Monti Lawson
Site Supervisor and Farmer-in-Residence
Monti Lawson (he/him), Site Supervisor and Farmer-in-Residence, leverages his urban farming expertise from NYC to enrich WILDSEED’s farming ecosystem. He is a Black, gay farmer and an advocate for community-driven agriculture who founded Catalyst Collaborative Farm. Monti graduated from Farm School NYC and is an active member of the FSNYC alumni community.
He is also a member of Black Farmers United of NYS, Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust, NYS BIPOC Grower Support Network, and a member of the Leadership Advisory Committee for the Equity Fund of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. In 2023, he was honored to serve as the inaugural representative for Manhattan and Staten Island on the USDA Farm Service Urban County Committee for NYC. Monti’s role involves promoting agricultural diversity and innovation, aligning with WILDSEED’s nature-harmonious farming practices and food forest cultivation. Monti’s commitment to providing access to land for BIPOC farmers supports our liberatory economics and ecological guidance.
Monti loves working at WILDSEED tending to the land with care, building community rooted in justice, and stewarding a vision for Black and queer liberation. He cultivates deep relationships—with the soil, with people, and towards a more liberated future.