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Our Team

Michael Jenkins - President and CEO

Tel. - 202-298-3000   |   Email - mjenkins (at) forest-trends.org

Michael is President of Forest Trends. From 1989-1999, he was the Associate Director for the Global Security and Sustainability Program of the MacArthur Foundation. Michael's responsibilities with the Program included all grant-making in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as overarching program management. In 1998, Michael was in a joint appointment as a Senior Forestry Advisor to the World Bank. Before entering the MacArthur Foundation, he worked for three years as an agroforester in Haiti with the USAID  Agroforestry Outreach Program. Previous to that, he worked with a Washington-based development organization, Appropriate Technology International, as a technical advisor. In the late 1970s, Michael was a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay working in agriculture, apiculture, and forestry projects. He has traveled and worked throughout Latin America, Asia and parts of Africa, and speaks Spanish, French, Portuguese, Creole and Guaraní. Michael has contributed to a number of books and articles, and with Island Press published "The Business of Sustainable Forestry: Strategies for an Industry in Transition". He holds a Master's of Forest Science from Yale University.

Tundi Spring Agardy - Director, Marine Ecosystem Services Program

Tel. - 240-505-9105   |   Email - tagardy (at) forest-trends.org

Tundi is an internationally renowned expert in marine conservation, with extensive field and policy experience in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, North America, and the Pacific. Tundi specializes in coastal planning and assessment, marine protected areas, fisheries management and ocean zoning, and has published widely in these fields. She founded Sound Seas in 2001 as an independent group working at the nexus of policy and science to promote marine conservation. At Forest Trends, she is heading up the MARES initiative – a program looking to protect Marine Ecosystem Services through Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) markets. Tundi works with international think tanks, foundations, multilaterals, museums and academic institutions, environmental groups, and consortia with interest in solving local and regional coastal and marine conservation problems. She completed her undergraduate work at Wellesley and Dartmouth Colleges and then received her Ph.D. in biological sciences and Masters in Marine Affairs from the University of Rhode Island and was postdoctoral fellow at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. She has served as Senior Scientist for the World Wildlife Fund and began Conservation International’s Global Marine Program, which she oversaw as Senior Director. She also led the coastal portion of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment – a 3-year global analysis released in 2005 that represents the consensus of over a thousand scientists on the state of the world’s ecosystems.

Rebecca Asare - West Africa Coordinator, Katoomba Incubator

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - rasare (at) forest-trends.org

Rebecca is the Coordinator of the West Africa Katoomba Incubator.  She brings ten years of research and work experience on agroforestry, community-based natural resource management, and conservation in Africa.  Prior to joining the Incubator, Rebecca completed her doctoral thesis on the biophysical and social dynamics driving cocoa farm establishment and shade management in Ghana.   She has conducted policy and social research with the World Agroforestry Centre on agroforestry in buffer zones across the continent, and worked with WWF on a community conservation project in Cote d’Ivoire.  Rebecca served as a rural water and sanitation specialist with the U.S. Peace Corps in Cote d’Ivoire.  She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Colgate University, in Hamilton, NY.  She received her Master’s in Environmental Science from Yale University, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and earned a Ph.D. in Social Ecology from Yale University, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. Since 2009, Rebecca has been spearheading efforts to develop community-based forest and agricultural carbon projects in multiple countries in West Africa.

Jennifer Baldwin - Senior Associate, Katoomba Incubator

Tel. - +1 (202) 446-1990   |   Email - jbaldwin (at) forest-trends.org

Jennifer supports development, management, and monitoring of international pilot payment for ecosystem services projects in the areas of forest carbon, watersheds, marine ecosystems, and biodiversity with the Katoomba Incubator. She has almost ten years of diverse experience in environmental policy and management, international development, and institutional sustainability. Prior to joining Forest Trends, she was a Research Fellow on private sector climate change and environmental issues in Latin America and the Caribbean at the Inter-American Development Bank. In addition to authoring and editing reports synthesizing past work on climate change and biodiversity with the private sector, she identified and designed projects with non-governmental organizations in multiple countries helping small and medium enterprises and producers to increase incomes while improving natural resource management, adopting clean and efficient energy, and adapting to climate change. Jennifer has a Masters of Environmental Management from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a Bachelors of Science in Environmental Studies from Tufts University. She has lived and worked in Mexico and Peru and speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

Michael T. Bennett - Senior Advisor

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - mbennett (at) forest-trends.org

Michael is an environmental economist based in Beijing, China. He is leading Forest Trends’ efforts in China to track and assess current status and development in Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) programs and policies, to develop an Investment for Watershed Services (IWS) pilot project for the Miyun reservoir watershed in Beijing, and to identify and leverage opportunities to promote PES and other incentive/outcome-based programs for conservation and watershed protection/restoration. He has worked as an environmental consultant in China for several years, including close work with the Asian Development Bank to provide policy assistance to the Chinese government in the development of a national regulatory framework governing PES and PES-like programs. Prior to work with Forest Trends he was a post-doctoral researcher at the Center for Chinese Agricultural Policy, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is currently a research fellow at the Environmental Economics Program in China, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University. In addition to general work on PES, his on-going research in China also includes: (i) Analysis of the impacts and implementation of the Conversion of Cropland to Forests and Grassland program, the largest afforestation PES program in the world; (ii) Analysis of the natural resource and rural income impacts of state forest sector reforms, and (iii) Rural household choice experiment assessments to feed into eco-compensation pilot programs in Jiangsu and Hebei provinces. His expertise and research interests include environmental valuation techniques, the microeconomics of land-use and land-use change, and the development of the institutions underlying markets for ecosystem services. Michael holds an M.A. and Ph.D. from the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, University of Wisconsin - Madison.

Genevieve Bennett - Research Analyst, Ecosystem Marketplace

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - gbennett (at) ecosystemmarketplace.com

Genevieve Bennett is a Research Analyst at Ecosystem Marketplace, contributing market tracking and analysis to both the water and biodiversity programs. Prior to joining Ecosystem Marketplace, she managed a demand assessment project for the Willamette Partnership in Oregon, modeling how risk and uncertainty affect demand for environmental credits in the Willamette marketplace. Genevieve has also held positions at the United Nations, the NYU School of Public Service, the Breakthrough Institute, and as a lecturer with the Clark Fork Watershed Education Program. She holds an MS in Environmental Policy & Regulation from the London School of Economics and a BA from New York University.

Beto Borges - Director, Communities and Markets Program

Tel. - 707-400-6714   |   Email - bborges (at) forest-trends.org

Beto was born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil, where he obtained an AA degree in industrial chemistry from Escola Técnica Oswaldo Cruz and worked as an ecotourism guide in the Atlantic rainforest, while pursuing nature photography and rock climbing. Beto holds a Bachelor's of Science in Conservation and Resources Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and an MBA in Strategic Leadership from the Dominican University of California. His previous work experience includes being Director of the Brazil Program of the Rainforest Action Network, promoting forest policies, community economic development and indigenous land demarcation in the Amazon region. He also worked for Aguirre International, evaluating environmental programs for AmeriCorp-USA during President Clinton's administration and was the Manager of Sustainable Harvesting at Shaman Pharmaceuticals, developing ethnobotanical drugs from rainforest medicinal plants. As the Executive Director of Adopt-A-Watershed, he worked on watershed conservation through place-based learning methodologies. Beto also was a Program Officer with the Goldman Environmental Foundation, selecting finalists for the Goldman Environmental Prize and evaluating project proposals for funding. Beto has also consulted for Aveda Cosmetics, Conservation International, Instituto Terra, Occupational Knowledge International, and Wildlife Conservation Network, among others. He was co-chair of Grantmakers Without Borders and currently sits on the board of the Global Greengrants Fund, Earth Island Institute, and the Environmental Law Defenders Center. He is fluent in Portuguese, English, and Spanish.


Kerstin Canby - Director, Forest Trade and Finance Program

Tel. - 202-298-3015   |   Email - kcanby (at) forest-trends.org

Kerstin is the Director of Forest Trends' Forest Trade and Finance Program. In addition to general program management, her work focuses on policies and trade issues related to illegal logging, corruption, and associated trade, such as the role of financial institutions and investment flows in combating illegal and unsustainable harvesting practices. A significant portion of her time is spent on the China/East Asia region. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Kerstin worked at the World Bank with the Governance and Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Programs, coordinating the Africa FLEG ministerial process, and providing training to local NGOs interested in developing independent monitoring networks; she also worked with the World Bank's CEOs ad hoc Forum on Forests. She also was Special Assistant to the Director of the Environment Department. She continues to work with the World Bank, advising on the development of the Europe/North Asia Forest Law Enforcement and Governance Ministerial process. Kerstin has also worked with the US Forest Service in Oregon (economic and land management analysis), was the co-founder of an environmental education program in Durham, North Carolina, and was a teaching assistant of environmental economics at Duke University. Kerstin holds a BA from Duke University, as well as a Master's in Environmental Management from Duke University 's School of Forest and Environmental Sciences, where she focused on forestry, wetlands, and coastal ecosystems.

Peter Canine - Director of Finance

Tel. - (202) 446 1973   |   Email - pcanine (at) forest-trends.org

Peter is the Director of Finance for Forest Trends. He brings over twenty years of experience in non-profit accounting and financial management with proficiencies in process improvement, grant compliance, budgeting, A133 audits, and accounting systems design and implementation. He has been a C-level executive or consulted for U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Southeastern University, American Association of State Colleges & Universities, International Association of Chiefs of Police and KPMG. He holds a BS in Finance from Wilkes College, is a CPA (Maryland), a member of the AICPA, MACPA, and serves on the MACPA Not-for-Profit committee.

Nathaniel Carroll - Associate Director, Ecosystem Marketplace

Tel. - 202-446-1981   |   Email - ncarroll (at) forest-trends.org

Nathaniel is Associate Director of Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace. He has helped develop the biodiversity market program, co-authoring the book Conservation and Biodiversity Banking, and spearheading the design and launch of SpeciesBanking.com. Nathaniel currently directs the development of market-crosscutting projects for Ecosystem Marketplace, including the Ecosystem Services Matrix and MarketWatch, which help stakeholders understand the shape, relationship, and scope of ecosystem markets. In addition to his work with Ecosystem Marketplace, Nathaniel has worked with Forest Trends’ Business Development Facility and consulted to several eco-asset investment groups. Before joining Forest Trends, Nathaniel worked with a private forestry and real estate company in Panama, channeling private investment to restore degraded lands. Nathaniel spent two years with Conservation International's Rapid Assessment Program and Conservation Tools Program. He has experience conducting ecological research, from the Rocky Mountains to Andes, from the Northwest Hawaiian Islands to the Penobscot Bay. Nathaniel holds a Bachelor of Science from Tufts University and a Master's in Forest Science from Yale University.
 

Jan Cassin - Director, Water Initiative

Tel. - +1 (206) 295-9239   |   Email - None Listed

Jan is an ecologist with expertise in terrestrial, marine, and freshwater systems.  Her career has emphasized applied research and practice in a wide range of water resource management issues – including integrated watershed management, environmental flows assessment, ecosystem services quantification, and innovative financial mechanisms such as wetland banking, and investments in watershed services (IWS). Jan directs Forest Trends’ work on investments in watershed services, and she has also worked with Forest Trends’ Business and Biodiversity Offset Programme to support and promote the use of best practices in biodiversity offsets and biodiversity conservation around the world.  Prior to joining Forest Trends, Jan received her Doctorate at the University of Michigan and worked for eleven years as a senior project manager and ecologist for Parametrix (a Seattle-based engineering and environmental consulting firm), and for nine years as a biologist for The Nature Conservancy.  Jan developed recommendations to the Puget Sound Partnership on the use of innovative financial mechanisms for the recovery of the Puget Sound ecosystem, worked with the Puget Sound Restoration Fund to establish a payments for services pilot for nitrogen removal by shellfish in Puget Sound, assisted BC Hydro develop performance measures for their long term environmental goal, and led studies evaluating impacts of flow alteration on aquatic ecosystems for King County. Jan has traveled extensively in Central and South America, has proficiency in Spanish, and enjoys photography, travel, kayaking, and hiking.

Phil Covell - Senior Manager, The Katoomba Incubator

Tel. - 202-446-1977   |   Email - pcovell (at) forest-trends.org

Phil joined Forest Trends’ Katoomba Group, bringing over 20 years of experience in the development and financing of environmental enterprises in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.  He has been a Budget Manager at the US Peace Corps, a founding Director of fund manager Triodos PV Partners, Executive Director of Enersol Associates, Inc., and Chief Financial Officer of Soluz, Inc.  He holds a Bachelor's of International Studies from the School for International Training in Brattleboro, VT, and an MBA from the University of California, Davis.

Ben Dappen - Senior Web Developer

Tel. - 202-298-2010   |   Email - bdappen (at) forest-trends.org

Ben has worked with Forest Trends since November 2000 as Webmaster and IT Associate, and also provides design and publishing support. He also serves as a web developer for a number of Forest Trends' partners, including the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) and Ecoagriculture Partners. Ben graduated from Reed College in 2004 with a History degree.


Susan Dobbertin - Administrative Associate

Tel. - 202-446-1975   |   Email - sdobbertin (at) forest-trends.org

Susan joined the administrative team at Forest Trends in July 2008. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Susan’s experience with wildlife management and invasive species include internships and biological technician positions with the Central Pine Barrens Commission, the Nature Conservancy, Fire Island National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the SCA. She studied conservation biology at Warren Wilson College and graduated with honors in 2005 with a BS in Biology and Environmental Studies.

Gena Gammie - Manager, Water Initiative

Tel. - 202-446-1979   |   Email - ggammie (at) forest-trends.org

Gena is a Manager with Forest Trends’ Water Initiative. Previously, Gena contributed to carbon-focused project development and analysis under Forest Trends’ Katoomba Incubator. She has also supported the external relations efforts of McKinsey & Company’s Sustainability and Resource Productivity practice and analyzed the local impacts of national and international climate policy at ICLEI USA – Local Governments for Sustainability. Gena holds an MSc with Distinction in Environmental Policy & Regulation from the London School of Economics, where her dissertation focused on stakeholder engagement for sustainable watershed management, and a BA in Political Science from Loyola Marymount University.

Katherine Hamilton - Advisor, Ecosystem Marketplace

Tel. - 202-298-3007   |   Email - khamilton (at) ecosystemmarketplace.com

Katherine is Advisor of Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace. At Ecosystem Marketplace, she has authored numerous pieces on carbon and water markets, as well as co-authored the book Voluntary Carbon Markets, six annual State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets, two State of the Forest Carbon Markets, and the first ever State of Watershed Payments reports. Katherine has continuously lectured and consulted around the globe on environmental markets and ecosystem services. Before joining Ecosystem Marketplace, Katherine worked with the United Nations Development Program-Latin America/Caribbean and as a lead research assistant at the Yale Environmental Law and Policy Center. She has also held positions with Natural Capitalism Inc., the International Council for Science in Paris, France, and teaching outdoor environmental education. Katherine holds a Master of Environmental Management degree from Yale University and Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan. She currently resides in Boulder, Colorado.
 

Frank Hicks - Manager, Africa, Katoomba Group - Incubator

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - fhicks (at) forest-trends.org

Frank Hicks is Manager for Africa of the Katoomba Group Incubator Initiative at Forest Trends. In this role, Frank is responsible for leading and strengthening the Incubator projects in East and West Africa and for developing a strategy for growth and coordination with other partner organizations’ initiatives in the region. Frank also works as a consultant for Bio-Logical Capital. Prior to working with Bio-Logical Capital, Frank was Director of the Business Development Facility at Forest Trends. He also was Director of the Sustainable Agriculture Program at Rainforest Alliance, and Vice President with Organic Commodity Products, an organic chocolate company based in San José, Costa Rica. Frank has also worked as Program Manager for TechnoServe in Ghana. He was the regional representative based in the Philippines for the Biodiversity Conservation Network and worked as a Program Officer with the Ford Foundation based in Nigeria and New York City. He is currently a board member of Root Capital  and a former board member of the Nature Conservancy’s EcoEnterprises Fund and a former advisor to Ecoagriculture Partners. He is also a founder of SourceTrace Systems, a company that develops software applications for remote microfinance and agricultural supply chain transactions. Frank earned a master’s degree from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, with a focus on international development, and a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University in Human Biology.
 

Kerry ten Kate - Director, Business and Biodiversity Offset Program

Tel. - +44 (207) 244-8327   |   Email - ktenkate (at) forest-trends.org

Kerry is Director of Forest Trends' Business and Biodiversity Offset Program, a partnership of over 30 companies, government agencies, and conservation experts. Formerly a practicing barrister, Kerry joined the Secretariat of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the "Earth Summit") in 1990. Since then, she has conducted research and offered policy advice to governments, industry, investors, and the UN on issues ranging from conservation and sustainable development strategies to trade and environment policies. Since 1994, her focus has been biodiversity, including access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing, on which she has written extensively. At the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, she led the team developing and implementing genetic resources policy, and establishing Kew as a center of expertise on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Subsequently, as Policy Adviser to Kew's Director, she advised the UK and other governments on the CBD and sustainable development strategies. From 1999 to 2002, she was a member of the UK delegation to the negotiation of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and negotiating sessions of the CBD. From November 2002 to September 2006, Kerry was Director of Investor Responsibility at Insight Investment, engaging with the multinational companies in which Insight's £89 billion fund is invested to encourage them to adopt best practices on environmental, social and ethical issues, and working with Insight's fund managers and analysts to take these issues into consideration in investment decisions. She writes, broadcasts occasionally for BBC Radio 4, is Senior Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Studies of the UN University, a member of IUCN's Species Survival Commission, and is on the Steering Committee of the Global Biodiversity Forum. She is also a member of the UK Government's Darwin Advisory Committee.

Christine Lanser - Program Associate, MARES and Forest Trade and Finance Programs

Tel. - 202-446-1980   |   Email - clanser (at) forest-trends.org

Christine is an Associate with Forest Trends’ MARES and Forest Trade and Finance (FTF) Programs. Her work in the MARES initiative focuses on supporting innovative financing and PES projects focused on protecting mangroves, coastal zones, watersheds, and other wetlands; she also supports FTF’s work on REDD+ Finance tracking and improved forest governance. Prior to working at Forest Trends, Christine worked in Cambodia supporting a local community development organization. Christine holds a BS with distinction in Environmental Economics and Public Policy from Michigan State University.

 

Sarah Lowery - Project Manager, Public-Private Co-Finance Initiative

Tel. - +1 (202) 446-1983   |   Email - slowery (at) forest-trends.org

Sarah works on developing innovative financial mechanisms to leverage public funds and attract private sector investment in activities that reduce deforestation and degradation of forests. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Sarah was a consultant with firms such as Booz Allen Hamilton and ECODIT (a niche environmental consulting firm). She assisted clients in understanding the financial and ecological implications of changes in land use and forestry regimes, developing sustainable financing plans for protected areas, and assessing the impacts of environmental programs. Sarah developed small businesses and worked with the Belize Audubon Society in its community conservation outreach efforts while living in Belize, and her consulting work has included projects in Central Africa, Colombia, Jamaica, Jordan, Russia, and Spain. Sarah completed her MBA at the Yale School of Management and received a Master of Environmental Management at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. She speaks English and Spanish.


Patrick Maguire - Program Manager, Business and Biodiversity Offset Program

Tel. - 202-298-3011   |   Email - pmaguire (at) forest-trends.org

Patrick is the Program Manager of Forest Trends' Business and Biodiversity Offset Program (BBOP). Patrick has ten years of experience managing diverse international conservation and development programs. Previous work included managing community forestry-based enterprises in Nepal for the World Wildlife Fund; helping to establish the Conservation Finance Alliance and overseeing the development of a guide on innovative conservation financing while at The Nature Conservancy; and serving as a consultant to USAID’s Biodiversity and Forestry Team with Chemonics Inc. Patrick received his Master of International Relations and Resource and Environmental Management from Boston University. As BBOP Program Manager, Patrick’s responsibilities include coordinating the work of the BBOP Secretariat, liaising with pilot projects, helping develop biodiversity offset methodologies and the BBOP toolkit, developing funding proposals, budget management, and coordinating program meetings.

Deborah L. McKay - Director of Operations

Tel. - 202-298-3003   |   Email - dmckay (at) forest-trends.org

Deborah is Director of Operations at Forest Trends. She manages the grants administration process, is responsible for drafting and approving contracts and agreements that define consultant and  partner organizational relationships. She supports the organization’s donor outreach and fundraising efforts, and contributes to major grants management activities. Deborah  is also responsible for HR functions and is Assistant Secretary to the FT Board of Directors . Prior to joining Forest Trends, Deborah worked for the World Bank in the office of the Executive Director representing Italy, Portugal, Malta, and Albania. She managed stores for The Timberland Company and ran a commercial department for United Colors of Benetton in Washington, D.C. She speaks Portuguese and Italian fluently, and Spanish and French proficiently. Deborah holds a BA History from the University of São Paulo, in São Paulo, Brazil.

Carlos Muņoz Piņa - Director, Resource Economics

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - None Listed

LogoCarlos has a degree on economics at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) in Mexico City, with graduate studies in environmental economics at University College London, and a Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of California at Berkeley.  Over the last two decades Dr. Muñoz-Piña has worked as an environmental and resource economist for the Mexican Federal government, the World Bank, the London Environmental Economics Centre, the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation in Montreal and the Resources Renewal Institute in San Francisco. Carlos has several publications on the topics of environmental taxes, common property resources, poverty and the environment, economic valuation of ecosystems, water economics and policy, migration, the economics of deforestation and climate change mitigation, and the payment of environmental services. He has taught microeconomics and environmental economics courses at several universities in Mexico and California and has undertaken pro bono work with civil society organizations on environment and development topics. Between 2001 and 2011, Dr. Muñoz-Piña headed the Environmental Economics and Public Policy Research Division at the Instituto Nacional de Ecología (INE), the research agency of the Mexican Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment. At INE, the teams he led were responsible for key initiatives on economic instruments for environmental policy; among those are the design of the fisheries buyback scheme to protect endangered marine mammals, the initiative to reduce and decouple energy subsidies to protect over-exploited aquifers, and the design of the Mexican system of Payments for Hydrological Environmental Services (PSAH).  Starting 2012 he will be taking the position of distinguished visiting professor at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City.

Marigold Norman - Manager, Forest Trade and Finance Program

Tel. - +1.202.446.1984   |   Email - mnorman (at) forest-trends.org

Marigold is a Manager with Forest Trend’s Forest Trade and Finance Program. Her work focuses on tracking public and private funding delivered for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) activities in thirteen UN REDD+ partner countries to improve the information available on current levels of REDD+ implementation.  Marigold has experience working on UK, US, European and international environmental policy development, implementation and research. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Marigold worked for the UK’s Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs leading the development of the UK timber procurement policy and working with other international governments and the European Commission to promote the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade program as well as REDD+. Marigold holds a BA in Geography from the University of Cambridge and a MSc from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where her Master’s thesis investigated the role of NGOs, State and Federal government  in influencing environmental policy decisions in Wisconsin.

Robert Oberndorf - Senior Law & Policy Advisor, Forest Trade and Finance Program

Tel. - +1 (202) 446-1976   |   Email - roberndorf (at) forest-trends.org

In addition to focusing on issues relating to the European Union’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade initiative (FLEGT), and supporting efforts to track public and private funding delivered for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD+) activities, Robert provides general legal and policy support to the Forest Trends Family of Initiatives. Robert practiced environmental, construction, contract and real estate law, including litigation, for a regional water pollution control district in the United States for eight years before beginning his career as an international legal consultant in 2001.  His clients have included the ADB, Community Forestry International, Danida, East/West Management, GIZ, IFAD, IUCN, Regional Community Forestry Training Center for Asia and the Pacific (RECOFTC), UNDP, FAO, USAID, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), World Bank, WWF, and others on issues relating to natural resources and environmental law, land management and tenure security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, renewable energy production and storage, governance reform/decentralization, and international market reform.  Robert has conducted training seminars and provided presentations at numerous international conferences, workshops and meetings, and has contributed to a number of publications. He has also drafted a number of laws and regulations.  Robert earned a Juris Doctor Degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1993, where he was founder and President of the Environmental Law Society.

Jacob Olander - Director, Katoomba Incubator

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - jolander (at) ecodecision.com.ec

Jacob has lived and worked in Latin America since for 20 years developing initiatives aiming to create economic benefits for communities, businesses and organizations engaged in biodiversity conservation. In 1995 he co-founded EcoDecisión, a firm specializing in conservation finance and payment for ecosystem services. Based in Quito, Ecuador, Jacob manages the Katoomba Incubator. The Incubator mobilizes targeted technical, business, financial, and marketing support to promising PES projects with strong community and biodiversity benefits.

Molly Peters-Stanley - Associate Director, Ecosystem Marketplace - Carbon

Tel. - 202-298-3005   |   Email - mpeters-stanley (at) ecosystemmarketplace.com

Molly Peters-Stanley is Associate Director of Forest Trends' Ecosystem Marketplace. Previously, Molly analyzed voluntary and compliance carbon markets as a climate policy officer in South Australia's Department of Premier and Cabinet, Sustainability and Climate Change Division. There, she researched and wrote recommendations on behalf of the Division addressing the intersection of federal climate policies and the voluntary carbon market. Molly also composed South Australia's contribution to the international States and Regions Statement of Action on Climate Change presented to UNFCCC Executive Secretary Yvo de Boer in Poznan, Poland,  December 2008. Molly's expertise also includes regional resource accounting and spatial analysis of climate change projections and adaptation strategies.   Molly received her Master of Science in Public Policy and Management from Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College, School of Public Policy and Management. She pursued this degree as a Public Policy and International Affairs fellow.

Dang Viet Quang - Program Analyst, Forest Trade and Finance

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - dquang (at) forest-trends.org

Dang Viet Quang is a native of Vietnam. He focuses on forest production, timber trade flows, legal frameworks, and many other issues as they relate to the REDD+ and FLEGT VPA initiatives.
He has a PhD from the University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany. His PhD dissertation focused on the relationship between humankind and the natural environment.

Michael Richards - Naural Resources Economist

Tel. - +44 1993 779133   |   Email - mrichards (at) forest-trends.org

Michael is a natural resources economist with over 30 years research and development experience in Africa, Latin America and Asia. Currently based in the UK, he is working primarily in support of the Katoomba Group work in West and East Africa, and on the development of social impact assessment methods for multiple-benefit carbon projects. Previous experience includes 8 years as a Research Fellow with the UK Overseas Development Institute, and long-term assignments in Ghana, Honduras, Malawi, Mexico and Sri Lanka working in smallholder agriculture, forestry and rural development. He has worked extensively on policy, institutional and methodology issues around payments for ecoystem services, participatory forest management and economic incentives for sustainable forestry management (SFM). He holds a PhD from the University of Glamorgan in Wales, an MSc in Agricultural Economics from University of London, and a BA in Land Economy from University of Cambridge.

Joerg Seifert-Granzin - Senior Technical Advisor Ecosystem Services, Incubator

Tel. - +591-77388280 or +49-151-54691254   |   Email - jseifert (at) forest-trends.org

Joerg is a senior economist specialized in spatiotemporal analysis and valuation of environmental services. He has more than 15 years of experience in economic research on developing countries. Currently, he is advising different activities reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) of Forest Trends-Katoomba Group. Having been recruited as an integrated expert by the German Development Cooperation (GTZ), Mr. Seifert-Granzin coordinated the scientific and technical development of remote sensing, biomass measurement, and econometric modeling tools facilitating the implementation of national and subnational REDDs schemes in Bolivia and Cameroon.  Apart, he supervised subnational adaptation activities in the Bolivian lowlands. As FAN Bolivia’s Coordinator of Noel Kempff Mercado Climate Action Project he guided the certification process, revised the methodologies applied and edited the Project Design Document. Together with FAN’s environmental services’ team he conducted research on hydrological services and designed projects to conserve them.

Xiufang Sun - Program Analyst, Forest Trade and Finance, China

Tel. - +86-10-82724177   |   Email - xsun (at) forest-trends.org

Xiufang works with Forest Trends as an Analyst, based out of Beijing, China. She holds an MS in Forest Products Marketing and Management from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and an MA of Engineering in Management from Jilin University of Technology in Changchun, Jilin Province in China. Most recently Xiufang held the position of Agricultural Specialist in the Agricultural Affairs Office (USDA/FAS) in the United States Embassy in Beijing. Her responsibilities included market analysis reporting for China’s forestry and forest products, tracking market and policy changes for other commodities assigned, facilitating negotiations between the U.S. and Chinese officials for trade conflicts in the agricultural sector (including forest products)and serving as interpreter for such negotiations when needed. In addition, Xiufang has worked as a consultant to the WWF China Program. She has prepared and delivered numerous presentations on hardwood use in China’s furniture industry and on potentials for exporting forest products in China. Her research has been published in various publications including the Journal of Forestry and the Forest Products Journal.

David Tepper - Director, Public-Private Co-Finance Initiative

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - dtepper (at) forest-trends.org

David Tepper is the Director of the Public-Private Co-Finance Initiative. David started his career at Merrill Lynch where he spent twelve years working on corporate finance and acquisition transactions in Europe and the US.  He now is one of the leading investors in the carbon markets and was responsible for the carbon finance team that managed over $1billion for Climate Change Capital from 2005 to 2007 and during that time invested over $800m in carbon reduction projects. Over the last few years he has been focused on using carbon finance to accelerate land restoration, conservation and sustainable land use around the world. David  is an expert on structuring private sector finance with emerging climate change regulatory and voluntary markets. He advises governments, multi-laterals project developers, and private investors on the design of terrestrial carbon finance opportunities. David is developing public private sector mechanisms and financial architecture in the emerging REDD markets and is also the Managing Partner of The Earth Partners www.theearthpartners.com, a North American-based ecological developer, using carbon finance to facilitate landscape-level restoration.  The Earth Partners has developed a soil quantification methodology and has been testing the method and its applications on low carbon farming and land restoration projects at the landscape level on a number of projects around the world. David also advises billionaire family offices on investment opportunties in  sustainable land use and carbon markets.

Anne Thiel - Communications Coordinator

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - athiel (at) forest-trends.org

Anne supports Forest Trends’ internal and external communications activities. She returned to Forest Trends in 2010 in the capacity of Communications Associate, a position she also held from 2003 to 2005. From 2006 to 2009 Anne worked with Sustainable Finance Ltd., where she managed the company’s US operations. Prior to joining Forest Trends in 2003, Anne worked at the World Resources Institute as executive assistant, development coordinator, and project management associate. Anne holds a Ph.D. in German Studies from Georgetown University.

 

Phuc Xuan To - Program Analyst, Forest Trade and Finance, Southeast Asia

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - pto (at) forest-trends.org

Phuc is the Southeast Asia Analyst for the Forest Trade and Finance Program, based in Hanoi, Vietnam. He received his doctoral degree in Geography at Humboldt University in Berlin in 2007, where he also worked as a junior researcher at the Junior Research Group on Post-socialist Land Relations. His dissertation examines the political economy of the forest sector in Vietnam, with particular attention given to the dynamics of access and control over forestland and forest resources. From 2007 to 2009, Phuc was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Anthropology Department at the University of Toronto, where he was involved in a research project entitled “The Challenges of Agrarian Transitions in Southeast Asia” (ChATSEA). Currently, in addition to his work with Forest Trends, Phuc continues to work with ChATSEA and serves as a Research Fellow at the Asia Institute at the University of Toronto.

Amrei von Hase - Science Coordinator, Business and Biodiversity Offset Programme

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - avonhase (at) forest-trends.org

Amrei is an ecologist with specific expertise in landscape and conservation planning, impact assessment, biodiversity management, and best practice in biodiversity offsetting. Her current position is as Scientific Advisor for Forest Trends' Business and Biodiversity Offset Programme, where she has been leading the development of best practice guidance on biodiversity management and offset design based on experience with private and public sector projects and partnerships across the world (including in Africa, East Asia, Latin America, and Europe). This work also includes close engagement with environmental and social safeguard policies and performance standards in the finance sector (e.g., International Finance Corporation, Equator Banks).

Amrei has a Doctorate in Ecology and Conservation Biology (University of Cape Town). She has worked with the Botanical Society of South Africa and as an independent environmental consultant, providing scientific and biodiversity planning and conservation expertise, and managing projects for various clients in the non-governmental and government sector in South Africa.

Rebecca Anzueto - Program Manager, Communities and Markets Program

Tel. - 202-298-3004   |   Email - ranzueto (at) forest-trends.org

Rebecca is a Program Manager with the Communities and Markets Program at Forest Trends. Her work focuses on community involvement in developing payment for ecosystem services. Rebecca has a Master’s Degree in Development Planning and Environmental Sustainability with a certificate in Latin American Studies from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and a Bachelor’s degree from Juniata College in Environmental Science and Policy. Prior to coming to Forest Trends, Rebecca worked in a rural community in Ecuador, teaching community members how to keep their children safe when applying pesticides. Rebecca speaks English, Spanish and Portuguese.

Lauren Walker - IT and Web Development Associate

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - lwalker (at) forest-trends.org

Lauren Walker joined Forest Trends in 2013 as a Web Developer and IT Associate. She holds two degrees from Purdue University in Forestry and Natural Resources with a focus on Wildlife Conservation and Computer Graphics Technology. Lauren has previously worked as a web designer at Purdue University and as a graphic design freelancer.


Nikia Wilson - Senior Accountant

Tel. - 202-298-3013   |   Email - nwilson (at) forest-trends.org

Nikia is the Senior Accountant for Forest Trends that works with our diverse program team for our contract/ grant financial reporting needs, assisting with complex audit requirements and other accounting procedures. With over ten years of accounting experience which includes budgeting, financial analysis and business management, her background spans both corporate and non-profit organizations. She has worked with the Washington, D.C. non-profit, American Rivers and more recently was the Senior Accountant for a subsidiary of JP Morgan Chase. She has worked under grants and contracts with agencies such as the Department of Environmental Protection, The World Bank (U.S. and abroad) and IMF. She holds a Bachelors’ of Science degree in Accounting and obtaining her Masters’ degree in Business Administration from the University of Maryland. 

Daphne Yin - Carbon Program Associate, Ecosystem Marketplace

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - dyin (at) forest-trends.org

Daphne co-authored Ecosystem Marketplace’s State of the Forest Carbon Markets 2012 report and contributed to the State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets 2012 report. She regularly authors articles and news briefs covering voluntary, forest carbon and other emerging environmental markets. Prior to joining Ecosystem Marketplace, Daphne provided research and editorial support to Richard Sandor at Environmental Financial Products, the incubator for the Chicago Climate Exchange. She also held positions at Bradford Allen, the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning, and the NYC Economic Development Corporation. Daphne graduated from the University of Chicago with a BA in Political Science and minor in Environmental Studies.

Steve Zwick - Editor, Ecosystem Marketplace

Tel. - None Listed   |   Email - szwick (at) ecosystemmarketplace.com

Steve Zwick is the Managing Editor of the Ecosystem Marketplace. Before joining the Ecosystem Marketplace, Steve was a contributing writer to the site, as well as to several other magazines and newspapers, including Time Magazine, Fortune Magazine, and the Wall Street Journal. He also hosts the current affairs program Newslink on Deutsche Welle Radio, and has been short-listed twice for the World Leadership Forum's Business Journalist of the Year Award. He attended the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.

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