Ask an Expert

Join this informal, interactive session featuring experts in various topics, including solar and land access. This is a great opportunity to ask specific questions and get practical, informed answers. Conversations can happen one-on-one or organically in small groups. Come connect, learn, and get the clarity you need!

Solar

Expert: Tom Rapini owns and operates a small organic farm with mostly fruit producing trees and shrubs in northeast Ohio. A passionate advocate of renewable energy, nearly all of his farm’s electricity is generated by its 8000-watt solar array. Tom has been an OEFFA member for more than 20 years, serving on the OEFFA board since 2018. 

Expert: Sam Roberts is the Ohio state director of Farm-To-Power. Through his work and connecting with various organizations and stakeholders in the rural renewable energy space, Sam has developed a high-level understanding of agrivoltaics in Ohio and the midwest.

Land Access

Expert: Jerah Pettibone is a small livestock farmer, land access educator, and certified land transition coordinator based in southeast Ohio. She’s experienced at assisting beginning and retiring farmers, landowners, and folks at any stage of the land access process.

Workers Compensation

Expert: David Deyo is an insurance professional with 20 years of experience, specializing in workers’ compensation and risk management. Since joining Sedgwick in 2015, he has served as a program management associate, focusing primarily on Ohio workers’ compensation programs.

Legal (easements)

Expert: Laura A. Curliss, of Laura A. Curliss Co. LPA, is an attorney and land trust founder. She has a private practice focusing on conservation law, real estate, estate planning and probate law. Based in Yellow Springs, Ohio, she has extensive experience with agricultural and conservation easements to preserve the family farm for future generations of farmers.

Legal (agriculture law):

Expert: Peggy Hall is an attorney and the director of the agricultural and resource law program at OSU. She conducts research and outreach on legal issues affecting agriculture, land use, and resource development, including in food direct marketing and value-added ag businesses.