People

Judy Braus brings to her role as NAAEE Executive Director a wealth of experience in the environmental education profession, with a focus on conservation education, diversity and inclusion, and using the power of education to help create healthier communities that empower local communities, stakeholders, and individuals to help restore and protect the environment. She comes to NAAEE from the National Audubon Society, where she was the Senior Vice President of Education and Centers, overseeing an extensive nationwide network of nature centers and educators. Prior to that, she led the education programs at World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the U.S. Peace Corps, and the National Wildlife Federation (NWF).

Carrie earned her B.A. in both Environmental Studies and Spanish, a dual major she explored hands-on while studying in the cloud forests of Ecuador. After attending Indiana University to complete her Masters in Public Affairs, with concentrations in Environmental Policy and Natural Resource Management, she took on the role of Environmental Educator with the City of Bloomington. Here she connected with community members of all ages, teaching about habitats, sustainability practices, and conservation efforts. 

Adrian has enjoyed a lifelong career in environmental education. Starting out as a park ranger, he has since served as Statewide Director of Education at Massachusetts Audubon, Director of Operations at the Center for Whole Communities, in Vermont, and as NAAEE's Senior Director for Technology Programs. As the founder of eeMatters, an environmental education and interpretive planning consulting group, Adrian led professional and community-based teams that developed strategic plans, master interpretive plans, exhibits, and technology-based communication tools for clients as varied as NAAEE, Maine Audubon, Vermont Institute of Natural Science, Trustees of Reservations, Monadnock Media, Old Sturbridge Village, and New York Botanical Gardens. 

NAAEE’s Senior Director of Capacity Building, Sarah Bodor, comes from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, where she held a number of program management and leadership positions throughout the organization. She worked closely with state education agencies in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia to develop and pilot standards-based curricula and provide teacher professional development. Her background also includes communications and fundraising. In 2008, she served as the writer of Maryland’s Children in Nature Plan, which resulted in the passage of Maryland’s environmental high school graduation requirement.

Grace joined the NAAEE team in September 2021 and works as an Event and Executive Coordinator. She was raised in western Massachusetts where she developed a deep appreciation and love for the surrounding environment. Grace began her journey in Washington, DC by attending American University, where she earned both her BA and MPA in 5 years. She studied a combination of environmental studies, public health, public administration, and nonprofit management. She comes to NAAEE with a background in programming for youth development, education, and in-person and online farmers markets.

grace@naaee.org

Jimena Cuenca is happiest when she is a part of a community working towards positive change. She was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, and she started her career volunteering to outreach and present bicycle safety workshops. Jimena holds a Bachelor's degree in Geography from UC Berkeley. Since graduating, she's worked as a seasonal research technician on avian field projects in the Copper River Delta and the northern coast of Alaska. More recently, she has developed and led environmental education programs as a park ranger. In her work as a communicator, she seeks to elevate conversations about the environment and social change. When not at work, she's walking her huskies, and drawing comics about wildlife.

jimena@naaee.org

Andrew (Andy) David grew up in Washburn, Wisconsin, a small town on the shores of Lake Superior. In 2019, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a B.A. in Geography and Political Science and minors in African Studies and Development Economics.

Megan Fink serves as the Partnerships & Policy Manager for the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) and brings a robust place-based, outdoor education background to the NAAEE team.

Sydney spent the bulk of her childhood learning and growing under the canopy of the southeastern deciduous forests that make up her home state of Virginia. She earned her B.A. in International Studies with a minor in Environmental Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Madeline is an international programs specialist at NAAEE, supporting the Global Environmental Education Partnership (GEEP), youth leadership programs, and other global initiatives. Madeline received her Master's degree in Global Environmental Policy from American University in Washington, D.C. She previously worked as a researcher for the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, focusing on sustainable agriculture policy. Her other published research has explored climate change resiliency, environmental activism, and public-private partnerships. Madeline has a B.A. in Writing and Rhetoric and a B.S. in Interdisciplinary Studies-Social Sciences from the University of Central Florida (UCF). 

madeline@naaee.org

Nina Hamilton supports NAAEE's leadership initiatives and supports the Global Environmental Education Partnership's efforts to build capacity for EE across the globe. Nina is particularly passionate about working across cultures to connect people with the resources they need to maximize their impact, while combining her interests in the environment, social equity, and youth engagement.

Kit is the co-founder of one of the country's first urban outdoor preschools, the Fiddleheads Forest School at the University of Washington. In 2015, Kit founded the Washington Nature Preschool Association to support the regional growth of nature-based early childhood education and successfully advocated for the passage of the first licensing regulations for outdoor preschools in North America. Today, she continues her work to support the field as the Policy Advisor for the Natural Start Alliance, helping improve equitable access to nature-based early learning experiences and develop meaningful support for educators around the country.

kit@naaee.org

Bug Hartsock is a graduating Master's student in an Entomology lab. When he's not staring at small critters, he spends his time reading, making art, and going on hikes (as well as playing plenty of Dungeons & Dragons). Bug is passionate about scientific outreach and communication, creating zines and comics designed to make science accessible to everyone. He's also spoken at conferences, on public radio, and at a variety of school outreach events. It's his hope to encourage the rest of the world to fall a little bit more in love with its tiny, many-legged residents.

bug@naaee.org

Maxwell works part-time on website, technology, and analytics projects for NAAEE. He was an NAAEE intern during the summer of 2012 and then worked as NAAEE's Project and Technology Coordinator from 2014 to 2015. In this role, he was part of the team that worked on designing and building eePRO and NAAEE's new website.

Ariel joined the NAAEE team in September of 2021 as a Senior Administrative Assistant. Prior to this role, she has over 15 years of administrative experience in a laboratory and office setting. She is originally from the suburbs of Illinois and moved to Washington DC in 2009, where she attended Howard University. She received her B.A. in Psychology at the College of Arts and Sciences with a minor focus in Administration of Justice. She aspires to travel the world to learn and experience cultures outside her own. Should Italy be next?

ariel@naaee.org

Lori Mann has nearly 40 years of experience in environmental education at the local, state, and national levels. Lori joined the NAAEE staff in 2012 as Program and Conference Manager and now serves as Director of Conferences and Programs. In this capacity, she manages all aspects of the NAAEE annual conference and coordinates several national projects related to building capacity to deliver high-quality environmental education. 

Nearly 20 years ago, Christy took her first job in environmental education at a conservation summer camp, and she hasn't looked back. She has worked in universities, international nonprofits, local organizations, state agencies, and private companies—always with an eye toward helping people build environmental literacy and meaningful connections to nature. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation from the University of Florida and a Master's Degree in Environmental Management from Yale University. When she's not working, Christy likes to swim, surf, and play with her family on the beaches of South Florida, where she lives and works.

christymerrick@gmail.com

Laurie Monserrat supports NAAEE's work to provide accessible content on webinars, media, and websites. Laurie began with NAAEE as the Corporate Initiatives Educator Consultant promoting the UL Innovative Education Award and the Cal Water H2O Challenge.

Preethi Mony brings to her role as EE Grant and Program Manager varied experience in environmental education, evaluation, and grants from her work in India and the US.

Martha started her conservation career in Namibia, where she worked for World Wildlife Fund. Her role was to support tourism business development and bolster communal conservancies in establishing viable joint ventures with private partners. She also supported business enterprise efforts of a nonprofit organization that aims to empower the San people socially and economically in the rural Nyae Nyae Conservancy in northeast Namibia (the first conservancy in the country).

Colleen supports the NAAEE Coalition for Climate Education Policy communication and coordination efforts and climate change education policy research. She joins us from the National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office, where she worked closely with the Environmental Literacy and Diversity working groups. She gathered and analyzed data on environmental literacy and educational policies in the Chesapeake Bay region to support the infusion of environmental education and green career awareness into more school content areas. She also supported NOAA’s B-WET grants which aid in the systemic implementation of Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs) into K-12 curriculums. Her interests lie at the intersection of environment, social justice, education, and policy. She will be pursuing a master’s degree in Environment and Sustainability Management at Georgetown University during the 22-23 academic year.

colleen@naaee.org

As the Director of Technology, Mary serves as the project lead for NAAEE online technology, including the NAAEE website and eePRO, the hub for professional development. She collaborates with developers, designers, staff, leaders, and end-users in building out features and improving user experience; coordinates with NAAEE project managers to support the technology used to deliver their programs, including the in-person and virtual conferences; and leads and collaborates with the communications team on association newsletters, web content, and community outreach. 

maryo@naaee.org

Betty has a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of New Hampshire and is currently Senior Advisor for the Natural Start Alliance, NAAEE's early childhood program. In addition to being a classroom teacher for more than 15 years (in the US, Taiwan, China, and South Africa), Betty also worked in the field of environmental education for 25 years. She worked with Judy Braus at World Wildlife Fund, and prior to that, Betty worked at other environmental NGOs, including National Wildlife Federation and as Director of Project Wild. She currently lives in Kittery, Maine, and in her spare time, Betty’s hobbies include traveling, photography, sailing, swimming, and walking.

bettyolivolo@gmail.com

Stacie joined the NAAEE team in April 2020 as the Communications, Marketing, and Membership Specialist. Stacie has worked in the education field for almost two decades. Prior to joining NAAEE, she managed communications for Annenberg Learner, a leading national nonprofit that connects K–12 educators with classroom content and professional development to support and strengthen their practice. She also taught Spanish at a high school in Washington, D.C. for six years. She holds an M.A. in Spanish and Latin American Studies from American University, and a B.A. in Modern Languages and Linguistics, and Certificate in Secondary Education from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She recently completed a Certificate in Social Impact Storytelling at Georgetown University. Throughout her career, she has been committed to bringing exceptional educational opportunities to underserved areas and educating to promote civic engagement.

Drew is an organizational and logistics specialist with nine years of project and program coordination. Drew has expertise in creating and implementing systems to ensure program success and federal regulation compliance, including budget management, reporting, and program activity coordination. Drew started working for NAAEE in 2012. Prior to that, he worked for ChemStewards, an environmental, health, and safety program, and as a Sustainability Assistant for the City of Sioux Falls in South Dakota, focusing on data management as well as community engagement. He has a bachelor's degree in Political Science, with a minor in biology, from the University of South Dakota.

drew@naaee.org

Daniella earned her B.S. in Conservation Biology and Ecology from Arizona State University.  She holds a certificate in Sustainability and Behavior Change from the University of California-San Diego and is pursuing her master’s degree in Environmental Studies from Prescott College. She has been in the Environmental Education field for over a decade. This includes working as a gallery interpreter for the Arizona Science Center, as a Recreation Coordinator for the City of Chandler Nature Center, and then as a Water Conservation Specialist for the City of Chandler. Daniella recently transitioned to the East Coast and has helped the Shaw Institute, a nonprofit marine and environmental research center in Blue Hill, Maine, with outreach and special projects. She’s excited to join the NAAEE team and help support the ee360+ program.

daniella@naaee.org

Ms. Krishna K. Roy is a conservationist and social activist.  She has worked in the nonprofit sector for three decades as a grantmaker, consultant and in senior management positions specializing in capacity building, strategic planning, development, marketing, event planning, and public relations.  She was a Branch Chief at the US Fish and Wildlife Service and held positions at Island Press, San Diego Zoo, The Nature Conservancy, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation among other assignments.

T’Noya Thompson Being born and raised in the Bahamas fostered a deep connection to the ocean that inspired a career path at an early age for T’Noya. She began her career at Moody Gardens in the animal care department, where she served several roles, including connecting with communities in various capacities for twelve years. After Moody Gardens, she worked at Galveston Bay Foundation for two and a half years as the Advocacy Programs Manager. There she educated and encouraged action to improve the overall health of Galveston Bay, Texas’ largest estuary. T’Noya joined NAAEE as the EE Specialist in 2019 and then became the Manager of Research, Evaluation, and eeBLUE in 2021. She worked with various partners on eeBLUE, eeWORKS, eeRESEARCH, and developing eeVAL, an evaluation portal with Duke University. Currently, T’Noya serves as a consultant for NAAEE.

Emily earned her B.A. in Elementary Education from Ball State University and went on to teach first grade in Indianapolis, IN. At that time, the lack of widely accessible environmental education in urban areas led her away from formal education and into the field of informal science education at Lincoln Park Zoo. She worked on developing inquiry-based science curriculum for the zoo’s Conservation Camp program and later found her niche as the Early Childhood and Family Programs Coordinator.

Prior to coming aboard with NAAEE Bruce worked as a freelance environmental education consultant, educator, and volunteer for a variety of schools and organizations including the Rivanna Conservation Alliance, Greensboro Science Center, Tandem Friends School, and Free Union Country School.