He holds two advanced degrees, a Masters of Public Administration and a Masters of Arts in International Environmental Policy Studies, both earned at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California. He has worked as a data analyst and consultant on multiple social change projects in the United States and abroad. His work, both academically and professionally, has largely focused on the role of food in both sustainability and human security around the world. He is a co-founder and officer at an ag-tech social enterprise called Urbavore, based in Santa Cruz, California, where his team is designing low-cost hydroponic systems to improve sustainable food production and increase household access to healthy foods.