Ashley Wilmes is Executive Director of Kentucky Resources Council, a public-interest environmental law and advocacy organization. Ashley graduated from Centre College and University of Oregon School of Law. Before joining KRC, she practiced environmental law as a solo practitioner, served as a visiting lecturer at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, and worked as in-house counsel for WildEarth Guardians. Ashley is a former Chair of the Environmental Law Section of the Kentucky Bar Association and currently serves as a member of the Kentucky Environmental Education Council.

David was born and raised in Kentucky (mostly Henry Co). In his younger years he was involved in Agriculture as a tenant farmer and working out for other farmers in the area. After graduating from Frankfort HS in 1975 he entered the US Army where he worked as an Electronic Technician (primarily in West Germany). This was an opportunity that was otherwise unavailable. No one in his family had ever been to college. This provided insight into a world significantly different from the rural Kentucky he grew up in. After
receiving his discharge, he went to work in Aurora, Illinois (again as an Electronic Technician).

Later he returned to Kentucky and entered Kentucky State University on the GI Bill. Graduating in 1984 with a BS in Marketing he went into Large Business
Communications Infrastructure with AT&T. He also enlisted in the Kentucky Army National Guard for a period of a couple years.

Farming must have been still in his blood since, in 1987, he bought a small farm in Shelby Co. Today he and his wife Susan (also KSU Alum and Oncology Nurse) live on a farm in Shelby County with farms also in Henry Co. They currently own 358 acres in these two counties. A conventional Ag operation (tobacco and beef cattle) started his renewed interest in Farming. Now that has expanded into leasing goats for a browsing operation, sheep under Solar, a Hydroponics and Aquaponics Systems program (selling lettuce to local Schools and fish to local Ethnic markets). He takes a Sustainable view of his Ag operations and Energy, Soil Health, and animal care. Solar Panels provide most
of the Energy needs of his Hydroponic systems, he works with turning waste into compost, and all his animals are always on grass throughout their lives.

On his Farm in Henry Co the Hydroponic Systems must check three boxes. 1) Does his research focus on the issues of does this work on the Farm? 2) Is the operation profitable? 3) Can this provide a Showcase of Opportunities? He continues to look for on-farm ways to 1) reduce inputs, 2) increase profitability, 3) encourage young folks to be engaged in where their food comes from.

Dr. Amanda Gumbert is an Extension Specialist for Water Quality in the Forestry & Natural Resources Department at the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food & Environment (M-G CAFE). She leads a team of extension professionals who provide technical assistance, education, and outreach programs on agricultural water quality issues, conservation practices, and backyard stream stewardship. Amanda attributes her passion for agriculture, conservation, and the natural world to inspirational teachers and growing up on a farm in Robertson County, Kentucky.

Colette is the MS4 Program Manager at Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) working in their Development and Stormwater Services Department. Colette has been an active Innovation Team Member at MSD since its initiation and is passionate about education and outreach both internally and with the public. She is a graduate of Washington State University and has worked in both consulting and state government before coming to work at MSD. Colette is currently the WEF Stormwater Community Second Vice Chair, ASCE Region 4 Governor and the 2026 Infrastructure Report Card Chair.

Brooke Shireman is an Environmental Compliance Manager within the Water Resources Department at Sanitation District No. 1 of Northern Kentucky (SD1).  In this position she oversees the implementation of SD1’s MS4 permit.  Prior to her work at SD1, Brooke worked at the Kentucky Division of Water for almost 10 years as an environmental scientist for Kentucky’s Nonpoint Source Pollution program.

Pete Fingerson is passionate about all things Kentucky, especially the Red River Gorge. He and his wife, Aubrey, moved out to a 42-acre piece of heaven near the Red River Gorge back in 2020. He has served as the Executive Director for the Powell County Tourism Commission since 2023 and also operates the Red River Gorge Visitor Center at Slade. Since his time with the commission, he has made it his personal mission to implement sustainability initiatives wherever possible. He has a deep love for the outdoors and the Red River Gorge in particular, so trying to preserve the integrity and culture of the area is of utmost importance. One of his major accomplishments was getting a 22.5KW solar panel system (and 2 level 2 EV chargers) installed, making Powell County Tourism Commission the only tourism organization in the entire commonwealth to become net zero in terms of energy consumption. He loves hiking, being outside as much as possible, spending time with his wife and cats, playing board games, and Lord of the Rings.

Mark received a B.S. in Anthropology at Northern Kentucky University and his A.A.S. in Recreational & Wildlife Management at Hocking Technical College. With his excellent conservation background, Mark used to work at the Wilds in southeastern Ohio, where he worked on captive breeding and conservation programs from Africa, Asia, and North America! In 2001, he returned to NKY and founded non-profit Wildlife Conservation Kentucky, Inc. and established Split Rock Conservation Park. Mark has worked at the Boone County Conservation District since 2003.

Tresine Logsdon spearheads the SEE KY program in Fayette County Public Schools and supports school-based, student-driven sustainability and energy efficiency projects by working closely with teachers, principals, students and community partners.  She has over 20 years of classroom teaching experience, most recently at Henry Clay High School teaching AP Environmental Science and Biology.  Tresine is married to Matthew Logsdon, a Language Arts teacher at Henry Clay High School, and they have two daughters.

Sustainability and environmental education have been Tresine’s passion since beginning her teaching career.  She is inspired everyday by FCPS teacher leadership and students’ inherent enthusiasm for sustainability, innovative school improvement project ideas, and voracious desire to learn and do more.

Keionna Spalding is a sustainability S.T.E.M. honors: chancellors’ student at Purdue Global University. Involved in college leadership roles, being in two clubs and on the executive board of both while also being her Phi Theta Kappa chapter’s college project coordinator on the executive board as well. Mrs. Spalding currently serves as an Environmental Educator through AmeriCorps in her city’s Metro Waste Management department. With plans to continue her education, she goes forth in aims to ‘mitigate human behavior in favor of the planet.’

Logan Sowell is a development executive with the national non-profit Human-I-T, where he partners with companies to transform retired technology into opportunity. Based in the Louisville region, Logan works with enterprise and mid-market organizations to securely repurpose retired IT assets, helping shrink the digital divide for low-income families, students, veterans, disaster survivors, and the elderly. With a background in sales and bourbon production, he focuses on building strategic partnerships that align sustainability, strict data security, and measurable community impact. Logan is passionate about creating solutions that make it easy for organizations to do good.

Noel Osborn (she/her) is the Director of Development for CivicLex. Holding a degree in Political Science from the University of Kentucky, she has spent most of her career in outreach for political and non-profit organizations. She is deeply interested in protecting the health of our democratic process and enjoys uplifting young leaders. Noel is a graduate of Leadership Lexington and currently serves on the board of the Lexington DiverCity Festival, Keep Lexington Beautiful, and WUKY’s Community Advisory Board. She is a proud alumna of New Leaders Council (NLC) and is an immediate past Co-Director of NLC Kentucky. In her spare time, she enjoys advocating for the Rebel Alliance, spending Delta SkyMiles, and making statements like “Stevie Nicks is a better songwriter than Bob Dylan.”

Ryan Lark is a sustainability professional currently serving as the University of Kentucky’s Zero-Waste Specialist Sr. At this position, Lark oversees UK Recycling, including all operations, education, and outreach, as well as leads the university’s efforts towards becoming a zero-waste campus. Lark’s scope encompass all waste diversion efforts within the university’s campus, Healthcare, Dining, and Athletics.

Chloe Brantley’s professional experience includes water policy and regulation, water resources management, water/wastewater infrastructure, and project interface between federal, state, regional, and local agencies. Chloe has held various roles for URS Corporation in the Western United States, Kentucky Division of Water, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville District. She is currently serving as a source water specialist for Kentucky Rural Water Association and her background is Ecology & Sustainability and Environmental Studies.

Coming Soon!

Coming Soon!

Andrea is the owner of Healing Habitats, a riparian consulting, tree stake nursery, and herbal medicine company located in Salt Lick, KY. In addition, Andrea is the co-chair for the Kentucky River Water Trail efforts. Andrea’s most recent professional experience includes working as the Kentucky River Basin Coordinator with UK’s Kentucky Water Research Institute. Previous to that position, Andrea was involved in monitoring and assessing the success of wetland creation and restoration, stream restoration, and mine land reforestation projects. Her interests lie in creating and improving ecologically functioning habitats to heal all species, including humans!

Valerie Friedmann (she/her), AICP, is Associate Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Trust for Public Land where she leads local policy research and field-building efforts to close the park equity gap. She develops policy frameworks and practical guidance that help local governments align land use, development policy, public investment, and community-centered decision-making to expand access to high-quality parks and the health, climate, and civic benefits they make possible.

Previously, Valerie served as senior long-range planner and green space planner for the City of Lexington and taught landscape architecture at Auburn University. She holds a master’s degree in landscape architecture from the University of Tennessee and lives in Lexington, Kentucky.

Melissa Jørgenrud Helton is Literary Arts Director of Hindman Settlement School, a cultural nonprofit in Knott County, Kentucky. Her work has been published in Shenandoah, Women Speak, Still: The Journal, Anthology of Appalachian Writers, Norwegian Writers Climate Campaign, and more. Her chapbooks include Inertia: A Study (Finishing Line Press), and Hewn (Workhorse), and her first full length collection is A Middle-Aged Woman Rages* (Accents). She is editor of the anthology Troublesome Rising: A Thousand-Year Flood in Eastern Kentucky (University Press of KY) and Untelling, the literary and arts magazine of Hindman Settlement School. Her work has been supported through the Kentucky Foundation for Women, and has been awarded the George Scarbrough Poetry Prize, the Emma Bell Miles Nonfiction Prize, has been nominated for Best of the Net, and was a finalist for the Weatherford Award. She has been honored with the Mildred Haun Award of Excellence and designation as a Kentucky Colonel, and she is a dual citizen in the United Kingdom.