The Conservation Alliance

Black Rock Desert, Nevada. Photo: Ben Moon

BOARD AND STAFF

CONSERVATION ALLIANCE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Sally McCoy (President)
Sally is President and CEO of CamelBak. Prior to CamelBak, Sally co-founded Silver Steep Partners—a financial advisory firm specializing exclusively in the outdoor industry—and has spent over twenty years in the industry serving as Vice President at The North Face and President of Sierra Designs and Ultimate Direction. Sally was a founding member of Conservation Alliance and OIA and has served as Board Chair of OIA. When not working, Sally spends as much time as she can snowboarding, telemarking, mountain biking and hiking.

Lisa Pike-Sheehy (Vice-President)
Lisa is Patagonia's Environmental Programs Director. She manages the company's environmental grants program and company-wide campaigns to engage customers in environmental issues. Before joining Patagonia, she was the program and membership director for the Environmental Grantmakers Association. Lisa has held positions with regional and national groups environmental groups in Colorado, Wyoming, and Washington, DC. Lisa has a master's degree in Environmental Policy from Tufts University.

Angela Owen (Vice President)
Angela is REI's VP of Merchandising. She joined REI's Merchandising team in 1990, and provides leadership in the areas of product assortment and strategy, category management, vendor partnership development, profitability, and inventory management.  Angela received a bachelor's degree from the University of Washington and serves on the board of the Northwest Interpretive Association. She is an avid world traveler and enjoys hiking and skiing.

Linda Tom Balfour
Linda is the marketing manager for KEEN Inc. In addition to her role as brand champion, she manages the KEEN Hybrid.Care giving program partnering with a range of non-profit organization to help promote an active outdoor community. Linda has been actively involved with the Conservation Alliance for the past 5 years, playing a key role in creating unique fundraising and awareness-building campaigns for KEEN and CA. Among her many outdoor pursuits, Linda dabbles in mountain biking, trail running, backcountry skiing & surfing.

Mark Cohen (Treasurer & Secretary) 
Mark is currently the CFO for Thule's Vehicle Accessory business in North American and has held that role since 2005.  He is responsible for financial reporting, planning, IT, tax matters and business development.   Mark graduated from the University of Rochester with a BA and also holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Connecticut.  Mark's roots in the bike industry go back to the late 1970's - he was a bike mechanic and road racer for close to ten years.  Mark is an avid road and off-road cyclist and enjoys camping with his family through out the North Eastern US.

Conrad Anker
Conrad is a sponsored athlete for The North Face, and one of the world’s most renowned climbers. The search for challenging routes has taken Conrad from the mountains of Alaska and Antarctica to the big walls of Patagonia, Baffin Island, Yosemite and Zion, to the massive peaks of the Himalaya. In May of 1999, as a member of the Mallory & Irvine Research expedition, Conrad discovered the body of George Mallory, the preeminent Everest explorer of the 1920s. Conrad’s discovery and analysis of the find has shed new light onto the pioneering climbs of the early expeditions. Conrad graduated from the University of Utah and lives in Bozeman, Montana. Conrad is on the boards of the American Alpine Club, the Rowell Fund for Tibet and the Alex Lowe Charitable Foundation. In his spare time, Conrad studies water color painting and stays in shape with a rigorous training regime of running, skiing and climbing.

Steve Barker 
Steve Barker is the president and founder of Eagle Creek.  His vision was born in the San Jacinto Mountains of California where he and his wife Nona first sold outdoor equipment and sewed custom packs.  For the past 35 years, Steve has led Eagle Creek, taking the company from humble beginnings to a globally respected travel brand.  Steve has been intimately involved in all aspects of the business since the beginning.  The Barkers are longtime volunteer firefighters with the Elfin Forest / Harmony Grove Fire Department where Steve serves as Batalion Chief.  Steve is a founding board member of The Escondido Creek Conservancy.  In their spare time, the Barker's are world travelers, active hikers, sea kayakers, backcountry skiers and raise trekking llamas. 

Kate Ketschek
Kate is the Director of Marketing & Public Relations for NEMO Equipment. Before NEMO, Kate's paid job was Marketing Manager at Big Sky Resort in MT, but she took her volunteer efforts as an EMT/Firefighter, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Chair of a group investigating incorporating the community, just as seriously. When Kate's not at NEMO, she can be found out on the trails running, on her bike, or skis.

Nathan Pund
Nathan Pund joined D.A. Davidson's investment banking group as a Managing Director in December 2010, having previously served as a Managing Director and Co-Founding Partner at Silver Steep Partners. Prior to Silver Steep, Nathan worked as an investment banker for the Royal Bank of Canada, Prudential Securities and Interstate/Johnson Lane. Nathan assisted in financing and advising outdoor, active lifestyle, and branded consumer companies on various public and private equity transactions and mergers and acquisition.  Nathan currently serves as an officer in the United States Naval Reserves and previously served on active duty with Special Operations Command Central.  He sits on the on the board of directors of Leave No Trace.

 Topher Gaylord 
Topher Gaylord has a lifetime of experience in the Outdoor and Snowsports industries both professionally and as an active participant and athlete.  He currently serves as President Mountain Hardwear, Inc. and is responsible for the Mountain Hardwear & Montrail brands globally. He has extensive experience working in multi-cultural environments in Europe, Asia and North America.  Topher was a founding member and served on the board of both the European Outdoor Group and the EOG Association for Conservation.  He served as Interim President of the EOG Association for Conservation in 2008.  He received his Bachelor of Science Cum Laude from the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California.

Gareth Martins
Gareth Martins is Director of Marketing for Osprey Packs, Inc. located in Cortez, Colorado.   A graduate of the University of Washington in Seattle with a Master’s Degree in music, he has long pursued a double life as a musician and outdoor enthusiast / environmental advocate.  Gareth helps leads Osprey’s “Green Team” which guides environmental policy and sustainable operations for the company.  He is a board member for the Colorado Environmental Coalition and has personally and professionally advocated for sound environmental policy in the state of Colorado for most of his life.  He is an avid skier, mountaineer and traveler.  For the past nine years he has lived in Dolores, CO, population 900.

Ted Manning
Ted started his career in the outdoor industry at Eastern Mountain Sports in 1989 as a part-time sales associate. He worked in the retail stores until 2000 and at that time was promoted to an equipment buying position.  His passion for the outdoors and the company's culture helped him to reach his current position of EVP of Merchandise and Marketing.  When he finds a moment of free time, you can find him fly fishing, mountain biking, reading or just enjoying being the father of two active outdoor boys.

CONSERVATION ALLIANCE STAFF

John Sterling (Executive Director)
John has spent the past 17 years in the conservation field, and has been involved with The Conservation Alliance since 1996. John was Director of Environmental Programs at Patagonia, Inc. until 2002, and represented the company on the Alliance board. He left Patagonia to launch a career to help businesses engage in meaningful conservation work. John was hired as Executive Director in 2005, and has helped The Conservation Alliance build its membership and profile within the outdoor industry. Prior to his time at Patagonia, John was a staffer at Earth Island Institute. He serves on the boards of the Oregon Natural Desert Association and High Desert Journal, both based in Bend, Oregon. John is an avid climber, telemark skier, and backpacker, and an aspiring birder. He can be found most mornings walking along the Deschutes River with his daughter, Lily and son, Ian.

Serena Bishop Gordon (Program Associate)
With a passion for community, fresh air and the high desert, Serena has worked in and around the Outdoor Industry since 2002.  An avid cyclist, published writer and general lover of endurance activities, Serena has completed a thru hike of the Pacific Crest Trail and currently channels her competitive energies into mountain biking and cyclocross racing.

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