A Force for Nature

Photo Credit: WildEarth Guardians

WildEarth Guardians’ staff & board – bios and contact information

Staff & Board

WildEarth Guardians’ staff work in offices across the West, combining intellect and legal acumen with a passion for the Wild. Our formidable board of directors ensures that we are always moving in the right direction. And we certainly could not do what we do without the hard work of our interns and contractors.

Learn more about our staff and board, including contact information, below.

WildEarth Guardians Staff

Leia Barnett

Greater Gila Campaigner

Lindsay Biedel

Major Gifts Officer

Judi Brawer

Wild Places Program Director

Jeremy Bremser

Financial Manager

Samantha Bruegger

Wildlife Coexistence Campaigner

Madeleine Carey

Greater Gila Guardian

Rebecca Fischer, J.D.

Climate and Energy Program Attorney

Marla Fox, J.D.

Rewilding Attorney

Laurele Fulkerson, J.D.

Grants Manager

Kevin Gaither-Banchoff

Development Director

Galen Hecht

Rio Grande Campaigner

Annaliza Herrera

Digital Content Coordinator

Eleni Ho-On

Executive Administrative Assistant

John Horning

Executive Director

Taylor Jones, M.S.

Endangered Species Advocate

Matthew Koehler

Communications Manager

Chris Krupp, J.D.

Public Lands Guardian

Lindsay Larris

Wildlife Program Director

Dave Levine

Communications Director

Sarah McMillan, J.D.

Conservation Director

Caitlin Muret

Membership Manager

Jeremy Nichols

Climate and Energy Program Director

Luciana Nino

Field Organizer

Carol Norton

Associate Director

Jen Pelz, J.D.

Wild Rivers Program Director

Adam Rissien

Rewilding Advocate

Samantha Ruscavage-Barz, Ph.D., J.D.

Managing Attorney

Jennifer Schwartz, J.D.

Staff Attorney

Chris Smith, M.A.

Southern Rockies Wildlife Advocate

Rebecca Sobel

Senior Climate and Energy Campaigner

Daniel Timmons, J.D.

Staff Attorney

Reid Whittlesey

Restoration Director

Marlies Wierenga, M.S.

Pacific Northwest Conservation Manager

Interns and Contractors

Ryan Benson

Communications Intern

Andrew Cliburn

Legal Intern

Grace Erispaha

Legal Intern

Maggie Flaherty

Wildlife and Wild Places Program Intern

Victoria Frankeny

Legal Intern

Julian Kanter

Legal Intern

Erin Woolley

Legal Intern

Board of Directors

Mimsi Milton

President

David Will

Vice President

Cathy Bailey

Secretary

Peter Schoenburg

Treasurer

Anne Butterfield

Nat Cobb

Gay Dillingham

Melissa Hailey

Rebecca Vitale Mandich

Kristina Martinez

Bill Syme

Contact

[email protected]

Leia Barnett

Greater Gila Campaigner

Born and raised in the foothills and arroyos of the Sangre de Cristo mountains, Leia is thrilled to bring her love and deep reverence for the high desert country of the Southwest to the Greater Gila campaign. Leia graduated summa cum laude from the University of New Mexico’s cultural anthropology program, where she focused on the ways the more-than-human world can be reimagined through anthropological theory and practice. When she’s not endeavoring to understand the complexities of a successful conservation campaign, Leia can be found mountain-side or river-side, praising the feathered and four-legged ones, and planning her next epic snack.

Contact

[email protected]
208-297-3285

Lindsay Biedel

Major Gifts Officer

Lindsay Biedel joined WildEarth Guardians in 2019 as our Major Gifts Officer. Lindsay grew up in Oregon but has lived all over the West including time in Montana, Washington, and Northern California before putting down roots in Boise, Idaho. Lindsay graduated from the University of Montana in Organizational Communications and has worked in the nonprofit sector for over 15 years as a fundraising specialist.

Lindsay is excited to be raising funds for critical conservation issues in the West, something she is deeply passionate about. Lindsay volunteers with several local nonprofits and is also involved with the Idaho Chapter of Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP). Lindsay is most at peace when outdoors hiking, skiing, biking or floating magnificent rivers in Idaho, and all over the West, with her husband and two daughters. Her strong travel addiction also takes her to other interesting locations whenever possible!

Contact

[email protected]
208-871-0596

Judi Brawer, J.D.

Wild Places Program Director

Judi Brawer joined WildEarth Guardians as the Wild Places Program Director in May, 2018. She’s lived and worked in many places, including New Jersey, Vermont, Wisconsin, California, Colorado, Washington D.C., Montana, Bordeaux, France and Cote d’Ivoire. She finally settled in Boise, Idaho, where she’s been for 18 years. Judi has a J.D. from Vermont Law School and a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

She has spent most of the last 20+ years working for and with non-profit conservation groups, including American Wildlands in Bozeman, Montana, and then as a staff attorney for Advocates for the West in Boise. She then opened a solo law practice where she represented a variety of organizations in land-use and public lands cases. She’s also dabbled in sales, marketing, social media, and personal training. Recently, she worked with Global Talent Idaho to help skilled refugees reclaim their careers and does pro-bono work helping refugees become U.S. citizens. In her spare time, Judi teaches a rockin’ early morning spin class, and loves to hike with her dog, Dobby, mountain and road bike, ski, backpack, camp, and to just be outside listening to birds and hoping to see something wild.

Contact

[email protected]
505-412-2688

Jeremy Bremser

Financial Manager

Jeremy Bremser grew up in Los Alamos, New Mexico. He attended college in Albuquerque at UNM where he received his degree in Accounting. In past years Jeremy was the Controller for a local hotel and for a large property management company. Jeremy has been in the finance world for over 10 years.

Jeremy spent his youth traveling the world and enjoying the sport of scuba diving. Other than diving Jeremy spends his free time running, playing the Saxophone, and being SuperDad to a lovely little girl.

Contact

[email protected]
970-363-4191

Samantha Bruegger, M.P.P.

Wildlife Coexistence Campaigner

Samantha is a California native who fell in love with Colorado, relocating to the state in 2013. She possesses a BA in Women’s Studies from University of California Riverside and a Master of Public Policy from Pepperdine University. Samantha’s past work experience includes work in local government & business relations, public affairs and environmental policy. Previously the Executive Director of the Grand Lake Chamber of Commerce, Samantha founded their in-house nonprofit Outstanding Grand Lake Foundation, which focuses on sustainable travel and water conservation. Focusing much of her career highlighting the economic impact of conservation, she connects the need for wildlife management reform to research on ethics, efficacy and government expenditures. Samantha lives in Grand Lake with her family, where she enjoys rural living with ample access to the outdoors.

Contact

[email protected]
505-417-5893

Madeleine Carey

Greater Gila Guardian

Madeleine Carey is the WildEarth Guardians’ Greater Gila Guardian. Born and raised in Albuquerque, Madeleine spent her childhood exploring the Rio Grande and its bosque on foot and on horseback. In May 2014, she graduated from Tufts University in Medford, MA with a degree in Biology and Urban Studies. While at Tufts, she was a four-year member of the Track and Cross Country teams and a trip leader for the Tufts Wilderness Orientation program. During college, Madeleine spent her summers working for the Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program, researching American Pika in the Valles Caldera National Preserve and working with NM State Forestry to create a post-wildfire assistance guide. An avid runner and pie baker, Madeleine is always looking for ways to combine adventures with brunch.

Articles by Madeleine

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
406-698-1489

Rebecca Fischer, J.D.

Climate Guardian

Becca Fischer joined WildEarth Guardians as a Climate Guardian in 2017. Her mission is to keep oil and gas in the ground to protect the climate. Becca grew up in Billings, Montana on the edge of Great Plains, and the beauty of the Big Sky state shaped her love of the environment and all types of landscapes. She received her B.A. in environmental science from Willamette University in Salem, Oregon but returned to Montana to work as an organizer for Northern Plains Resource Council following college. After five years as an organizer, she switched her focus to the law and obtained her J.D. at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, OR with a certificate in Environment and Natural Resources. She then worked as a judicial clerk at the Anchorage Superior Court in Alaska and encountered many moose before returning to the lower 48. In her free time, she enjoys all things involving water including triathlons, swimming, cliff jumping, and floating. She lives in the Denver area with her husband and orange tabby.

Articles by Becca

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
651-434-7737

Marla Fox, J.D.

Staff Attorney

Marla Fox joined WildEarth Guardians’ Legal Team in 2019 after working as the Rewilding Attorney since 2015. Her litigation focuses on reconnecting wild places and waterways on public lands across the American West.

Originally from Minnesota, Marla spent her informative years swimming and fishing in northern lakes. She received her B.A. in Spanish and Biology from St. Olaf College and her Juris Doctorate from Lewis & Clark Law School. From 2012 to 2015 Marla was a Legal Fellow and then Staff Attorney for the Northwest Environmental Defense Center, where she focused on Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act enforcement. Marla is licensed to practice law in Oregon and Washington.

When not working in front of her computer, you can find Marla exploring the West on backpacking trips, running trails, or hiking with her family.

Contact

[email protected]
503-728-8413

Laurele Fulkerson, J.D.

Grants Manager

Laurele joined Guardians in June 2016 as our Grants Manager. A California native, Laurele grew up swimming in the ocean off the Southern California coast, hiking and backpacking in the Sierras, and getting outdoors at every opportunity possible. She developed a passion for protecting wildlife and wild places at an early age, which ultimately led her to the Pacific Northwest. She holds a J.D. and Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law from Lewis & Clark Law School, and a B.A. in Political Science from U.C. Santa Barbara. Laurele has fifteen years of experience in nonprofit management and environmental law and policy, bringing a unique combination of fundraising and program experience to Guardians. She has worked on a wide array of public lands, water, and wildlife issues, most recently as Policy Director for Cascade Forest Conservancy. Prior to that, Laurele directed the Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides’ water and wildlife program and managed government affairs for Wild Salmon Center.

Contact

[email protected]
520-869-4673

Kevin Gaither-Banchoff

Development Director

Kevin Gaither-Banchoff joined WildEarth Guardians in 2010 as our Development Director. Kevin moved to the southwest in late 1994 and has worked ever since to protect its biodiversity and wild nature. He has served as Development Director for both Native Seeds/Search and The Wildlands Project, worked as a fundraising and organizational development consultant for numerous local and regional conservation non-profits, and spent four years working as Executive Director for the Arizona Wilderness Coalition. Kevin enjoys sharing his vision for a healthy and vibrant western landscape with his family and friends, and the many wild critters that make this same land their home. Kevin lives in Tucson with his wife Kelli and two girls Abby and Allie, loves to camp, hike, garden and just be outdoors. Kevin has been a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals since 1996.

Contact

[email protected]
505-501-8572

Galen Hecht

Rio Grande Campaigner

Galen Hecht grew up in New Mexico and Colorado where he cultivated his affinity for wild lands, life, and water. Galen spent two years studying at United World College on Vancouver Island then earned a B.A. in Human Ecology at College of the Atlantic in Maine. After graduating, he spent a year as a Watson Fellow studying the relationships between people and rivers in Asia, Scandinavia, and South America. His education and experience on international rivers guided his passion to work for social and environmental justice. Now with the Wild Rivers Program, he works on a campaign to support the Rio Grande and keep the watery heart of the Southwest a living river. When Galen isn’t campaigning, he is on the trail or water, skiing, running, paddling, and exploring.

Contact

[email protected]
505-699-9112

Annaliza Herrera

Digital Content Coordinator

Annaliza Herrera joined WildEarth Guardians’ Communications team in the fall of 2017. Prior to this, she was employed by the Santa Fe Community Foundation as their Administrative Services Associate. It was during her time with SFCF that she gained an appreciation for nonprofit work.

A native of northern New Mexico, Annaliza has a great love for the culture and beauty she grew up with in the Española Valley. Annaliza earned her B.A. in Theater from the University of New Mexico after returning home from Los Angeles, where she did conservatory training at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts – West. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing, spending time with her cat, and traveling.

Contact

[email protected]
505-988-9126

Eleni Ho-On

Executive Administrative Assistant

Eleni Ho-On hails from the suburbs of Chicago and thanks her lucky stars that she was able to escape city life by spending summers at her grandmother’s home on the lake in northern Michigan. Searching for Petoskey stones, swimming through the clear waters of the lake, rescuing turtles and frogs from the road and getting lost in the stars of the dark night sky fueled her appreciation and respect for nature.

Her past working experiences have included a farm to table inspired bakery, Italian vineyards and the wine making process and most recently some time at the Chicago Patagonia store in Lincoln Park where she first learned of WildEarth Guardians. Within the last few years, Eleni had spent summers in Santa Fe with her partner and was immediately drawn to the juxtaposition of the deeply forested mountains and vast desert landscapes. Never tiring of the southwestern sky, she is thrilled to be a part of Guardians’ commitment to defend the wild places she loves.

Contact

[email protected]
505-795-5083

John Horning

Executive Director

John Horning was born and raised in Washington, DC and grew up on a street that bordered Rock Creek Park, one of the wildest urban parks in our country, where he cultivated an appreciation for the solace of wild spaces. He fondly recalls a childhood searching for salamanders, hearing Pileated wood peckers and watching fire flies light up summer evenings. Mr. Horning graduated in1989 from Colorado College, where he not only played football for four years (becoming the offense’s MVP his senior year) but also first developed a life-long appreciation for Wallace Stegner, the writer and the man. After biking around the country and then working for a variety of environmental education and advocacy groups he moved to New Mexico in 1994 to join the staff of what would later become WildEarth Guardians. He feels privileged to be a voice for the voiceless.

Articles by John

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
720-443-2615

Taylor Jones, M.S.

Endangered Species Advocate

Taylor Jones joined WildEarth Guardians in 2010 as our Endangered Species Advocate. She received an M. Sc. in Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2010, where she was a member of the Carnivore Coexistence Lab. Before entering graduate school, she did a variety of conservation work in New Mexico and Colorado, including prairie dog relocation and riparian area surveys. She has been fascinated by animals great and small her whole life, from a childhood spent watching ants to a Master’s thesis on the Andean bear. She intends to apply one of the Bodhisattva vows to her work with endangered species: “Beings are numberless; I vow to save them all.” She also holds an undergraduate degree in visual arts from Brown University, where she originally decided to dedicate herself to preserving the natural world that continues to inspire her paintings. Taylor leads WildEarth Guardians’ Protecting the Prairie Dog Empire priority campaign.

Contact

[email protected]
406-396-0321

Matthew Koehler

Communications Manager

Matthew Koehler joined WildEarth Guardians as the Communications Mangers in 2020, bringing 25 years of experience working to protect and defend public lands, wildlife, wilderness, and democracy. He grew up in the rural Wisconsin Village of Elkhart Lake, surrounded by the Kettle Moraine State Forest, where his family goes back six generations. His love for nature came from his parents, a housepainter and a nurse, and time the family spent hiking, canoeing, cross-country skiing, and camping on public lands. He moved to Missoula, Montana in 1995 after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside with a history degree and later obtained a secondary teaching certificate from the University of Montana, for history and English. Voted best activist by the Missoula Independent in 2007 and awarded the Fund for Wild Nature’s “grassroots activist of the year” in 2010, he enjoys gardening, cooking, and spending time in nature.

Contact

[email protected]
206-417-6363

Chris Krupp

Public Lands Guardian

Chris joined WildEarth Guardians in September, 2016 as our Public Lands Guardian. He will lead our Keep Public Lands in Public Hands campaign. His work will focus on preventing our commons from being treated as a commodity by those seeking to privatize the nation’s public lands via numerous schemes, including Congressional and administrative land trades and conveyances. Chris grew up playing in the fields and woods of his grandparents’ dairy farms in central Wisconsin. He received his J.D. from the University of Washington and his B.A. in Economics from Lawrence University. Prior to joining us, Chris was staff attorney for Western Lands Project for fifteen years. He enjoys camping and hiking with his family, as well as vegetable gardening and cooking.

Articles by Chris

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
310-923-1465

Lindsay Larris

Wildlife Program Director

Lindsay Larris joined Guardians in April 2019 as the Wildlife Program Director. She strives to protect all species, great and small, in the West. Lindsay grew up in New Jersey and headed west after law school, discovering a passion for all things outdoors during 11 years in Southern California.

She received a B.A. in Political Science from NYU and a J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School. While a law student, Lindsay co-founded the Journal of Animal Law and Ethics and helped bring an animal law clinic to Penn Law. Lindsay spent seven years practicing civil litigation in the Los Angeles area, working on environmental litigation, trust and estate litigation, and international arbitration, while doing as much pro-bono work as possible. Seeking a more fulfilling career, in 2013, Lindsay quit private practice, fled to Argentina for six months, and came back committed to working in animal and environmental protection. Prior to joining Guardians, Lindsay worked for the Animal Legal Defense Fund, drafting and advancing legislation and policy initiatives to protect the interests of all animals; wild, captive and domestic.

Lindsay lives in Denver and can be found exploring new trails with her dog, Willow.

Contact

[email protected]
970-281-7288

Dave Levine

Communications Director

Dave Levine is WildEarth Guardians’ Communications Director. His personal passion is wild places. His professional passion is telling stories to change the world for the better. A psychology degree (and undergraduate and graduate work in earth and environmental science) from Wesleyan University and a mediation certification from the University of New Mexico Law School laid the foundation for intimately understanding people and what motivates them. Dave’s nearly 20 years of professional experience creating communications for nonprofits, business-to-business and consumer clients nationwide means he excels at creating powerful brand experiences that move people. As a Guardian, he feels tremendously honored to integrate his lifelong passion and reverence for wild places with his professional experience to help protect and restore those ecosystems for generations to come. Out of the office, you may not actually see him, but his footprints and ski tracks lead to some of Colorado’s most rugged and remote wild places.

Articles by Dave

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
406-549-3895

Sarah McMillan, J.D.

Conservation Director

Sarah McMillan grew up reading Ed Abbey by kerosene lamp at night and exploring the woods, rivers, and mountains of Montana and western Washington by day. She received her B.A. from Williams College and her J.D. from the University of Montana. Sarah is an avid hiker, locavore wannabe (notable downfalls include olive oil, licorice, Marmite, and black tea), and life-long environmentalist. She has worked in private practice and with Western Environmental Law Center to protect the natural world. Her litigation background is broad—from the ESA, CWA, NEPA, NFMA, etc. to protecting Montanans right to a clean and healthful environment, to defending a citizen’s initiative that effectively stopped game farm “hunting” in Montana.

Contact

[email protected]
505-819-1060

Caitlin Muret

Membership Manager

Caitlin Muret joined WildEarth Guardians as Membership Manager in April 2017. Born and raised in southern Kansas, Caitlin spent most of her time outside. Her favorite childhood memories are of playing in the small creeks that meander through her home county. She graduated from Kansas State University with BAs in English and Mass Communciations and spent the first part of her career at museums. She moved to Portland, OR to follow her dream of working for an organization that protects wildlife and wild places. Caitlin currently volunteers as a Crew Leader for Friends of Trees, teaching Oregonians about the importance of planting native species to restore natural areas, especially watersheds. Her favorite place to spend her free time is outside in a hammock, reading a book with her schnoodle and listening to the birds sing.

Jeremy Nichols | Climate and Energy Program Director

Contact

[email protected]
303-437-7663

Jeremy Nichols

Climate and Energy Program Director

Jeremy Nichols joined WildEarth Guardians in 2008 as the Director of the Climate and Energy Program, taking action to fight fossil fuels, promote clean energy, slash greenhouse gases, and develop innovative strategies to safeguard the climate and the American West. Jeremy has been active in conservation advocacy since 2000, when he first started working with Biodiversity Conservation Alliance to protect forests, grasslands, and imperiled species in Wyoming and the Black Hills of South Dakota. In 2006, he founded and led Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, a nonprofit that successfully held polluters, states, and the Environmental Protection Agency accountable to our clean air laws throughout the Rocky Mountain region. A native Idahoan, Jeremy made his way to the Rocky Mountain west to study geology at the University of Wyoming. He now lives in Golden with his family.

Articles by Jeremy

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
(575) 288-6304

Luciana Nino

Field Organizer

Luciana Nino grew up in Las Cruces, New Mexico where she became passionate about government and criminal justice. She spent 2 years studying Criminal Justice and another 4 working on her Bachelors in Government. When she’s not learning, Luciana spends most of her time working to elect progressive candidates around southern New Mexico. Luciana developed a passion for the environment and native wildlife while living near the peaks of the Organ Mountains. As an Organizer for WildEarth Guardians, Luciana works with residents in southern New Mexico who care about protecting wildlife, conserving water, and the threats posed by the border wall. Currently she lives on a half acre land where she has chickens, rabbits, goats, and her fur babies.

Contact

[email protected]
505-440-7158

Carol Norton

Associate Director

Carol Norton is WildEarth Guardians’ Associate Director. Before coming to work at the Guardians, she spent over eight years working at Intel Corporation in Rio Rancho, NM in the information technology group as both a people and project manager. While there, she earned a Project Management Professional certification from Project Management International (PMI). Carol’s other positions have included running a family software business with her father, doing sales support for Apple Computer, and project management for the National Indian Business Association.

Carol graduated from Brown University with a degree in Biology. Then she worked for the National Park Service for a year before starting a career in the technology field. She gladly returns to conservation—her true calling. Carol has lived in the Southwest since 1989 and has worked on a variety of issues here including land use and wilderness designation. Carol is an avid backpacker, hiker, and runner, which she does with her dog Paz whenever possible.

Contact

[email protected]
303-884-2702

Jen Pelz, J.D.

Wild Rivers Program Director

Jen Pelz joined Guardians in March 2013 as the Wild Rivers Program Director where she strives to breathe new life into the endangered rivers of the West. Jen grew up in New Mexico exploring the mesas of Albuquerque, fishing and camping along the Pecos River and wearing her father’s waders to fish the Conejos River near Platoro every summer. She received her B.A. in Field Biology from the University of Northern Colorado in 1998 and her J.D. and Certificate of Environmental and Natural Resource Law from the University of Oregon School of Law in 2002. Jen was a co-director for the 2001 Public Interest Environmental Law Conference and was a clinic student for the Western Environmental Law Center. Jen practiced law for seven years at a small private firm in Denver, litigating land use, public lands and water law cases. She loves spending time with her husband and two little girls, tending her organic garden, and (slowly) remodeling her 1964 ranch home. Jen lives with her family in Colorado.

Articles by Jen

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
614-706-9374

Adam Rissien

Rewilding Advocate

Adam Rissien joined WildEarth Guardians as the ReWilding Advocate in March, 2019 where he previously worked before moving to Ohio in 2014 to be with his family. While in Ohio, Adam was with the Ohio Environmental Council fighting agricultural pollution to help stop toxic algae growing in Lake Erie, until starting his own business, Land Ethic Consulting, LLC. During this time, he served as a statehouse lobbyist for the Sierra Club to advance clean energy legislation, and he also provided technical support for a range of clients.

Before moving to Ohio, Adam spent 15 years in the Northern Rockies, where he focused on protecting and restoring national forest lands. This included working as the Policy Specialist with Wildlands CPR before the organization’s merger with WildEarth Guardians in 2013. Much of Adam’s career focused on protecting special places from off-road vehicle damage, and promoting an ecologically sustainable Forest Service transportation system. Adam earned a M.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana with an environmental policy emphasis, and currently resides in Missoula, MT with his wife and son.

Contact

[email protected]
505-401-4180

Samantha Ruscavage-Barz, Ph.D., J.D.

Managing Attorney

Samantha Ruscavage-Barz is a senior staff attorney for WildEarth Guardians. She received her juris doctorate from University of New Mexico School of Law in 2008, and her Ph.D. in Anthropology from Washington State University in 1999. Samantha joined WildEarth Guardians in 2010 after working as a staff attorney for Advocates for the West and a stint as a solo practitioner specializing in public interest environmental law. She focuses on curtailing fossil fuel development on public lands and protecting air quality. Samantha spent 17 years as an archaeologist in the public and private sectors before attending law school which led to her interest in advocating for and effecting protection of natural and cultural resources.

Contact

[email protected]
503-780-8281

Jennifer Schwartz, J.D.

Staff Attorney

Jennifer Schwartz joined WildEarth Guardians in 2019 as a Staff Attorney with a focus on protecting the American West’s wondrous, yet imperiled native species. A long-standing biodiversity advocate and lover of wild places, Jennifer has worked with numerous environmental groups for over two decades. Though her social justice and civil litigation interests are varied, she has spent most of her career as a litigator defending the Pacific Northwest’s grasslands, forests, river canyons, and sagebrush steppe ecosystems from destructive logging, livestock grazing, road-building, and motorized recreational abuse.

Jennifer holds a J.D. from Lewis & Clark law school and a B.A. in Politics from U.C. Santa Cruz. After becoming a mother in 2012, Jennifer started her own solo practice representing non-profits and neighborhood groups in their quests to protect Oregon’s invaluable natural resources.

Jennifer enjoys traveling, learning about natural and cultural history, and teaching her young son to be a respectful inhabitant of planet Earth.

Contact

[email protected]
505-395-6177

Chris Smith, M.A.

Southern Rockies Wildlife Advocate

Chris grew up in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains from which he developed a rudimentary, but deep appreciation for natural beauty and ecological function. He earned a B.A. from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR, where he then began working as an organizer and environmental activist. After earning an M.A. in Religious Studies from the University of Chicago, Chris returned to Oregon to advocate for coastal forests and the human and wildlife communities that rely on them. Thrilled to return to the high desert landscapes of his upbringing and to help protect the resilient wildlife of the area, he joined WildEarth Guardians in 2017 as the Southern Rockies Wildlife Advocate.

Articles by Chris

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
505-216-6826

Rebecca Sobel

Senior Climate and Energy Campaigner

Rebecca Sobel is the Senior Climate and Energy Campaigner at WildEarth Guardians. The entirety of her professional career has been focused on social and environmental justice. Originally from Philadelphia, Rebecca feels blessed to call the Southwest her home. In 2006 Rebecca began working with Greenpeace as a Field Organizer, where she organized the March for Climate Action in Vermont with Bill McKibben. In 2007 she started with WildEarth Guardians as the Grassroots Director. After some time away, including a stint as the Executive Director of the New Mexico Coalition for Clean Affordable Energy, she came back to Guardians in 2016. Rebecca has an indefatigable passion for this work and brings a wealth of experience to our organization.

Articles by Rebecca

Read articles >

Contact

[email protected]
505-570-7014

Daniel Timmons

Staff Attorney

Daniel Timmons joined WildEarth Guardians as a staff attorney in 2019, where his work focuses on halting fossil fuel development on public lands and protecting the imperiled wild rivers of the Southwest.

Trained in both law and science, Daniel earned his Juris Doctorate from Lewis & Clark Law School, his Masters’ of Science in Environmental Sciences and Policy from Northern Arizona University, and his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University. Prior to joining Guardians, Daniel was as an associate attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center in Charleston, South Carolina, and he previously worked in private environmental law practice in Portland, Oregon. He is licensed to practice law in Oregon, Washington, and South Carolina (inactive).

Daniel lives in Santa Fe with his wife, where he enjoys hiking, cross-country skiing, and exploring the ever-inspiring American West.

Contact

[email protected]
530-370-6955

Reid Whittlesey

Restoration Director

Reid Whittlesey grew up in rural Northern California in a Blue Oak woodland near a perennial stream called Dry Creek. As a young adult, he began noticing the negative impacts of invasive species on the health of the riparian ecosystem and began several studies on his family’s property analyzing the effects of different treatments on greater ecosystem health. In his early twenties, after leaving UC Berkeley to see first-hand the landscapes and natural processes he was learning about in class, he discovered that restoration was a career. At that moment he became certain it was the career he wanted to pursue. Reid has worked in the restoration ecology field since 2009 on over 30 riparian and upland restoration projects in the Southwest and California. He has extensive experience in managing large-scale riparian restoration projects specializing in native vegetation recovery and post-fire restoration. He is also a qualified heavy equipment operator with over 1,000 operating hours.

Reid holds a B.S. in Environmental Science and Ecological Restoration from Humboldt State University and has cumulatively spent years of his life studying in the Ansel Adams and David Brower School of Wilderness Appreciation also known as the High Sierra. Outside of restoration, his passions include rock climbing, trail running and skiing with his (very) charismatic dog Bear, and appreciating the wildness that remains in the west.

Contact

[email protected]
503-278-0669

Marlies Wierenga, M.S.

Pacific Northwest Conservation Manager

Marlies Wierenga is the Pacific Northwest Conservation Manager for WildEarth Guardians, serves under the Wild Places Program Director, and formerly served as WA/OR Coordinator for Wildlands CPR until their merger with WildEarth Guardians in 2013. Marlies has over a decade of experience using her technical, policy and public involvement skills to address watershed and water quality challenges throughout the Pacific Northwest. She has analyzed environmental conditions and developed numerous shoreline, watershed and water quality plans for local and state jurisdictions. Marlies has an undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Arizona and a Master’s in Environmental Studies from the Evergreen State College, where her thesis analyzed the dual mandate of National Parks in Alaska to meet conservation goals and support the subsistence practices of local people (focus was Wrangell-St. Elias National Park).

Articles by Marlies

Read articles >

Ryan Benson

Communications Intern

Ryan Benson is a senior at Yale majoring in English with a concentration in Creative Writing. Originally from Charlotte, NC, she now spends most of her time in New Haven, swimming, running, and making her way through vegetarian cookbooks. She is excited to be working on WildEarth Guardians’ newsletter this summer with Dave Levine.

Andrew Cliburn

Legal Intern

My life totally changed on December 4th, 2017 when the president came to Salt Lake City to reduce Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments. Before that day, I had been a career hospitality worker—interested in wilderness to be sure—but living a selfish existence pursuing careerism and creature comforts. That selfishness went out the window when the president cruelly reduced two sacred and protected places that meant so much to so many. Since then I’ve completed two years of law school and get to work this summer with the most uncompromising organization in Earth advocacy—WildEarth Guardians.

Grace Erispaha

Legal Coordinator

Grace Erispaha is a rising senior at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota pursuing an undergraduate degree in Economics and Environmental Studies. She is originally from Gilbert, Arizona and gets to experience the best of both worlds: brutal winters and scorching summers. Grace is excited to learn more about legal processes and hopes to apply to law school by her graduation.

Maggie Flaherty

Wildlife Program Intern

Maggie Flaherty, originally from a small town in Northern California, is a rising senior at Dartmouth College. She is majoring in Environmental Studies and minoring in Spanish. At Dartmouth, she spends most of her time engaging in sexual violence prevention efforts as well as playing water polo. In her free time, she likes to hike and swim outdoors. Maggie is very excited to be working with WildEarth Guardians’ Wildlife and Wild Places Programs.

Victoria Frankeny

Legal Intern

Victoria Frankeny is a rising third-year law student at Lewis & Clark Law School. She came to Portland, Oregon to pursue a career in environmental litigation and is currently working towards her Certificate in Environmental & Natural Resource Law. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she has been enjoying everything the Pacific Northwest has to offer, such as Mount Hood, the Pacific Ocean, and the overabundance of ferns and evergreens. Victoria is thrilled to be working with the WildEarth Guardians’ attorneys this summer on Endangered Species Act and Public Lands issues.

Julian Kanter

Legal Intern

Hi, I’m Julian Kanter. I am a rising 2L at Willamette University College of Law. I decided to attend law school to fight against social injustice and make a positive impact on the environment. Learning about industrial agriculture was the catalyst for my interest in environmental law. I am thrilled to be focusing on wildlife and giving a voice to the plants and animals of our natural world.

Erin Woolley

Legal Intern

Erin Woolley is a rising third-year law student at the University of Colorado Law School, pursuing certificates in both Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources Law and American Indian Law. Originally from Northern California, Erin misses the Pacific Ocean, but loves exploring Colorado’s beautiful outdoors, spending her free time hiking, camping, and learning about the native wildlife. Erin is excited to be working with WildEarth Guardians this summer and protecting wild rivers!

Mimsi Milton

President, Board of Directors

Mimsi spent three glorious summers as a teenager at a camp in Estes Park and became hooked on the West. Years later, after many western vacations, she and her husband moved their family to Denver, where they didn’t know a soul, and were “home” from day one. Mimsi has a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Wisconsin. As a journalist, she worked with Wolf Blitzer on a national, Middle East newsletter and with Martin Agronsky on his nightly, live PBS show. She was a staff writer for Parent and Child Magazine and The Baltimore Jewish Times and a freelancer for The Washington Post and other publications. Mimsi was Associate Director of Development for the D.C. Sidwell Friends School and Associate Director of Development and Alumni Affairs for the Kent Denver School in Englewood, Colorado. Following that she owned and operated a gallery of international crafts. Mimsi spends summers in Frisco hiking, biking, gardening, painting and expanding her repertoire of vegan recipes. She serves on the board of CO-Force (Coloradans for Fair Rates and Clean Energy), a non-profit that promotes renewable energy and works to end the use of fossil fuels.

David Will

Vice President, Board of Directors

David was born and raised in the rural Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York. Prior to attending college, David spent summers traveling the United States to study the geology of National Parks during summer field study trips led by his father, an adjunct professor of geology for a local college. His passion for protected spaces and wilderness led him to earn a B.S. in Natural Resources and a M.P.A with an emphasis in public lands protection from Cornell University. During summers between college semesters, David worked as a Park Ranger Naturalist at Rocky Mountain and Grand Teton National Parks, where he shared his passion for natural history with countless visitors exploring Rocky Mountain landscapes. After completing graduate school, David worked for the National Parks Conservation Association and The Wilderness Society before becoming a partner in an education consulting firm. David lives in Durango, Colorado where he finds peace in the mountains and forests of the San Juan Mountains.

Cathy Bailey

Secretary, Board of Directors

Cathy works with young people to connect them with wild places. She is an outdoor and environmental educator of distinction. Cathy has her BA from the University of Texas at Austin, her MA from the University of Texas El Paso, and environmental educator training from the National Outdoor Leadership School. For over 25 years she has been a classroom teacher. Presently, as a science teacher at Albuquerque’s Bosque School, she has built and implemented curriculum based on the landscape at hand. Her students participate in citizen science programs where their research informs habitat management. Each year she spends weeks leading students into wilderness. Cathy has also worked extensively as a lay leader within the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande with youth programs, capital fundraising, and social justice and inclusivity issues. For Cathy, the inseparable goals of a healthy environment and healthy human community are central to her life’s calling. At home in Albuquerque, Cathy’s family, her pair of running dogs, a flock of chickens, a much loved garden, the Sandia Wilderness and the Rio Grande keep her connected to that which matters.

Peter Schoenburg

Treasurer, Board of Directors

Peter is a partner in the Albuquerque law offices of Rothstein, Donatelli, Hughes, Dahlstrom, Schoenburg & Bienvenu, LLP. He has practiced criminal defense law in New Mexico since 1978. He received his undergraduate degree at Yale College and his law degree at Rutgers School of Law. A former Federal and State Public Defender, as well as an Assistant Attorney General, since 1993 Peter has worked in private practice defending complex criminal cases in both Federal and State courts. He also regularly represents Native Americans charged with illegal possession of feathers in connection with their religious practices. He has been continuously listed in The Best Lawyers in America – Criminal Defense since 1994. Peter’s love of the wilderness and commitment to its preservation began in his child-hood years in upstate New York. Beginning in law school he worked as an instructor at the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School in Maine and the, now defunct, Southwest Outward Bound School based in Santa Fe. He is an avid rafter, hiker, skier and cyclist.

Anne Butterfield

Member, Board of Directors

Anne Butterfield, of Boulder CO. After early years spent in a range of of outdoor environments in the east and west, Anne developed a passion for high altitude. Soon after graduating from Occidental College, she grew through expert skiing, Colorado Outward Bound School, search and rescue work, and serving an archeological surveyor for the US Forest Service in New Mexico. Anne then co-managed Adventure 16 in West LA, a 10,000 square-foot outdoor retail store. Returning to Colorado, she completed a Masters in Creative Writing at CU Boulder and served with Colorado’s 20th Judicial District Attorney’s Office as a victim advocate. Then, for seven years she served as an editorial adviser and opinion columnist at the Boulder Daily Camera, where her writing explored Colorado energy policy and informed Boulder voters through three elections leading to the city’s decision to separate legally from Xcel Energy. She comes to Guardians also having served on the board of Clean Energy Action, a non-profit dedicated to educating elected officials, regulators, and the public on the risks of our nation relying so heavily on the faltering coal industry. She is an avid pet & wildlife lover and a big fan of renewable energy having learned so much from her husband Sandy who spent his career in wind energy particularly at the National Renewable Energy Laboratories.

Nat Cobb

Member, Board of Directors

Nat Cobb joined the Guardians Board in 2010. He grew exploring the outdoor environments in New Mexico, Colorado, and Pakistan. In the 1970’s he worked for five different Outward Bound schools in diverse environments, including three years directing programs in the Gila Wilderness. He also worked as a river guide on the Grand Canyon and in Dinosaur National Monument. A graduate of Fort Lewis College and Harvard Medical School, he recently retired from the Indian Health Service and the Centers for Disease Control, where his work included Family Practice, Emergency Medicine, Research and Epidemiology. He still loves to explore mountains, rivers and deserts by boat, ski, foot, and bicycle. He and his wife actively support and partner with several local farmers in farm-to-table, farm-to-beer mug, and farm-to-wineglass projects. At home on the bank of the Rio Grande in Los Ranchos, NM, he dabbles in native plant landscaping and tries to co-exist with the coyote, geese, beaver, and sandhill cranes who live in his back yard.

Gay Dillingham

Member, Board of Directors

Gay has consistently juggled her passions for the environment, public policy and communication to deepen our human experience and success while on this marvelous planet.

Co-Founder, Co-CEO of Earthstone International, LLC. Earthstone is an environmental Intellectual Property (IP) company manufacturing recycled glass into an engineered “white foam glass” for surface abrasion, non-toxic cleaning technologies, agriculture products and building materials.

Dillingham owns her own production company, CNS Communications and is an award winning producer/director. Her feature documentary, “Dying to Know” is currently on Netflix.

2003-2010 Dillingham was appointed by Governor Richardson to serve on the New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board. The EIB is responsible for environmental management and consumer protection for the state. She Chaired the Board for six years managing the passage of many important regulations including green house gas reduction regulations.

2001-2015 She served as part time executive director for the Livingry Foundation, focusing on sustainable development and long term progressive infrastructure.

Other charitable board service has included New Mexico Association of Grantmakers, Bioneers, New Mexico Community College, New Voice of Business, the Coalition for Quality Children’s Media, and World Security Institute out of DC. Dillingham has traveled to North Korea twice: 2010 with Governor Bill Richardson as an energy advisor and in 2015 as one of 30 international women delegates www.womencrossdmz.org.

Gay grew up under the open skies and with her two sisters still owns/operates a working ranch in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. The past few years Gay has been working with Wild Earth Guardians on their Greater Gila Campaign.

Melissa Hailey

Member, Board of Directors

Melissa Hailey is a lawyer practicing at the firm of Keating Wagner Polidori Free, P.C., in Denver, where she represents plaintiffs in civil cases involving personal injury, insurance, and environmental matters. Prior to moving into private practice, Melissa worked as a staff attorney for WildEarth Guardians from 2006 – 2010. Since then, she served for six years on the board of directors for the Southern Plains Land Trust. Melissa’s love of the West began when her family moved to Denver from Memphis, TN in 1991. She is a wildlife enthusiast and all around animal lover. In addition to her work with WildEarth Guardians, Melissa is an active member of the Colorado Women’s Bar, the Colorado Trial Lawyer’s Association, and the Animal Legal Defense Fund. She also serves as pro bono counsel for the board of directors of High Country News.

Rebecca Vitale Mandich

Member, Board of Directors

Rebecca Vitale Mandich of Palo Alto, CA and Tesuque, NM, was called early to the environmental movement to give voice to the voiceless. An advocate since the 70s, she received her degree in Environmental Studies taught by some of the big thinkers of the time such as Paul Ehrlich, Stewart Brand, Dr. Richard Leakey, Alan Chadwick, and Dr. Donald Aitken, who founded the program at SJSUC as one of first in the nation.

Utilizing that education, coupled with commitment and inspiration, Rebecca started taking actions from working in one of the first solar energy homes to working on ballot measures for better public transportation systems in the Bay Area. She assisted in opening the first Spanish-speaking office for Clinton/Gore campaign in 1992 and registered many in the local Hispanic community, hosting then candidate VP Gore to discuss the environment and community issues.

In the meantime, she married Mitch Mandich and has two grown children, Matthew and Madeleine, and various dogs and cats have graced their lives. Having traveled extensively, her favorite escape is camping in our national parks and on public monuments and lands, where she has experienced all manner of wildlife and wild places.

She became acquainted with WildEarth Guardians about six years ago when she read an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about their lawsuit against U.S. Fish and Wildlife services regarding wolves. She sent them a letter and a fast friendship formed over their mutual love of all things wild.

Rebecca sees much hope in the future of the environmental movement that began with “Save the Whales” to now promoting a food and energy paradigm for the sustainability of natural resources. A deep political will and an openness to examine new ideas dictate her thinking. She feels that embracing environmental changes through engagement, both politically and through grassroots efforts, are paramount for the evolution of a responsible species to continue the ride on, what she affectionately refers to as, Spaceship Earth.

Kristina Martinez

Member, Board of Directors

Kristina Martinez was born and raised in beautiful Santa Fe, New Mexico. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the University of Arizona and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of New Mexico. Ms. Martinez has practiced law in Santa Fe since 2006. She focuses her practice in the areas of civil rights, general civil litigation, and family law. Kristina serves on the Ethics & Campaign Review Board for the City of Santa Fe as well as the boards of the St. Michael’s High School Foundation and Cooking with Kids. She loves the Santa Fe community and the American Southwest and strives to help preserve and enrich both by serving on the WildEarth Guardians’ board, which she joined in 2015.

Bill Syme

Member, Board of Directors

Bill joined the board in 2009. He is the only board member who is a native New Mexican and brings this unique perspective to the deliberations of the board. His love of nature began early in his life with frequent trips to New Mexico and southern Colorado forests and streams, backpacking and fly-fishing with his family. Voyages to the Gila and Pecos made a lasting impression on young Bill leading to the desire to preserve wilderness areas in as pristine a state as possible. He went to college at Stanford university, majoring in biology and chemistry. While there he became involved in outdoor biological research. One summer was spent just outside Yosemite studying chipmunks. The next year he was involved in the student lead Mono Lake study evaluating the effects of water diversions by Los Angeles on the ecology of the lake. The results of this study are still in evidence today with the maintenance of water levels in the lake high enough to preserve the breeding islands of gulls. Currently he works as a general surgeon in Albuquerque, in private practice since 1990 but also involved in teaching residents and medical students from UNM. He continues to have a love for the outdoors and spends time outside hiking, cycling, backpacking, bird watching,skiing,gardening and fly-fishing.

WildEarth Guardians’ staff & board – bios and contact information

Staff & Board

WildEarth Guardians Staff

Interns and Contractors

Board of Directors

WildEarth Guardians protects and restores the wildlife, wild places, wild rivers, and health of the American West.

Contact

Leia Barnett

Greater Gila Campaigner

Contact

Lindsay Biedel

Major Gifts Officer

Contact

Judi Brawer, J.D.

Wild Places Program Director

Contact

Jeremy Bremser

Financial Manager

Contact

Samantha Bruegger, M.P.P.

Wildlife Coexistence Campaigner

Contact

Madeleine Carey

Greater Gila Guardian

Articles by Madeleine

Contact

Rebecca Fischer, J.D.

Climate Guardian

Articles by Becca

Contact

Marla Fox, J.D.

Staff Attorney

Contact

Laurele Fulkerson, J.D.

Grants Manager

Contact

Kevin Gaither-Banchoff

Development Director

Contact

Galen Hecht

Rio Grande Campaigner

Contact

Annaliza Herrera

Digital Content Coordinator

Contact

Eleni Ho-On

Executive Administrative Assistant

Contact

John Horning

Executive Director

Articles by John

Contact

Taylor Jones, M.S.

Endangered Species Advocate

Contact

Matthew Koehler

Communications Manager

Contact

Chris Krupp

Public Lands Guardian

Articles by Chris

Contact

Lindsay Larris

Wildlife Program Director

Contact

Dave Levine

Communications Director

Articles by Dave

Contact

Sarah McMillan, J.D.

Conservation Director

Contact

Caitlin Muret

Membership Manager

Contact

Jeremy Nichols

Climate and Energy Program Director

Articles by Jeremy

Contact

Luciana Nino