Board of Advisors

Lauren Adler

Lauren Adler founded Chocolopolis to satisfy a craving for more than just chocolate. She has a passion for sharing the story of fine cacao, from its origins as a revered Aztec drink to the varied flavor profiles of cacao grown in different regions of the equatorial belt. Lauren opened Chocolopolis in 2008 just as the craft chocolate movement was beginning in the US. Flanked by a handful of American bean-to-bar chocolate makers, Lauren was a pioneer in educating US consumers about cacao and chocolate. She has built a broad community of like-minded chocophiles in Seattle and across the US who appreciate and enjoy the experience of tasting and sharing fine chocolate. She has over 10 years of experience in tasting chocolate made with fine flavor cacao, and she brings deep knowledge of the craft chocolate market to the table....

Laura Dimarco

Laura holds an MS in Organizational Development and Psychology and has over 17 years of HR management experience, working with some of the top Seattle-area organizations, including Seattle Children’s Hospital, The Polyclinic, and Virginia Mason Hospital and Medical Center. While her focus has been healthcare, we believe that people are driven by the same motivations and desires, regardless of industry. She will serve as our Human Resources Business Consultant, advising us on workforce planning, hiring, compliance, and development, in order to realize our organizational goals and philosophy through the people we hire.

Emily Stone

Emily Stone has spent the greater part of the last decade deep in the jungles of Central America, creating meaningful market access for thousands of indigenous Maya smallholder farmers through supply chain companies connecting these farmers with premium chocolate makers around the world. Through Uncommon Cacao, her group of cacao processing, export and sales operations spanning Central America and the U.S. with partnerships in Bolivia, Colombia, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, she and her team are effectively decommoditizing the highly problematic cacao supply chain.

Uncommon Cacao delivers excellent quality cacao through completely transparent business transactions to chocolate makers, while driving meaningful change in cacao growing communities through higher prices, targeted technical assistance, and long term partnerships. Emily is the only Ashoka Fellow in the chocolate supply chain so far, and her work has been recognized for impact by Acumen Fund, Agora Partnerships, and Unilever. A lifelong chocolate lover, Emily will not rest until we live in a world where cacao farmers finally earn a living income through and are visibly recognized for their work cultivating one of the world’s most cherished ingredients.

Meg Trainer

Before opening Bounty Kitchen in 2015, Meg Trainer spent five years at Whole Foods Market overseeing the prepared-foods team for the Pacific Northwest. During her tenure, she helped launch Health Starts Here, a line of plant-based salad and hot bar items each containing no more than 3 ounces of lean meat or fish and healthy fats from whole food sources, such as avocados. She traveled the country, meeting with doctors and health experts about the benefits of plant-based eating. And she spent a lot of time talking to customers, who told her they longed for a place other than a grocery store where they could up their veggie game.