Faculty

Jackson Moller is a conservation finance specialist with Cooperative Forestry in the Washington Office of the USDA Forest Service. Jackson was formerly the director of strategic partnerships for the Conservation Finance Network (CFN) where he led a growing network of public, private and nonprofit professionals find the capital they need to advance the pace and scale of their conservation efforts. Prior to joining CFN, Jackson was the Land Protection Program Manager for The Nature Conservancy in Colorado where he focused on aligning land conservation efforts with other cross-sector strategies such as sustainable food systems, rural economic development, and climate resilience including wildfire risk management. Earlier in his career he also tracked, drafted and revised legislation as a legal fellow in the US House of Representatives and supported sustainable fisheries and farming initiatives as a volunteer with the US Peace Corps in the Federated States of Micronesia.

James has recently come to North Carolina State University from being a PhD Fellow in the Integrative Public Policy and Development program at Tuskegee University, and is pursuing his PhD there. His area of expertise is broad, but he is currently focusing on the issue of heirs’ property.

Jan has spent several decades leading fundraising campaigns and initiatives in academia and conservation, including managing the successful conclusion of the Oregon Chapter of TNC’s $60 million campaign that encompassed TNC fundraising for the Trout Creek Ranch project. Prior to coming to TNC she served for twelve years as Executive Director of Development for Reed College and, before that, for eight years as Executive Director of the Portland State University Foundation.

Janelle St John is the executive director of Growing Home and also serves on the Steering Committee of Chicago Region Food System Fund. She has transformed the work of Growing Home to expand beyond workforce development using growing food as a tool to incorporate food production as a value into a disadvantaged neighborhood on Chicago’s south side. She has brought together BIPOC local food organizations to coordinate operations, fundraising, and community support.

Jasmine Williams is an organizational strategist offering guidance and partnership to individuals and organizations who are ready to explore the unique ways they can pursue equity through their world changing work.

Jason Swann serves as Intermountain West conservation finance director for the Trust for Public Land. Jason leads the creation of new local and state land conservation, parks, climate, health and equity funding in the Four-Corner states. Swann previously served as a land policy analyst at Western Resource Advocates and was appointed by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to serve on the state’s Environmental Justice Advisory Board. In 2022, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock appointed Swann as co-chair of the Sustainability Advisory Council for the Environmental Justice Committee. Before his career-change to environmentalism, Swann worked as a financial advisor in the financial services industry for over eight years.

Jay is creative strategy director of John Muir Land Trust and former chief marketing officer of Trust for Public Land. His 40-year career includes c-level marketing positions at global advertising agencies, successful start-ups, and land conservation organizations. He has a keen interest in applying the latest developments in academic research to practical business problems.

Jeb Musser is the vice president of land protection at Lancaster Farmland Trust beginning in 2019. Prior to this role he served in nearly every role in the organization’s Land Protection Department over eight years. Jeb is responsible for carrying out the programmatic activities of the Trust, including farmland preservation, implementation of best management practices on farms, fee for service activities, and grant management. He provides direction to the Land Protection staff, interns, and volunteers. Jeb is a commissioner on the Lancaster County Planning Commission and is a member of the Lancaster Clean Water Partners Watershed and Data Action TeaJeb graduated with a bachelor’s degree in geography with focus in environmental studies, plus a minor in government and political studies from Millersville University. He also has a professional certificate in Geographic Information Systems from Pennsylvania State University and a certificate in Drones for Land Trust Monitoring from Duke University. Jeb is originally from Lebanon County, where he spent his teenage years helping out on a hog farm in South Londonderry Township. He moved to Lancaster County to attend Millersville University and has stayed in the area since. Jeb currently resides in Elizabethtown with his wife, son, and three pets. Jeb enjoys gardening, camping, fishing, and tinkering.

Jeff Cartwright is the Public Land Access and Land and Water Fund Program Manager for the Bureau of Land Management. He has been working on LWCF projects in the BLM for 14 years. Prior to serving his county for the benefit of recreation and land conservation, he was an associate real estate broker and served his country in other ways as a U.S. Army Ranger. Jeff is an avid lover of rivers and single track where he and his family spend their spare time whitewater rafting and mountain biking.

Jeff LeJava is vice president and associate general counsel for the Open Space Institute where his work focuses on the preservation of natural landscapes in New York State to conserve critical habitat, provide public access, and sustain working lands. Prior to joining OSI in 2015, he held environmental legal positions in academia, government and private practice. Jeff also currently serves on the board of the Beaverkill Valley Land Trust based in Livingston Manor, NY.

Jeff Appel is a practicing attorney in Salt Lake City. He is also a member of the board of directors of a land trust, and has extensive experience with both water rights and conservation easements.

Jen “Dusty” Clitheroe is the principal consultant for Strength Perspective, a consulting firm that works with organizational leaders and their communities, empowering individuals to create more inclusive organizations, environments, and teaShe holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in organizational leadership. She has also served on a number of non-profit boards working to support sustainability and the care of the land as it pertains to community, providing consultation for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging strategic planning, leadership development, workshop facilitation and organizational change management.

Jennifer has worked with the Commission since March 2008 on almost every aspect of the accreditation program. As associate program director, Jennifer manages the application deadline and review schedule in addition to reviewing applications. Jennifer previously worked for the Land Trust Alliance, helping develop the 2004 revised Land Trust Standards and Practices and the land trust accreditation program in addition to providing technical assistance to land trusts. Jennifer worked many years for a local land trust and other nonprofits to address wetland and water quality issues, she has served on a number of nonprofit boards, and she has owned and operated two small businesses. In addition to earning a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University at Albany, she has a certificate in project management from Empire State College’s School of Graduate Studies.

Jennifer “Jen” Cherry is the Realty Officer for the National Park Service Land Acquisition Policy and Support Branch and the Acting Deputy Chief of the Land Resources Division. Jen began her federal career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Lakewood, Colorado and Anchorage, Alaska. After returning to the East coast, Jen worked in the non-profit land conservation field for several years before returning to the federal government with National Park Service. Jen holds a Juris Doctor from the University of New England School of Law, and a L.L.M. in Environmental and Natural Resource Law from the University of Denver College of Law. Jen and her husband live in Connecticut with their two dogs.  They enjoy hiking, mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding and spending time with the pups.

Jennifer Clinton is the senior parks and conservation economist with Trust for Public Land. In her role, Jennifer manages a portfolio of economic research projects that are used to advocate for land conservation and parks across the United States. Her recent research in New York City focused on the ecosystem services, public health, recreation, and economic development benefits provided by parks in the City. Jennifer holds a master’s degree in agricultural and resource economics from the University of Connecticut and a bachelor’s degree in politics from Fairfield University.

Jerry Cosgrove is Farm Legacy Director and a Senior Advisor for American Farmland Trust and is Of Counsel at the law firm of Scolaro, Fetter, Grizanti and McGough, P.C.  He combines a farming background, legal experience and a long history of nonprofit work and public service. During his career, he has worked on a range of agricultural, conservation, farm transfer, land access and rural development issues. He grew up on his family’s dairy farm in Clinton in central New York.  Jerry graduated from Cornell’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences with a degree in agriculture.  He also graduated from Cornell Law School and is licensed to practice law in New York.  He is a member of the New York State Bar Association and the American Agricultural Law Association.

Jesica Blake is the associate director and director of stewardship and community conservation for the North Carolina Coastal Land Trust. She has been with the organization for 21 years. She holds a degree in environmental science and natural resource management from Northern Vermont University and graduate certificates in Forestry and Wildlife Conservation. Recently, she earned the Executive Leadership and Change Management certificates from Cornell University. Jesica oversees monitoring and enforcement of all conservation properties (both preserves and private lands) as well as preserve management for the Coastal Land Trust. Jesica works on community conservation partnerships and projects including cultural heritage and public access projects and is currently focused on work in the National Parks Service’s Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. Her favorite project is Reaves Chapel. She spends her free time outdoors on the beaches of NC Coast and on Lake Champlain in upstate NY.

Jessica Groves is a National easement specialist for the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service and serves on the Easement Policy Branch of the Easement Program Division. She primarily works on crafting the regulations, policy and procedures used to implement NRCS easement programs and providing training on NRCS easement programs nationwide. Jessica is a wildlife biologist by background, and over the course of her 25 years with NRCS has delivered NRCS easement programs at the field, State, Regional and National levels. Jessica spends most of her time in Oregon, California, or her family’s Century Farm in southeastern Kansas.

Founder/principal attorney of Conservation Law, P.C., a law firm devoted to ensuring the permanence of land conservation through sound transactions. Jessica represents easement holders and landowners conserving working landscapes and environmentally significant land across the country. She guides easement holders, professionals, and landowners in educational workshops, and the next generation of land conservationists in her Land Conservation Law courses at Vermont Law School and Denver University Law School. She collaborates with the conservation community to defend easements and incentives against abuse and overreach, shape emerging law and policy reforms, and inspire new endeavors for equity and access in land conservation.

Jessica Whittaker is a review specialist for the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. She is a licensed attorney, who practiced in primarily the areas of real estate and estate planning law. Prior to entering into private practice, she was the executive director of the Sippican Lands Trust, Inc. (SLT), where she successfully guided staff through the accreditation process during the pilot program. Jessica also worked in land protection for both SLT and the Buzzards Bay Coalition, Inc. She has served on several nonprofit boards and committees, and served as Commissioner from 2009 to 2012.

Jessie Hancock is the executive director of Bluegrass Conservancy. Jessie has over ten years of experience as an environmental engineer and project manager. Her knowledge includes in mapping and natural resource documentation, with over three years of experience assisting with land protection and stewardship for Bluegrass Conservancy. Jessie holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental engineering from Purdue University.

Jessie McSwane serves as senior stewardship manager for Peconic Land Trust, where she has worked since 2015. Her work in the stewardship department has included easement and preserve monitoring, habitat restoration and coastal resiliency projects, land access programs, project-based grant writing and management, and support of agricultural programs.  Jessie holds a master’s degree in Geography and a certificate in Geospatial Information Science from Marshall University, and a LEAD NY Fellows Program Certificate from The Empire State Food and Agriculture Leadership Institute, Cornell CALS.

Jessie is Loretto’s earth education and advocacy coordinator, Jessie Rathburn spends much of her time outside – gardening, hiking, birding, and learning more about the local central Kentucky bioregion. Her background also includes English and writing instruction and operating an urban farm.

Jim Coonan is owner of the C2 Ranch, a family-owned cattle ranch along tributaries of Little Butte Creek, a priority wild salmon bearing tributary of the Rogue River near Eagle Point, Oregon. C2 comprises of a mix of Oregon white oak and mixed oak pine woodland, savanna, chaparral, meadow, riparian, and irrigated pasture. A 2006 conservation easement protects 1660 acres of pine and mixed conifer forest stands located within this 9,063 acre ranch, with goals to preserve the scenic beauty of the land while allowing sustainable timber harvest and ecologically-sound forest management to benefit the ranch and protect habitat for a diversity of native plant and animal species. C2 has partnered with the Rogue River Watershed Council to protect water quality, remove passage barriers, and restore instream habitat to enhance habitat for wild fish. The Coonan family converted from a more traditional ranching model to a certified organic cattle operation, furthering their commitment to protection of clean water in the Little Butte Creek system.

Jim Shallow is Audubon Vermont’s director of conservation and policy and has been working in Vermont’s conservation community for 21 years including creating the Vermont Natural Resources Council’s Forest Program, the first executive director of Vermont Audubon, and a member of the Vermont Forest Stewardship Committee.

Joe Plaugher is Sonoma Valley Wildlands collaborative coordinator for Sonoma Land Trust. Joe left a career in state and federal public policy to join the Collaborative, where he works with the six partner organizations to execute wildland fuel reduction and prescribed fire projects across 18,000 acres of conservation lands. He has been part of the local Prescribed Burn Association since 2019 and is working on his California State Burn Boss (CARX) certification.

John L. Barone joined with Meave M. Tooher in 2011 to open the law firm of Tooher & Barone, LLP. John has practiced for 20 years concentrating on environmental, real estate, contracts, municipal and administrative law serving clients in both litigation and transactional affairs. John represents and works with numerous land trusts, not-for-profit organizations and individuals regarding land conservation issues and related matters. He also currently serves on the boards of multiple not-for-profit organizations.

John served for 17 years as executive director of The Conservation Alliance, a group of outdoor industry companies that works together to fund and partner with organizations working to protect North America’s wild places. He left that position in 2019. Prior to his tenure at The Conservation Alliance, John was Director of Environmental Programs at Patagonia, Inc. until 2002. John is currently the President of the Oregon Desert Land Trust board of directors and is an avid runner, cyclist, ski mountaineer, climber, backpacker and an aspiring musician.

John Wros joined The Conservation Fund in 2015 as Western Real Estate Associate. He’s worked with federal, state, and local agencies, land trusts, and tribes to protect thousands of acres of habitat and recreation lands in Alaska and Oregon. John holds a BA from Occidental College and Masters of Forest Ecology from University of Washington.

Jonathan (Jon) Wagar is deputy executive director for operations and sustainability at Duke Farms, a Center of the Doris Duke Foundation. The Doris Duke Foundation supports the well-being of people and the planet for a more creative, equitable and sustainable future. Jon is also an adjunct assistant professor at Raritan Valley Community College, where he teaches classes on environmental studies, the environment and climate change. Previously, Jon worked as Vice President for conservation programs at Conservation Resources and was director of land acquisition and stewardship at Schiff Natural Lands Trust. From 1999 through 2004, Jon was a member of the staff of the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, where he served as director of stewardship and assistant director of land acquisition and stewardship. Jon holds a bachelor of science degree in biology from Richard Stockton University, was a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala and earned a master of forestry degree from Yale University. He is former chairman of the Mendham Township Open Space Trust Committee, where he worked with volunteers and township officials to acquire and manage parks and open space. He was a founding member of the Mendham Township Green Team and was the founding chairman of the New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team. Jon is a 2011 fellow of Lead New Jersey.

Jonathon Katcher is a semi-retired civil litigator and aspiring ski bum, with a B.G.S. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and a law degree from the Lewis and Clark Law School, Portland, Oregon. Starting in 1981 as an assistant public defender in Anchorage, and moving into private practice in 1986, he has appeared in state and federal trial and appellate courts throughout the state of Alaska. His practice emphasis is complex civil litigation, and he also serves as a hearing officer, mediator, arbitrator and legal malpractice expert witness. He has been President of the Alaska Bar Association and is currently an attorney member of the Alaska Judicial Council which, as part of Alaska’s merit based judicial selection system, nominates candidates to the governor to fill trial and appellate court vacancies. He has received the State of Alaska Attorney General’s Pro Bono Service A ward for his work on behalf of victims of domestic violence. He regularly bikes, hikes, kayaks and alpine skis (97 days during the 2021-22 ski season). Jonathon considers the Great Land Trust Eklutna River Estuary Conservation Easement case to be among the greatest accomplishments of his legal career. He lives in Anchorage with Kate Michaels, his spouse of 43 years.

Jose Oliva has been involved with the Chicago Region Food System Fund as it has evolved from a response fund and now is the Co-Chair of the Steering Committee. His work with HEAL Food Alliance has brought forward the needs of workers in the food system highlighting a part of the supply chain that had been overlooked by funders. Jose brings a sensitive, caring and challenging perspective to how funding decisions are made, how systems can be disrupted to create better outcomes, and how organizing can shift power structures.

Josette Markline is a stewardship planner with the Maryland Environmental Trust (MET), a governmental land trust holding more than 1,000 conservation easements over 140,000 acres statewide. Prior to MET, Josette conducted environmental and safety compliance audits for the Maryland Environmental Service and served as a park ranger for the Maryland Park Service. She has a bachelor’s iegree in environmental studies from Gettysburg College and a master’s degree in environmental Mmnagement from University of Maryland Global Campus.

Josh is senior forest ecologist for Mass Audubon.

Joy Jackson serves as a senior associate with the Institute for Conservation Leadership. Joy leads led ICL’s programming in Ohio, Leading Environmental Change and has worked with leaders across the state to create new strategies, facilitating planning processes, as well as providing project-based assistance and training services. Joy is a dedicated public servant with a passion for coaching, instruction and capacity building. She has spent 15 years in administrator and instructional roles at non-profits and universities. Joy has extensive experience designing and facilitating workshops and training, including previously serving as a career development instructor with The Washington Center for Internships and Academic Programs. Her higher education career has included Director level roles a Virginia Tech and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and capacity building roles with non-profits such as Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC). A native of Silver Spring, MD, Joy earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Syracuse University and a master of public administration degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Before dedicating herself full-time to collaboration consulting, Joy had nearly 18 years of experience as a community planner, facilitator, mediator and trainer while working for the National Park Service Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program. Her passion for authentic public engagement underscores her deep commitment to community dialogue and public processes where people hear each other, understand each other, and find ways to work together effectively. Her experience working within all levels of city, county, state, and federal government agencies as well as community groups and non-profit organizations, has resulted in success in reaching group consensus on contentious projects. Joy’s primary focus is to help individuals and groups translate individual power into collective action through effective collaboration.