Meet Our Team
Chef Bryan Flower
Born in England and raised in South Africa, Chef Bryan started working in the hospitality industry in the mid-nineties. Over the past 30 years, his talents have taken him from South Africa to Europe, the Middle East, and finally to the United States. Chef Bryan has worked at several renowned resorts, clubs, restaurants, and hotels, before moving into education. As the assistant director of food systems innovation and director of the Edible Campus program at Northern Illinois University he is responsible for developing and overseeing numerous food systems innovation programs including Edible Campus, the sustainable food systems innovation challenge and the innovation conversation series to name a few.
Courtney Gallaher
Courtney Gallaher, Ph.D. is the sustainability coordinator for Northern Illinois University. Prior to working in this role, Gallaher was a jointly appointed associate professor in Earth, Atmosphere and Environment and the Center for the Study of Women, Gender and Sexuality. As a broadly trained human-environment geographer, she has taught and researched a broad range of global interdisciplinary issues including sustainable food and agricultural systems, water management, and environmental justice. Courtney graduated with a B.S. in soil and environmental science from UW-Madison and holds an M.S. in crop and soil science as well as a Ph.D. in geography from Michigan State University. In addition, she has specialized training in gender and environmental justice. Courtney oversees all campus sustainability initiatives and loves to engage with faculty, staff and students on a broad range of projects. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, gardening and exploring nature with her family.
Rena Cotsones
As chief engagement officer for NIU, Cotsones, Ph.D. leads the Division of Outreach, Engagement and Regional Development, advancing the university’s public mission and providing leadership, partnership and support for faculty, staff and students interested in engaging with the broader region. She oversees the Center for Governmental Studies, the P-20 Center for Engagement, Northern Public Radio, the university’s three regional centers and field campus, NIU’s centralized conferencing and event management function and NIU’s Public Engagement Networks. Dr. Cotsones is also actively engaged in a number of university-wide initiatives such as the development of the Northern Illinois Center for Community Sustainability and the new Strategic Development Team, looking for new ways to create, enhance and fund transformational university projects.
Amy Jo Clemens
Amy Jo Clemens, Ed.D. is the assistant vice president of the division and director of the Northern Illinois University Center for P-20 Engagement. She has spent 34 years in education, with more than 15 of those years in policy development, program delivery and student advocacy, including the past 7 years in higher education.
For the division, Dr. Clemens works on priorities that cut across colleges and divisions, including the Strategic Development Committee and the NIU Engagement Task Force. As director of the P-20 Center, Amy Jo oversees five directors with P-20 responsibilities that span from birth through lifelong learning with a focus on STEM readiness, diversity in the workforce, continuing education and bridging secondary to postsecondary for Illinois’ most vulnerable students and families.
Alyssa Edwards
Alyssa Edwards is a doctoral student in the Department of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, where her research interests include the intersections of sustainability, food systems, and gender. She is also a graduate assistant supporting NIU's sustainability efforts. Alyssa holds a B.S. in geoscience from the University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point as well as an M.S. in geography from Minnesota State University, where her research bridged cartography, geomorphology, sedimentary geology, and soil science. She enjoys working across disciplines and looks forward to being highly involved in NIU's sustainability. In her free time, she enjoys obsessing over her cats, learning new things and trying new foods. Her role in the Edible Campus project includes managing volunteers, organizing events and meetings, and planning.
Email: ediblecampus@niu.edu