AMERICAN FORESTS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director, Program Operations and Administration
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Urban Forests Policy
Job Titles:
- Director, Partner Communications
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Community Engagement
Alexis Gomez manages direct engagement with groups and residents from historically marginalized communities to ensure that those most vulnerable to health, social and economic inequities reap the benefits from American Forests' Tree Equity tools and programs. Gomez has a background in urban and environmental planning with an interest in advancing climate resilience work. He has worked in Detroit at the intersection of community development and sustainability, and most recently served as a Planner for a governmental agency to support long-term planning and management of county-owned infrastructure. Gomez holds dual Masters degrees in Urban Planning and Natural Resources & Environment from the University of Michigan.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Sustainability Director at Weyerhaeuser
Ara is the corporate sustainability director at Weyerhaeuser, one of the world's largest private owners of timberlands and one of the largest manufacturers of wood products in North America. The company is proud to manage one of the most sustainable, versatile resources on earth - forests - while making products that people need.
"I unabashedly love forests and am enamored by all the amazing benefits they provide. I believe we can work alongside nature to grow trees to turn into products we all rely on, every day, while at the same time ensuring forests are cleaning the air, filtering water, providing canopy and wildlife habitat, and just being absolutely beautiful and stunning in their own right. American Forests is working to create a world where these benefits are balanced and valued."
Job Titles:
- Coordinator
- Coordinator, Forest Restoration
Austin Rose is a Forest Restoration Coordinator on the collaborative American Forests/U.S. Forest Service team that is helping restore the Fremont-Winema National Forest in south-central Oregon after several seasons of intense wildfires. While not having a direct background in forestry, Austin brings an array of experiences to his team having previously taught environmental education courses as an assistant park ranger at South Mountains State Park, conducted lab and field work as both a honeybee and bumblebee research technician at NC State and ND State respectively, and led a diverse team through many festivals and weekly farmers markets as an event production manager. He received his Bachelor of Fisheries, Conservation, and Wildlife Biology with a minor in Entomology from North Carolina State University, and is a member of Xi Sigma Pi Forestry Honor Society.
Job Titles:
- Director, Urban Forestry Innovation
Becky Schwartz manages our urban forestry tree planting program. In her previous roles, she ran the community tree planting program at Casey Trees where she planted with volunteers and communities across the Washington, DC. She also worked in various Federal, municipal, and non-profit roles, most recently as a City Forester. She has a degree in Sustainability from Arizona State University and a Masters in Natural Resources and Environment with an Environmental Justice focus from the University of Michigan. In her free time, she enjoys playing taiko (Japanese drums) and giving impromptu tree tours to her wife and dog.
Job Titles:
- Director, Restoration Partnerships & Innovation
Benita Hussain oversees all aspects about American Forests' Tree Equity efforts to ensure we are advancing equitable tree canopy cover in 100 cities by 2030. Prior to joining American Forests, Hussain was the director of the 10 Minute Walk, a national campaign led by The Trust for Public Land aimed at expanding parks and green spaces across 300 U.S. cities, which was named as a 2020 Fast Company World Changing Idea under her leadership. In addition to holding a senior position at the Wildlife Conservation Society, Hussain was an environmental policy advisor to Mayor Mike Bloomberg, for whom she helped shape his global agenda on urban climate action, and to late-Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, for whom she created the award-winning climate campaign Greenovate Boston. A former lawyer at Morrison & Foerster, she holds degrees from Cornell University and Fordham University School of Law. She and her writing have been featured in The New York Times, The Hill, CityLab, Fast Company, The Boston Globe, among others, and she recently sat on the Boards of the Environmental Leadership Program and Colorado State's Salazar Center for North American Conservation.
Job Titles:
- Coordinator
- Reforestation Coordinator
Bjorn Erickson is a Reforestation Coordinator on the collaborative American
Brian Kittler leads our Resilient Forests program and its work on climate-informed reforestation and forest climate strategies. Prior to joining American Forests in 2020, he advanced forest conservation programs and policy innovations through stints with the Pinchot Institute for Conservation and Sustainable Northwest. Kittler's work at the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation focused on directing financial and technical assistance for watershed restoration. An operator at the interface of science, policy, and programs, Kittler has served on the federal Wildfire Mitigation and Management Commission, as well as boards and committees related to forest carbon science, forest bioenergy markets, and forest certification standards. He holds degrees from Colby College and the Johns Hopkins University in policy and science. Brian lives in Oregon.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Forest Restoration
Brian Morris collaborates with public and private land managers, nurseries, contractors, and stakeholders to restore resilient forests across the Pacific Northwest. Brian works with Oregon and Washington states to better understand and scale the reforestation pipeline in the PNW to allow for effective seed and seedling supply to post-fire climate adapted reforestation projects. Through landowner partnerships Brian assists with design and implementation of fuel reduction strategies across landowners to develop resilient forested landscapes. Brian has nearly two decades working in reforestation and during that time has worked on a site preparation crew, set chokers with logging crews, fought fire from Malibu to Alaska, managed a reforestation nursery, and earned a BS, MS and PhD in Forestry.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, California Cone Corps
Bridget Mulkerin works to build the capacity of cone collection and to create resilient forests across the state of California. She has previously served as both an AmeriCorps State National and VISTA in San Jose, California and Reno, Nevada respectively. Additionally, Bridget served in Peace Corps Senegal as an Agroforestry volunteer. Originally from the East Coast, she earned her undergraduate degree in International Studies from Fairfield University and a master's degree in International Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute. Bridget loves connecting with AmeriCorps programs through her work at American Forests and working towards strengthening forest ecosystems.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Resilient Forests
Britta Dyer oversees the planning, strategizing and implementation of American Forests' Resilient Forests projects, partners, and programs across the country. She works closely with Regional Directors to expand the implementation of thoughtful, climate-smart restoration treatments across public and private lands with public and private funds. Britta has 15 years of experience in the forestry space specifically around conservation-based consensus building, strategic convening, coalition and collaboration development, and coaching for change. As a Social Scientist she aims to strike the balance between ramping up rapid restoration due to the urgent need for repair, and increasing intentional decision making to ensure that landscape-level forest restoration initiatives are strategically designed to minimize unintended consequences across ecosystems and society. An AmeriCorps VISTA alumni, Britta has a bachelor's degree in communications/public relations, a master's of natural resources from Oregon State University, an InnerMBA from NYU Mindful and Sounds True, and a Leadership Coaching Strategies Certificate from Harvard Division of Continuing Education. Originally from the D.C. area, she now works, lives, and plays in a small Sierra Nevada town in CA where, in her free time, she guides Yoga Backpacking Retreats throughout Yosemite National Park.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Human Resources
Brittany Sweitzer joined American Forests as the Senior Manager, Human Resources and is responsible for facilitating various functions of human resources, including talent acquisition, onboarding, team-building, employee recognition, professional development, performance management, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) implementation and benefits. Brittany has 7+ years of experience in human resources, focusing primarily on improving processes and identifying innovative solutions that best support the needs of staff. Brittany is a SHRM Certified Professional who obtained a bachelor's degree in Human Resource Management from Western Governors University.
Job Titles:
- Coordinator, Philanthropy Operations
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Climate Science
Job Titles:
- Software and Data Engineer
Chase Dawson focuses on software development and data engineering at American Forests. He builds and maintains interactive web applications to advance urban and large landscape forestry. Before joining American Forests, Dawson worked for the University of Virginia Equity Center to analyze local climate data and its impact on the Charlottesville community. He holds a bachelor's in Computer Science from the University of Virginia.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, GIS and Data Science
Chris David oversees map-based visual storytelling and data-driven decision-making at American Forests. He is building American Forests' long history of data-driven decision-making and advocacy using spatial data and analysis to tell compelling forest stories and build decision-support applications that lead to better outcomes for climate, water, wildlife and people. Prior to joining American Forests, David led GIS development for The Trust for Public Land's Climate-Smart Cities work nation-wide and spent a decade supporting place-based decision-making for local and federal government agencies. David has degrees in Mathematics, Planning and GIS from the Universities of Massachusetts, Virginia and Maryland, respectively.
"Growing up in a big city I had limited opportunities to visit and explore forests, but I have always had a great appreciation for forests and their significant value. I am excited to now be a member of a dedicated team at American Forests diligently working to restore healthy forest ecosystems."
Christine Moreschi oversees the organization's grant management, financial closing process and preparation of timely and accurate internal project reports. Moreschi has over 10 years of progressively responsible experience in, and a solid knowledge of, managing a broad portfolio of all functional areas of accounting and financial operations. Prior to joining American Forests, Christine led monthly financial statement preparation, budget tracking and development, and managed multiple federal and state grants. She earned a degree in accounting from Strayer College and a certificate of business administration from Georgetown University.
David Bennell is a leading Sustainability professional with over 25 years of experience with corporations and investors, as well as with many of the world's top NGOs and philanthropic foundations. His corporate career was spent at Microsoft, REI and LL Bean and he's consulted to many other leading global corporations on sustainability strategy. He's currently an advisor to the $28 billion Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative and helped create the Food and Forests Program at the investor network Ceres. David is an investor in climate technology and nature-based tech companies, as well an advisor to high net-worth individuals engaged in impact investing.
Job Titles:
- Owner of Office Environments
Zim Boulos is the owner of Office Environments and Services (OES), a provider of business furniture since 1981. OES has 27 employees, based in Jacksonville, Florida. Zim is also a past chairman of the City of Jacksonville Economic Development Council.
"From my own experience, I know that trees and parks play a major role in making cities healthier and better places to live. American Forests is a champion for urban forests from coast to coast."
Job Titles:
- Director, Career Exploration and Development
Eboni Hall oversees a new initiative to develop and implement American Forests' mission into academia. Hall creates awareness of urban forestry career opportunities for students, changes how students learn about urban forestry and uses scientific research to achieve Tree Equity. She works with academic institutions nationwide to expand urban forestry programs and courses, increase awareness of urban forestry as an interdisciplinary field and provide resources for career paths in urban forestry. Hall is also committed to providing innovative and effective approaches to share technical information with non-technical audiences by linking the information to, and implementing practices in, communities it will impact. Hall graduated from Southern University and A&M College, The University of Georgia and Texas A&M University with degrees in urban forestry and natural resources.
Elisa is a philosophy professor, author and nonprofit professional with a specialization in applied ethics. She is a trustee for the Rapaport Family Charitable Trust and a volunteer leader with organizations as diverse as the American Red Cross, the Anne Frank Center USA and the Walt Whitman Birthplace Association.
"I believe in giving back - to my community, to the nation, and to the world. American Forests gives people an effective, tangible way to have an impact on the environment."
Job Titles:
- Director, Forest and Restoration Science
"My playgrounds, cathedrals and refuges have always been forests; my earliest memories are of treeline forests in Wyoming and skiing through trees at Colorado ski resorts. In the early 2000s, I watched as mountain pine beetles caused massive tree mortality in many of my favorite outside spaces. I became fascinated by how forests recover from broad-scale disturbances and determined to improve the ways we act as stewards to protect these places for future generations."
Elizabeth Pansing develops and implements research initiatives to improve restoration and climate-smart forestry initiatives, provides insight into adaptive forest management strategies, and evaluates forest ecosystem response to climate change and other disturbance agents including wildfire. Pansing also ensures that forest management objectives and initiatives reflect the current state of the science, translating recent findings into actionable insights. Pansing is a quantitative ecologist with a background in forestry and alpine plant community ecology and has studied Rocky Mountain ecosystems for over a decade, focusing on conifer regeneration, post-fire community recovery and demographic modeling. She obtained her doctorate and master's from the University of Colorado Denver.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Corporate Giving
Job Titles:
- Forest Restoration Policy Contractor
- Manager, Northern California Forest Restoration
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Geospatial Development and Analysis
Geri Rosenberg focuses on geospatial data analysis and data management in her work on the Tree Equity and Forest Resilience programs. She builds data visualizations, maps, and interactive web applications to tell American Forests' stories. Rosenberg has a background in urban and transportation planning with a focus in smart growth, including programs with the Federal Transit Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Knight Foundation, and several state Departments of Transportation. She holds a bachelor's in urban history and development from Wesleyan University and a certificate in GIS and Web Map Programming from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Job Titles:
- Manager, Semillas Compartidas ( Shared Seeds ) Initiative
"It is eternally fulfilling to me that I am able to contribute to the reforestation of the area where I was born and raised. From the beautiful birds to the unique species of plants and animals, several of which are endangered, the Rio Grande Valley of Texas contains plenty of biodiversity to fall in love with. As an admirer of nature that exists not only in the Rio Grande Valley but across the United States, I am grateful to American Forests for making my dreams of conserving biodiversity a reality."
Gisel Garza directly supports reforestation efforts in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas by participating in seed collection, processing and planting of important native species. Garza graduated from The University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley with a master's degree in biology, for which her focus was on conducting research that addresses global change issues such as climate and land use change to contribute to conserving endangered species of the Rio Grande Valley and Mexico.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Career Pathways
Hannah Gregory works in the Career Pathways team to help those facing barriers to employment establish careers in urban forestry by working closely with employers and stakeholders in government, private sector, nonprofit, trade association, and workforce development. Prior to working at American Forests, she oversaw career services and asset-building initiatives at a community college and managed an urban farm in Hartford, Connecticut. She holds a Masters of Public Policy from the University of Connecticut and was an Aspen Institute Economic Opportunity Fellow through the Hartford Workforce Leaders Academy. She lives in Western Massachusetts with her wife and dog.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Human Resources
Helen McIntosh oversees all aspects of human resources, its practices, operations and strategies to meet the evolving needs of the organization. This includes talent acquisition, onboarding, team-building, employee recognition, professional development, performance management, DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility) implementation, and benefits. Helen has 20+ years of experience in human resources where she has focused on creating and maintaining a performance-oriented culture to drive positive growth collectively and individually. She received a certification from the Universidad de Salamanca and earned an undergraduate degree from James Madison University and is presently pursuing a graduate degree from Southern New Hampshire University.
Holly is Microsoft's Sr. Program Manager of Datacenter Community Environmental Sustainability, directing Microsoft's approach to environmental sustainability in Microsoft's worldwide datacenter communities. She also co-founded and leads Microsoft's Worldwide Sustainability Community for employee engagement. She is an avid plant-powered outdoor adventure enthusiast and loves many adventure sports.
"No other organization I have come across possesses the staggering combination that American Forests holds of our shared deep-seated passion, arc towards justice and equity, technical capabilities, national reach, and the resources to get things done. I am beyond thrilled to be able to contribute to their mission."
Holly Bostrom is responsible for aligning the organization, operationalizing American Forests' core values and ensuring execution of strategic initiatives across all areas of American Forests to ensure the growth and sustainability of the organization. Bostrom brings over a decade of experience in program design and operations focused on advancing resilience and equity in conservation, transportation and civic technology in both the public and nonprofit sectors. Bostrom holds a master's degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University and a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont. She lives in Boston with her two daughters, husband and cat. She also serves on the Board of the Dean Foundation for Children, a small family foundation focused on improving the lives of children in Massachusetts.
Job Titles:
- Senior Advisor, Urban Forestry
Ian Leahy has been with American Forests since 2014, having led rebuilding the organization's storied urban forestry program, named Tree Equity, and creating the Urban Forestry Science and Innovation Lab to pioneer the next frontiers of urban forestry. His work has focused on developing a comprehensive program model that addresses every phase of urban forestry, with impactful tools such as Vibrant Cities Lab, Tree Equity Score and various technical action guides to help cities and towns overcome entrenched barriers. Leahy has appeared in the New York Times, Biophilic Cities Journal and numerous other print and radio media. Prior to joining American Forests, Leahy served as the urban and community forestry coordinator for the District of Columbia. He currently lives in Detroit and holds degrees in environmental management from Cornell University and Yale University.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- President
- Writer
Jad Daley leads the strategic direction of American Forests and serves as its "chief engagement officer" in building diverse partnerships to advance American Forests' mission. Tapping into his skills and experience related to program development, he also is directly involved in the organization's programmatic work, such as forest-climate science, policy development and communications.
Daley was named president and chief executive officer in 2018, after leading the effort to center the organization's work on climate change and social equity. He has a long history of leadership on these issues, having co-founded the Forest-Climate Working Group and the 1t.org US Chapter, and establishing the first-ever climate change program at The Trust for Public Land, where he served as a vice president and held the endowed Martha Wyckoff Fellowship.
Daley has played a leading role in authoring federal legislation to establish federal forest programs such as the Urban and Community Forestry Program, Community Wood Energy and Wood Innovation Grant Program, Northern Border Regional Commission and Highlands Conservation Grant Program.
Daley serves on the board of directors of the Extreme Heat Resilience Alliance, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, U.S. Nature4Climate and North American Forest Partnership. He is also a grant-making advisor to the Wildlife Conservation Society's Climate Adaptation Fund, The Nature Conservancy's Restoration Accelerator and the Open Space Institute's Appalachian Landscapes Protection Fund.
Daley is a widely published writer on climate change, including peer-reviewed research and publication in outlets such as Time Magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, The Hill, Medium, and diverse other outlets.
Daley has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brown University and a Master's degree in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School.
"I yearn for game-changing progress on the urgent challenges of climate change and social equity. I am inspired by my belief that trees can provide transformational impact in these areas, and the knowledge that we are doing work daily that can save lives and our climate, changing the trajectory of our nation."
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Urban Forestry Southwest
Jake Simon provides guidance and leadership to the Phoenix Urban Forestry Roundtable - a public-private civic group that seeks to accelerate the reforestation of Phoenix as well as improve the tree equity of underserved communities. The aim of this work is to mitigate the effects of climate change and environmental injustices, reduce summer temperatures, and improve public health and well-being.
Jake has extensive experience in the urban forestry and natural resources industry. Prior to joining American Forests, Jake provided leadership to Better Place Forests, a memorial forest and conservation group as well as Davey Tree, a utility vegetation management company. Jake earned a degree in forestry from Northern Arizona University and has been an ISA certified arborist since 2015.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Foundations and Grants
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Urban Forestry, Detroit
Job Titles:
- Manager, Urban Forestry, Detroit
Job Titles:
- Manager, Special Projects
Jillian Hogan provides operational administrative support to a variety of projects within the organization. Collaborating with the Programs, External Affairs, Development and Operations Teams, Jillian aids in pre-event planning, on-site execution, and post-meeting action items for tree-planting events and additional projects relating to environmental justice, climate change and public health. Prior to joining American Forests, Jillian worked in the animal welfare arena and focused on operations on both the local and national level. She has a background in writing and editing and served as an Account Manager and copyeditor in the past. Born and raised in Northern Illinois, Jillian grew up in a heavily wooded area and spent the majority of her childhood playing in the forest. Her ‘in-office coworkers' are comprised of four rescue dogs and one cat. Jillian enjoys maintaining the veggies and plant life that help to feed her family in-between hikes in the expansive natural space surrounding her home.
Job Titles:
- Public Policy
- Vice President, Urban Forest Policy
Job Titles:
- Director, Texas and Mexico
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Community Engagement
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Data, Design, & UX
Job Titles:
- Director, Program Operations and Administration
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Southern CA Forest Restoration
Job Titles:
- Director, Climate Science
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Forest Carbon
Job Titles:
- Southern Sierra Reforestation Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Senior Adviser, Urban Forestry
Job Titles:
- Senior Vice President, Policy
Job Titles:
- Director, Forest and Climate Change Communications
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Catalyst Initiative
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Corporate Partnerships
Job Titles:
- Manager, Northern California Forest Restoration
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Urban Forestry
Job Titles:
- Director, Philanthropy Operations
Job Titles:
- Immediate past Chair
- Chief of the U.S. Forest Service
Mary Wagner most recently served as associate chief of the U.S. Forest Service where she stewarded 193 million acres of national forests and grasslands and led a workforce of 28,000 employees. Mary was raised in southern California, where her love for the outdoors grew in the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains.
"My work reinforced the importance of trees and nature in sustaining life, enriching communities, fostering hope, and the power of people to make a difference. American Forests, partners, and members are making a positive difference in this world and I'm honored to be a member of the Board."
Job Titles:
- Coordinator, Semillas Compartidas "Shared Seeds" Initiative
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Reforestation Partnerships
Job Titles:
- Chief Philanthropy Officer
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, GIS and Data Science
Job Titles:
- Manager, Hawai'I Reforestation
Job Titles:
- Vice Chair
- President and CEO of the Council for Adult
Pamela Tate served for 28 years as President and CEO of The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), a national, non-profit educational organization committed to expanding lifelong opportunities for adults and advancing experiential learning and its assessment. Since 2018-2019, Tate has devoted her life to addressing the climate crisis. As a Certified Climate Reality Leader and Chair of the Campaigns Committee of the Chicago Metro Chapter of Climate Reality, Tate works on regenerative agriculture practices, tree conservation and preservation, electrification of public transit and private vehicles, and federal and state policy to de-celerate global warming.
"I have followed and supported the terrific work of American Forests for a number of years and believe this is our climate moment - when we must take major programmatic and policy action at both the local and federal level to save the forests and larger ecosystems of which we are a part. The work of American Forests, in my view, is central to solving the climate crisis and I am excited to become a part of this important effort."
Job Titles:
- Forest Restoration Policy Contractor
Peter Hutchins oversees the business and financial operations of American Forests, as well as technology and human resources. Prior to joining American Forests, Hutchins was the vice president of knowledge initiatives at the American Society for Association Executives, where he was responsible for engaging thought leaders from both inside and outside the nonprofit community and developing knowledge resources for the profession.
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Grants and Finance
Job Titles:
- Policy and Partnerships Lead
Refugio Mariscal's work at American Forests focuses on geospatial analysis and cartography to advance the work of the Tree Equity Score programs. He has a background in GIS, cartography, data analysis and community engagement/organizing through the lens of environmental conservation. Prior to joining American Forests, he worked for the National Audubon Society, first as a community engagement coordinator and later as GIS analyst, creating static and interactive maps and applications that contributed to the conservation of marsh birds in the Great Lakes region. Refugio is also a former educator and a volunteer for the Lake County Forest Preserves, as well as a board member of the Lake County Audubon Society. He received his bachelor's degree in geography with a minor in environmental science from DePaul University and is currently working towards a master's degree in geographic information systems technology at the University of Arizona.
Job Titles:
- Vice President, Marketing and Communications
Rekha Patricio leads the Marketing and Communications team providing strategic communications support to broaden the awareness and visibility of the organization's programs, thought-leadership and research as well as promote and protect the American Forests brand. Her team oversees public relations, partnership communications, policy communications, digital marketing and storytelling focused on forest conservation, equity and climate solutions. Prior to joining American Forests, Patricio led marketing and branding initiatives for NPR, Discovery and the National 4-H Council. Her efforts have won industry accolades including Adweek's "Rising Brand Star of DC" award. Prior to her marketing career, Patricio was a Journalist and News Associate with NBC News' Today Show, Dateline and NBC Nightly News. She's a graduate of Bryn Mawr College with degrees in Political Science and English.
Richard is an investor and retired developer of shopping centers and other commercial properties. In earlier years, as general counsel to a public company retailer, he was a principal in the creation of innovative retail chains.
"My grandchildren and all of their generation are going to live in a much degraded environment. Supporting American Forests is the most effective thing I can do to alter that seeming inevitability."
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Restoration and Geospatial Science
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Corporate Giving
Job Titles:
- Manager, California Reforestation Pipeline
Job Titles:
- REI 's Director of Community & Government Affairs
Taldi Harrison is REI's director of community & government affairs. In this capacity she oversees REI's government affairs work and policy related philanthropy. Her work focuses on fostering collaborative partnerships with a number of national non-profits and decision makers at the federal, state, and local level to ensure equitable access to and infrastructure for inspiring outdoor recreation opportunities. Taldi serves on the Board of Directors of EasTrail Partners, The Conservation Alliance and the Recreate Responsibly Steering Committee. Raised in the Flathead Valley in Montana, Taldi is an avid outdoors woman who enjoys hiking, mountain biking, climbing, mountaineering, skiing and camping with her two young daughters.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Urban Forestry Field Delivery
Job Titles:
- Senior Manager, Career Pathways
Job Titles:
- Manager, Digital Marketing
Job Titles:
- Senior Director, Careers and Opportunities
Job Titles:
- Executive
- Director, Logistics and Special Projects
"As a child growing up in suburban Atlanta surrounded by beautiful dogwoods and huge pine trees, I took my surroundings for granted. My young self believed everyone lived the way I did, with woods and creeks to explore just beyond my backyard, and pinecones and sweet gum tree balls to avoid stepping on in my bare feet in my front yard. Living just outside the Washington, D.C. area as a young adult opened my eyes to the disparity of Tree Equity. Being a part of American Forests allows the opportunity to help reduce this imbalance on a national level, from working with communities to identify and address tree canopy inequities, to educating policy-implementers, action-takers and the general public on the benefits of everyone having enough healthy trees."
Wendi Hoover provides executive, administrative and project support and management to a variety of projects across the organization. Hoover provides an intense attention to detail, quality assurance, logistics management and execution, and document production, including editing, copyediting, proofreading and document finalization. Prior to joining American Forests, Hoover owned her own freelance business, providing these skills to diverse organizations, from environmental groups and organizations focusing on mental health to colleges and universities.
Job Titles:
- Director, Northern Rockies
Bill is the former chair of the advisory board of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and a member of the executive committee of the U.S. Council on Competitiveness. Additionally, he serves on the Energy Security Leadership Council of SAFE (Securing America's Future Energy).
"The climate crisis is the decisive global issue of our time and American Forests plays a critical role in understanding and solving one of the planet's best hopes for climate change mitigation: trees."