Three new members, Matt Rowe, James Rogers and Tracy Stouffer, have joined the Santa Barbara Foundation (SBF) Board of Trustees.

They join the ranks of colleagues including current board chair Pamela Gann, Stephen Hicks, Susan Richards, Diane Adams, Phil Alvarado, Randall Day, Donna France, Angel Iscovich, Danna McGrew, Robert Nakasone, Ernesto Paredes, Cathy Pepe, Ginger Salazar, Niki Sandoval, and Michael Young.

“We are thrilled to have James, Matt and Tracy join us as we work to improve the quality of life in Santa Barbara County and support our most vulnerable community members,” said Jackie Carrera, SBF president/CEO. “Their experience, knowledge and passion for our county will add value to the foundation and in turn the community at large.”

The Santa Barbara Foundation also acknowledges the contributions of outgoing trustee Jennifer Murray, who has provided more than 16 years of service. Most notably as chair of the investments committee, Murray guided SBF’s investments, recently adding a socially responsible investment pool to the investment portfolio.

“I feel like the luckiest person in the world to call Santa Barbara my home,” said Rogers, founder/CEO of Apeel Sciences, which fights the global food waste crisis by using materials found in nature to help food last longer.

“I don’t know of any other place on earth where science, agriculture, and pop culture combine so seamlessly; Apeel Sciences could only have taken root in this special microclimate we call Santa Barbara,” Rogers said.

“I’m honored to join the Santa Barbara Foundation Board to support the foundation’s investment in the world changing enterprises, organizations and ideas that our community continues to germinate,” said Rogers, who leads Apeel’s corporate strategy and its team of scientists in developing plant-based technologies that keep fruits and vegetables fresh two to three times longer.

The World Economic Forum recently recognized Rogers as a Young Global Leader. In 2019, Fortune Magazine named him one of their ’40 under 40.”

Rogers earned dual undergraduate degrees from Carnegie Mellon University in materials science and engineering, and biomedical engineering; and his Ph.D. in materials from UCSB, where he also received his MS in economics. Rogers serves on the UCSB Alumni Association Board.

“In joining the Santa Barbara Foundation as a trustee I aim to broaden the scope of my community involvement,” said Rowe. “SBF devotes its resources to tackling the most pressing needs within our community, and I wanted to be a part of shaping and delivering that key service.

“Santa Barbara County has been a wonderful place for my family and me to live, and I feel strongly about giving back and making it a better place for all of its residents.”

Rowe is a financial advisor and certified investment management analyst, with a bachelor of commerce and bachelor of laws from Monash University, Australia. He was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, where he practiced law for a brief period before immigrating to the U.S. in 2000.

While living in New York City, he moved to a career in wealth management. He moved with his family to Santa Barbara in 2008.

Rowe serves on several nonprofit boards including the Santa Barbara Family YMCA; the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara; and the Sansum Diabetes Research Institute. He was awarded the Golden Triangle of Distinguished Service Award by the Channel Islands YMCA in 2019.

“In joining the Santa Barbara Foundation’s Board, I look forward to being a part of an organization that is hyper-focused on the most critical and urgent needs of the community which we live in,” said Stouffer.

Stouffer holds a bachelor of arts degree from Cornell University and a master’s in business administration from the University of Western Ontario. She moved with her family to Santa Barbara from Denver in 2009 to manage Nuveen Asset Management’s International Growth Strategy portfolios.

Stouffer began working in the financial industry in 1981, and recently retired. Previously, she was an international portfolio manager for several firms, including Dreyfus Founders Funds, Federated Global Investment Management, Clariden Bank (Credit Suisse), and TIAA-CREF. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute.

Stouffer is currently a member of the board of Habitat for Humanity; member of the research committee of the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara; and serves as a sustainer on the Women’s Board of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

To learn more, visit SBFoundation.org.