SKY ISLAND ALLIANCE STAFF - 2009
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.
Sergio Avila-Villegas, Wildlife Biologist and Outreach Specialist
Biologist Sergio Avila-Villegas attended the University of Aguascalientes, then University of Baja California for his Master’s degree in Arid Lands Management. Since 1997, 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 research and conservation efforts in northern Mexico, 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.
Trevor Hare, Landscape Restoration Program
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.
Sky Jacobs, Membership and Administrative Associate
Sky grew up in the Southwest and is a naturalist who loves exploring the wild, rugged, and lost country of Arizona and Sonora. He likes learning about and tsking photos of all the interesting and amazing plants and animals that call this region home. He has worked on and off as a biologist studying cactus ferruginous pygmy-owls and other Sky Island and Sonoran desert flora and fauna for 8 years. Sky has also loves photographing the natural beauty of the region. He also has a geek streak and has become a website slave at Sky Island. Sky has been volunteering in the field with Sky Island Alliance since its early years of the mid 1990's. He has worked for Sky Island Alliance part-time doing primarily membership and administrative tasks since 2004.
Jessica Lamberton, Wilderness Outreach Associate / Wildlife Linkages Coordinator
Born and raised in the Sonoran Desert of Tucson, Arizona, Jessica developed a love for wild things at an early age, publishing her first article at the age of 9 on monsoons and raising toads. She has a strong commitment and enthusiasm for conservation outreach and education, and has been involved in wildlife and wild felid conservation at home and as far as Ireland and Mexico. Jessica holds a B.S. in Wildlife Conservation and Management from the University of Arizona, where she is working as a Research Technician studying urban bobcats and mountain lions in Tucson while she pursues her Master’s degree. A long-time volunteer and supporter of Sky Island Alliance, Jessica’s newest project is the preservation of the Tumacacori Highlands proposed wilderness.
Louise Misztal, Conservation Biologist / GIS Specialist
Louise grew up hiking and fishing in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado where she was instilled with a love for wild and remote landscapes. She moved to Tucson in 2000 and found a little bit of home in the high elevation pine forests of the Sky Islands. Louise holds dual Bachelor's degrees from the University of Arizona in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology with a focus on conservation biology, and in Microbiology. In 2003 she began grassroots organizing work with the Arizona League of Conservation Voters and expanded her environmental work in 2004 as a volunteer for Sky Island Alliance. She went on to complete her honors thesis regarding management of the Aravaipa Creek watershed with SIA in 2005. Since 2005, Louise has worked as a field biologist across the Sky Island Region studying reproduction of southwest willow flycatchers, monitoring ecological health of habitat utilized by endangered species, studying reproduction and resource allocation in a Tucson population of House Finches and monitoring riparian restoration along the Santa Cruz River.
Rod Mondt - Wilderness Coordinator
Rod is the Conservation Lands Coordinator for Trout Unlimited, 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.
Marc Trinks, Madrean Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment, Project Coordinator
Also part of the Madrean Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment, Marc recently joined SIA as the Project Coordinator for MABA. Growing up in the mountains of western North Carolina, Marc’s roots in the outdoors are firmly seated. He grew up spending his childhood largely outdoors while camping, fishing, and gardening in between bouts of school. Marc is fluent in Spanish, and holds a BS in Business Management and a Masters in Natural Resources Management, both from North Carolina State University in Raleigh. He just returned stateside from two years in Mexico with the US Peace Corps where he worked with local ejidos and landowners in fire management, designing and constructing wildlife-friendly fences, building and installing bat houses and helping to convert traditional land uses to more sustainably-managed and economically viable options. Previously he worked in open space preservation in North Carolina, monitoring conservation easements, performing GIS analysis, and advising farmers and landowners about conservation options as part of a farmlands preservation program. Marc is excited to explore the biodiversity of the region, share his experiences and learn from the wealth of knowledge about the sky islands that is contained in SIA’s staff, board, volunteers, and strategic partners.
Sarah Williams, Field Associate / Volunteer 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 has joined SIA as the project manager for our newly launched Madrean Archipelago Biodiversity Assessment. 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 to be published by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) in Hermosillo, Sonora in 2009. He has a long-term interest in the flora and fauna of the Sonoran Desert Region, and has collected over 20,000 herbarium specimens. Many of them are deposited into the herbaria at the University of Arizona (Tucson), the Universidad de Sonora (Hermosillo), and UNAM (Cd. México). He has surveyed local floras in the Sonoran Desert in the Tucson Mountains and Ironwood Forest National Monument in Arizona. He has also studied the plants in tropical forests near Alamos in southern Sonora and Mazatlán in southern Sinaloa, and in pine-oak forests near Yécora 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.
SKY ISLAND ALLIANCE BOARD - 2009
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 Information and Communication Technology Specialist for Bonita Elementary School in Bonita, 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.
Nancy Zierenberg, Secretary - Arizona, USA: Nancy is a former seasonal US Forest Service employee in the recreation field. Her educational background is in natural sciences and she been a conservation activist for the last fifteen years, focusing mostly on public lands use issues (grazing and off-road vehicle use). In 1991 she co-founded a nonprofit organization, Wildlife Damage Review, to end government killing of wildlife for the sake of private interests. She served on the board for Predator Conservation Alliance (Montana) for five years. She is currently working for the Arizona Native Plant Society.
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.
Ana Córdova, 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.
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.
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.
Paul Hirt, Arizona, USA: Paul was a co-founder of Sky Island Alliance. He worked on the 1984 National Forest Wilderness Act, the first Coronado National Forest Management Plan, co-founded the Coalition for the Preservation of Mt. Graham, and participated in a number of other campaigns involving public lands, grazing, mining, the CAP, and urban sprawl. He is now an Associate Professor of History and American Studies at Arizona State University and has authored a number of books and articles including, A Conspiracy of Optimism: Management of the National Forests Since World War II. He has a home in Cave Creek Canyon, Arizona, in the Chiricahuas, where SIA actually had its founding gathering back in 1991.
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 (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.