Board
Alexandria Anderson
Alexandria is a retired World Class NIKE American sprinter who specialized in the 100 and 200 meters. After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, she competed on several USA World Medal Winning International Teams for 8 years (2009-2017). She decided to retire and continue in the fitness industry in 2018. Receiving her ACE Personal Training Certification in January 2018, Alexandria continues to pursue her passion of fitness, nutrition and sports. In Fall 2018, she launched her business Essential Fitness ATX, with a mission to bring a holistic training experience that integrates training for the brain, body and breath. With this customized approach, you will unlock your full potential in the gym and in life. She is heavily involved in community organizations such as the Austin Neighborhood Council, Martin Luther King Neighborhood Association, and AALI (African American Leadership Institute) Austin, nonprofits and volunteers on a weekly basis.
Lucia Athens
Lucia, a licensed Landscape Architect, previously worked as the City of Austin’s first Chief Sustainability Officer. Prior to returning to Austin, she led the City of Seattle’s green building program. She serves on Advisory Boards for local nonprofits EcoRise and Urban Roots. Previously, she served the US Green Building council on their Board of Directors and on the development teams for LEED Version 2.0 and LEED for Cities and Communities. Lucia has spent much of her career advocating for green buildings, climate action, habitat protection, and sustainable food systems. She is the author of Building an Emerald City and The Sustainability Revolutionists. A native of San Antonio, Lucia is a resident of Austin’s Chestnut neighborhood in District 1.
Demekia Biscoe
My background and training is in education and organizational leadership. My current role as Director of Education at Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center (and Texas Children in Nature Network board member) gives me the opportunity (and privilege) to create opportunities that usher engagement with nature. As a classroom teacher, I saw first hand the impact of taking urban students with limited access to nature, into outdoor spaces in which they could learn and explore. I find joy in introducing people to the wonderment found outside. I want to lean into advocacy for nature being a part of where everyone lives. This is why EverGreen Austin feels like a great group to be among. I am guardian of my niece. We are exploring our new home in Austin (we have been here a year). I enjoy reading and crafting.
Vera Bowen
As president of the Shield Ranch Foundation, Vera Ayres Bowen’s focus is outdoor education and outreach programs. She is passionate about providing opportunities for children and adults to experience beauty and mystery in the natural world. In her role as Shield- Ayres Foundation president, Vera cultivates community financial support for the nonprofit family foundation’s mission to support human services, social justice, and environmental conservation. She also serves on the advisory council of A ROCHA USA and enjoys actively serving as a member of her church. Vera finds joy in exploring the natural world and expressing gratitude through artistic expression. She loves playing with her grandchildren and enjoys sharing the Ranch with her grown children and their spouses: Marshall (and his wife Madison), Gentry (and his wife Margaret), Sophie (and her husband Johann), and Mallory. Vera earned a Bachelor of Arts in religion from the University of the South. Born and raised in San Antonio, she now lives in Austin.
Marianne DeLeon
Marianne DeLeón serves as Texas Book Festival’s CEO. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin and a master’s degree from Southern Methodist University where she documented the story of her family’s immigration experience from Cuba. Early in her career, Marianne dedicated over three years to full-time volunteer service in the United States Peace Corps (Republic of Moldova from 2000-2002) and AmeriCorps VISTA (Dallas, Texas from 2002–2003) where she developed a passion for fundraising for mission-driven organizations. She has since spent the last two decades developing her skills as an organizational leader and social entrepreneur. Most recently, she served as the Chief Revenue Officer for Pease Park Conservancy where she helped finalize the $15M capital campaign to revitalize, operate, and maintain Austin’s beloved Pease Park. She currently serves on the boards of directors for Raasin in the Sun, the No Comply Foundation, Evergreen Austin, and Laboratorio Arts. In her free time, she totes around her teenage son (who is her brightest star) and avidly walks while listening to her Libro.FM audio books.
Sue Edwards
Sue Edwards is a seasoned public servant and consultant with a distinguished career in city management and economic development. She has held key leadership roles in Austin, serving as Director of multiple city departments, including Human Services, Health, Emergency Medical Services, and Taxation. In 1984, she was appointed Assistant City Manager, overseeing Police, Fire, EMS, and Emergency Management. After founding a consulting firm in 1985, she returned to the city in 1994 as EMS Director. In 2000, she launched and led Austin’s Economic Growth and Redevelopment Services Office (now the Economic Development Department), playing a pivotal role in projects such as the development of the Second Street District, City Hall expansion, and major downtown redevelopments like the Robert Mueller Municipal Airport and Seaholm Power Plant. She also spearheaded the formation of the Waller Creek Conservancy. Under her leadership, Austin adopted the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan, reformed its permitting process, and initiated CodeNEXT, a rewrite of the Land Development Code. Her work has left a lasting impact on the city's growth and development.
Jean Gabbay
Jean Gabbay has been a political and environmental activist since the early 1980s when she joined The Disarmadillos, a small but passionate group of Austinites advocating for the cessation of the nuclear arms race between the United States and its allies and the USSR during the Reagan administration. She holds a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin and an MFA in sculpture from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. Jean lived and worked as a sculptor in NYC, participating in several group and solo exhibitions in New York City, San Francisco and Austin. She made abstract but political works in support of the aids crisis: “Truth be Told it’s all About Love”, NYT review, critiquing the first Gulf war: “The Road to Basra” and to highlight the environmental fragility of rivers in Thailand: “The Trang River and Thana” among many more. Upon moving home to Austin in the early 90s she opened the second of her third floral design ventures, Verbena Floral Design, and began exploring advocacy in a very small way, through social media responses to political posts, attempting to correct misinformation through deep research and non-divisive responses. It has been her goal to bridge the rift between political viewpoints by responding with factual information that emphasizes commonality and community and redirecting frustration towards politicians who exploit issues for the goal of political gain, retention of power and at the expense of good governance. She is the owner of Cherry Lane Floral, a home-based design studio. Jean also maintains a year round garden that manages to produce many of the vegetables and fruits she and her neighbors consume and is in the process of doubling its size. She keeps her garden healthy and watered throughout the dry, hot summers with her unique rain collection system and the help of her two squirrel-deterrent cats, Phineas and Kevin.
Rebecca Leonard
Rebecca Leonard, FAICP, PLA, CNU-A, founder of Lionheart, is a distinguished leader in landscape architecture and urban design based in Austin, Texas. She holds degrees in Urban and Regional Planning and Environmental Design from Ball State University. Living in District 9 and operating her business out of District 3, she has over two decades of experience. Locally, she led the master plans for noteworthy redevelopments in Austin such as UptownATX and Brodie Oaks, as well as park master plans for Republic Square and Lamar Beach. She has held leadership roles in numerous state and national professional organizations including past Chair of the American Planning Association’s Economic Development Division and Urban Design and Preservation Division, and past Board Director roles at the Planning Institute of Colorado and Healthy Mountain Communities. With over two decades of experience, her work is celebrated with more than 60 national, state, and reginal awards, including induction into the American Institute of Certified Planners Council of Fellows, underscoring her commitment to sustainable, community-centric urban development. Rebecca is an enthusiastic advocate for integrating natural and built environments. Connect with Rebecca through her LinkedIn profile or visit her company's website.
Jes Maniccia
Jes Maniccia grew up in Northwest Austin and attended McNeil High School. She enjoys a 24-year Commercial Real Estate Development and Property Management career in many Texas markets. In 2016, her business was named a top 75 Women-Owned Business by the Austin Business Journal. As she pursues her Master of Landscape Architecture degree at the University of Texas at Austin, Jes has developed as a designer and is joyfully pursuing her passion. Her work was recently nominated for a UT School of Architecture Design Excellence Award, she received a Graduate Recognition Fellowship Award in 2024, and she won a UT School of Architecture Materials Lab Grant in pursuit of developing a biodegradable landscape material in 2024. Jes lives in the Crestview Neighborhood, in District 7, with her 2 children, Mason and Maya.
Katie Naranjo
Katie Naranjo is the CEO of an organization of healthcare companies providing care to over 1,800 patients daily in Texas. Elected in 2020, Katie served as Chair of the Travis County Democratic Party for three and a half years, receiving awards for her work to protect voting rights from the Austin Bar Association. She serves on various community, non-profit, and organizational boards including, Waterloo Greenway Conservancy - Chair of Policy & Planning Committee, Texas Association of Home Care and Hospice - Chair of Government Affairs Committee, and the Naranjo Museum of Natural History. Katie lives in the Northwest Hills neighborhood in Austin, Texas with her husband, Jonathan, and their children Charlie and Ana.
Peggy Pickle
Peggy Pickle is a native Austinite. She earned a Bachelor of Journalism degree from U.T. Austin. Her career was spent doing public relations and writing for various organizations in Washington D.C. and Austin, as well as publishing freelance articles and editorials in national publications. In 1997, she co-published the book, “JAKE” with her late father, U.S. Rep. J.J. “Jake” Pickle, who represented Texas’ 10th Congressional district for 31 years. Peggy remembers a smaller, greener Austin, and would like to see our green spaces expanded.
Shalini Ramanathan
Shalini Ramanathan has spent her professional career in clean energy. She is currently with Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, a private equity fund that invests in the energy transition. Prior to Quinbrook, Shalini worked at Renewable Energy Systems, a developer and constructor of clean energy projects. She also worked for UK-based Camco in Nairobi, Kenya. Born in Calcutta, India, Shalini currently lives in Travis Heights (District 9) in Austin. She has previously served on the Board of the Contemporary Austin and is active in supporting the arts in Austin. Shalini holds a BA from UT Austin and a Master’s in Environmental Management from Yale University.
Wendy Dunnam Tita
For more than two decades, Wendy Dunnam Tita has sought to integrate innovation and forward-thinking strategy with exceptional design quality. She is a Principal at Page and the Chief Practice Officer, responsible for overseeing the leadership and development of the firm's practice groups amplifying the firm's commitment to integrated design through, culture, design, delivery, and business development. She serves in this role alongside per position as the co-leader of the firm’s Global Commercial and Mixed-use Market Sector. As an architect, Dunnam Tita champions the conversation between design, craft, and people to advance and nurture this essential collaboration, and to enrich the human experience of architecture and its making. She has deep experience developing sustainable design thinking in projects ranging from intimate residential spaces to large and complex public works and has conducted original research and developed designs and standards adopted as sustainable models. Wendy fosters healthy team environments with an emphasis on mentoring and staff development. Her dedication to education extends outside the office in her relationship with The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture. In 1999, Wendy assisted in curriculum development, and for the following six years, she taught design studios, and a lecture course, and currently serves as a guest critic. In 2018 she was elevated to the American Institute of Architects College of Fellows, recognized for her exceptional achievements in design. As a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), she actively supports her profession outside the office by serving in a variety of roles with the national chapter and the AIA Austin chapter, including serving as the 2018 Austin Chapter President. She has also served the City of Austin on the Downtown Commission, and Cultural Trust
Peggy Winkler
Peggy Winkler is passionate about the stewardship of and equitable access to the outdoors and public green spaces. She has been involved with many environmental organizations in the Austin area through her work in environmental education, volunteer advocacy, and philanthropic support, including Zilker Botanical Garden, Westcave Preserve, Families in Nature, the Wildflower Center, Austin Youth River Watch, Colorado River Alliance, The Nature Conservancy, Waterloo Greenway and others. She and her husband live in the Austin area and maintain a ranch on the Pedernales under a conservation easement.
Anne Ashmun
I’m a sixth generation Texan and Wagyu cattle rancher on my Hays County ranch with a conservation easement. I serve on the boards of The Nature Conservancy, Great Springs Alliance and The University of Texas Marine Science Institute. I live in district ten and have worked my adult life on conservation issues statewide.
Catalina Berry
Catalina Berry is a bilingual leader with 15+ years in community engagement, public relations, and nonprofit leadership. As Executive Director of the East Austin Conservancy, she combats gentrification and displacement, managing budgets and impactful programs. Previously, at the American Heart Association, she advanced health equity and secured key policy changes like Tobacco-Free Schools. With expertise in marketing, event coordination, and advocacy, Catalina fosters sustainable partnerships and drives positive change. A certified Community Health Worker and Leadership Austin member, she is dedicated to equity and creating thriving, inclusive communities.
Meredith Bossin
Meredith is an experienced non-profit and public sector leader with expertise in operations, communications, stakeholder engagement, and public programming. She is the Interim COO for Project Row Houses, an arts and community development organization in Houston, Texas. She previously served as the founding Director of Engagement for Waterloo Greenway, a transformative public-private partnership to create and program over 30 acres of park space in Downtown Austin. Prior to Waterloo Greenway, she led communications and community engagement for the City of Austin’s Imagine Austin comprehensive plan, which engaged over 15,000 residents and was the first comprehensive plan to be adopted in over 20 years. Born and raised in Houston, she moved to Austin for graduate school in 2006 and now lives in the Zilker neighborhood. Bossin earned an M.A. in Latin American Studies and an M.S. in Community & Regional Planning from the University of Texas at Austin. She received her B.A. in the History of Art & Architecture from Rice University.
Karen Brimble
Karen Brimble is a co-founder and director of the Austin based One Skye Foundation. She is currently a member of Austin Community Foundation’s Women’s Fun and a past Chairperson of the Texas Book Festival. Having been philanthropically active since 2000, she has served on the boards of National Charity League- Austin, A Legacy of Giving, Round Rock Health Clinic, Girlstart and Avance. Karen is a former Board President of the Round Rock Health Clinic and was honored as the 2005 Sertoma Round Rock Volunteer of the Year for her work with the clinic. She and her husband, Ray, were honored by Interfaith Action of Central Texas with a Hope Award in 2014. Karen is a graduate of the University of Texas, McCombs School of Business.
Lynne Dobson
A 1979 graduate of University of Texas at Austin School of Journalism, Lynne actively supports many organizations in Texas and the US, through the Tejemos Foundation, which focuses on education, parks and green space preservation, the musical arts, maternal healthcare, reproductive rights and social and racial justice. She and her husband are devoted supporters of community public radio and advocates for press and speech freedoms. Since 2008, she continues to pursue her passion for humanitarian photography and philanthropy in East Africa and India, dedicated mostly to the people of Uganda, in the realms of education and child protection, maternal healthcare, clean water and disability. After retiring from a 25 year career as a newspaper photojournalist, including 13 years at the Austin American-Statesman, she worked for two decades in community relations for her family’s business, Whataburger, and also served on the company’s board. Since 2020, Lynne has worked with her family’s philanthropic foundation, Tres Grace. Born in Corpus Christi, she is the mother of two grown children, a grandmother, and loves nature, gardening, hiking, running, yoga and traveling. She is a longtime member of St. John’s United Methodist Church.
Monica Flores
Monica Flores is a public open space advocate who leverages her professional experience in marketing and communications to strengthen green consciousness and engagement in local communities. Equipped with dual Master’s degrees in Journalism & Radio-TV-Film from the University of Texas at Austin, Flores has experience managing and creating original media content in the television newsroom, for broadcast documentary, on the web and social media platforms, as well as in radio and print. Her recent work in partnership with Watershed Productions is the award-winning interactive website Barton Creek Time Stream, a highly visual story-driven multimedia experience firmly rooted in Austin’s environmental history. Previously, she co-created the acclaimed 2020 PBS broadcast documentary Origins of a Green Identity which traces Austin’s environmental values back to the 1960s. Currently in production is the sequel, Foreverland, which tells the remarkable story of how a small group of determined citizens joined forces to turn a cherished expanse of wild open space on the fringes of downtown into dedicated parkland, known today as the Barton Creek Greenbelt. Foreverland has a projected release date of Earth Day 2025.
Caroline Haley
Caroline Haley has lived in Austin for almost 15 years. She and her husband Brian have two children. Caroline graduated from Vanderbilt University with a BA in Art History & Political Science and earned her MBA at University of Texas McCombs.
Sheridan Lorenz
Sheridan Lorenz has initiated and supported multiple programs in land conservation and protection of endangered habitat in Texas. Sheridan provided the guidance and support for a coastal habitat protection program in Galveston which has saved to date 898 acres of sensitive wetlands habitat. She initiated an annual Gulf Coast migratory bird festival, and co-founded Galveston Island Nature Tourism Council. She participated in the creation of Vision Galveston, a collaboration bringing together philanthropic and municipal leadership to address issues of social equity, accessible housing, attainable workforce housing, and a master green space plan for Galveston’s parks and open spaces. In 1992, Sheridan created a pilot program for outdoor environmental education activities for elementary and middle school students in Austin schools. In collaboration with Texas Parks and Wildlife, in 1989 Sheridan spearheaded the restoration of 5,650 acres of threatened forest habitat and native endangered species in the Pineywoods region of East Texas. Named Cook’s Branch Conservancy, the land was dedicated in 2012 as a perpetual preserve, protecting it from the rampant development which now surrounds its borders. In 2012 Cook’s Branch Conservancy received the Leopold Award, Texas’ highest award for private land conservation. Sheridan remains actively involved with the planning and implementation of management practices to increase biodiversity, regeneration, and the ecosystem health of the forest. Sheridan serves on the Advisory Boards of Cook’s Branch Conservancy, the Mitchell Institute of Fundamental Physics and Astronomy at Texas A&M (Chair), and the UT Physics Advisory Council. She is an active member of the Board of Directors of the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, a grant making foundation dedicated to the issues of global climate change, the development of clean, renewable energy sources, the protection of Texas’ aquifers, and land conservation in Texas.
Amanda Masino
Amanda Masino, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Biology and Chair of Natural Science at Huston-Tillotson University (HT). Amanda co-created and now directs HT’s STEM Research Scholars Program, which in the last 6 years has provided 130 funded undergraduate research experiences to HT students. Amanda led an NSF-funded re-design of HT’s Natural Science curriculum to emphasize inquiry-led learning and embed research skills into coursework. Her own research projects include a resident-focused investigation of affordable housing impacts and the environmental health of our homes, a collaborative project investigating urban wildlife as environmental sentinels, and student-led analysis of cardiovascular health disparities. Amanda directs HT’s new Environmental Justice major, co-founded and organizes HT’s annual environmental justice conference, the Building Green Justice Forum, and mentors environmental student group Green is the New Black. She also directs the St. David’s Foundation Scholars, a pre-health career enrichment and scholarship program which seeks to diversify health fields, and mentors HT’s chapter of the Minority Association of Premedical/Pre-health Students. Amanda is Executive Director of the Austin Community Data Coalition, a non-profit that organizes collaborations for community research, and Co-Director of the Dumpster Project, a K- 12 environmental learning program. Amanda also serves on the City of Austin Zero Waste Commission and on the boards of the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems, the Austin Housing Coalition, and the Community Resilience Trust. Amanda earned her B.S. in Zoology from Texas A&M University, where she studied chromosomal evolution, and her Ph.D. in Genetics and Developmental Biology from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, where she investigated the genetics of early heart development. Her postdoctoral work at the University of Washington in Seattle focused on cardiac stem cells. In 2019, she was chosen by the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Lyda Hill Philanthropies as an IF/THEN Science Ambassador. She advocates frequently for environmental justice and diversity in science.
Jennifer Orr
A founding principal of Studio Balcones, Jennifer brings her playful design sense, extensive plant knowledge, and deep understanding of ecological systems to each project. Jennifer’s experience ranges from large scale green infrastructure projects to small scale residential gardens, both urban and rural, public and private. She has 20 years experience in the field and thrives on creating resilient landscapes that are integrated, functional, engaging and beautiful. Jennifer is active in her community, is a mother of two, and has a great love of the Texas landscape with it’s unique, and often challenging characteristics. She is thrilled to be working in her beloved hometown.
Junie Marie Plummer
Junie retired seven years ago from the City of Austin after a 30-year career negotiating the purchase of the city's parkland, open space and the Balcones Canyonlands preserve. A graduate of the University of Texas, raised in the heart of the Texas Hill Country and a resident of Austin since 1974. She has lived for 31 years near Mary Moore Searight Park located in District 5 and remains active in the city's open space program. Junie spent her working career preserving, protecting, and providing green space to the citizens of Austin. She strongly believes a city can never have too many green spaces, but it sure can have too few.
Molly Stevens
Molly Stevens is the founder and Principal of Moontower Coaching and Consulting. She is the former CEO and Executive Director of Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center, retiring in 2019 after 12 years of leadership. Molly has been dedicated to environmental advocacy and natural resource protection for more than 30 years having served 13 years with Environmental Defense Fund and, prior to that, as the State Development Director for the Nature Conservancy of Texas. She is an early adopter and advocate for the benefits of organizational collaboration. She has worked with Austin Together, serving as a “Guide” for the effort to create Zilker 351, an alliance among 14 park organizations that operate within Zilker Park. She is the founding Board Chair of the Texas Children in Nature Network and Families in Nature. Molly has guided planning initiatives, including for Austin Outside, Colorado River Alliance, Hill Country Alliance, Texas Children in Nature, Travis County Parks Foundation, Watershed Association, Wells Branch Wild, and Zilker 351. She was a member of the Campaign Steering Committee for Shield Ranch Foundation’s fund raising campaign for The Campsite, and is a former member of the Board of Directors for the National Recreation and Parks Association (NRPA) where she chaired the Governance Committee.
Jennifer Vickers
Jennifer Vickers is the President of Community Investment Corp. a philanthropic and impact fund supporting social enterprises, community place-making and collaborative creativity. Throughout her career in Austin's non-profit sector, Jennifer has helped strategize and launch new initiatives including the Downtown Austin Farmer's Market and The Children in Nature Network (CiNCA). She played a key role on a team which found common ground among city, state, business and neighborhood stakeholders to reimagine The Triangle which became one of the city’s first mixed-use developments. Jennifer has served on multiple civic and business boards holding leadership roles at The Project for Public Spaces, Westcave Preserve and Mission Capital. Her career is characterized by a consistent focus on blending business acumen with mission-driven community impact. Jen now divides her time between Italy and Austin. She designs and directs creativity and wellness retreats at the historic property she and her husband restored in Umbria. Of particular passion is Ugolino Oil, a family enterprise which grows and harvests olives on family land producing extra virgin olive oil with profits dedicated to social causes.
Melba Whatley
Melba is a business woman who is a local advocate for green space, urban design, the arts and education. In 2007 she received the Edwin Waller Award in Public Architecture by AIA Austin for her work as Facilities Chair of St. Edward’s University where she has been instrumental in transforming the campus. In 2010 she was asked by Austin City Council member Sheryl Cole to lead an effort to transform the surface of the Waller Creek District. She co-founded the Waterloo Greenway, a public-private partnership with the City of Austin and launched Design Waller Creek: A Competition. The firms of Michael Van Valkenburgh and Thomas Phifer and Partners of New York won the competition with their design for a string of parks and trail system along the urban Waller Creek. In the summer of 2021, Waterloo Greenway completed Phase One of the design when it opened its largest park, Waterloo. The conservancy expects to begin construction on Phase Two, The Confluence, in late fall, 2022. In 2014 Melba received the Jane Sibley Leadership Award from the Austin Symphony, chiefly for her breakthrough work in leading the merger between the Austin Museum of Art and Art House, resulting in the creation of The Contemporary Austin. The Contemporary Austin reflects the spectrum of contemporary art through exhibitions, commissions, education, and the collection. In 2017, Melba received the Cornerstone Award from Texas Society of Architects for her commitment to design excellence in our built environment and her advocacy for well-designed civic park spaces in our urban core. In early 2023, Melba co-founded and currently serves as the Chairman of the Board of EverGreen Austin, a women’s group devoted to reigniting Austin’s green consciousness and embedding an enduring green culture in our city. Melba is an honorary member of the Texas Society of Architects.