Adrian Lipscombe is a fourth-generation pitmaster and sixth-generation Central Texan whose work sits at the intersection of food, land, and community. She holds a Master's in Architecture from UT San Antonio and is currently a PhD candidate in Urban and Regional Planning at UT Austin, and she spent years in city planning roles across the private sector and municipal government in Austin and San Antonio before founding Uptowne Café in La Crosse, Wisconsin — a restaurant built to serve as a community anchor and driver of neighborhood revitalization. She later launched the 40 Acres Project to preserve Black agricultural land and foodways, and she advocates nationally for food sovereignty as a Culinary Diplomat to the White House and State Department.