2025 Speakers
Keynote
Lisa Garcia
Former Region II Administrator
Environmental Protection Agency
Lisa F. Garcia is an environmental lawyer focused on the advancement of environmental and climate justice and currently serves as adjunct faculty with Columbia University and NYU Law. She recently served as Regional Administrator for U.S. EPA’s Region 2 office covering New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and eight federally recognized Indian Nations. Prior to joining EPA, Garcia ran a climate solutions lab at Grist Magazine and served as Vice President for Litigation for Healthy Communities at Earthjustice. In 2009, Garcia joined the Obama administration to lead EPA’s environmental justice work, operating as Associate Administrator and Senior Advisor to EPA Administrators Lisa P. Jackson and Gina McCarthy. Garcia helped create and implement Plan EJ 2014. She led the design team for EJSCREEN, a key justice-oriented mapping program as well as the foundation for President Biden's Climate and Economic Justice mapping tool. Before 2009, Garcia served as Director of Environmental Justice and Indian Affairs at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Assistant Attorney General in the NYS Attorney General’s Office, and Associate Professor at Rutgers Law School.
Garcia is a proud graduate of Stony Brook University (SUNY) and Brooklyn Law School.
Plenary
Ben Dziobek
Executive Director
NJ Climate Revolution
Ben Dziobek is an environmental and political organizer dedicated to climate justice and youth empowerment. He serves as the Executive Director of the Climate Revolution Action Network (CRAN), a Gen Z-led climate organization, and sits on the board of Gen Z for New Jersey. Dziobek is also the Director of Community Outreach for the Monmouth County Young Democrats and has experience working with New Jersey Future, focusing on community engagement and infrastructure resilience. His work is rooted in a commitment to equity, sustainability, and mobilizing young people to take action.
Tenisha Malcolm-Wint
Director
Girls Scouts Heart of New Jersey
Tenisha serves as the Director of the Girl Scouts Heart of New Jersey Girls Leadership Center in Newark. She also leads TNM Consulting, LLC, and is the Founder & Chief Outdoor Experience Officer of Outdoors On Purpose (OOP), a nonprofit organization dedicated to dismantling systemic racism within New Jersey's natural and built environments. She previously served as the Director of the Urban Mayors Policy Center at the John S. Watson Institute for Urban Policy and Research at Kean University. Before her tenure at the Watson Institute, Malcolm-Wint made significant contributions to a range of national and community-based nonprofits. She spearheaded large-scale, innovative programs, led successful fundraising campaigns, and drove strategic development initiatives, all while fostering positive social change. Her dedication to social causes extends beyond her professional roles, demonstrated by her active involvement as a board member for organizations such as New Jersey Future, Urban Agriculture Cooperative, Boys & Girls Club of Union County, National Association of Double Dutch Organizations, and New Jersey School of Conservation.
Kerry Kirk Pflugh (Facilitator)
Executive Director
Friends of the New Jersey School of Conservation
Kerry Kirk Pflugh is the Executive Director of the New Jersey School of Conservation (NJSOC), which has been providing students and teachers with environmental education experiences and training for more than 75 years. Ms. Pflugh was responsible for spearheading the successful effort to save and reopen the NJSOC’s historic environmental education field center, and is now working to restore the former Civilian Conservation Corps campus. Working with the environmental and educational community and champions in the state legislature, Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation in 2022 assigning the Friends of NJSOC legal responsibility for the management of the historic environmental education center. In 2023, the Friends signed a 20-year lease to operate the site.
Previously, Ms. Pflugh had a 35-year career as a social scientist in the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection focusing on strategic communication planning to ensure citizen participation in environmental management decision-making, and where she served as the Director for Local Government Assistance at the New Jersey for six of those years.
Ms. Pflugh is also the chair of the Warren County Environmental Advisory Committee, charged with advising the Warren County Commissioners on environmental matters in the county. She serves as a trustee for the New Jersey League of Conservation Voters and as an Advisor to the Lake Hopatcong Foundation.
Nick Angarone
Chief Resilience Officer
NJDEP
As New Jersey’s Chief Resilience Officer, Nick coordinates statewide policy on climate resilience and serves as Vice-Chair of the Interagency Council on Climate Resilience. In that capacity, he leads and directs the development and implementation of the Statewide Climate Change Resilience Strategy, and provides education, training, planning, and technical assistance to local governments in their efforts to address the impacts of climate change.
Nick also manages the Office of Climate Resilience at the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) where he oversees the Bureau of Climate Resilience Planning, the Blue Acres buyout program, and Resilient NJ, the state’s climate resilience planning program. He serves as New Jersey’s Coastal Manager and administers the New Jersey Coastal Management Program in cooperation with NOAA and a network of programs across DEP. Nick also represents DEP on the State Planning Commission, ensuring that climate resilience, natural resource protection, and infrastructure capacity are incorporated into the planning process.
Nick holds a master’s degree in city and regional planning from the Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy and a bachelor’s degree in environmental planning and design from Rutgers University (Cook College). He is a member of AICP and is a New Jersey Professional Planner.
Presenters
Presenters are still being finalized. Check back frequently for updates!
Tess Mullen
SAgE Program Coordinator
Foodshed Alliance
Tess Mullen serves as the SAgE Program Coordinator at the Foodshed Alliance, where she is deeply committed to making a meaningful impact on the success of farmers, especially those practicing regenerative, organic growing methods. Tess brings over a decade of small-scale, organic farming experience to managing the Sustainable Agriculture Enterprises (SAgE) Program, leveraging her passion for sustainable farming to drive positive change within the agricultural community. Through her dedication, Tess plays a pivotal role in supporting farmers on their journey towards regenerative practices, fostering resilience and sustainability within local agriculture. Tess holds a Bachelor's Degree in Earth Science and Environmental Justice from Kean University; and is most passionate about the intersectionality of a regenerative food system as a path to reconnect humans to nature.
Ben Yaskulka
Policy and Outreach Manager
Musconetcong Watershed Association
Ben Yaskulka serves as the Policy and Outreach Manager for the Musconetcong Watershed Association, where he not only spearheads efforts in accessible river recreation and interpretation through the Partnership Wild and Scenic River program but also advocates for river-friendly policy at all levels of government. His policy foundation, built through his political science studies at Ramapo College and his work with student advocacy groups, complements his extensive experience in connecting people with the outdoors. This includes supervising agritourism operations at Alstede Farms' Pick Your Own program and developing engaging recreational and educational programs as an environmental educator at Duke Farms. Ben's experience in ecotourism, agritourism, and policy experience offers a comprehensive approach to promoting vibrant natural spaces. When he's not working, you'll likely find Ben birding, fishing, and hiking in and around the Musconetcong.
Gretchen Fowles
GIS Specialist/biologist, Endangered & Nongame Species Program
NJDEP Endangered Species and Nongame Species Program
Kimberly Korth
SWAP Coordinator/Planner
NJDEP
Robert Aluck
Stewardship Director
Sourlands Conservancy
Robert has always had a passion for nature and wildlife growing up on the waters of Long Island. Though he spent the past 10 years working in fisheries management programs on the federal level throughout the country, he has come to the Sourlands looking to help terrestrial wildlife in his local community. He joined the Sourland Conservancy in 2022 looking to help leave a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy. In his spare time, he likes to spend time with his family, fishing, and learning more about the native species he is working to protect.
Joe Basralian
Special Project Manager
New Jersey Conservation Foundation
Joe Basralian is contracted to the New Jersey Conservation Foundation to collaborate in addressing the crisis of overabundant deer herds impacting many parts of New Jersey. He has worked professionally or as a volunteer in New Jersey conservation for 17 years with The Nature Conservancy, New Jersey Audubon, the League of Conservation Voters, Friends of the Drew Forest and other groups. For several years he played a key support role in the NJ Keep It Green Coalition for open space, farmland and historic preservation. He has chaired Chatham Township’s Open Space Committee for 13 years, helping to preserve 250 acres in that time, and has been an active leader in Scouting America for 10 years. Joe has worked in financial markets in New York and New Jersey for 25 years, often bringing together people with diverse perspectives to achieve each party’s goals. He grew up in Franklin Lakes, NJ and has a B.A. from Cornell University and an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business.
Elliott Ruga
Director of Policy and Communications
New Jersey Highlands Coalition
Elliott Ruga is the Director of Policy & Communications at the NJ Highlands Coalition. He is the founding chair of the Boonton Trails Committee, which is developing the Boonton segment of the 102-mile Morris Canal Greenway and is the vice chair of the Boonton Historic Preservation Commission. Elliott has served on the Morris County Open Space Committee and the Morris County Heritage Commission. Last year Elliott served on the Boonton Town Council, filling the unexpired term of a Council member who had resigned. Recently, Elliott wrote, produced, directed and edited a documentary about the Native American experience in northern NJ, The Way of the Ramapough, which has had several public showings and is available on YouTube.
Leslie Sauer
Senior Fellow
Pinchot Institute
Leslie Sauer, a founder emeritus of Andropogon Associates, is a pioneer in the field of restoring and managing native landscapes. She has directed the reestablishment of natural systems in a wide range of sensitive, degraded, and developed environments. Ms. Sauer has been a key player on such landscape-scale watershed projects as the Flood Protection Plan for a 14-mile stretch of the Passaic River in New Jersey, the Conservation Plan for the Manumuskin Watershed in New Jersey and the Comprehensive Watershed Management Plan for the Rockaway River Watershed.
Her park projects range from urban greens, including both the Woodlands of Central Park and Prospect Park in New York City, and Wissahickon Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to National Historic Monuments. She was a board member of the Society for Ecological Restoration and taught at the University of Pennsylvania. Her book, The Once and Future Forest (Island Press) is a guidebook for restoring and managing natural forests. She lives on her family’s farm in central New Jersey and now concentrates on on-the-ground projects in her rural locality.
Walter Lane
Acting Executive Director
New Jersey Office of Planning Advocacy
Walter C. Lane serves as the Acting Executive Director of the New Jersey Office of Planning Advocacy where he supports the State Planning Commission and staff to advance Implementation of State Development and Redevelopment Plan and works on a wide range of smart growth planning efforts.
Prior to his role at the New Jersey Office of Planning Advocacy, Walter served as the Director of Planning for Somerset County for over ten years. He was responsible for all of the County's planning efforts, the Open Space Advisory Committee, the Regional Center Partnership of Somerset County, the Somerset County Green leadership Hub and the Somerset County Energy Council. Since 1997, he has held numerous roles serving as a Supervising Transportation Planner, Principal Planner, Senior Community Planner and Planning Intern during his tenure at the County.
He has over twenty-seven years of land use, regional planning and transportation planning experience and has managed numerous award-winning projects. Walter is a licensed New Jersey Professional Planner and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners. In December of 2022, he received the Budd Chavooshian Award for Outstanding Professional Planner from the New Jersey Chapter of the American Planning Association.