-
Co-Director
Hailing from rural Maine, Chloe is the Co-Founder of Dirtroad Organizing alongside her best friend, Canyon Woodward. She also runs Begin Again Farm with her partner, Bill Pluecker, growing organic vegetables for her community. Chloe received an honors degree from Harvard College, where she co-founded Divest Harvard. Chloe served in the Maine House of Representatives in 2018 and the Maine State Senate in 2020. She was the youngest woman ever to serve in the Maine Senate. Chloe is also the Co-Founder/Advisor at JustME for JustUS--a Maine-based organization focused on rural youth civic engagement and climate justice--and the co-author (with Canyon) of Dirt Road Revival.Email: chloe@dirtroadorganizing.org
-
Co-Director
Canyon was born, raised, and home-schooled in the Appalachian Mountains of rural North Carolina and the North Cascades of Washington. He was the campaign manager for Chloe Maxmin’s successful 2018 and 2020 campaigns. He was previously regional field director for Bernie Sanders 2016, field director for Jane Hipps for NC Senate, and vice chair of the NC District 11 Democrats. He earned an honors degree in social studies from Harvard College, where the bulk of his education took place outside of the classroom co- coordinating (with Chloe) Divest Harvard, a 70,000+person movement that succeeded in pressuring Harvard to divest its $53 billion endowment from fossil fuels. He is also an avid trail runner. He is the other co-author of Dirt Road Revival. -
Training Programs Manager
Joshua is from Cordele, a small town in Southwest GA. He is the youngest of five children. He left for college to earn a bachelor’s in Political Science and Psychology. Later, he graduated with a master’s in Clinical Social Work. Joshua has worked in education, healthcare, the criminal justice system, and government. In 2021, he was elected as the Chairman (mayor equivalent) of the Cordele City Commission. Outside of work, he loves to travel and write.Email: josh@dirtroadorganizing.org
-
Cohort and Alumni Support
Wayde Lawler is a community organizer and local elected official living in the beautiful Driftless Region of southwestern Wisconsin with his wife, Taryn, and their furbabies. A wearer of many hats, he first got involved in electoral politics during the 2016 presidential election. Since then, he has staffed three state legislative campaigns, supported several others, and recruited and trained candidates for a variety of local offices. Since 2018, Wayde has served as the Chair of the Vernon County Democratic Party, where he's learned about community organizing through trial and error. In 2024, he participated in Dirtroad Organizing's second Candidate Cohort, ran for, and was elected to his county Board of Supervisors. Since 2025, Wayde has served as Vice Chair of his state party's County Chairs Association. Outside of work, he enjoys reading, cooking, hunting, and hiking with his dogs.
Email: wayde@dirtroadorganizing.org
Dirtroad Organizing was built to ensure that rural folks everywhere have the support that they need to organize for a better world. Our success is derived not only from our commitment to our work but also in relationships with each other and our communities.
Dirtroad partners with dozens of organizations and experts in the field to ensure that our work embodies the diversity that is representative of rural places.
We have a talented Board of Directors and Advisory Board, which now include Maria Perez, Madeline McGill, Laura Yale, Graham Zimmerman, Timothy McCarthy (Emeritus), Dustin Ward, George Goehl, and Robert Reich.
