Abby Levine serves as Director of the Bolder Advocacy Program at Alliance for Justice. She provides legal guidance that encourages grantmakers to support advocacy and other nonprofit organizations to participate in policymaking decisions through an understanding of federal tax and election law. Abby’s work includes creating curriculum, teaching workshops, providing technical assistance, writing plain-language legal guides, and describing federal legislative and regulatory developments that impact nonprofits.

Prior to joining Alliance for Justice in 2004, Abby served as the Public Policy Analyst at the National Council of Nonprofit Associations (NCNA). At NCNA, Abby monitored and analyzed issues affecting the nonprofit sector, such as challenges to nonprofit tax exemptions and advocacy, state budget cuts, government grants streamlining, and corporate governance.

Before working at NCNA, Abby was an associate in the tax department at Squire, Sanders & Dempsey in Cleveland, Ohio.

(B.A., American University; J.D., Case Western Reserve University School of Law).

Ronnie Pawelko is Senior Counsel for the Bolder Advocacy program at Alliance for Justice and is based in AFJ’s Washington, DC office. Through trainings and technical assistance, she provides nonprofit advocacy organizations and foundations with accessible information, resources, and information so organizations can safely navigate complex laws and rules as they pursue systems change. Ronnie received her J.D. from Albany Law School and her B.A. from Russell Sage College. Before joining AFJ, Ronnie was General Counsel at Family Planning Advocates of New York State. Previously, Ronnie served as Health and Human Services Team Counsel for the New York State Senate and as staff attorney for the MergerWatch Project.

FERD HOEFNER is the Senior Strategic Advisor for the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), and has been the group’s senior Washington, DC representative since its founding in 1988. NSAC is the leading voice for sustainable agriculture in the federal policy arena, joining together the voices of more than 100 grassroots farm, food, conservation and rural organizations from all regions of the country to advocate for federal policies supporting the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of agriculture, natural resources and rural communities.

Prior to his work with NSAC, Hoefner represented Interfaith Action for Economic Justice and its predecessor, the Interreligious Taskforce on U.S. Food Policy, on federal policy on farm, food and international development issues for nearly a decade. He has also served as a policy consultant to Bread for the World, Center for Rural Affairs, Conference on Alternative State and Local Public Policies, Land Stewardship Project, Lutheran Office for Governmental Affairs and U.S. Catholic Conference, among others.

Bio coming soon.