Board of Directors
John Hedlund
John is the President & CEO of TriPointAg, Inc. and Chairman of the Board. As a C-Level Executive with both multi-national and early stage companies, he has over 25 years of leadership experience in domestic and international business in SE Asia, Europe & The Americas. John has led cross-functional teams in various industries, including: bioinformatics, industrial engineering, healthcare, manufacturing, finance and agriculture organizations.
John holds a B.A. Degree from the University of Southern California, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism (USC), an M.B.A. from Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business and Management and a Certified Advanced Project Management "SCPM" from Stanford School of Professional Development.
John was an NCAA National Champion and First Team All-American Volleyball Player at USC and played professionally in Italy and Germany. He now coaches youth sports in volleyball, softball and soccer. He also holds a Black Belt in Kenpo Karate.
Patrick Nielson, Esq.
Mr. Patrick Nielson has extensive experience completing transactions and international business structures in the U.S., Latin America, Asia, and Europe. He has developed corporate wide environmental compliance and business principles programs in conjunction with integrated management systems committed to sustainability principles. He has advised businesses on mergers and acquisitions, international business structures and transactions and governmental relations.
Mr. Nielson is a business advisor and the principal in his firm, The Law Office of Patrick A. Nielson, P.C., which he established in 2010. Fluent in both Spanish and Portuguese, he has extensive international experience completing transactions and international business structures in Latin America, Asia, and Europe. Mr. Nielson served as Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Human Resources Director of Natura International, Inc. in 2008-2009, also serving as an adviser to the board of directors of its Brazilian parent and public company, Natura, S.A. advising on the company’s international business expansion, including its acquisition of Avon. From 2002-2008 he was Vice President and General Counsel of Nueva Holding, Inc. (GrupoNueva) with over $2.5 Billion in assets in the timber, wood products, water solutions and construction industries throughout Latin America. There he led the consolidation and reorganization of Amanco in fourteen countries and its subsequent sale as well as the merger of Masisa and Terranova, both Chilean public companies in the forestry industry. GrupoNueva is owned by a trust whose principal beneficiary is the AVINA Foundation.
Employed by Dole Food Company, Inc. for over seventeen years, from 1983-2001, Mr. Nielson served as Vice President, General Counsel and as Vice President for International Legal and Regulatory Affairs. Mr. Nielson led law and government relations programs in the United States and internationally for Dole. He managed acquisitions, government relations and strategic business structures for growth in Europe, Latin America, and Asia. Responsible for the environmental management program, he also led communications efforts that gained positive international recognition. Prior to joining Dole Food Company, Mr. Nielson was a partner in an a.v. rated San Francisco law firm. Mr. Nielson has served as a board member and board advisor to both public and private U.S. and international companies, including Natura, S.A. and Pascual Hermanos, S.A., a Spanish public company. While at Dole, he served eight years on the Board of Directors of the Western Growers Association, a California-based agricultural trade association whose farmer-members produce more than half of the fresh produce in the United States.
He is a current director of TriPointAG, Inc. and the non-profit, Solutions for Urban Agriculture (SFUA) and a member of California Berry Cultivars, LLC. Mr. Nielson is also a trustee on the Lewis & Clark College Board of Trustees. Mr. Nielson earned a B.A. in Political Science from Lewis & Clark College and a J.D., Order of the Coif, from Hastings College of the Law, University of California. He attended Harvard Business School’s Executive Education Programs for board directors in 2005-2006.
Jeffrey M. Kissel
Jeff is currently Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Global Infrastructure Solutions Inc. (GISI), a diversified Engineering and Construction services company based in New York with $8.7billion in annual revenues. His experience comes from a successful career in senior management in both private and public companies. He specializes in change management as he guides people and enterprises to reach their full potential and to recover from unanticipated circumstances.
Over a span of 20 years, he has worked in infrastructure and the energy sector with companies in North America, Europe and Asia. Currently in California, he has lived and worked in Asia, Europe, North America, and Hawaii. Immediately prior to joining GISI, he served as President and CEO of Hawaii GAS and as the Executive Director for Hawaii Health Connector, the Affordable Care Act exchange for the purchase of Health Insurance. Jeff has been a CEO, Director, and has held other C-Suite positions since 1986. His tenure includes time with public and large private companies.
In 2013, Jeff was appointed to serve a term on the National Petroleum Council, by the Hon. Steven Chu, US Secretary of Energy. He is also a trustee of the Energy Policy Research Foundation, a non-partisan research organization that studies energy economics and policy issues with special emphasis on oil, natural gas, and petroleum product markets.
Jeff holds a B.B.A, Finance and Economics from the University of Hawaii and a MBA from the University of Hawaii, Shidler College of Business.