Elise is our Program Manager and has been with VT UCF since 2012. Raised in Ohio, after college she joined the AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps for a pivotal year of introduction to the country's varying natural landscapes as well as social, economic, and environmental issues. Next, she directed a tree planting program in Camden, NJ before venturing north to pursue her graduate degree from the Rubenstein School of Environment & Natural Resources at the University of Vermont. She is an ISA Certified Arborist, Tree Risk Assessment Qualified, a graduate of the Municipal Forestry Institute, and a Burlington Master Naturalist. When not working Elise can be found in her garden, in the lake (all year round), or with her husband, two children, or the many other good people that fill her life.

Joanne joined the UCF team in the spring of 2017 as the project coordinator for the rural roads portion of the burgeoning Resilient Right-of-Ways project, a state-led initiative focused on assisting municipalities with smart and forward-thinking vegetation management along their roads. Now serving all of the technical needs of communities working with trees in public ways and places, Joanne continues the robust data collection, writing, outreach, and information sharing that the UCF program delivers. Joanne holds a B.Scs. in geology and architecture from McGill University and is a 2015 graduate of the Field Naturalist and Ecological Planning M.Sc. program at the University of Vermont. She is an active fiddler, performing and teaching at dances and festivals throughout New England. And when home, she enjoys the quaint life of downtown Montpelier.

Gwen returned to Vermont to join the VT UCF team as the Education and Outreach Coordinator in May 2015. She completed her undergraduate degree in Natural Resources at UVM. Since then, Gwen has worked throughout New England in the field as a researcher and in communities as an educator. She is passionate about helping connect people to the important natural resources all around us, whether it's an urban park or rural landscape. She was previously the Stewardship & Education Manager at the Lowell Parks & Conservation Trust.

Ginger joined the UCF team as the Forest Pest Education Coordinator in the fall of 2018. Many of Ginger’s fondest memories involve trees and forests – including “running away from home” to sit in the branches of a hemlock in her family’s backyard in Massachusetts. With an undergraduate degree in botany from the University of Wisconsin and a graduate degree in Natural Resource Management Policy and Behavior from the University of Michigan, Ginger has long been fascinated by people’s relationship with plants and the land, and in finding ways to maximize community input in natural resource management decisions. To that end, Ginger spent a number of years after graduate school working for community development and conservation organizations in New England, Appalachia, and Central America. Some of her favorite projects involved training teens in Maine and Nicaragua to interview elders in their communities about how fishing, farming, hunting, and logging had changed over time. Prior to joining the UCF team, Ginger worked for UVM Extension’s Center for Sustainable Agriculture, helping fruit and vegetable farmers with food safety strategies.