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Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Alison M. Jones, Project Director and Lead Photographer, Conservation Photographer
NWNL Expeditions: Columbia River Basin (’07, ’08); Omo River Basin (’05, ’07, ’08); Nile River Basin (’04, ’07, ‘10); Mississippi River Basin (two in ’08), Raritan River Basin (ongoing), Mara River Basin (1985-now)
Alison M. Jones is a conservation photographer who has documented ecosystems and their management for over 20 years in Africa and the Americas. After copiloting over thousands of miles of Africa’s vital rivers and lakeshores with a camera always at the ready, she became immersed in studying global issues of water. She founded No Water No Life® in 2006 to raise public awareness of freshwater issues by combining the powers of photography and science.
Granted an honorary Masters Degree in Photography from Brooks Institute, she is a Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photography, former Director of North American Nature Photography Association and member of ASMP, Society of Environmental Journalists, Explorers Club and TechnoServe (a development NGO). She is a founding supporter of Kenya’s Mara Conservancy and has studied ecology at Columbia University’s Center for Environmental Research and Conservation. Her images are found in magazines, television, books, workshops, lectures, and exhibits. Her web site is alisonjonesphoto.com.
Robin MacEwan, Project Coordinator,
Environmental Resource Management
On the NWNL 2007 Columbia River Basin and 2008 Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Expeditions. Coordinated the 2008 Omo River Basin Expedition
Robin MacEwan is a restoration ecologist who specializes in wetland, riparian and upland environmental restoration and mitigation. Robin’s background includes development of environmental resource assessments and management plans, restoration and mitigation site design, wetland delineation, nonnative invasive species management, and mitigation site maintenance and monitoring. Robin has an M.S. in Resource Management from Antioch University New England and an M.A. in Landscape Design from the Conway School of Landscape Design.
Jasmine Graf, NYC Office Manager and Creative Consultant
Jasmine is an artist, curator and graphic designer living and working in the NY metropolitan area. Her work concentrates on paper and print. For over a decade Jasmine has been developing the field of artist books and creatively exploring printed matter. She produces limited editions and one-of-a-kind books and portfolios. She has been trained in various traditional printmaking techniques in addition to modern digital image printing and alternative book binding methods. She is curator and project director of the Graf Exchange, an ongoing international collaborative print archive. Jasmine’s work has been exhibited at the Jersey City Museum, as well as in many universities and galleries throughout the country. Her art has been featured in AM New York News, The Jersey Journal and on NJ-TV. Jasmine is Vice President of Manhattan Graphics Center and is an active Board Member of ProArts Hudson County.
Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Robin Sears, Ph.D., Project Science Advisor
Forest Ecologist
Robin R. Sears is a forest ecologist and dean at the School for Field Studies, an environmental field study abroad program based in Salem, Massachusetts. She has fifteen years’ experience working with smallholder farmers in tropical rainforest countries on issues related to agriculture and forestry production, development, and biodiversity conservation. Her research is on ecological and land use dynamics at the aquatic-terrestrial interface in seasonally flooded environments along the Amazon River and its major tributaries. Having climbed four glacial peaks in the Andes and Mexico, kayaked on the coasts of Canada and the US, and hiked along and fished in innumerable mountain streams around the world, Robin appreciates the critical and complex nature of freshwater services.
Molly Mehling, M.En., Project Science Advisor
Aquatic Biologist and Photographer
Molly Mehling is a research scientist, college educator and photographer using visual means to communicate about the nature and science of environmental issues. She has earned a B.S. Environmental Biology from Mount Union College, a Masters from the Institute of Environmental Sciences at Miami Univ. and is now a PhD candidate in Zoology at Miami Univ. As an aquatic biologist and environmental toxicologist, Molly has been at the water’s edge for over 10 years conducting research in headwater streams, wetlands, rivers and lake ecosystems. Her current research projects focus on using the biodiversity of littoral benthic macroinvertebrates as indicators of lake and watershed condition in the Sierra Nevadas and methyl mercury bioaccumulation in experimental stream mesocosm food webs.
Using photography, Molly reaches beyond data tables and figures to share her enthusiasm for scientific discovery and the diversity of life, hoping this powerful communication tool can unify more stakeholders around sustainable solutions to current environmental challenges. Her web site is www.mollymehling.com.
Thomas Stoneback, Ph.D., Project Advisor on Communications
Scientist, Publisher and Entrepreneur
As a scientist, publisher and entrepreneur, Tom Stoneback was Chief Environmental Officer for Rodale, Inc., for 25 years. A national environmental leader, Dr. Stoneback focuses on economics, the environment and its sustainability. Tom currently serves as Executive Director of the National Canal Museum and Hugh Moore Park. Dr. Stoneback is a communications industry leader and a direct/interactive marketing expert who has established seven successful non-profit organizations focused on community impact, civic health, and quality of life.
Milbry Polk, Project Advisor on Nonprofit Promotion
Author, Explorer and Mentor to Women Explorers
“Exploration has informed most of what I have done in my life. I am a Fellow of The Explorers Club and of the Royal Geographic Society and honorary Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. I have authored/edited 10 books, including Egyptian Mummies. With Mary Tiegreen, I co-authored Women of Discovery on the accomplishments of women explorers over the past two thousand years; and with Angela Schuster I co-edited The Looting Of The Iraqi Museum. I founded the Margaret Mead Film Festival at the American Museum of Natural History, co-founded the Film Festival of the Museum of the American Indian and judged numerous festivals. I have traveled extensively, led expeditions, lectured worldwide and created educational programs. Currently, I am a contributing editor for The Explorers Journal and executive director of Wings WorldQuest, a nonprofit I founded to celebrate women explorers and promote scientific exploration and education. Having offered $250,000 in grants, Wings has 29 Fellows, a Flag Program, and soon a website on women’s contributions to the world through exploration. I am married, have 3 daughters and live on the Hudson River where I try to row as often as possible.”
Laly Lichtenfeld, PhD., Project Advisor on African Conservation
Entrepreneur in African Forestry and Environment
Dr. Laly Lichtenfeld is the executive director and co-founder of the The African People and Wildlife Fund, an international non-profit based in Tanzania and New Jersey. She received her Ph.D. from Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies for her unique work describing human-lion relationships and conflict in Tanzania. Laly lives in northern Tanzania in the village of Loibor Siret on the boundary of Tarangire National Park with her partner and PPF co-founder, Charles Trout.
She has worked extensively with the Maasai and Hadzabe to reduce human-wildlife conflict and is an African lion specialist. Last year, PPF made history when it was the first non-profit in Tanzania to be donated village land for a field center. A passionate conservationist, Laly spends every possible moment working in the bush in the Tarangire and Selous-Niassa ecosystems. She has been featured in a program aired on Discovery Channel Canada, is a recipient of the Fulbright Award, and is currently working on writing her first book. Laly feels fortunate to be living her life’s dream every day that she wakes up.
Cristina Mittermeier, Project Advisor on Photography
Author, Photographer, and Mentor to Conservation Photographers
Cristina Mittermeier is a Mexican marine biologist, conservationist and photographer. As a photographer and writer since 1996, Cristina has co-edited 8 books, including a series published with Conservation International and Cemex. Megadiversity: Earth’s Wealthiest Countries for Biodiversity (1996), Hotspots: Earth’s biologically richest and most endangered ecoregions (1998), Wilderness Areas: Earth’s Last Wild Places (2002), Wildlife Spectacles (2003), Hotspots Revisited (2005), and Transboundary Conservation: A New Vision for Protected Areas (2005), and Pantanal: South America’s Wetland Jewel (2005) are all part of that series. Her latest book project, The Human Footprint was produced with the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York in conjunction with her own organization, the ILCP. Cristina serves on the Advisory Board of Nature’s Best Magazine, is a Board Member of the WILD Foundation and a member of Conservation International’s Chairman’s Council. She is also the Executive Director of the International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP), a prestigious consortium of some of the best photographers in the world.
Lynn Hamlen, Project Advisor on Educational Outreach
Lynn Hamlen is currently serving her 14th year as Executive Director of the Darien Nature Center, which, under her leadership, designed and opened a new state-of-the-art environmental education center in 2002. Prior to the Nature Center, Lynn served as Chairman of the Darien Board of Education from 1988–1993. While living in New York City in the early 1980s, she worked as a Promotion Writer for Newsweek Magazine and the Direct Mail Advertising Association. Lynn’s understanding of how to package and promote No Water No Life to nature centers, land trusts, schools and environmental groups around the country, is a most valuable asset to the project.
Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Bonnie Muench, NWNL Project Photographer
On the NWNL ’07 Columbia and Omo River Basin Expeditions
“Painting and drawing had always been a part of my life growing up in Wisconsin. Four years of study in Illustration and Advertising at Art Center College of Design for a Bachelor of Arts led to work at McCann Erickson-Hakuhodo and the Koedi Studio in Japan. Back in Santa Barbara I have designed 30 large format landscape photography books for David Muench Photography Inc. Photography became a large part of my life with photo trips to mountains, deserts, forests and oceans. Travels to the Antarctic, Africa, Asia and India have deepened my knowledge of our planet’s limited resources. I focus my work on communicating the interconnected landscape of earth, air and water.” Her web site is www.bonniemuench.com.
J. B. McCollum, NWNL Project Photographer
Outdoor Photographer
On NWNL’s ongoing study of the Raritan River Basin
J.B. McCollum was raised in a quiet New Jersey town surrounded by cornfields and apple orchards, where his father taught him the life of an outdoorsman. He now spends his free time wading small rivers with fly rod in hand or in the Highlands with his Red Setter and English Pointer. Open the back hatch of his red Jeep Grand Cherokee and you’ll find all the necessary accouterments of a sporting life. As an emerging photographer of note, J.B. hopes his images will help protect the waterways and woodlands where he spends so much of his life. In 2009 McCollum graduated from Roanoke College with a history degree, focused on Native American Indian Cultures and Islam. Fascinated by travel, McCollum has photographed in the Caribbean, the Galapagos Islands, and across much of the United States, Peru and Argentina. His sights are now set on Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. A scuba diver for 15 years, McCollum also enjoys sailing and hiking. His web site is www.jbmccollum.com.
Gussie Baker, NWNL Project Photographer and Researcher
Nature Photographer
On NWNL ’07 Omo River and ’11 Mississippi/Atchafalaya Basin Expeditions
“Almost 30 years of business experience including project management and a lifetime of world travel has provided me with a solid foundation of skills and sense of adventure. I have reached out to my creative side through my photography, attempting to create a unique look of life and the natural world. As a resident of the Adirondack Park in northern New York and a member of the Garden Club of America and other conservation-oriented organizations, I have a profound respect for our natural resources and their appropriate utilization.” Her website is being developed.
Jennifer Weinberg, Contributing Photographer
Nature Photographer
Jennifer Weinberg received her B.A. from Brooks Institute of Photography in 2001 while also interning with Alison Jones. Following a second internship in Seattle with Art Wolfe and developing her portfolio of western landscapes and flora, Jennifer returned to New Orleans in 2004 to focus on photography and be near family. After Hurricane Katrina and the devastating effects to her home and hometown, Jennifer moved with her new husband to North Carolina. Jennifer specializes in portraiture and nature photography. She is a member of the North American Nature Photography Association and was awarded the Russ Kinne Grant in 2004. Jennifer’s work has been exhibited in New York, Washington DC, Seattle, New Orleans, and Raleigh NC, and is published in magazines and nature journals. Currently, Jennifer owns a portrait studio in Cary, NC, and teaches digital photography and nature workshops at Duke University and North Carolina State University.
Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Alison Fast – Project Videographer, Television Producer & Camera Woman on the NWNL 2009 Mara River Expedition.
Julie Eckhert – Project Documentary Producer & Video Producer on the NWNL 2009 Raritan River Basin Expedition.
Peter Berman – Project Videographer & Grant Researcher on the NWNL 2009 Raritan River Basin Expedition.
Jane Baldwin – Project Photographer on the NWNL 2005, 2007 and 2008 Omo River Basin Expeditions.
Fritha Pengelly – Videographer on the NWNL 2007 Columbia River Basin Expedition.
Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Erin Vintinner, Research Consultant
Conservation Biologist
Researched the Columbia, Omo and Blue Nile River Basins
After a childhood spent combing the beaches and woods of Massachusetts, Erin was inspired by a truly remarkable high school biology teacher to enter the life sciences. She graduated from Boston University in 2001 with a BA in Biology and initially pursued a career in molecular and cellular biology. However, after two internships with the Student Conservation Association involving Pacific salmon research in Sitka, AK and Eugene, OR, Erin found her true calling in ecology and conservation biology. She recently completed her Masters degree in Conservation Biology at Columbia’s Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology. She now works at the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation at the American Museum of Natural History. Erin is very excited to continue her work as a research consultant for No Water No Life.
Kalista Pruden, Researcher & Upper Columbia River Basin Liaison
Renewable Resource Management
On the NWNL 2007 and 2008 Columbia River Basin Expeditions
Kalista received her Diploma in Renewable Resources Management from Lethbridge College and live swithin a mile of the Columbia Wetlands in British Columbia. As Wildsight’s Lake Windermere Project Program Assistant in Water Stewardship, Kalista teaches pre-teens about watersheds, non-point source pollution, aquatic ecosystems and the importance of clean water. Her passion for protecting natural landscapes for both human and wildlife uses has motivated her to train volunteers to monitor water quality for Wildsight and to teach local families about the importance of water stewardship and wetlands. Her research for No Water No Life will focus on upstream/downstream transboundary issues in the Columbia River Basin, and then those same issues being faced by the Nile Basin Initiative. In August 2008 she published an article on the Columbia River, titled “Most Dammed River.”
Administrators · Advisors · Photo Video Team · Past Members · Researchers · Research Interns
Ariel Zucker – Undergraduate at Columbia University pursuing Environmental Biology and Economics. Ariel compiled research on the Blue Nile and Omo River Basin in 2007.
Robert Donovan – Adjunct Professor of Geography at Mercer Community College and PhD Candidate at Rutgers University. Robert shared his complied research on the history of the Raritan River Basin in 2007 and 2008.
Mary Corddry – Author and former Eastern Shore of Maryland correspondent for the Baltimore Sun with long-term focus on soil, water and land conservation. Mary compiled research on the Mississippi River Delta in 2008.
Melaina Macone – Undergraduate at Sweet Briar College pursuing Biochemistry and Mathematics. Melaina compiled a NWNL background report on the Mara River Basin in 2008.
Sarah Doyle – Undergraduate at Sweet Briar College pursuing Environmental Studies and Biology. Sarah compiled a NWNL background report on the Omo River Basin in 2008.
Megan Behrle – Undergraduate at Sweet Briar College pursuing International Affairs. Megan compiled a NWNL background report on the Mississippi River Basin in 2008.
Carina K. Finn – Undergraduate at Sweet Briar College pursuing Anthropology and Theater. Carina wrote and submitted several articles nationwide on NWNL in 2008.
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