Meet The Team

Board of Directors

Photography provided by Patrick T. Power

Rachel Bordoli

PRESIDENT

Rachel joined the SFVS board in 2023 and stepped into the role of President during a period of significant organizational transition in early 2025. Her focus has been on stabilization: forming an interim board of directors, strengthening governance and oversight, and creating the transparent structures necessary to re-establish a permanent board and return the organization to its members.

  • She is honored to work alongside a dedicated team of board members and volunteers whose collective efforts have led to a renewed momentum, including a successful 2025 Vegfest and a significant growth in membership.

    Rachel’s commitment to this work is deeply personal. After reversing a rare autoimmune condition through a whole-food, plant-based diet, she transitioned her career to support the plant-based movement. She holds a Certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies—an organization she deeply respects for its commitment to evidence-based nutritional science—and currently works with the Coalition for Healthy School Food, a vegan organization working to get more plants on the plates of K-12 children across the U.S. While her initial motivation was rooted in her own health and wellness, her embrace of veganism is now grounded in the ethical imperative of ending all forms of animal exploitation, and the broader environmental and social benefits of plant-based living.

Ravinder Sehgal, PhD

VICE PRESIDENT

Ravinder is a Professor in the Department of Biology at San Francisco State University, where he teaches courses in parasitology and emerging infectious diseases. A committed vegan since 2004 and vegetarian for most of his life, he has been an active member of the San Francisco Vegetarian Society (SFVS) for over 20 years.

  • His research focuses on the ecology of diseases in birds, including how deforestation impacts the prevalence and diversity of avian malaria in African rainforest birds. More recently, he has begun studying the effects of global climate change on the spread of avian malaria. With a Ph.D. in Cell Biology from UCSF, he applies molecular biology techniques to address major questions in disease emergence and conservation. Passionate about protecting all living beings, he integrates his research and teaching with efforts in conservation biology and animal advocacy. He is one of the co-leaders of the National Geographic Explorers California Hub, serves on the board of the Island Endemics Foundation, and is a core founding member of the Wildlife Malaria Network.

Melinda Hamm

MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR

Melinda has been an active and contributing SFVS member for over 25 years. As Membership Director, she welcomes everyone from the veg-curious to the committed vegan to our organization.

Melinda is a native Californian and Bay Area resident.

  • She grows her own vegetables in a community garden and works with the Tibetan community at Shangri-La Restaurant in Oakland. She graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in Social Sciences.

Lina Huang

BOARD MEMBER

Lina has been a lifelong animal lover and on-and-off vegetarian. During the 2020 pandemic lockdown, she realized going vegan was the only way to truly align her actions with her beliefs - all animals have the right to live regardless of what kind of animals they are.

  • It is morally imperative to treat all animals with compassion and respect.

    Lina graduated from UC Davis and has worked at UCD Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She worked in tech support for startup organizations for many years. She currently works and lives in El Cerrito with her 3 dogs. Lina has volunteered for Berkeley Animal Services, Meals on Wheels, and most recently Anonymous for the Voiceless.

Gaurav Shah

TREASURER

Gaurav joined SFVS in 2024 after experiencing the excitement of SF VegFest. A lifelong vegetarian, he went vegan in 2022 after graduating from UC Berkeley. Outside of SFVS, Gaurav enjoys volunteering at animal sanctuaries and watching movies (all kinds, not just animal-related).

  • Although from Oregon originally, he has spent most of his life in California, and loves this state wholeheartedly. He hopes to continue to grow SFVS as well as continue fostering a strong community of vegans in the Bay Area.

Maulik Shah

BOARD MEMBER

In 2023, Maulik volunteered at World Vegan Fest, marking the beginning of his connection to SFVS. Since then, he has volunteered at two additional festivals, led animal sanctuary events and regularly participated in SFVS activities.

  • Originally from Ahmedabad, India, Maulik moved to the United States in 2016 and now work as an AI Engineer in the drug discovery sector. He chose to go vegan for the animals over four years ago, a transition sparked by his involvement with Speak Out for Species at the University of Georgia. Elephants are his favorite animals, and he enjoys gifting 3D-printed elephant phone holders to his loved ones.

    Outside of work, he is a dedicated salsa performer, an avid reader, and an outdoor enthusiast with a deep appreciation for National Parks.

Karen Shuster

BOARD MEMBER

Karen’s connection to SFVS started in 2011, at her first SFVS festival. At the time, she was vegetarian, and the festival introduced her to the organization and the wider Bay Area vegan community. Later that year, she went fully vegan and has attended nearly every festival.

  • Karen has since dived into all aspects of veganism—ethical, environmental, and health. Living these values has become central to her philosophy and spirituality.

    Much of her journey to vegetarianism and then veganism came from reading books, listening to podcasts, and watching documentaries. That’s why she is especially drawn to helping others discover these paths too—and why the SFVS festival feels like such a perfect stage to spark curiosity, share knowledge, and inspire people to explore compassionate living.

    Originally from Philadelphia, Karen has lived in the Bay Area since 1993. She just moved back after a three-year detour in Fort Bragg. Karen shares her home with two cats, Elton SugarBear and Malcolm Bobina.

Ian Varonin

BOARD MEMBER

Ian went vegan in 2019 after reading a book called Sapiens, which opened his eyes to the horrors of the egg and dairy industries and inspired him to change his lifestyle. Over the past couple of years, he became deeply involved with animal rights activism, most regularly with Anonymous for the Voiceless (AV).

  • More recently Ian realized that building a community is another important form of activism. An obstacle for both prospective and current vegans is the fear of loneliness and loss of community. It is easier to change one’s lifestyle with a group of like minded people. For this reason, he decided to partner with SFVS to host vegan potlucks.

    Working toward a vegan world is Ian’s passion, and he believes getting there takes a many pronged approach, with a focus on activism and building community both being critical components.

Lead Volunteers

Elliot Ryan

HIKING LEAD / WHATSAPP GROUP CO-MODERATOR

Elliot has been vegan for the animals for over eight years. He works as an engineer and construction manager for the City and County of San Francisco, focusing on affordable housing redevelopment, parks, and streetscapes.

  • A passionate animal rights activist, he also volunteers with Anonymous for the Voiceless. When he’s not advocating for veganism or helping build better communities, you’ll find him leading urban hikes, powerlifting, practicing yoga, meditating, riding his motorcycle, enjoying musical theatre, or exploring all things philosophical and psychological.

Pierce Abrahamson

BOOK CLUB LEAD

Pierce is passionate about creating spaces where community and literature intersect. As the coordinator for the recently launched SFVS Book Club, he facilitates monthly discussions that allow members to dive deep into vegan-centric fiction and non-fiction. Thanks to his leadership, our members have a dedicated forum to connect and share perspectives in a respectful, engaging environment.

  • Pierce has been vegan for over 11 years and regularly attends SFVS events. When he isn’t leading a book discussion, you can usually find him enjoying a group hike, a community potluck, or one of our local dinners.

Amy Yao

PENINSULA EVENT ORGANIZER

Amy has been vegan since 2018 and loved building communities around animal and environmental activism. She works in data analytics and teaches Pilates on the peninsula.

When Amy isn’t hosting a meetup event to bring vegans together, you may find her playing pickleball, reading a good book, dancing like nobody is watching, or enjoying the outdoors.

Maggie

EVENT ORGANIZER

Maggie is passionate about building community and creating spaces where people can feel safe, seen, and connect over great food and shared values. She enjoys exploring new vegan restaurants and cooking new recipes at home. As an animal lover, she especially cherishes time outdoors with her dog. Other than that, she’s often training for triathlons, singing, playing pickleball, or doing improv.

Setu Upadhya

EVENT ORGANIZER / WHATSAPP GROUP CO-MODERATOR

Setu loves bringing people together for animal-supporting causes and nature exploration. He is very passionate about the SFVS WhatsApp group. He works in the software industry and lives in Oakland.

  • His top activities are trail running and exploring new plant based foods. His favorite restaurant is Rico Rico Vegano, and his favorite store is Grocery Outlet.