EDESIGN DYNAMICS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Project Partner at Stantec in Ethiopia
Mr. Gessesse has over thirty years of US and International program and project management, business development, sustainable water shade study, Climate Change, Environmental Remediation, construction and environmental studies, engineering, environmental impact studies, evaluation of alternative energy resources, and construction management experience. His specialized international experience has included planning and implementation of a watershed/water supply project in Northern Ethiopia in the Amhara region to support Ethiopian Climate Change Adaption programs and evaluating the Kuku Group Ranch watershed in Kenya in support of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust (MWCT). Mr. Gessesse is currently a country representative in Ethiopia for Stantec. He was a Program Manager with AECOM Technology Corporation in Alexandria, Virginia for the previous eighteen years. He also was AECOM's Department Program Manager for the US Air National Guard contract and East Africa business development lead under the International Development Global Programs. Previously, he served for 14 years as a Deputy Program Manager under an US Air Force environmental contract. He is a licensed Professional Geoscientist in the State of Texas.
Alex Renner graduated from Drexel University with a Bachelor's in Civil Engineering. At Drexel he concentrated in water resource and geotechnical engineering. Alex Renner has experience in both design and construction aspects of engineering. He has worked on projects ranging from residential and commercial development to heavy highway construction. Alex Renner is intent on designing innovative, ecologically minded solutions to emerging and historic challenges in infrastructure development and human interaction with the environment.
Job Titles:
- Director of Habitat Restoration
Amanda holds a Master's in Landscape Architecture from The City College of New York, a B.A. in Geography from Hunter College of New York, and a certificate in Sustainability Analytics from Columbia University's Earth Institute. Amanda has over fifteen years of experience designing natural areas and green infrastructure in New York City and its suburbs working for a diversity of public agencies and private firms. Prior to joining eDesign Dynamics, Amanda was a renewable energy siting specialist for New York State's Office of Renewable Energy Siting, serving as the Office's subject matter expert for native plantings, visual impact, and agrivoltaics. Amanda previously founded PLAN it WILD, a sustainable landscaping company that installed thousands of native plants for landowners throughout Westchester and successfully launched Westchester's first electric-powered yard care membership program. Amanda also served as a wetlands restoration specialist for the Natural Areas Conservancy, designing bioengineered solutions to support New York City's coastal resiliency initiatives and worked as a project manager for the Green Infrastructure Unit at NYC Parks and Recreation, where she oversaw the design, construction, maintenance, and monitoring of green infrastructure citywide. Amanda was awarded a 2021 Woman in Business award by 914 Inc. and was honored as a 40 Under 40 Rising Star by the Business Council of Westchester. Amanda is a licensed landscape architect in Connecticut and New York.
Brian Thompson has worked in the field on a number of projects for eDesign Dynamics. Prior to joining eDD, he worked for the Nature Conservancy and NYC Parks in a research, writing and development capacity. Brian holds a BS in Natural Resources Management from Cornell University.
Job Titles:
- Architect, Urban Designer, and Planner
- Founding Principal of Urban Matrix
Christopher Stienon is the founding principal of Urban Matrix. He is an architect specializing in the design of buildings and urban places that contribute to the broader formation of memorable cities and public spaces. His architecture promotes a contextual design that responds to the unique features of individual places; the history, human activities, environmental factors, and the physical conditions of a place. Both urban and rural settings are shaped by a combination of established cultural, natural and physical systems that are used to craft designs that are sensitively attuned to each individual setting. Context and precedent establish a basis for a contemporary language of architecture and urban design that reflects the complexities of our modern society.
As both a licensed architect in the State of New York and a licensed professional planner in the State of New Jersey, and having worked with municipalities, planning agencies, private developers and institutions, Christopher has gained a broad familiarity with both the public and private sector forces affecting development today.
Mr. Stienon is currently teaching courses about Architecture and Urban Design at New York City College of Technology, The Edward J Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, and at Fordham University where he is teaching a course about Urbanism and the history of cities.
He is also a member of the American Institute of Architects, the America Planning Association, the American Institute of Certified Planners, and the Urban Land Institute. He is also a certified LEED accredited design professional.
Dante Keane graduated from Drexel University with a Master's degree in Environmental Engineering in 2022. During his time at Drexel he specialized in environmental treatment and studied water resource management. Prior to getting his Master's degree, he worked at the transit agency in Philadelphia as a Project Engineer where he worked on various multi-disciplinary projects at station buildings and maintenance shops. Dante is motivated by how engineering can be used to improve quality of life while creating more resilient and sustainable communities.
Dionisi (Denny) Daoularis is a graduate of Drexel University. He has worked under Anthropocene Engineering as an IoT hardware engineer and stormwater modeler. Notable modeling projects include 2D modeling of the Wissahickon Creek watershed in Philadelphia and the research into novel detention basin blue/green roofs (results published here: https://www.chijournal.org/C484 ). Denny leads innovative IoT development for remote monitoring and real-time control of green stormwater infrastructure systems. His unique skills with PCB design, Raspberry Pi deployment, and agnostic sensor integration has further the ability for his clients to create in-house solutions for specific challenges. At eDesign Dynamics he brings these skills forward delivering creative value to each project.
Job Titles:
- Hydrology Modeler and Water Resources Specialist
- Research Scientist With the Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Lab
Dr. Haseeb Payab works as a Research Scientist with the Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Lab (SWRE) at Drexel University where he is working to explore causes of, and solutions to flooding problems in urban watersheds by evaluating green approaches to climate adaptation in the context of urban integrated water resources management
Job Titles:
- Consultant
- Wind Turbine Habitat Mitigation Expert
Dr. Paul Kerlinger has been an avian consultant to the wind energy and communication tower industries since 1994. He specializes in bird impacts at those structures, as well as providing expert testimony in state and federal litigation, as well as local venues. Kerlinger has conducted preconstruction risk assessments and post-construction impact studies at wind turbine and communication tower projects in more than 25 states across the U.S., as well as Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and Spain.
Job Titles:
- Hydrology Modeler and Water Resources Specialist
Dr. Scott Jeffers's career focuses on urban water resources and green infrastructure collaborating with major municipalities internationally to address modern challenges in water, wastewater, and stormwater systems. Scott brings over 12 years' experience in the water resource industry specializing in site and regional hydraulic/hydrologic modeling, capital improvement master planning, optimization/prioritization for asset management, IoT deployment, and a background in novel digital water techniques. Scott is a leading expert in EPA SWMM modeling and teaches as an adjunct professor at Drexel University. Recreationally, he is a musician and rock climber.
Job Titles:
- Fluvial Geomorphology and Sediment Transport Specialist
Elsa Loehmann, PE, is an accomplished engineer with over 20 years of expertise in aquatic habitat restoration, nature-based solutions, and urban flood resiliency. As a Principal at eDesign Dynamics (EDD), she directs a diverse portfolio of projects, including resiliency master planning and design, habitat restoration design, and urban flood mitigation. Her expertise extends to stakeholder engagement and guiding interdisciplinary teams to sustainable solutions.
Eric Rothstein is a hydrologist with twenty years of experience working on a variety of sustainability projects.
Mr. Rothstein's career has focused on ecosystem restoration and water resources planning within urban centers. He currently leads the team investigating the sustainable water resource planning for multiple projects in New York City. His international work includes water resource and ecosystem planning in Nepal, Sao Paulo, Brazil, rural Rwanda, and the Aegean coast of Turkey.
Mr. Rothstein previously worked as a project manager for New York City for over seven years. In that capacity, he managed ecological restorations including salt marshes, fresh water wetlands, grasslands, and forests and developed naturalized stormwater management structures. Examples of Eric Rothstein's built work can be found in all five boroughs of New York City and beyond. He has also worked for a national ecological restoration firm where he worked on master planning of ecological, stormwater management and soil components for large scale developments.
Mr. Rothstein has lectured on wetland restoration and stormwater management issues at the graduate level at Harvard, Columbia, and The University of Pennsylvania. He teaches continuing education courses to professionals through the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Eric Rothstein holds an M.S. in Soil and Water Engineering /Hydrology from Cornell University and a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Job Titles:
- Project Engineer
- Project Engineer at EDesign
Fatemeh Nasrollahi is a Project Engineer at eDesign and also a PhD Candidate in the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at Drexel University. Her Ph.D. research has offered her the opportunity to contribute to initiatives with real-world application. She examines the impact of climate change on communities, including adaptation measures in existing urban infrastructures and disaster risk management related to flood mitigation planning. Fatemeh is involved in both modeling and design efforts at eDesign. Her doctorate research utilizes hydrologic and hydraulic modeling tools to simulate historical and future compound flood risks under different adaptation scenarios. Fatemeh also has a BA in Architecture from Iran University of Science and Technology, a MA in Architecture from University of Calgary and a MA in Islamic Architecture from George Washington University and has experience with companies across North America and the Middle East. She worked professionally as a Project Manager, Designer, and Estimator for various construction and design firms.
Job Titles:
- President
- Principal Engineer
Dr. Montalto, PE is a licensed civil/environmental engineer and hydrologist with 20 years of experience working in urban and urbanizing ecosystems as a practitioner, designer, and researcher. This experience includes planning, design, implementation, and analysis of natural area restoration and green infrastructure projects, featuring natural treatment systems for wastewater and stormwater management, as well as water harvesting and reuse systems. In addition to serving as the President and Principal Engineer of eDesign Dynamics LLC, Franco Montalto directs the Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Laboratory at Drexel University, where he was appointed as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering in 2007. He is a member of the Advisory Boards of the New York City Natural Areas Conservancy and serves as Co-Chair of the American Society of Civil Engineer's Technical Committee on Low Impact Development Computational Methods. Prior to founding eDesign Dynamics, Franco Montalto served as the wetlands engineer at the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, where he was responsible for the engineering design of the 209-acre Mill Creek Marsh in Secaucus, NJ among other large urban wetland restoration projects. He has worked overseas in Europe, Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America and is the author of several publications in the water resources field. He was also formerly a Fellow at the Earth Institute at Columbia University, a Fulbright Scholar, and an Adjunct Professor at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, where he received his first degree. Curriculum vitae ▼
Mr. Lipsky came to eDesign Dynamics in 2007 with project experience that includes hydrological and contaminant transport modeling, exposure modeling, ecological risk assessments, treatment wetlands design, remediation planning, contaminated site assessments, state and federal permitting, and Natural Resources Damages. At eDesign Dynamics he has been specializing in modeling, assessment, and design of complex hydrological conditions for stormwater management planning, potable water conservation, and water reuse systems. Ian Lipsky earned degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (Latin American Studies), The Cooper Union (Civil/Mechanical Engineering) and performed his graduate work at Cornell University (Biological and Environmental Engineering). He also spent one year researching his Master's Thesis in Bolivia studying small-scale irrigation systems in the Andes.
As a Project Engineer for eDesign Dynamics (EDD), Ms. Haitz is involved in Green Infrastructure projects throughout New York City. This includes feasibility analysis, calculations, designs, and construction oversight. She has an interest in preparing for the effects of a changing climate through the use of innovative and sustainable approaches. Previously, she worked as an Air Quality Consultant with Ramboll, where she prepared air permit applications for a variety of industrial facilities. Following this experience, she interned with the NYC Parks Sustainability team and then joined the Utah Conservation Corps, where she implemented conservation projects (i.e. invasive species removal) on Utah's public lands. Ms. Haitz is an Engineer-In-Training (EIT).
Job Titles:
- Construction Inspector and Field Technician
Jody Apap's career has traversed many of the construction trades. In his teens he started as an electrician's assistant before working as a plumber's helper. He then spent several years building traditional post and beam homes. He then found his true passion which was stone masonry, primarily exterior, dry-laid landscaping projects. By age 26, he had his own business and crew of employees building large and small projects throughout the Mid-Hudson Valley. By his late 30's back issues forced a career move out of the trades into software where he spent 8 years developing software for photographers (from is own passion as a bird photographer). After a successful exit, and a sufficient time healing his body, the desire to return to the world of physical building called and he went back to work renovating and flipping houses, along with general contracting of renovations for others. Jody has experience both doing and managing others in electrical work, plumbing, drainage, carpentry, stone masonry, concrete work, framing, welding, roofing, tiling, and even fine cabinetry.
As an avid bird photographer, Jody is very happy to have joined eDesign Dynamics, where he can put his extensive knowledge of the construction trades, landscaping, and project management to improving water systems.
Joe McGovern received a B.S. in Civil Engineering at Temple University in 2014 and is currently pursuing an M.S. in Water Resources at Drexel University. From 2014 to 2020 he worked for the Philadelphia Water Department initially as a Project Engineer working on smaller water main and sewer reconstruction projects and eventually acting as Project Manager for storm flood relief, intercepting sewer improvement, and sanitary pump station projects. Upon beginning his Master's program in 2017 Mr. McGovern came to realize the broad spectrum of water resource engineering, finding a particular interest in the relationship between sustainability and the built environment. His Master's thesis explores the intersection between infrastructure, ecosystem services benefitting human ecology, and the resilience of urban communities. Mr. McGovern joined eDesign Dynamics in 2020 to align his career with interests in stormwater management, sustainability and resilience planning, and ecology, with a focus on the urban environment where these concepts coalesce.
Joey Shavelle started building websites in 1994. He won a People Magazine Cool Site of The Year award in 1996 and a Webby in 2001. He is currently co-founder of JOLOstudio where he has built custom WordPress websites for a variety of businesses. He has also designed graphics for movies such as Puss in Boots, Bros, Halloween Ends, and Nope.
Job Titles:
- Environmental Engineer
- Project Engineer
John Henderson is an environmental engineer with a background in communications and international development. He joined eDesign Dynamics in 2019 to implement green infrastructure solutions in New York City. From 2009 to 2012 Henderson managed marketing communications for a data analytics start-up, a role which allowed him to develop a broad skillset in technical writing, data visualization, and project management. After a year of working in developing countries Henderson found his calling in sustainable water resources, leading him to change careers and enroll in the engineering department at Drexel University. As an undergraduate he researched telemetry systems and developed water models and applications for the Philadelphia Water Department and S.S. Popadopulos & Associates. For his master's thesis Henderson applied geospatial analysis and numerical modeling to study the effects of wastewater contamination to groundwater in the West Bank. Henderson also served as the president of Drexel Engineers Without Borders for two years, leading a team to El Salvador in 2017 to implement off-grid water filtration systems. After graduating with honors Henderson traveled to Greece where he worked with a team of engineers and technicians to carry out WASH projects in Moria refugee camp.
Krista Bentson is a landscape architect with two decades of experience working on projects in the public realm.
Krista started her own Brooklyn landscape design practice in 2023 to focus on adding the emotional resonance of the natural world to people's everyday lives. Over the last two decades at the acclaimed design firms of QRP, Ken Smith, and DLAND/Sasaki, her work has renovated or reimagined parks, streetscapes, plazas, and multiple waterfront sites with an eye towards sustainability, resiliency, and stormwater management. Her list of past projects include the wetland cells at Croton Water Treatment Plant, NYCDPR projects with green infrastructure, ornamentally focused native planting rain gardens for the Sheldon in St Louis, waterfront parks including Scenic Hudson Park at Peekskill Landing, and resiliency planning for Miami Beach. Krista holds an MLA from Harvard's Graduate School of Design and a BA from UC Berkeley.
Job Titles:
- Senior Project Engineer
- in 2016 As a Project Engineer
Kyle joined eDesign Dynamics in 2016 as a Project Engineer working on green infrastructure and stormwater management projects. Prior to joining eDesign Dynamics, Kyle conducted graduate research on nutrient recovery in source-separated wastewater through ion-exchange treatment. Kyle has previously worked as a consultant engineer on large scale buried infrastructure rehabilitation projects performing both engineering design and construction management. Kyle holds a B.S. and M.E. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Florida.
Job Titles:
- Designer
- Co - Founder of JOLOstudio
Lorelei Shavelle, co-founder of JOLOstudio, is a graphic designer, artist, writer, and editor who has worked on a wide-variety of creative projects, from web development to book illustration & design, from social media marketing & video to publicity materials design.
Job Titles:
- Project Engineer
- in 2022 As a Project Engineer
Maggie joined eDesign Dynamics in 2022 as a Project Engineer. She graduated from Drexel University in 2022 where she received a B.S. in Environmental Engineering and an M.S. in Peace Engineering. Throughout college, Maggie worked on and led design projects in Ecuador, Cuba, and Alaska as a part of Drexel's College of Engineering and Engineers Without Borders Chapter. This work led her to understand how a community-based approach to design contributes to finding solutions that support both sustainability and the development of impacted communities. Outside of her engineering projects, Maggie further contributes to her community as a certified full spectrum doula.
Mr. Feller is a naturalist with extensive experience in planning, designing, and supervising construction of ecological restoration projects with budgets totaling over 70 million dollars. These projects include fresh and salt water wetland, forest, and grassland restorations funded through public works mitigation and grants. He also reviews environmental policy documents as well as environmental assessment and impact statements at the local, state, and federal level. At the NYC Parks and Recreation Natural Resources Group, he supervised and directed a staff of 25 ecologists, botanists, foresters, wildlife biologists, hydrologists, and landscape designers to perform: restoration design and construction; invertebrate, fish, herptile, and bird inventory; GIS analysis; vegetation mapping, rare plant inventory, and restoration monitoring; grant writing and administration; wetland delineation; and natural resources protection. Mr. Feller has been working with eDesign Dynamics since 2014.
Mika Chislett graduated from The Ohio State University in May of 2019 with a Bachelor's degree in Ecological Engineering. Her studies focused on stormwater management, green infrastructure, and ecological restoration. Through Ohio State Engineering, Mika traveled to Ghana to improve the functionality and sanitation of a community water site. She also worked with a team of students to design a subsurface constructed treatment wetland to reduce pollutants from the runoff of a grain distribution facility in Northern Ohio. Mika joined eDesign Dynamics in 2020 where she hopes to contribute to restoring the balance between the natural and built environments.
Nicholas holds a B.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Cornell University and a Masters in Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning with a concentration in Urban Design from the University of Pennsylvania School of Design. At Cornell he concentrated his studies on water treatment and water resourcing and worked on a project team to design energy independent water treatment plants for countries of the global south. At Penn, his studio projects focused on issues pertaining to stormwater management and coastal resiliency from Philadelphia and New York to Amsterdam and Colombia.
Nicholas has a passion for solving problems which find themselves at the intersection of ecology, urban hydrology, and social impact. He joined eDesign Dynamics in summer 2017 as a Project Engineer working on green stormwater infrastructure projects where he uses his combined skill set and interests in engineering, design, and environmental sustainability to work on complex urban hydrologic issues.
Russell Jacobs has conducted ecological field studies, natural area restoration, and environmental education in and around New York City since 2016. As the Environmental Programs Manager at Hudson River Community Sailing he worked on environmental DNA studies, marine habitat restoration, water quality assessments, plant surveys, biodiversity assessments, and meteorological science. At the Rockaway Initiative for Sustainability and Equity, he oversaw several environmental education and restoration programs, including a large-scale initiative to propagate thousands of native plants in Rockaway elementary school classrooms for a large coastal restoration project. He has guided research projects on topics ranging from marsh grass ecology, to octopus behavior, to sea turtle strandings. Throughout his career, he has worked on initiatives with a variety of environmental organizations including Hudson River Park Trust, Riverkeeper, the Wildlife Conservation Society, the NY Department of Environmental Conservation, NYC Parks, and others. His writing on ecology and natural history has appeared in Slate, Hell Gate, Urban Omnibus, and other publications. He also leads nature walks for NYC Audubon and other organizations.
Theo Barbagianis joined eDesign Dynamics in 2012. Theo performs calculations, modeling, and analyses relating to hydraulics and hydrology and manages the design and construction of green infrastructure projects throughout New York City. His projects include assisting in the design and managing the construction of a treatment wetland in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, designing a bioretention system in Bronx River Park in The Bronx and designing over 20 right-of-way bioswales in the Gowanus neighborhood of Brooklyn. Prior to joining eDesign Dynamics, Theo Barbagianis performed research as a graduate student on the use of green infrastructure in urban stormwater management as well as on the spatiotemporal impact of wastewater point sources on nitrogen pollution. Theo has also worked for the NYC Department of Environmental Protection's Bureau of Wastewater Treatment, where he managed the design and construction of pumping station upgrades throughout the five boroughs. Theo holds a B.S. in Chemical (Environmental) Engineering from the University of Southern California and an M.E. in Civil Engineering, with a focus in environmental engineering and water resources, from The City College of New York. He is also a licensed professional engineer in New York and New Jersey.
Job Titles:
- Project Engineer
- Junior Engineer
Varun Srinivasan is a Junior Engineer at eDesign Dynamics (EDD) focused on design and research of Green Infrastructure within urban areas. His previous work involved environmental compliance at Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities and working as a Site Engineer at Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, India.
Varun holds a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from Hindustan University, India and a master's degree in Environmental Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology, where he conducted research on removing heavy metal contaminants from fracking wastewater.
Varun is passionate about designing sustainable solutions to solve water and wastewater management issues throughout the world.