The Soil Food Web Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that carries forward Dr. Elaine Ingham's life's work to support farmers, land stewards, and soil enthusiasts by teaching the fundamentals of the Soil Food Web Approach to land management.
Our approach includes accessible methods of assessing soil life and growing and applying beneficial soil biology to restore living soil in any context. Through our online and in-person programs, we educate and support our global community of soil regenerators.
To honor and grow Dr. Elaine Ingham’s legacy of empowering communities to restore and protect the Earth’s soil and living systems by sharing, teaching, and learning about the soil food web, pursuing knowledge related to soil, plant, and planetary health, incubating regenerative agricultural and ecosystem practices, and building community and financial support for soil food web teaching, research, and practice.
Healthy, living soil in every terrestrial ecoregion on the planet that is nurtured by local communities who understand why soil health is the foundation of ecosystem, agricultural, planetary, and human wellbeing.
1981
Elaine Ingham earns her Ph.D. in soil microbiology at Colorado State University, following a B.A., cum laude, from St. Olaf College (1974) and an M.S. in microbiology from Texas A&M University. Her first scientific papers appear in 1982, beginning with work on ultraviolet-induced autofluorescence of mycorrhizal root infections.
1985
Dr. Ingham co-authors “Interactions of Bacteria, Fungi, and their Nematode Grazers: Effects on Nutrient Cycling and Plant Growth” (Ecological Monographs 55:119–140), detailing the relationships between soil food web trophic groups and their role in plant nutrition.
1985–2002
Postdoctoral research at the University of Georgia’s Institute of Ecology, then the faculty of Oregon State University (1986–2002) as Instructor and Associate Professor. She serves as the first President of the Soil Ecology Society, as Program Chair of the Ecological Society of America, and co-authors the USDA’s Soil Biology Primer (1999). Across her career: more than seventy scientific papers, six book chapters, and seventeen technical reports.
1996
Elaine founds Soil Foodweb Inc., bringing microscopy-based soil assessment to growers through soil-testing laboratories. She later expands through Soil Foodweb International, LLC, and the Soil Foodweb Institute in Australia. Educational workshops, lab-tech, and consultant trainings begin across the world.
2010–2013
Dr. Ingham teaches at Maharishi University of Management (Maharishi International University) (2010–2013) and serves as Chief Scientist at the Rodale Institute (2011).
2014
Elaine establishes the Environmental Celebration Institute, a farm and research facility in Northern California where she directs research and teaches in person.
2019
Dr. Elaine Ingham creates the Soil Food Web School, bringing her curriculum online. Enrollment grows to more than 8,000 students across 140+ countries.
2025
As Dr. Ingham retires from teaching, the Foundation is established to continue her work — holding the school’s programs and intellectual property, with a broader mission of open research, applied practice, and community support.
2026
Dr. Ingham passed away on February 16, 2026. The Foundation continues the work, dedicated to implementing broadly what Elaine proved and demonstrated throughout her lifetime.
World-class education in soil biology, from foundation courses to professional certification, with workshops in a growing list of ecoregions and support that makes learning accessible.
Replicating key experiments, opening our trial and case-study data, and advancing microscopy and lab methods — so more people understand why the soil food web works.
Ecoregion hubs that integrate education, composting, microscopy, and consulting; partnerships with farmers to trial and document soil food web practices where they live.
A global network of students, volunteers, donors, and advisors who add their support to increase accessibility, resilience, and depth of knowledge to our urgent mission.
Founder
Executive Committee
Executive Committee
Executive Committee
Director of Operations
Advanced Programs Lead
Growth, Partnerships, and Permaculture
SFW Mentor
Marketing Associate
SFW Mentor
Farmer, SFW Consultant & Mentor
Farmer, SFW Consultant & Mentor
SFW Consultant & Mentor
SFW Consultant & Mentor
SFW Consultant & Mentor
SFW Consultant & Mentor
SFW Permaculture Lead
SFW Consultant & Mentor
IT Department
Science Contributor
School Administration Officer
Technical Innovation Specialist
Dr. Elaine Ingham pioneered research in soil biology across the final four decades of her life and made her science radically accessible, so that anyone, anywhere, could learn to restore the soil beneath their feet.
This Foundation is her living legacy, and we hold it with care: not by asking the world to take her word for it, but by opening her science for the world to prove.
Soil Food Web Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Soil Food Web School is a program of the Soil Food Web Foundation.
EIN: 39-4439236
Registered office: 5441 S Macadam Ave Ste N, Portland, OR 97239
Oregon DOJ: Charitable registration #71264
Incorporated: October 2025
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