Board of Trustees

Susanna Kondracki is the principal of Golden Woods Consulting LLC, focused on supporting Woman Owned Small Businesses and advancing Female Executive Leadership. Prior to founding her own firm, Mrs. Kondracki spent 30 years in Financial Services leading large Risk Management, Operational Management, and Structured Finance Teams at systemically important institutions including Capital One and Freddie Mac. As a transformational leaders, she is passionate about balanced leadership that drives sustainable, efficient, and effective execution in both the public and private sectors.

Mark McDade is a founding partner and managing director of Qiming U.S. Healthcare Fund, part of Qiming Venture Funds and focused on U.S. healthcare companies with potential market opportunities in  China. He previously served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at UCB, a global pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative medicines. Prior, he held the CEO role at both PDL BioPharma and Signature BioScience. He co-founded Corixa, which developed innovative products to regulate immunity. Mark earned his B.A. from Dartmouth College and his MBAfrom Harvard Business School. Mark serves on the board of directors of several companies — from publicly traded corporations to  early-stage startups — including Aimmune Therapeutics, Dermira, FivePrime, MyHealthTeams, and ZappRx.

Martin Peters is Division Manager of Marine External Affairs for Yamaha’s U.S. Marine Business Unit, the entity within Yamaha Motor Corporation, USA, that markets, sells, and distributes Yamaha Outboards in the United States. The unit also operates G3 Boats®, Skeeter Boats®, Yamaha Marine Performance Propellers, Inc., and other marine industry companies.

Peters joined Yamaha in  2006 and currently leads the business unit’s government relations, advocacy, conservation, and Yamaha Rightwaters sustainability efforts. He also leads teams that create communication, education, and sponsorship strategies that support the marine brand. Peters joined Yamaha in 2006 and played an integral part in establishing government relations, advocacy, conservation, and Yamaha Rightwaters sustainability efforts for Yamaha U.S. Marine Business Unit. In his role as Division Manager of Marine External Affairs, he leads teams that create communication strategies that support the marine brand.

Before joining Yamaha, Peters spent seven years with Porsche Cars North America as Corporate Communications Manager and seven years with Michelin North America as Public Relations Manager. In the 1990s, Peters served as the feature editor for Exotic Cars Quarterly magazine and Road & Track Specials publications. He began his career as a   researcher, writer, and associate producer at Maryland Public Television (MPT) for the national program “MotorWeek.” At MPT, he produced a segment on Chesapeake Bay log racing canoes for “Outdoors Maryland” that won a Capitol Region Emmy Award.

In January 2017, Peters was appointed to NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuary Business Advisory Council (BAC) as one of 15 council members to  serve a three-year term. He currently serves on the Natural Resources and Energy Policy Sub Committee for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and on the Government Relations Committee of the American Sportfishing Association® (ASA). Past service includes chairman of the Communication Committee for the Center for Sportfishing Policy, chairman of Boat PAC for the National Marine Manufacturers Association® (NMMA®), and chairman of Tread Lightly, a non-profit organization that advocates for ethical land use and public land access. In 2019, ASA presented Peters with its Fisheries Conservation Achievement Award in recognition of “outstanding contributions to  fisheries conservation and recreational fishing and boating.”

Peters holds a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications from Towson University and a master’s degree in  Publications Design from the University of Baltimore. He raced sports cars in endurance events throughout the 1990s and now enjoys hunting, shooting sports, and fishing with his family. His father handed him a   fishing rod for the first time at age six on the Patuxent River in Maryland.

In 2011, Peters won the Kenai River Classic fishing tournament in Alaska, having caught a 51- inch king salmon. He fishes for cobia and red drum on the Georgia coast and for bass and crappie in his family’s North Georgia pond. Peters and his wife, Dianne, and their children live in Marietta, Georgia.

Laura Zagar currently serves as the Managing Partner of Perkins Coie LLP’s San Francisco Office and is a member of the firm’s Environment, Energy, and Resources practice group. Laura guides clients in the development of multijurisdictional water, energy, and infrastructure projects and complex litigation. Laura plays a prominent part in innovative energy, water, and infrastructure projects in the Western United States, including proposed offshore wind projects in California and Hawaii, the proposed restoration of the Klamath River through the removal of four dams, the proposed Lake Powell Pipeline in Utah and Arizona, and SCE’s completed Tehachapi Renewable Transmission Project. She also provides counsel on the innovative recycling of stormwater, agricultural runoff,  and wastewater for potable and irrigation purposes under development by Monterey One Water.

From permitting and environmental regulatory review to completion of construction, Laura directs her clients’ large-scale projects at every stage. Her effective counseling and leadership on projects often require collaboration with environmental, energy, and engineering experts on natural and cultural resources, transmission planning, geology, energy modeling, toxicology, fate and transport, remediation, and other issues. Laura also advises emerging clean tech companies on regulatory compliance for technologies new to the market.

Jose Astorqui holds more than 24 years’ experience in the reinsurance intermediation industry where he is a recognized leader having developed most of his professional career in Madrid, London and over the last 14 years in Miami. He is a founder and until recently CEO of BMS Latin America & Caribbean for BMS Group Ltd – a London Head-quartered corporation and has now transitioned to be its Chief Commercial Officer and CEO of Lions Gate Underwriting Latin America, its underwriting platform. Prior to this he was the Head of Reinsurance for Iberia and Latin America at Howden Insurance Brokers, first in London and since 2008 in Miami.

Jose is adept at working cross border and leading multi-cultural teams with an extensive network of clients and contacts in Latin America, Caribbean, UK, USA and Spain. He graduated from Universidad Complutense de Madrid with a Bachelor of Law (LL.B) and earned his  Master of Laws (LL.M) from IE Business School, which ranks among Europe’s top academic institutions. He practiced law in the Spanish courts for 5 years before moving to London and the reinsurance industry with Aon in the late 90’s.

A history aficionado, avid traveler and water sports enthusiast, Jose is an active member of Miami kitesurfing and windsurfing communities.

Barbara Birdsey is the founder of the Pegasus Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to animal protection, environmental preservation, and public education in various parts of the United States, Africa, and the Caribbean. Previously she founded the Orenda Wildlife Land Trust in Massachusetts and helped co-found the Cape Cod Stranding Network. Before that, she was a licensed Social Worker for the Department of Social Services, Commonwealth of Massachusetts. She graduated from Boston University (M.A.) with a B.A. in psychology and from Bridgewater State College with a Masters of Education in counseling. She has been visiting the Treasure Coast area of Florida for many years and is now a resident. She still has ties to New Hampshire and Massachusetts, where she has interests in various environmental projects. Barbara has had a lifelong interest in child protection, animal welfare, wildlife protection, and land conservation. 

Elizabeth (Liz) Crego is a Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), one of the largest professional services networks in the world, providing international audit and assurance, tax, and consulting services. Liz is a seasoned deals consulting advisor with over 16 years of experience across many industries. She advises many of the world’s largest corporations and financial sponsors on complex transactions representing billions in deal value. Liz is a leader in PwC’s Divestiture Solution, and advises clients on public offerings (IPOs, spins, debt offerings), divestitures and acquisitions.

Liz has received many accolades, including the 2021 Rising Star Award from the Healthcare
Businesswomen’s Association.

Liz earned a Bachelor of Accountancy degree from George Washington University’s School of Business in Washington, D.C. She is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in New York state.

Liz is an avid scuba diver. From her first dive at the Great Barrier Reef to her more recent dives
in the U.S and the Caribbean, she has seen firsthand the impact of pollution and global warming on our oceans and sea life. When she is not submerged with work or underwater, Liz also enjoys many “above water” activities such as traveling and hiking in the Adirondacks.

Gary Demasi is the Senior Director of Data Center Location Strategy and Energy for Google. He is responsible for developing the overall direction for Google’s global data center location strategy, managing teams across four continents, including specialists in renewable energy procurement and energy market development, and end-to-end data center sustainability.  Under Gary’s management, his team has secured over five gigawatts of renewable energy under long term contracts, making Google the largest corporate buyer of renewables ever.  In 2020, the company announced that for the third year in a row, it purchases as much renewable energy as the company consumes across all of its operations around the world.  Gary holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Vermont and a Master of Science in Real Estate from the J. Mack Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University.

Dr. Justin Dunnavant is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at UCLA. He holds a BA in History and Anthropology from Howard University and an MA and Ph.D. from the University of Florida. While his former research interrogated the history and representation of minority groups in southern Ethiopia, his current work in the U.S. Virgin Islands investigates the relationship between ecology and enslavement in the former Danish West Indies. Justin has conducted archaeological research in U.S. Virgin Islands, Belize, Jamaica, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, and The Gambia.

As a regular participant in Diving with A Purpose’s Maritime Archaeology Training Program, Justin  is  developing his skills in maritime archaeology. Working with DWP, he has assisted with the documentation of the Slobodna and Acorn wrecks as well as the search for the slave ship, Guerrero.

Heather Ludemann leads the David & Lucile Packard Foundation’s work on marine conservation in the U.S. Her grantmaking and investment portfolio at the Foundation focuses on advancing the ability of U.S. marine ecosystems to sustain biodiversity and productivity as pressures and demands on these systems grow. Prior to joining the Foundation, Heather was a Presidential Management Fellow at analyst at NOAA Fisheries. Heather brings nearly two decades of experience working on marine conservation and fisheries management in the U.S. Heather has a master’s degree in marine policy from the University of Washington and an undergraduate degree in biology and environmental studies from Tufts University. In her free time, Heather spends time skiing, hiking and camping with her partner Dan and husky Quinn.

Ilarion (Kuuyux) Merculieff was raised in a traditional Unangan (Aleut) way and received his Unangan name Kuuyux at age 4, by the former Kuuyux of his people. The name is given to one person in each lifetime amongst his people. Roughly translated, Kuuyux means: a bridge, an arm extending out from the body, a carrier of ancient knowledge into modern times, a messenger. Today he is living the legacy of his name.

Merculieff is co-founder and former chairman of the Alaska Indigenous Council on Marine Mammals; former chairman of the Nature Conservancy, Alaska chapter; former co-director of the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, Alaska chapter; as well as co-founder of the International Bering Sea Forum, the Alaska Forum on the Environment, and the Alaska Oceans Network. Merculieff served on the National Research Council Committee on the Bering Sea Ecosystem and presented at numerous scientific conferences. He chaired the Indigenous knowledge sessions at the Global Summit of Indigenous Peoples on Climate Change, chaired the scientific working group for Snowchange that involved representatives from 8 Arctic nations focused on climate change, and served as the U.S. chair for the 2008 North American Gathering of Indigenous Peoples for the Healing of Mother Earth in Merida, Mexico.

He has authored Wisdom Keeper: One Man’s Journey to Honor the Untold Story of the Unangan People, and co-authored Stop Talking: Indigenous Ways of Teaching and Learning, and Perspectives on Indigenous Issues: Essays on Science, Spirituality, Partnerships, and the Power of Words.

Close to Merculieff’s heart are issues related to cultural and community wellness, traditional ways of living, Elder wisdom, climate change and the environment. Having had a traditional upbringing, Merculieff has been, and continues to be, a strong voice and activist calling for the meaningful application of traditional knowledge and wisdom obtained from Elders in Alaska and throughout the world in dealing with modern day challenges. He founded and currently heads the Global Center for Indigenous Leadership and Lifeways (www.gcill.org). His present work is with a new organization he has founded called the Wisdom Weavers of the World, www.wisdomweavers.world to take the messages of Elders from throughout the world to global attention.

Dane Nichols has actively and enthusiastically engaged in environmental conservation and other not-for-profit projects for decades, including work in Belgium and Paraguay.

In Paraguay, she was instrumental in protecting a 159,000-acre sub-tropical Atlantic rainforest, the Mbaracayu Forest Nature Reserve, working with a team from The Nature Conservancy, the US embassy, and a Paraguayan environmental organization.  The United Nations declared Mbaracayu bio-reserve in 1991.  Dane has also lived in Brazil and Cuba.

Dane also was a founding board member of The Natural Step US, an organization that supports the transition to a sustainable global society, serving as both Vice Chair and Chair. She was a member of the Founders Circle of Rachel’s Network, a group of women environmental philanthropists.  She has served on the boards of Ocean Conservancy, Island Press, and the DC Environmental Film Festival.

She grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan.  She spends much of her time in Rhode Island, the Ocean State, swimming in the sea, and taking walks along the beach.

Dane’s son is a wind energy tech for Vestas and her daughter is a designer who is certified in sustainable design. Dane speaks Spanish, French and Portuguese.

Jodie Ng is the Senior Vice President of Sustainability at Macquarie Group in the Americas. Passionate about creating a more sustainable and equitable future that means a high quality of life across all communities in harmony with the planet, her focus in on defining strategy and driving action to enhance environmental and social sustainability across the operational footprint of the organization. Jodie is a published and registered Organizational Psychologist, who prior to her move into sustainability led organizational development functions across multiple geographies and has over 15 years practical experience spanning the spectrum of human capital management. Jodie has a master’s degree in organizational psychology from the University of New South Wales, and an honors degree in psychology from the University of Sydney in addition to her Certificate in Sustainability Business Management from the Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership. Jodie enjoys pursuing new experiences, outdoor adventures and learning about other cultures through food and travel.

Dawn Rodney joined the National Park Foundation (NPF) in 2022 as Chief External Affairs Officer, leading the Foundation team responsible for marketing, communications, government relations, corporate partnerships, content strategy, and brand development.

Dawn brings more than three decades of experience driving brand growth, and leading innovative, high-profile marketing and media campaigns at nationally recognized organizations in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, Dawn served as Chief Innovation and Growth Officer at the National Wildlife Federation.

Rodney brings deep experience in  marketing, media, and brand growth. She served as senior vice president of marketing and brand at the National Geographic Society. During her tenure, Rodney led the global brand and unified its vision, messaging, and expression across the world. She orchestrated campaigns reaching more than three billion people across social and digital platforms and transformed the marketing strategies for enterprise-wide content initiatives driving significant revenue and growth. Rodney also launched the National Geographic Channel and Nat Geo WILD. Previously, she worked at the Discovery Networks, including Animal Planet, leading branding initiatives, and on-air strategy as well as producing campaigns for its highest priority programming. Rodney has received many awards for her work, including an Emmy for the “Next Generation of Explorers” campaign and a 2018 Webby for Best Homepage.

John Rudolf is Chairman of Glacier Peak Capital. He attended Gonzaga Prep, received his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame, and attended the Columbia University Graduate School under the Herbert Lehman Doctoral Fellowship.

In 1974 John began his investment career in New York City and joined Oppenheimer & Co. In 1984, he founded Summit Capital Partners, a value oriented private investment fund. In 2012 he sold his interest in Summit Capital and founded Glacier Peak Capital to focus on managing Glacier Peak U.S. Value Fund and Glacier Peak Global Value Fund.

John has always been active in his communities with selected activities including Chairman of the Building Committee for the Pelham Art Center; board member and co-chair of the Million Dollar Roundtable of the United Way of King County; board member and chair of the University of Notre Dame Art Museum; trustee of the Pacific Northwest Ballet; chairman of the College Baseball Classic Foundation; board member of Andean Health and Development; advisory member of the Investment Management Program at the University of Notre Dame Business School; and member of the executive advisory committee of the Institute For Prostate Research (a consortium of the University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center). John is a very active athlete and enjoys mountain climbing, cycling, tennis, skiing, golf, and most water sports.

Lynn Scarlett recently retired as the Global Managing Director for Public Policy at The Nature Conservancy. In this role, she influenced climate and nature-based solutions policy—in the United States and the 69 countries in which the Conservancy influences conservation.

Previously, she was the Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Department of the Interior. Lynn also served at Interior as the Acting Secretary of the Interior in 2006. While Interior’s Deputy Secretary, Lynn initiated and chaired the Department’s Cooperative Conservation Working Group and its first-ever Climate Change Task Force. She established the Interior’s Ocean and Coastal Activities office to coordinate cross-departmental ocean and coastal work. She chaired the nation’s Wildland Fire Leadership Council. She served on the Executive Committee of the President’s Management Council.

Lynn is the author or co-author of publications on climate change adaptation; ecosystem services; large landscape conservation; and science and decision-making. She chairs the Science Advisory Board of NOAA, co-chairs the Landscape Conservation Cooperatives Council established in 2014 by the U.S. Department of the Interior, and co-chairs the National Academy of Sciences Sustainability Roundtable. She also served on the U.S. Global Change Research Program Committee and is a co-convening lead author of the National Climate Assessment.

Lynn received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she also completed her Ph.D. coursework and exams in political science and political economy.