193: Dan Miller - Crowdfunding Regenerative Agriculture

Dan Miller is the founder and CEO of Steward, a crowdfunding platform for people to invest in regenerative agriculture projects. He explains how it all works and why grassroots financing is fundamental for regenerative’s economic viability.

You should have a place to support and finance small businesses, local agriculture, and sustainable ecological projects you believe in. We align capital with human connection, giving it more than monetary value. Share on X

After Dan pioneered crowdfunding for real estate investing with his company Fundrise, he decided to move into something he was more passionate about: fixing the food system.

Most people should have some percent of their investment portfolio in regenerative regional farming. But 99.9% of people have $0 in agriculture. Share on X

Steward empowers everyday investors to vote with their dollar and support regenerative farms beyond simply buying their goods.

Since launching in 2020, they’ve crowdsourced and provided over $30 million in short-term loans to fund more than 90 regenerative projects across the US.

Tune into the episode to discover

How Dan used what he learned scaling Fundrise to launch and grow Steward
Why financing is the biggest challenge for regenerative to become the norm and what’s wrong with the current system
The surprising new generation entering the regenerative agriculture space
How Steward vets and supports borrowers to drive returns for investors
Success stories and community impacts
What happens if there’s a default, the average portfolio yield, minimum investors need to start, and more!