Rubayi‘s love for caring for food systems began in her early years when she attended pre-k through 8th grade at the Aurobindo Ashram in New Delhi. The school prioritized local food systems, food sovereignty and agroecology in the communities they served.
She has worked with local, State, and Federal agencies in the United States on urban planning, disaster relief, and water resource management. Spending the last 13 years in different capacities with community-based organizations (domestic and international) and, most recently, as the VP of programs at the Santa Barbara Foundation.
She has also worked as an independent evaluation and strategy consultant on projects for World Bank, Orfalea Foundation, Root Change, Save the Children, California State Office of the Community Partnerships and Strategic Communications, and Oxfam International. She has a BA in Global Studies with a socio-economic and anthropological emphasis from UC Santa Barbara. She holds an MA in International Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, with certifications in Development Project Management, Global Peace and Security, and Health and Humanitarian Supply Chain Management.
