About: Steering Committee
Gary Fish
Gary Fish is the Maine State Horticulturist. In this role, Fish oversees the state’s nursery and apiary inspection programs, as well as its integrated pest management specialists and Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey with the USDA. He is also involved with the development of best management practices around state compost facilities. Fish has degrees in Forest and Wildlife Management from the University of Maine, and an MS in Policy, Planning, and Management. His experience prior to this involves managing the Maine Board of Pesticides Control, and on occasion, practicing forestry. He is an entomologist from birth and an avid nature photographer [https://www.etsy.com/shop/phishphotography], who traces his love for plants back to his mother, who grew beautiful roses and rock gardens.
lee-frelich.jpg
Lee Frelich
Lee E. Frelich is Director of the University of Minnesota Center for Forest Ecology. He is an internationally recognized expert in forest ecology, with a PhD in Forest Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986. Frelich was an early pioneer in the field of invasive earthworm impacts on forests and continues to conduct important research into this field. He has authored 220 publications with 345 co-authors from 26 countries, including collaborations with multiple Healthy Soil Collaborative researchers. Frelich has served on several Boards of Directors, including Green Again Madagascar; consulted for government and private organizations; and contributed two decades of community outreach and education. He is listed among the top one percent of all scientists in the world in the Ecology and Environment category by the Web of Science.
josef-gorres.jpg
Josef Görres
Josef Görres is the co-director and founder of the Healthy Soil Collaborative, as well as a soil scientist at the University of Vermont. He has a background in industrial engineering, with a PhD in physics and an MS in natural resources. Görres formed the Healthy Soil Collaborative in 2022, with the goal of creating a multidisciplinary research body connecting scientists to stakeholders in an effort to identify and disseminate solutions to the ecological challenge of jumping worms.
allison-hope.jpg
Allison Hope
Allison Hope is the Executive Director of the Vermont Maple Sugar Makers Association (VMSMA), a member association that supports maple producers and industry workers through education, outreach, and networking. Her work connects her to every aspect of the maple industry, from the backyard hobbyist to the 100,000+ tap operations. Prior to taking her position at the VMSMA in 2019, Hope served as the Director of Community Engagement at City Market in Burlington, VT, where she handled community education, partnership, and fundraising for the then 13,000+ member cooperative. She is a deep believer in community connection, and has also served on her town’s Selectboard, School Board, and Library Boards. As a lifelong Vermonter, the importance of maple sugaring, for farm families and forest health, are a profound part of Hope’s upbringing, childhood memories, and vision of the future.
olga-kostromytska.JPG
Olga Kostromytska
Olga Kostromytska is an Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts Extension. She has an MS and PhD in entomology from the University of Florida, and specializes in turf entomology, the landscaping and nursery industries, and urban landscapes. Kostromytska brings extensive experience with biocontrols and chemical ecology. In the course of her work, she has observed the rise of jumping worms across the Massachusetts landscapes and industries she works in, and has seen direct financial impacts of jumping worm infestation in nurseries. Kostromytska’s primary mission is the pursuit of solid and rigorous research foundations to the practical problem solutions.
cindy-mercer.jpeg
Cindy Mercer
Cindy Mercer is an impact investor, philanthropist and collaboration enthusiast. Mercer’s passion is connecting systems thinkers to resources and expertise in order to build breakthrough solutions for environmental and health challenges. Mercer began her early career as a research assistant to former President Jimmy Carter, supporting him in the establishment of the Carter Center. She went on to serve as development counsel for a variety of international charities focused on health, environment and education. In 2008, with entrepreneur and investor Addison Fischer, Mercer co-founded Planet Heritage Foundation (PHF), an impact investing foundation focused on funding solutions to improve environment and health. One landmark project initiated by PHF is Ocean’s 5, a global funders’ collaborative focused on marine protection, with collaborating partners such as the Oak Foundation, Waitt Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Packard Foundation, Moore Foundation, and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. Cindy Mercer has served as a board member of Ocean’s 5, Richard Branson’s Virgin Unite Constellation, Kimbal Musk’s BIG GREEN, The Jane Goodall Institute, The Philanthropy Workshop, The National Center for Family Philanthropy, and as an advisor to several donor education initiatives including the Raikes Foundation Impact-Driven Philanthropy Initiative. She earned her JD from Stetson College of Law and her BA in Political Science from Emory University. As a result of her 30+ years in hands-on NGO experience, Mercer prioritizes authentic, wholehearted strategic collaboration as the single most important component in building and funding teams that produce spectacular results.
geoff-murphy.jpg
Geoff Murphy
Geoff Murphy directs the economic development program of a New York-based philanthropic foundation, where he has been funding quantitative, social science research on a wide array of anti-poverty interventions for the past 20 years. This includes early-stage collaboration with academic research centers on program design and fundraising strategy. Prior to this Geoff was a practicing attorney and has a JD, as well as an LLM in tax and non-profit law. He is a forest enthusiast and avid gardener, and cares deeply for the soils that nurture these ecosystems.