ALDERLEAF - Key Persons
Allan Sande has well over two decades of experience teaching young people about nature and Native American life. At Alderleaf Allan shared his expertise in education, mentoring, and program development, as an adjunct teacher for many years. He also wrote articles for the Alderleaf website. Allan "Hawkeye" Sande was the director of Quiet Heart Wilderness School which he founded in 1997 when he saw the need for children to have the opportunity to explore and understand the wilderness. He has a degree in Business Management from Olympic College and a background in Childhood Education.
Ben Mardis is a guest instructor at Alderleaf and writes articles for the Alderleaf website. He is an experienced educator who spent three years volunteering on farms and homesteads around the country practicing sustainable living skills. Ben is a graduate of both the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program and the Advanced Wilderness Skills Program. He holds a Level II Tracker Certification and a Permaculture Design Certification. Ben was born and raised on the east coast before finding his calling in the Pacific Northwest. He served as a sonar technician on submarines in the United States Navy. Ben is a passionate naturalist who loves unfolding the mysteries of the plants, birds, and fungal kingdom. When not working on mushroom cultivation or herbalism projects you can find him in the garden or in the forest photographing birds.
Connor O'Malley is an experienced wilderness skills educator. He was an instructor at Alderleaf for several years and wrote articles for the Alderleaf website. Connor holds a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management and Rangeland Ecology from Colorado State University. He has been passionately exploring nature and studying primitive skills since growing up in Texas. After graduating from university, Connor traveled across the country working for and learning from various wilderness schools. He has also worked as a professional tracker & biologist, including a field technician position with Panthera's Teton Cougar Project. He spent the summer of 2012 participating in a stone age project where he and twelve others lived for a month using only primitive tools, clothing, and wild food to survive. Connor is certified as a Track & Sign Specialist through CyberTracker, is a Wilderness First Responder, and has published articles in the Bulletin of Primitive Technology and Backwoodsman Magazine. When he's not looking for bears, Connor is probably flint-knapping, playing guitar, or dreaming about a new primitive pursuit.
Filip Tkaczyk is the author of Tracks & Sign of Reptiles & Amphibians. He is a periodic guest teacher at Alderleaf and was a core instructor for many years. He has written many articles for the Alderleaf website. Filip is an experienced naturalist who has extensively studied the ecosystems of Washington State. He is certified as a Track & Sign Specialist, holds a Permaculture Design Certificate, and earned a B.S. in Wildlife Science from the University of Washington. Included in his experiences as a naturalist, he has lead bird walks with Seattle Audubon and taught outdoors skills to adults and youth for various organizations such as The Wildlife Society. Filip has also worked with the Olympic National Park conducting bat research, and for the University of Washington, leading an in-depth study on nutria in the Seattle area. He is also a professional nature photographer who has captured wildlife images around the world.
Heather Swift is an ethnobotany instructor at Alderleaf. Heather is passionate about wild plants and regularly harvests wild plants for medicine and food. She has been an ethnobotany instructor at Cascadia Community College and taught private classes in wild edible and medicinal plants. She is the founder of Cohabitats, a consulting collective that fosters conservation, restoration and stewardship. She has applied her tracking skills working on wildlife studies for Forterra and Conservation Northwest. After converting her backyard to be a certified wildlife habitat, she now instructs homeowners on enhancing wildlife habitat on their properties. Heather is a regular speaker for organizations including Built Green, the Northwest EcoBuildling Guild, and WSU Extension. She holds an M.S. in Management from Antioch University Seattle where she was on the faculty. She completed WSU's Forest Stewardship Program and is certified as a CyberTracker Level II for Track & Sign. Heather is an artist and enjoys hiking, cycling and rock climbing with her husband Ben.
Jason Knight is the director, a co-founder, and an instructor at Alderleaf Wilderness College and the author of The Essential Skills of Wilderness Survival. He has taught nature skills for over twenty-five years, with expertise in wildlife tracking and wilderness survival skills. He is a seasoned wildlife biologist and wilderness educator, having worked with conservation organizations, government agencies, and in the private sector. Jason is certified as a Senior Tracker (Track & Sign Specialist and Trailing Specialist) through CyberTracker Conservation International. He received a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology & Environmental Education from The Evergreen State College and holds a Permaculture Design Certificate. Jason has managed cougar studies for the Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife and assisted with gray wolf research in central Idaho. He worked on many wildlife projects through Wetland Resources, Inc and consulted as a local wilderness expert for the "Coastal Catastrophe" episode of the Discovery Channel's Dual Survival television program. He contributed photos to the field guide "Wildlife of the Pacific Northwest" and conducted fieldwork for the book "Tracks & Sign of Reptiles & Amphibians". Jason also enjoys construction projects on the campus farm, spending time with his family, and playing guitar.
Articles by Jason Knight on the Alderleaf Website:
- Basics of Wilderness Survival Shelters
- Making Arrowheads: The Art of Flint Knapping
- Wilderness Survival Foods
- How to Build a Debris Hut
- Choosing the Best Survival Knife
- Wilderness Survival Kits: Top Ten Items
- Blending Modern and Native American Survival Skills
- Building a Fire Pit
- Creating Primitive Stone Tools
Jeremy Williams was an instructor at Alderleaf Wilderness College. He has also written articles for the Alderleaf website. Jeremy was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and grew up hiking and camping in the woods of Oregon. Jeremy is a graduate of the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program. He holds a Level III Track & Sign Certification and a Permaculture Design Certification. His diverse background includes thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, experience with sustainable agriculture through ATTRA, contributing fieldwork for the book "Tracks & Sign of Reptiles & Amphibians", and tracking Mountain Lions in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem working for Panthera and Yellowstone Forever. Jeremy is passionate about outdoor education and the role it will play in the future of our planet. In his free time he enjoys board games, backpacking and studying the endless complexity of the natural world.
Leah Houghton is an experienced wilderness skills educator and permaculturist. She wrote articles for the Alderleaf website while teaching at Alderleaf. She has worked as a camp director in the remote wilderness of the Cascade Mountains teaching children outdoor skills and horseback riding, as an instructor at Quiet Heart Wilderness School, and in a Montessori classroom. She holds a Level III Track & Sign Certification and a Level II Trailing Certification from CyberTracker. Leah is a graduate of the Wilderness Instructor Apprenticeship Program, Advanced Wilderness Skills Program, and the Alderleaf Wilderness Certification Program. Leah enjoys practicing homesteading skills such as gardening & food preservation and has experience raising & processing goats, rabbits and chickens.
Steve Nicolini was an instructor and land steward at Alderleaf. He holds a Level III Track & Sign Certification through CyberTracker International, a Permaculture Design Certificate, and an Associate in Arts Degree from Santa Rosa Junior College. Steve was born in Novato, CA and grew up hiking and bicycling in the oak forests of the North Bay Area. He has always loved the outdoors and was inspired to study wilderness living after a life changing journey to the Amazon Rainforest. Steve is a graduate of both the Wilderness Certification Program and the Instructor Internship at Alderleaf. He has led numerous youth programs with Quiet Heart Wilderness School. Some of his hobbies include woodworking, playing the banjo, and harvesting wild foods. Steve continues to consult as an independent permaculture designer, stewards a historic property, and is an apprenticing electrician with plans to work in the solar industry.