Cooperative Development Specialist Julia joins CDS as a passionate advocate for local food systems, farmer agency, and the power of community-led economies. Born and raised in rural Iowa, she understands both the vibrancy of rural communities as well as the…

Office & Program Manager Vicky Chaput has been Office Manager for Cooperative Development Services (CDS) for 24 years overseeing key areas of Human Resources, Office Coordination, and Meeting Planning. She is the Program Manager for our Senior Housing Cooperative (SHC)…

Finance & Donor Program Specialist Andrea joined CDS in June 2025 as our Finance and Donor Program Specialist. She has over 30 years of experience in small nonprofit administration, finance and governance. Most recently she was Business Manager and Conference…

After 24 years as CDS’s executive director, Kevin Edberg retired in October 2024, but is still working with us as our cooperative development specialist. Kevin has a long background in agriculture, economics, and marketing. He holds bachelor’s degrees in horticulture,…

Ag & Energy Program Specialist Cory’s background in utilities, entrepreneurship and cooperative management brought him to CDS as the new Ag and Energy Specialist.  Growing up in rural Southwestern Wisconsin (Prairie du Chien), he left to attend UW-Madison, majoring in Human/Environment…

Cooperative Development Specialist Char Vrieze joined CDS as a Cooperative Development Specialist in April 2022. Char’s background growing up on a farm picking pickles, eggs, potatoes, and helping her family clean apartments lends itself well to the main focus of…