KEENE, NY – The Adirondack Land Trust's Next Generation Council welcomed five new members to their group of volunteers in their 20s and 30s with a commitment to conservation. The Next Generation Council provides input on the land trust's land and water conservation work and acts as ambassadors for the organization.
"We're fortunate these accomplished individuals will add their voices to Adirondack conservation today and carry our work forward for generations to come," said Steve Burrington, chair of the Adirondack Land Trust Board of Directors. "Their varied experiences as community leaders, parents, hikers and paddlers, scientists, educators, and young professionals will ensure our work is informed by a wider range of lived experiences and perspectives."
Grace Hiltunen is the business and prosperity manager at Black Mountain Architecture, a Saranac Lake firm that focuses on design that bridges the built and natural environments. She has served in the Peace Corps, worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and earned a bachelor's degree and an MBA from Alfred University. Grace is a skier, paddler, and climber whose passion for conservation is rooted in love of place and the belief that strong communities, networks of care, and healthy landscapes go hand in hand.
Kelly Klingler, Ph.D., is a Certified Wildlife Biologist and an Associate Professor of Wildlife Science at Paul Smith's College specializing in vertebrate ecology, conservation genetics, and wildlife monitoring. She holds a bachelor's degree from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, and a doctorate from the University of Nevada, Reno, in ecology, evolution, and conservation biology. She also serves as a planning member for both the North American Pika Consortium and Northeast Wildlife Trackers. Kelly enjoys teaching, running, birding, and spending time outdoors with her family.
Danny Papes earned a bachelor's degree in political science at Northeastern University before working with Patagonia in retail, operations, and grassroots environmental activism in New York City. He now manages retail and e-commerce at The Whitney Museum of American Art. Danny has a lifelong connection to the High Peaks Wilderness in the Adirondacks, and he can often be found outdoors snowboarding, cross-country skiing, open-water swimming, or climbing.
Mikayla Ploof hails from Saranac Lake, where she is a relationship manager with the financial services firm Mercer Advisors. She earned a bachelor's degree in anthropology and history from SUNY Plattsburgh and a master's degree in museum studies from Syracuse University. Mikayla also volunteers as a board member with the Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation and the Saranac Lake Free Library. She spends her free time outside with a camera photographing wildlife and the Adirondack landscape.
Ian Thompson is a forester with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation managing more than 170,000 acres of Wild Forest and Wilderness areas in the Catskill Forest Preserve. He developed a passion for conservation and sustainable land use while earning a bachelor's degree in forestry from the University of Vermont. Ian's time hiking, skiing, biking, and maintaining Adirondack trails are instrumental in shaping his relationship with the natural world.
The Adirondack Land Trust works to forever conserve the forests, farmlands, waters, and wild places that advance the quality of life of our communities and the ecological integrity of the Adirondacks.