As the Rainforest Alliance’s Chief Impact & Growth Officer, Harper McConnell is responsible for scaling the organization’s environmental and social programs in farming communities and forest regions around the world, and for building the corporate partnerships that support and sustain that work.
Harper joined the Rainforest Alliance in February 2026, bringing two decades of experience at the intersection of sustainable agriculture, supply chain transformation, and corporate strategy. Prior to joining, she served as Global Vice President of Sustainable Sourcing at Mars, working across global supply chains to drive measurable environmental and social outcomes. Prior to Mars, Harper spent close to seven years at Starbucks, where she was the global director of coffee and cocoa sustainability and also held director roles in strategy and product development.
Harper also spent nearly a decade living and working in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where she had a founding role in Eastern Congo Initiative and directed and managed the investment of 100+ grants to Congolese non-profits in economic development, education, health, environment and legal rights.
Her career has been defined by her ability to bridge two worlds: the operational realities of global commodity supply chains, and the on-the-ground needs of farmers, forests, and the communities that depend on them. Her deep relationships with major consumer goods companies — including existing Rainforest Alliance partners such as Hershey, Kellogg’s, Nespresso, Nestle, PepsiCo, and Unilever — position her to deepen RA’s corporate engagement and accelerate the translation of sustainability commitments into real, lasting change.
Harper holds an MBA from Georgetown University and a dual B.A. in Political Science and English Literature from the University of Minnesota, graduating as an academic All-Big 10 honoree. She is an outdoor enthusiast, hiker, skier, and runner, residing with her family in Switzerland.