Press Release

CNFA Appoints Lt. Gen John Castellaw as New Board of Directors Member

WASHINGTON, D.C. — CNFA, Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture, an international agricultural development organization, announced that Lt. Gen John Castellaw, USMC (Ret.) has been appointed to join the CNFA Board of Directors.

Castellaw is Chief Executive Officer of Farmspace Systems LLC., a drone-based precision agriculture data collection company he co-founded following a 36-year career in U.S. Marine Corps aviation. Castellaw, who concluded his military career as Deputy Commandant for Programs and Resources at the Pentagon, participated in a range of humanitarian operations in Africa, Asia and Europe, including serving with the United Nations during the siege of Sarajevo, and commanding the U.S. force in a multinational security and stability operation in East Timor.

“John adds an important new dimension to the CNFA Board,” said CNFA Chair of the Board Elin D. Miller. “As a recognized national security expert as well as an agricultural technology entrepreneur, John has a unique combination of skills and experience that will prove extremely valuable to our organization as we grow our work in increasingly complex environments around the world.”

Castellaw serves on the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s National Security Advisory Council, and works with a number of other Washington, D.C.-based security organizations, including the Nuclear Security Working Group, the American Security Project and the Climate Security Working Group. He also serves as a consultant on food insecurity’s impact on global security, recently testifying before a Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee.

“John has a deep understanding not only of the critical interrelationship of food security and global security—but also of the crucial role that access to food plays in the economic and social stability of less-developed nations and regions,” said CNFA President & Chief Executive Officer Sylvain Roy. “John understands the private sector’s important role in providing the knowledge and technology necessary to increase agricultural productivity and economic prosperity. His combined expertise in these two areas meshes perfectly with CNFA’s mission to use market-driven approaches to bring sustainable agricultural development to underserved regions of the world.”

“CNFA’s entrepreneurship-based model provides a practical, common-sense approach to international development,” Castellaw said. “I look forward to working with the CNFA Board of Directors to expand and grow the use of this approach to bolster the economic and social well-being of the world’s farmers.”

CNFA: Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture, an international agricultural development organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. with offices in 17 countries, specializes in designing sustainable, market-led agricultural initiatives. CNFA builds strong local and global partnerships, incorporates innovative approaches in its programs, and fosters inclusive development to offer enhanced opportunities to under-served groups.