SKY ISLAND ALLIANCE STAFF
Melanie Emerson, Executive Director
Melanie joined SIA as the executive director in December, 2008.
She was born and raised in the rolling hills of upstate New York, and
received her B.S. with honors in environmental science from the SUNY
College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse. She received
her MA in conflict resolution from Antioch University McGregor,
focusing on trans-boundary environmental conflicts. During her 15-year
professional career, Melanie has worked in the public, private,
non-profit and academic sectors both domestically and abroad, with a
diversity of experience in the environmental and social justice arenas.
She served in the U.S. Peace Corps in Panama as a community
environmental education trainer, and developed the first mediation
center in post-war El Salvador as a consultant with the US Agency for
International Development. She came to Tucson in 2001 to join the U.S.
Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, a field she gained
significant experience in as a consultant in the Pacific Northwest. She
is the past state director of the American Friends Service Committee,
an international humanitarian aid and social justice NGO and recently
came to SIA after four years with The University of Arizona. Melanie is
a photographer who believes strongly that images of our natural world
not only convey stories, but also inspire movements and uplift hearts
and minds.
Acasia Berry, Associate Director
Acasia has worked on environmental issues for over 15 years. She earned
a BA in Anthropology from the University of NC-Chapel Hill, with
coursework in Botany and Forestry. While at UNC, she helped organize
the first National Student Environmental Conference and the creation of
the Student Environmental Action Coalition. After graduation she worked
in environmental education, coordinating a hands-on educational
experience for thousands of school children. Before arriving in the Sky
Island Region, Acasia enjoyed and worked to preserve biodiversity in
North Carolina, the Northern Rockies and Oregon. She is on the board of
The Center for Reflection on the Second Law and The Bioregional Council
of North America. As Associate director of the Sky Island Alliance she
directs the membership program, oversees event and conference
organizing as well as general administration.
Jenny Neeley, Conservation Policy Director
Jenny joined SIA in August 2010, after receiving her law degree at The
University of Arizona. She began her career in conservation in 1997 as
a volunteer with the Arizona League of Conservation Voters, and later
served as assistant director for the Coalition for Sonoran Desert
Protection. 2001, Jenny began working in for Defenders of Wildlife as
their southwest representative, where she remained until starting law
school in the fall of 2007. Much of Jenny's work has focused on
environmental issues in the U.S.-Mexico borderlands, specifically the
buildup of security activities and infrastructure along the
Arizona-Mexico border, and the ecological impacts of current U.S.
border policy. While with Defenders, Jenny co-authored On the
Line: Impacts of Immigration Policy on Wildlife and Habitat in the
Arizona Borderlands, published in January 2006. Her law note also
focused on U.S. border policy, specifically examining the
constitutionality and policy implications of Sec. 102 of the REAL ID
Act, which allows the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive all laws
when building infrastructure along the U.S. international border. In
addition to her law degree, Jenny holds a masters degree in natural
resource policy and an undergraduate degree in photojournalism. She was
born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and grew up in Honolulu, Hawai'i. In her
free time, she enjoys hiking, gardening, yoga, and photography.
Keri Dixon, Development Director
A native Tucsonan, Keri has worked in fundraising for conservation since 2001. She attended Colorado College and has a degree in Anthropology with coursework in field biology of the Rockies. Keri grew up exploring the four-corners region, northern Sonora and Baja California. She enjoys organic gardening and cooking, eating and sharing local foods as well as hiking, photography, knitting and dance. As Development Director, Keri is working to speak out for wildlife and wild places by connecting donors and funders to the goals and actions of Sky Island Alliance.
Sergio Avila-Villegas, Northern
Mexico Conservation Program Manager
Biologist Sergio Avila-Villegas attended the University of Aguascalientes, then University of Baja California for a Master’s degree in Arid Lands Management. For over a decade, Sergio has gained extensive training and experience working in northwest Mexico on wildlife research and conservation projects on species like mountain lions, Cactus ferruginous pygmy-owls, California sea lions, river otters, Santa Catalina rattlesnakes and sea birds. In 2003 he initiated work on jaguar conservation in the Sierra Madre of Sonora where he monitored the northernmost breeding population of jaguars. At Sky Island Alliance, Sergio is taking the lead on wildlife research and conservation efforts in northern Mexico and cross-border connectivity, currently filling a critical niche with community outreach, research and conservation in places where no information currently exists regarding the status of the borderland’s cuatro gatos. Sergio lives in Tucson, Arizona with his wife Jenny.
Nick Deyo, Madrean Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment Project Coordinator
Nick has a breadth of conservation experience gained working in the western U.S. and abroad. He fell in love with the open spaces of the West while earning a degree in ecology from the University of Montana. He continued to work in Montana for the U.S. Forest Service's Fire Sciences Laboratory, where he was investigating the role of fire in Rocky Mountain ecosystems. His other conservation experiences in the West include working with Five Valleys Land Trust to design a strategic conservation plan and working for Missoula County's Rural Initiatives program. There, he raised awareness by presenting the Missoula County Conservation Atlas to numerous community groups. Abroad, Nick served as a Peace Corps volunteer on the Pacific island of Samoa where he provided educational outreach for a marine protected area. As an instructor for the non-profit Ecology Project International, he led groups of local and US high school students as they patrolled one of the world's most important leatherback sea turtle nesting reserves in Costa Rica. Nick received a Master's degree in landscape architecture from the School of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of Michigan in April, 2011. His graduate work focused on conservation planning and ecological restoration, skills he is excited to bring to SIA.
Trevor Hare, Landscape Restoration
Program Manager
Born and raised in the Denver, Colorado area, Trevor moved to Tucson in
1984, seeking warmth. He spent most of the next few years tramping
around Mexico and Arizona's western desert. Trevor graduated from The
University of Arizona in 1991 with a BS degree in Ecology and
Evolutionary Biology with a focus on botany. He started work on a
long-term project with the Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center
studying the impacts of urban and rural development on rattlesnakes. As
a grant-funded researcher, Trevor also has worked as an endangered
species biologist doing inventory and monitoring of Mexican spotted
owls, cactus ferruginous pygmy-owls, goshawks, SW willow flycatchers,
native fish, and cacti. Trevor began work with Sky Island Alliance in
July 2001 and oversees SIA's volunteer program. Trevor also currently
serves as the Science Advisor for the Coalition for Sonoran Desert
Protection, in addition to being a member on Pima County's Conservation
Acquisition Commission, Arizona State Parks Natural Areas Program
Advisory Committee, and the Resource Advisory Council for the Gila Box
National Conservation Area.
Jessica Lamberton, Wildlife Linkages
Program Coordinator
Wildlife biologist Jessica Lamberton attended The University of Arizona
in Natural Resources, receiving a Bachelors degree in Wildlife,
Watershed and Rangeland Management. Since 2007, Jessica has attained
training and experience in wildlife research, particularly with wild
cats, using non-invasive remote camera monitoring and wildlife tracking
techniques. Jessica spent four years as the Field Biologist and
Volunteer Coordinator for The University of Arizona Wild Cat Research
and Conservation Unit, combining citizen science and community outreach
with local mountain lion and urban bobcat monitoring projects. With Sky
Island Alliance, Jessica has served as a volunteer for ocelot and
jaguar monitoring and tracking instruction, and as the Conservation
Associate for Protected Lands, organizing grassroots support for
Wilderness designation in the Tumacacori Highlands and the "Land of
Legends" Whetstone, Dragoon and Chiricahua mountain ranges. Jessica
became Sky Island Alliance's Wildlife Linkages Program Coordinator in
April 2010, where she trains and engages volunteer naturalists,
conducts scientific research and ground-truthing, informs policy and
advocates to protect and connect wildlife movement corridors in the Sky
Island region.
Louise Misztal, Conservation Policy
Program Coordinator
Louise has worked on wildlife research, habitat restoration and
monitoring, and conservation issues in southern Arizona for the past
eight years. At Sky Island Alliance, she works on science-based land
management advocacy, and spatial analysis. Her current focus is on
improving land and resource management in the Sky Island region in the
face of a changing climate and on finding creative and constructive
ways for the conservation community to collaborate with land and
resource managers to better steward the resources we all care about.
Louise received her Bachelor of Science with honors in Microbiology and
her Bachelor of Arts in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from The
University of Arizona. Prior to joining Sky Island Alliance, Louise
worked as a field biologist on a variety of projects in southern
Arizona including surveys, monitoring and habitat assessment for
endangered and sensitive species, riparian habitat restoration and
monitoring, and morphological and genetic studies for a wild population
of birds. Louise grew up hiking and fishing in the Rocky Mountains of
Colorado and has found many opportunities here in the Sky Island region
to foster her appreciation and love for rugged mountains, wild places,
flowing water and high altitudes.
Rod Mondt - Special Designations
Program Coordinator
Rod is an
educator and founding member of Sky Island Alliance as well as several
other not-for-profit conservation groups. He has worked as a ranger
with the NPS, a recreation manager with the USFS, a lecturer and field
coordinator for Columbia University's Biosphere 2 Experiential
Education Program and for several Not-for-Profit conservation groups.
He has a Masters degree in Geography with a special interest in
conservation planning, regional reserve design, public lands grazing
and recreation management and environmental education.
Julie St. John, Restoring Connections
Editor
Two of the most important influences in Julie's childhood were The
Woods in her backyard and the heady knowledge that the creek she
explored down the hill eventually fed into the Ohio, the Mississippi
and the Gulf of Mexico. Three states and twenty years later, when
visiting Tucson, she found another landscape to ignite her imagination
and became determined to make up for the time she'd already missed
getting inside the vistas. But it wasn't until a volunteer gig got her
out on her first backpack with the National Outdoor Leadership School's
Leave No Trace program that she discovered you could love the natural
world AND work to protect it. Within three months she'd left her
straight job (marketing, she has a BS in Journalism and an MA in
Advertising) and began researching and writing about conservation
issues. Which led, naturally for her, to working within the movement,
first as an advocate for predators (Wildlife Damage Review), then
promoting applied science (Society for Ecological Restoration), and
lately as a freelance designer/editor, improving communications for
some of the finest conservation groups in the region. She joined the
SIA team for the Spring 2006 issue of Restoring Connections and looks
forward to a long association, getting out and the getting the word out
to protect and restore this glorious landscape she calls home.
Sarah Williams,
Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator
A native Tucsonan, Sarah’s childhood experiences of hiking,
camping, and backpacking helped form a deep appreciation for the unique
natural surroundings of the Southwest and laid the foundations for her
adult advocacy of its protection. After earning a bachelor’s
degree in Geography from The University of Arizona in 1996, she
migrated to the Florida Keys and began a career in public education as
an elementary Spanish teacher. For the next four years, Sarah taught
English and Science to middle school students in Florida and Virginia.
Immersed in an emotional battle between her love for the sea, desert
and mountains, she returned to Tucson, where she can continue to enjoy
all three. Sarah began volunteering with SIA in 2007 and was hired in
April as Field Associate / Volunteer Coordinator. She is working to
expand activism and generate greater interest within the community by
creating interactive, science-based opportunities for our volunteers
and members.
Tom Van Devender, Ph.D, Madrean
Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment Project Manager
Tom was the Senior Research Scientist at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum from 1983 to 2009, where he conducted research on a broad range of natural history activities. He has published well over a hundred research publications including journal articles, book chapters, and 6 books on desert grassland, the cacti of Sonora, the Sonoran desert tortoise, and packrat middens and the paleoecology of the southwestern deserts. He is coeditor with Francisco Molina-Freaner on a book entitled Diversidad Biológica del Estado de Sonora published by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) in Hermosillo, Sonora in 2010. He has a long-term interest in the flora and fauna of Sonora, and has collected over 25,000 herbarium specimens. Many of them are deposited into the herbaria at The University of Arizona (Tucson), Universidad de Sonora (Hermosillo), and UNAM (Cd. México). He has also studied the plants in tropical forests near Álamos in southern Sonora and Mazatlán in southern Sinaloa, and in pine-oak forests in the Sierra Madre Occidental in eastern Sonora. He and his wife Ana Lilia Reina-G. have a special interest in the flora of La Frontera, the 100 kilometer zone in northern Sonora just south of the Arizona border -- especially in Chihuahuan desertscrub on limestone, desert grassland, and tropical plants at their northern range limits. Tom is also a herpetologist with strong interests in the biogeography of the Sky Island Region in the Madrean Archipelago. Since 2009, he has been the Manager of the Madrean Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment project at Sky Island Alliance.
SKY ISLAND ALLIANCE VOLUNTEER BOARD
Dale Turner, President - Arizona, USA:
A founding member of Sky Island Alliance, Dale is a biologist with an
M.S. in Wildlife Ecology from The University of Arizona. His research
has focused on reptiles, amphibians, and plants in southern Arizona and
northern Sonora. He works as a Conservation Planner for The Nature
Conservancy of Arizona. In the past, he has served as Conservation
Chair for the Sierra Club's Rincon Group, as an Executive Committee
Member for the Arizona Wilderness Coalition, and as President of the
Tucson Herpetological Society.
Steve Marlatt, Vice-President - Arizona, USA: Steve has a B.S. in Wildlife Science and an M.A. in Environmental Education from New Mexico State University. He is currently the Science Department chair and 8th grade Science Teacher at Willcox Middle School in Willcox, Arizona. In the past, he has worked for the Coronado National Forest conducting riparian analyses, trails inventories, and recreational impact studies. He has a strong commitment to Sky Island Alliance's mission, in particular promoting conservation awareness and understanding in rural communities.
Ana Córdova, Secretary - Ciudad Juárez, Mexico:
Ana is currently a researcher and professor on urban sustainability at
COLEF (El Colegio de la Frontera Norte) in Ciudad Juárez,
Chihuahua. Previously, Ana was Director General for Research on
Ecological Land-Use Planning and Ecosystems Conservation at the
National Institute of Ecology, in Mexico City. One of her areas of work
there was the analysis of potential environmental impacts of the border
wall between the US and Mexico. She has also been a consultant for the
Commission for Environmental Cooperation of North America and The
Nature Conservancy; has served as Director of the Center of
Environmental Quality at the Technological Institute of Monterrey in
Chihuahua; and worked in the Rural Development Office of the State
Government of Chihuahua. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology
from Harvard University and a Master’s and Doctoral degree in
Natural Resource Policy and Management from Cornell University.
Carol Cullen, Treasurer - Arizona, USA: Carol is the Executive Director of the Tubac Chamber of Commerce. Living in the midst of the Sky Island region, Carol is committed to working with the local business community to preserve the natural landscapes, open space and special rural character of the area. These are the environmental amenities that create sustainable commercial value for tourism, a staple of the Southern Arizona economy. Carol has extensive experience in research and evaluation, having served as a professional evaluator for most of her career reviewing state, national, and international programs.
Alberto Búrquez, Sonora, Mexico: Alberto has been a researcher at Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) for the last 20 years. Being a true Sonoran, he ventured with his elders into remote places of NW Mexico. He visited the Sky Island of Pico Johnson in Seriland more than 50 years ago, and his first foray into Sierra La Mariquita was in the early 1960s. He has a deep interest in the Sonoran Desert and the tropical forests of the Pacific coast of Mexico. He left for Mexico City to study biology at UNAM, where he also got his Master's degree in ecological genetics. Later, he moved to England to get his PhD at the University of Cambridge. He has published numerous papers in leading scientific journals, and also writes science essays directed to a broader general public audience. His current interests include the study of pollination and dispersal of plants (plant-animal interactions), the population ecology of desert plants and their plant-plant interactions, and the dynamics of carbon in drylands. Other interests range from painting and photography to woodworking and responsible on-trail ATV riding.
Kevin Dahl - Arizona, USA: Kevin Dahl s Arizona Program Manager for National Park Conservation Association (NPCA). He works on issues concerning the Arizona 25 units of the National Park Service, including such well-known parks as Grand Canyon and Saguaro. Prior to NPCA, Kevin was executive director of Native Seeds/SEARCH, a regional group that works to preserve the genetic diversity of Southwestern Native American crops. He was also executive director of the Tucson Audubon Society, and Natural Resources Superintendent for Pima County’s Parks and Recreation Department. An alumnus of both The University of Arizona and Arizona State University, his interest in plants led him to obtain his degree in ethnobotany from Prescott College. Kevin is author of Wild Plants of the Sonoran Desert, published by the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, and Native Harvest: Authentic Southwestern Gardening, published by the Western National Parks Association.
Howard Frederick – Arizona, USA: Howard holds an MS in Ruminant Nutrition and a PhD in Agricultural Biochemistry & Comparative Nutrition from The University Arizona. He currently works as a zoological nutrition consultant and is a member of the American Zoological Association Nutritional Advisory Group, Comparative Nutrition Society, American College of Nutritionists, American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists, and the American Society of Clinical Nutrition. Howard has worked in Australia, Israel and the United States, and currently volunteers for Community Supported Agriculture weekly in Tucson. Howard and his wife Pat are co-owners of the historic mining town of Ruby.
Pat Frederick – Arizona, USA: Pat
is a retired veterinarian. She received her DVM from Washington State
University. Pat has barrel raced, ridden event horses, followed cattle
on ranch work and reached FEI levels of dressage. Pat currently works
primarily as a sculptor specializing in steelwork. She and her husband
Howard are co-owners of the historic mining town of Ruby. Pat's
interest in the property is for conservation and teaching of ecological
courses, use by scout groups and generally an outdoor and environmental
experience. The property is on the National Historic Register. They
have established fencing to exclude cattle on the property to maintain
the historic buildings and to make the wildlife more welcome to grazing
and drinking there.
Kevin Gaither-Banchoff – Arizona, USA: Kevin moved to the Southwest in late 1994 and has worked ever since to protect the biodiversity and wild nature of the southwest. Kevin currently serves as Development Director for Santa Fe based WildEarth Guardians, and previously worked as Development Director for both Native Seeds/Search and The Wildlands Project. He has also worked as a fundraising and organizational development consultant for numerous local and regional conservation non-profits and spent four years 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.
Sadie Hadley - New Mexico, USA: A native Arizonan, Sadie grew up on a working cattle ranch on the US-Mexico border. After receiving a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and an M. A. in Eastern Classical Literature and Sanskrit, she studied and worked in the Himalayan region for several years, and recently spent time in Mongolia observing traditional grazing practices. Involved in conservation ranching projects through the Animas Foundation and The Malpai Borderlands Group, Sadie has a special interest in cross-border conservation and ecological issues. She holds certificates in riparian and stream restoration, has studied with Dave Rosgen, Bill Zeedyk, and other southwestern watershed ecologists, and recently completed the Master Watershed Stewardship Program through The University of Arizona and Pima County.
Dick Krueger – Arizona & Minnesota, USA: Dick is a retired human resources executive with the General Mills Corporation who now resides in Tucson, Arizona, and spends a few months each year back in his native Minnesota. Dick has been a Sky Island Alliance member and volunteer since 2002. He has hiked, backpacked and canoed extensively throughout the U.S. and Canada with a special interest in exploring the Sky Island region. He has a strong desire to insure that wildlands and wildlife are preserved for future generations and is a member of many environmental organizations, such as Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, The Nature Conservancy and The Wilderness Society. Dick holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Gustavus Adolphus College and an M.A. in Industrial Relations from the University of Minnesota.
Adrian Quijada-Mascareñas - Arizona, USA:
Adrian is currently adjunct professor at the School of Natural
Resources and the Environment, The University of Arizona. At his natal
Hermosillo, Sonora, he developed his fascination and career for
herpetology, the Sonoran Desert and the borderland region. He holds a
Master’s degree in Ecology at the National Autonomous University
of Mexico (UNAM) and a PhD in phylogenetics and biogeography at the
University of Wales, United Kingdom. During his doctoral thesis he
studied rattlesnake biogeography and the evolution of the Amazon
forest. Today he’s getting back to his original ecosystem
developing projects on conservation genetics in the Sonoran Desert and
the Madrean region. His main focus of research is the understanding of
the genetic components of wildlife adaptation facing climate change in
the Sky Island region. In addition to bird watching, he’s also
fascinated with ethnobotany and Native American culture.
Peter Warshall - Arizona, USA: Peter's expertise includes natural history, natural resource management (especially watersheds, wastewater, and wildlife), conservation biology, biodiversity assessments, environmental impact analysis, and conflict resolution and consensus building between divergent economic and cultural special interest groups. He has worked in Africa and Arizona for several organizations and Native American tribes, in addition to serving as an adjunct research scientist with the Office of Arid Lands Studies (The University of Arizona). He has written two published articles on Sky Island ecology and biogeography and is an expert on the Mt. Graham Red Squirrel.