Marcel Van Ooyen is the President and CEO of GrowNYC and former Legislative Director for the New York City Council.
Mr. Van Ooyen took leadership of GrowNYC in 2006 and under his leadership, GrowNYC has vastly expanded its efforts with new initiatives including: Fresh Food Box - a weekly affordable food mix for low-income residents, teen run farm stands in underserved communities, and NYC’s first all local food hub: Greenmarket Co. GrowNYC’s Food Stamp in the Farmers’ Market initiative is considered a National model, with $1,000,000 in SNAP sales in 2013. Marcel has also spearheaded the development of new programs in response to needs in our city, including Grow to Learn NYC: Citywide School Gardens Initiative, a public public-private partnership with the Mayor’s Office created to inspire, promote and facilitate the creation of sustainable school gardens in every New York City public school.
Marcel earned his degree at the University of California Irvine and has his JD from Seattle University School of Law. He is the former Legislative Director for the New York City Council, where he wrote and ensured the adoption of more than 30 environmental laws.