Kim’s familiar with food insecurity, housing insecurity, intimate partner violence, and the threat of family separation. She walks, bikes, and rides public transit, and she understands the people of Asheville are struggling to make ends meet as the cost of living rises while unchecked tourism strains our natural resources, burdens our infrastructure, and displaces vulnerable neighbors, especially as Western North Carolina recovers from Hurricane Helene.
On City Council, Kim serves on the Policy, Finance, & Infrastructure and the Planning, Environment, and Development Committees, and liaisons advisory boards including: the French Broad River MPO; Urban Forestry Commission; Transit Committee; Neighborhood Advisory Committee; and Human Relations Commission. She is the Co-Chair of Local Progress NC, member of ART-C coalition, an out-elected with EqualityNC, and a Fellow of New Disabled South Rising.
Kim enjoys music, a good story, and the process of growing, cooking, and sharing food with friends & neighbors.
Ginger Sykes Torres
Vice President of Resiliency Programs, Local First Arizona
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Ginger Sykes Torres
Vice President of Resiliency Programs, Local First Arizona
Ginger Sykes Torres is the Vice President of Resiliency Programs at Local First Arizona, North America’s largest coalition of local businesses. In this role, she leads climate, sustainability, and food systems initiatives, working with urban, rural, and tribal communities to foster resilience and promote the growth of enduring, local economies across Arizona.
Before joining Local First Arizona, Ginger was appointed by the White House to serve as the State Executive Director of the USDA Farm Service Agency in Arizona, overseeing disaster assistance, price support, conservation, and lending programs for farmers and ranchers. She championed the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices, expanded producer access to federal resources, and advanced the agency’s commitment to integrating urban farming into the broader agricultural landscape.
A graduate of Stanford University’s Earth Systems Program, her interdisciplinary expertise spans environmental policy, land use planning, environmental impact analysis, energy siting, and climate resilience planning, gained through work with federal agencies, utilities, and developers. Her community board service includes the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC), the Heard Museum, The Nature Conservancy, Valley Leadership, and the City of Phoenix Environmental Quality and Sustainability Commission.
A proud citizen of the Navajo Nation, Ginger is a passionate advocate for issues impacting tribal communities in Arizona. She is also a former champion Native American hoop dancer, and made history as the first female to win a title at the Heard Museum’s World Championship Hoop Dance Contest.