MATTHEW CUNNINGHAM LANDSCAPE DESIGN - Key Persons
Ben Webber has more than 25 years of experience as a General and Financial Manager of creative service businesses. Early in his career Ben worked as a freelance editor and sound mixer for television, which led him to staff and then management positions with creative service companies in Detroit, Chicago, and Los Angeles. After relocating to Boston to be closer to family, he joined MCLD in 2017.
Ben holds an M.B.A. in Finance and Organization Behavior from the Kellogg School of Management and a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan. He is delighted to be supporting Matthew and the MCLD team in their mission to re-imagine the role of residential landscape architecture in the age of climate change.
When not engaged in juggling spreadsheets or offering curmudgeonly advice to the MCLD leadership team, Ben enjoys reading about politics, economics, and technology; playing jazz piano; and spending time at his family's cottage on Squam Lake in New Hampshire.
Cameron's passions pushed him through two different academic programs. After earning an Associate in Environmental Science, Cameron decided to make use of his artistic sensibilities and obsession with details by pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. As an undergraduate, he worked for landscape design-build companies in Portland, Oregon and Northampton, Massachusetts. These ventures grounded his design work in the pragmatism that comes from hands-on building experience.
After graduation, Cameron's appreciation for wide open spaces drew him out West to California, where he spent years exploring climatically diverse landscapes and their corresponding plant palettes. His inherent talents drew him toward new knowledge and strategies for building thriving native plant communities, which he investigated at work and in his own at-home experimentation garden. Cameron has now returned home to New England with this inspiration and experience.
Cameron is eager to spend more time with his family and also traveling with his wife. A new garden is also in the works.
Chris Ramage grew up in Northern Virginia, where he spent summers exploring the flora and fauna lining the red clay of his town's creek beds. Chris witnessed the unintended consequences of the area's rapid suburban and urban development as the creeks filled with refuse, oil slicks, and algae blooms, making the water uninhabitable for the tadpoles and crawfish in his memories. This formative experience compelled Chris to pursue a career driving ecologically sensitive human settlements, culminating in a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Massachusetts in 2021.
As an undergraduate, Chris received a Bachelor in Plant Science and Plant Pathology from the University of Delaware. After graduating, Chris spent several years working in the nursery and residential landscape design industries before going back to school for his master's degree. Chris applied his extensive background in horticulture and the natural sciences to his studies and was an integral contributor to multiple award-winning designs recognized by both the Philadelphia Center for Architecture and Design and by Mass Inc.
Chris's design interests are wide ranging but always gravitate towards a balance of human use, ecological function, and beauty. He draws inspiration from the diversity of the characteristic plant communities, geologic formations, independent farms, and small towns of New England. In his free time, Chris likes to work in his vegetable garden, hike in the White Mountains, fish for trout, and spend time with family.
Clancy Clark has always had a passion for the arts, nature, and traveling. Growing up in the Greater Boston Area, she spent her time enjoying the coastal beaches of New England and the woodsy outdoors of the Berkshires.
Clancy joined MCLD following her graduation from Penn State University with a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture. Through three semesters of study abroad in Australia, Germany, and Spain, Clancy's love and appreciation of different cultures, landscapes, and design have enriched her professional vocabulary. As a student, Clancy interned at Studio AKA in Washington D.C., where she collaborated with the founding principal and the firm's clients. Clancy also worked at a wholesale plant nursery where her love for plants blossomed.
Clancy has personally traveled to 15 countries and believes that seeing the world is the best way to understand different landscapes and to find design inspiration. Landscape architecture has altered her perception of the world, and she hopes to add to the positive changes that the profession has on the planet. In her spare time, Clancy is a plant lover, photographer, nature enthusiast, and, of course, avid traveler.
A native of Ipswich, Massachusetts, Colin Poranski grew up exploring the woods, rivers, beaches, and salt marshes of his hometown. As a professional, Colin considers it a privilege to work within these same complex ecological and historical landscapes to create beautiful, functional, situated spaces.
While an undergraduate English major at the College of the Holy Cross, Colin's honors thesis examined William Faulkner's maps of his imaginary Yoknapatawpha County. After stints in academic publishing, teaching in France, and fine gardening, Colin received his Master in Landscape Architecture from the University of Oregon. His time on the West Coast imbued him with a fascination for the varied uses of water in the landscape, an admiration of Japanese and midcentury design principles, and a veneration for the work of Lawrence Halprin.
Prior to joining the team at MCLD, Colin worked in residential design on Cape Cod and in public green infrastructure and landscape restoration in the Boston area. He believes in a holistic approach to design, prioritizing native planting, ecological viability, and aesthetic continuity.
In his free time, Colin enjoys playing the piano, working on his planted aquarium, and spending as much time as possible on or near the water. His master's project, employing a research-through-designing approach to a vernacular Roman Catholic landscape typology, earned him an Honor Award from the Oregon chapter of the ASLA.
Three generations of Corrina Rossetti's family witnessed their rural surroundings transform around their Central Massachusetts home each season. Corrina soon realized she could shape that world. Her interest in design emerged in high school and transformed into a love by her sophomore year of college as a transfer student to the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She loved learning about native plants and the histories of various landscapes that they studied. These experiences continue to inform her design work.
During Corrina's time at UMass, she involved herself in the BSLA Student Chapter and helped to plan events and to extend opportunities to her classmates. She was also an editor of the BSLA Fieldbook in her senior year. Corrina graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture and received the ASLA Honor Award for her studies.
Beyond design, Corrina has a passion for photography and claims to collect too many houseplants. In her free time, she enjoys spending time in Vermont hiking and snowboarding with her family and friends.
From an early age, David has had a keen interest in design. Coming from a family full of artists, it only seemed natural that he would find his way into a creative profession. Born and raised in central Indiana, he received his Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture from Purdue University in 2004. While working on his degree, he did internships at the offices of both Michael Van Valkenburgh and Sasaki Associates, which solidified his love for living and working in New England. He hasn't looked back.
After graduating, David spent the first decade of his career rising through the ranks as a landscape architect at world-renowned Sasaki. The last several years there were spent managing a team of consultants through design and construction of Cincinnati's Smale Riverfront Park-a $120-million project on 42 acres along the banks of the Ohio. Working on a wide range of project types all over the world helped David prove the value that great landscape architects bring to design teams.
David and his family moved to Maine in 2014 to pursue an opportunity at TJD&A based in Yarmouth, one of the largest landscape architecture firms in the state. Bridging his large-project expertise with his relationship-building skills allowed him to flourish, essentially running that firm's high-end residential practice. The culmination of his passions and experiences there eventually drew David to MCLD in the fall of 2020 as Matthew Cunningham decided to build a team in Portland to return more of his work back home to Maine.
In David's free time he enjoys adventuring around Maine with his wife and two kids. If you are looking for him in the colder months, you'll likely find him cheering loudly for his son in hockey rinks throughout the state.
Torn between passions for design and wildlife biology, New York transplant Devin Hefferon has melded his loves into a career in landscape architecture and an ever-growing love for New England. His appreciation of the environment and natural systems strongly influences his work. He is persistent in his search for high design and beauty in natural landscapes throughout New England and manages projects with rigor.
Devin is a Registered Landscape Architect and LEED Accredited Professional. Prior to joining MCLD in 2016, Devin worked with world-renowned Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates and Gregory Lombardi Design. In addition to many beautiful private homes, Devin's project accomplishments include contributing to notable public parks, private institutions, and even sites for the 2012 London Olympics. Devin graduated cum laude with a bachelor's degree in Landscape Architecture from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse.
He lives in Melrose and spends his free time traveling with his family, working in his garden, snowboarding, birding, and spending as much time at the beach as he can.
Born and raised in coastal Massachusetts with ample time spent in northern New Hampshire, Erica maintains one foot in the mountains and one in the sea. Always up for a good adventure, her explorations have led her on visits throughout New Zealand, Fiji, Europe, India, the continental U.S., and Hawaii. She has also thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail.
Erica grew up with the smell of sawdust and the sound of power tools as her parents painstakingly renovated their 1870s home for nearly two decades. This early exposure to construction contributed to her interest in crafting objects and reshaping spaces. At Carnegie Mellon University, Erica focused on sculpture and installation work, taking a year to finesse her language skills in Metzingen and Berlin, Germany. She graduated with University Honors and a dual degree in Fine Arts and German.
Erica's fascination with materials and spatial relationships and her passion for the outdoors led her to pursue a Master in Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia. During her time at UVa, Erica developed a deep interest in encouraging and creating meaningful interactions between our communities and their surrounding ecologies. She has a particular interest in site context, native plants, detail at a human scale, and the sculptural opportunities presented by landforms and planting strategies.
Prior to joining MCLD, Erica worked at Gregory Lombardi Design and OCULUS in Washington, D.C.. She also completed an historic design and accessibility residency in Kilkenny County, Ireland. She has worked on large- and small-scale residential, mixed-use, institutional, and public space projects.
In her free time, she enjoys hiking with her husband and daughter, mountain biking, breaking out the power tools for various construction projects, and planning her family's next adventure.
Erin Norrison is a Connecticut transplant who grew up with a love and admiration for the outdoors. From a young age she expressed herself through art taught by close family members and instructors. At the University of Rhode Island, she discovered landscape architecture as a way to integrate her passions. With a focus in plant science, Erin has learned to appreciate thoughtful planting design and care of material used in her designs. During her semesters and summers, Erin served a teaching assistant for several plant science and landscape design courses. She was also a sales associate at Hollandia Nurseries in Bethel, Connecticut. In addition to graduating magna cum laude, Erin was recognized for her work with honors including the 2017 Karen Ann Shoppis-Fox Memorial CTASLA scholarship and 2018 Olmsted Scholar award.
Erin joined the team immediately following her graduation in the summer of 2018 and hopes to land in a permanent residence on the north shore in the coming years so that she can be closer to the water.
Born and raised in Melrose, Massachusetts, Gianna Hall has been passionate about the environment and design since she was young. Gi graduated cum laude from the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and a Minor in Community Planning. Her capstone project focused on bringing green infrastructure into major cities and quantifying the benefits in regard to urban heat island effect and energy savings.
In college, Gi also studied in Sydney, Australia, where she learned a variety of local plant species while furthering her interests in sustainable urban design. The travel bug bit her from an early age, and she has traveled extensively. Her interests in ecology, hiking, and global adventure opened her eyes to various landscapes and made her see first-hand how thinking about the context you are designing in is one of the most important steps in the design process.
Before graduating, Gi worked in the field as a fine gardener, learning an abundance of plant species and how to properly install and care for them. She also worked in a landscape architecture office for a year prior to graduation.
Jen Stephens developed her appreciation for New England's diverse landscapes at a young age, growing up on a family-owned-and-operated Christmas tree farm in rural central Massachusetts. Passionate about art and ecology, Jen earned her Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she graduated summa cum laude from the Commonwealth Honors College. She also received an ASLA Honor award for her distinguished academic performance.
While pursuing her degree, Jen spent summers working at Bigelow Nurseries, a pioneer in the propagation of native plants. While there, she expanded her knowledge of woody and herbaceous ornamentals and became a Massachusetts Certified Horticulturist. After graduating, Jen accepted a position at Copley Wolff Design Group. She quickly rose to the level of project manager, overseeing a diverse variety of work ranging from city parks and campus design to green roofs and streetscapes. She also became a LEED Accredited Professional and has managed several LEED projects. Jen joined MCLD in 2012, and from day one she has been integral to countless notable projects. Her extensive horticultural background, depth of construction knowledge, and passion for creating resilient New England landscapes, combined with her outstanding project management skills, make her an essential member of our team.
Johanna Cairns hails from Portland, Maine, where the vibrant inclination to engage creatively with materials, natural systems, and people is part of everyday life. Johanna received her Master in Landscape Architecture degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 2017. At Harvard, she developed her interest in ecologically sustainable and culturally vibrant design for communities. She also holds an Intermedia Master of Fine Arts from the University of Maine in furniture design and creative community engagement. As an undergraduate, she studied dance and engineering. Johanna is the rare thoughtful and animated individual who can design beautifully and with complexity from the small scale to the large scale, and across time, all of which we strive to achieve at MCLD.
Josh Bourgery is a Blackstone Valley Massachusetts native who is driven to create ecologically diverse and beautiful landscapes throughout New England. Josh strives to design functional and sustainable gardens. He is passionate about landscapes that work with the evolving and diverse needs of modern families.
A graduate of the University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor in Landscape Architecture, Josh specializes in utilizing different techniques to communicate designs to our clients. Using a mixture of traditional plans, 3D models, and photorealistic renderings, Josh helps clients visualize dream gardens-and then to build one. He is also a federal licensed drone pilot, able to capture stunning aerial images throughout the construction process to the full realization of the firm's vision.
As a hobbyist woodworker Josh has an eye for fine detail, which translates to subtle design flourishes in a finished garden. When not at work, Josh can be found in his workshop creating a variety of handmade pieces or at a local brewery enjoying a pint.
Job Titles:
- Senior Associate
- Member of Team MCLD
New England native Justin Corbett has been a core member of team MCLD since 2013. During his time with the practice he has collaborated on over 25 gardens with various clients, contractors, and design professionals throughout the region.
Working alongside his father at a young age on various landscape and building projects, Justin developed an appreciation for construction and a passion for understanding how ideas were developed on paper and translated into built work. These interests led him to pursue an Associate's degree from the Stockbridge School of Agriculture in the field of Landscape Construction. While pursuing his degree, Justin spent summers honing his classroom learning by working hand in hand with skilled landscape craftspeople on projects of varying sizes throughout eastern Massachusetts. Upon completion of his degree from the Stockbridge School, Justin enrolled in and later graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture.
Prior to MCLD, Justin worked as a landscape contractor for 5 years with Gardenform Landscape Construction. In his role as lead mason and project foreman, he managed a variety of work ranging from large estates to small urban courtyards. In that role and now as a senior associate in our firm, Justin has led many MCLD projects to excellence.
A lifelong New Englander, Justin grew up exploring Massachusetts' coastal and agrarian landscapes. Many of his summers were spent fishing, clamming, surfing, and discovering new inlets along the branches of the Westport River.
Inspired by his parents' professional interests in forestry, interior design, and historic preservation, he pursued a Bachelor of Arts from the College of Arts & Sciences at Boston University, with a focus on architectural studies and business, and where he also enjoyed taking studio art classes in charcoal and painting.
After graduating, Justin gained design experience while supporting business development and archival initiatives at Safdie Architects and later transitioned to a marketing position at Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture. These design-related roles led him to enroll at Harvard's Graduate School of Design, where he completed his Master of Landscape Architecture I degree. At Harvard, he spent his final year researching receding glaciers in Juneau, Alaska and exploring the ways in which design can make ecological transitions more legible, immersive, and educational.
Justin cannot let a good moss-covered stonewall go unphotographed and holds a deep appreciation for the craftsmanship inherent in New England's residential masonry. He loves visiting Boston's many museums and cultural institutions and is fascinated by the ways in which visual arts and landscape design engage one another. Justin, with his fiancée and cat, live in Cambridge where they enjoy hosting board game nights and cooking meals with friends.
Karl proceeded to pursue a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and Minor in Community Planning from the University of Rhode Island. He cultivated interests in coastal landscapes while working in community engagement and facilitating public workshops throughout Rhode Island. Many of his service projects, including his capstone, focused on integrating adaptive green infrastructure into residential communities in response to sea level rise and storm surge.
Karl also served as President of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) student chapter, worked as a teaching assistant and studio critic for several plant science and landscape architecture courses, and acted as an academic liaison. For all of these efforts, he was awarded the 2020 Student Honor Award from the Rhode Island chapter of the ASLA and was named a 2020 Olmsted Scholar by the Landscape Architecture Foundation for his design philosophies, department engagement, and community work.
After graduating, Karl worked as a horticulturist and designer for a largescale botanical garden, engaging heavily with the public as an adult education course instructor, exhibits docent, and public ambassador. He also co-founded committees for sustainability and for inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility to be a storyteller for intersectional perspectives from the social and environmental landscape. He remains driven by creating connections between people, place, and the environment.
Karl continues to invest his time in books, film scores, hiking, and recreationally deepening his knowledge of marine systems. From growing up as a competitive swimmer through college, to exploring the numerous trails and preserves throughout the vast coastline of Maine, Karl can always be found by the water.
With roots in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Kim Ferrara has long held a passion for the arts and environmental stewardship. Intention, detail, and authenticity are central to Kim's design ethos. From a young age, Kim sought a career merging these passions and philosophies at an institution that shared her same values: the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. She graduated with her Bachelor of Landscape Architecture summa cum laude and was awarded an ASLA Student Honor Award.
Kim's college thesis tied together complex sociological and design concepts from the Hamptons, New York, and San Francisco, California to explore the idea of culinary landscapes in our modern world. In the Hamptons, Kim completed a summer-long internship in kitchen and cutting garden horticulture. She credits this experience as a defining moment for falling in love with residential practice.
Within landscape architecture, Kim has three years of experience in construction, business relations, and project management. She continues to expand her knowledge by researching and writing publications. She keeps her creative edge through personal multimedia works that often are explorative and inquisitive. In her spare time, Kim enjoys attending concerts, art galleries, coffee shops, and playing tennis.
Job Titles:
- Controller
- Financial Expert
Laure K. Fossi is a seasoned financial expert with a rich background in navigating the complexities of the controller function across a variety of sectors, including professional services, biotech, fintech, software, and retail. With over a dozen years of experience, Laure has demonstrated prowess in managing financial operations, crafting detailed financial statements and forecasts, conducting reconciliations, and spearheading audit preparations and strategic planning for companies both in the United States and abroad. Her work has been pivotal for organizations at different stages of growth, ranging from startups to established entities with annual revenues of up to $40 million.
Before her current role at MCLD, Laure honed her skills as a Controller Consultant, where she was instrumental in streamlining financial processes for national and multinational companies. This experience equipped her with a deep understanding of the financial intricacies that companies face and how to address them effectively.
Laure's academic credentials are equally impressive. She holds a Global Master of Business Administration with a focus on Finance from the University of Houston - Victoria, as well as a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from Sam Houston State University.
Fluent in French and English, Laure excels in multicultural and multinational environments, making her a valuable asset to any team. Outside the office, Laure is a dedicated mother to four children-two girls and twin boys. She is also an accomplished financial advisor, author, and entrepreneur, illustrating her diverse talents and interests. Laure resides near Boston with her family.
Phoebe joined MCLD in 2023 after graduating with a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Virginia. Born and raised in mid-coast Maine, Phoebe is thrilled to be back in New England contributing to the communities and landscapes of the northeast.
Prior to landscape architecture, Phoebe studied education, visual art, and classics at Bates College and Lesley University. As a result, she is interested in the ways that the aesthetics and maintenance of domestic landscapes can shape relationships with our natural environment more broadly. She loves landscape design's ability to connect people to place, particularly in these salty, pine-filled, granite-veined places.
Phoebe is excited to be starting her landscape career surrounded by a team of knowledgeable professionals who also celebrate the ecosystems and craftsmanship that make New England landscapes so special.
Outside of work Phoebe enjoys perusing New York Times Cooking for new recipes to cook, casually birdwatching on local walks, playing boardgames with family and friends, and futilely trying to leash-train her cat.
Remington's path into landscape architecture stems from his interest in sculpture design and urban policy as well as by his experiences working in the agricultural sector in New England. He is continuously inspired by the socio-ecological connections that exist within the urban landscape and aims to develop a more thorough understanding of the intersectionality of urban ecology, spatial design, and socio-environmental policy.
As a student in the Master of Landscape Architecture program at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Remington's research primarily examined urban agriculture and the integration of allotment gardens into the urban fabric. Remington plays in several old-time/bluegrass music groups in Maine and is often in the studio working on various craft projects or exploring the region's forests and coastline.
Ryan Wampler formed his bond to the land while growing up in America's heartland on a rural family farm in Southern Indiana. It was there that he gained an incredible appreciation for the natural environment and humanity's impact on it. Ryan is very interested in creating landscapes that explore the artful symbiosis that exists somewhere in-between.
Ryan earned a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture from Purdue University, including studies at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences near Malmö, Sweden. He went on to earn a Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA II) from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard. He has served as a guest critic on design juries at Harvard's Career Discovery program, Boston Architectural College, and Rhode Island School of Design.
Ryan is a Registered Landscape Architect who brings almost twenty years of professional experience to our team. He has contributed to an impressive body of award-winning landscapes throughout the country during his tenure at MCLD and at Reed Hilderbrand. The tremendous diversity of his portfolio of projects includes gardens at every scale, from elegant private residences and museums in New England to large-scale urban and academic institutions in Texas, Ohio, and beyond.
Steven Mansfield grew up in Houston, Texas where from a very early age he found a passion for the arts. Both of his parents were successful landscape architects and artists. Between summer jobs painting and working landscape maintenance, Steven has also built upon his love for art and the landscape through cycling and travel.
After graduating from Louisiana State University in 2013 with a Bachelor in Landscape Architecture. Steven went on to work for CARBO Landscape Architecture in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he managed and worked on a range of projects from detailed residential and commercial gardens to public parks. In 2019, Steven obtained his Landscape Architecture license. Since 2020, Steven has advanced from a Junior Associate to a Senior Associate, working alongside skilled team members and contributing to the great office environment.
Outside of work Steven enjoys, cycling, painting, and exhibiting his own art through various shows. Many of his weekends are spent seeking out different trails, skateparks, and hidden gems between Massachusetts and Maine, after enjoying a good cup of coffee with his cat Lola each morning.
Susanna is a New England native raised in a tiny Massachusetts town. Her love for landscape was born out of hours spent in the woods as a kid with her two active Mainer parents. The family ventured frequently out and about-hiking, biking, camping, kayaking, skiing, and snowshoeing. Susanna's own two children are now carrying on these outdoor traditions.
Immersed in a home that broke boundaries between indoor and outdoor space, Susanna began to understand the importance and function of outdoor living. A garden is an extension of home, an exterior room, not just a beautiful window backdrop or weekend toil. Coupled with strong interests in both art and spatial design, Susanna attained a Bachelor of Science of Landscape Architecture from UMass Amherst. As a student, she also interned at the James Rose Center for Landscape Architectural Research and Design in Ridgewood, NJ.
Susanna comes to MCLD from the landscape construction world. With twenty years helping to lead Gardenform Landscape Construction and building gardens throughout New England, she has a keen eye for stonework and garden details. As a self-professed plant nerd, Susanna has an extensive knowledge of trees, shrubs, and perennials. Steeped in New England, Susanna's design aesthetic is rooted in agriculture and utility. She loves stonewalls, orchards, and wood piles in the garden.
Susanna is a marathon runner and home chef. An avid traveler, she is never one to miss a garden or historic home tour. She is slowly renovating a 1938 Parsonage in Lunenburg, Massachusetts and is adding to her garden every weekend.
Tasuku Kamei has had the fortune of living in different places throughout his life, each with distinct landscapes and cultures. He was born near the city of Nagoya, one of the industrial centers of Japan with deep manufacturing roots, but he also spent long periods of his childhood surrounded by endless corn and soybean fields in Indiana. His curiosity and interests in landscape led him to study in Hokkaido in northern Japan and in western Massachusetts-both places known for their beautiful landscapes worlds apart, but with some mutual characteristics based on their shared latitude.
Tasuku received a Master in Natural Resources from Hokkaido University, where he researched national park management, and a Master in Landscape Architecture from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Prior to joining MCLD, he worked at an award-winning firm in Maine where he played an integral role preparing technical drawings, 3D models, and construction details for coastal and lakefront residential projects. He is passionate about thoughtful landscape design grounded in the unique character of New England that contributes to client well-being.
In his free time, you can find Tasuku exploring mountains, beaches, and other natural areas in search of native plants and wildlife. When indoors, he tends to his houseplants, loves new recipes, and practices his ukulele.