Our People
A small team with a big wingspan.
Meet the staff and board of directors who make conservation fly.
The Roster
The people behind the flights
Meet the staff and board guiding LightHawk’s work and helping turn aviation into conservation impact. Select a photo to learn more.
Conservation Team
Elliott Wright
Chief Executive Officer
Conservation Team
Joanna Weitzel
Chief Advancement Officer
Conservation Team
Jonathan Milne
Program Manager – Eastern Region
Conservation Team
Betsy Daub
Program Manager – Western Region
Conservation Team
Chris Boyer
Program Manager – Northern Rockies
Conservation Team
Brooke George
Program Manager – Wildlife
Conservation Team
Clint Burson
Strategic Communications Manager
Conservation Team
Chelsea Baird
Office Manager
Board of Directors
Kimberly Eckert
Chair, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Benjamin Cohen
Vice Chair, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Chris Lee
Treasurer, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Josh Marvil
Secretary, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Evan Anderman
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Erin Cooke
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Kate Hackett
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Steve Kent
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Alex Polvi
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Erin Manzitto-Tripp
Member, Board of Directors
Board of Directors
Will Worthington
Member, Board of Directors
Position
Chief Executive Officer
Location
Colorado
Conservation Team
Elliott Wright
Elliott brings more than 20 years of conservation and philanthropic leadership to LightHawk. He served for nearly a decade as Executive Director of Hidden Villa, a California land trust and environmental education nonprofit, before becoming Campaign Director at The Nature Conservancy, where he secured more than $32 million to protect landscapes and seascapes across the United States, Palmyra Atoll, the Solomon Islands, eastern Africa, and southeast Asia, including directing the Northern Sierra Partnership, a collaboration among land trusts, Tribes, and government agencies.
Elliott also advises mission-driven organizations including Conservation International and the Honnold Foundation, where he partnered with climber Alex Honnold to help scale solar energy work to 36 countries. A CFRE-certified fundraiser and NOLS faculty member since 2010, he has built his career connecting people to nature through storytelling and experiential learning. He holds a B.S. from Bowdoin College and recently relocated with his family from Palo Alto, California to Boulder, Colorado.
Position
Chief Advancement Officer
Location
South Carolina
Conservation Team
Joanna Weitzel
Joanna is a nonprofit leader with over 20 years of experience in marketing, development, and organizational management, dedicated to expanding the conservation impact of mission-driven organizations. Before joining LightHawk, she served as Director of Philanthropy for Welvista and as Executive Director of two conservation nonprofits, Camp Discovery and Carolina Wildlife Center. She holds an M.B.A. from the University of South Carolina and a B.S. in Marketing from Clemson University.
In her free time, Joanna enjoys birding, hiking, and traveling to new places, and especially treasures time at her family’s cabin in Alaska. She currently resides on Lake Murray in South Carolina with her husband and pets.
Position
Program Manager – Eastern Region
Location
Maine
Conservation Team
Jonathan Milne
Jonathan’s unique blend of conservation expertise and aviation exposure makes him a valuable addition to the LightHawk team. Aviation has been part of his life since childhood, growing up with a father who flew historic aircraft and a brother who served as a USMC helicopter pilot.
Before joining LightHawk, Jonathan spent nearly a decade as a park ranger, first with the BLM in Oregon and later at Maine’s Baxter State Park. Throughout his career, he has contributed to ecological and wetland assessments, easement monitoring for multiple land trusts, and forestry surveys across New England. He holds a B.S. in Recreation and Park Management from the University of Maine and an M.S. in Environmental Science and Conservation Biology from Green Mountain College in Vermont.
Position
Program Manager – Western Region
Location
New Mexico
Conservation Team
Betsy Daub
Betsy has dedicated 35 years to ecological conservation, combining field research with environmental policy and advocacy. Her career spans work with nonprofit conservation organizations and Minnesota’s state natural resource agency, focused on bridging science and policy to protect natural systems across the country. She holds an M.S. in Resource Ecology and Management from the University of Michigan.
In her leisure time, Betsy is a writer and an art enthusiast. She resides in Jemez Springs, New Mexico, where she and her wife are restoring a historic house, and they have two adult children.
Conservation Team
Chris Boyer
Chris is a unique member of the LightHawk team, serving as both a program manager and a volunteer pilot who has been flying conservation missions for more than 20 years. Raised a conservationist, he returned to graduate school at Oregon State University for fluvial geomorphology, where he also discovered he could learn to fly. He now owns Kestrel Aerial Services, an award-winning aerial photography and survey mapping company based in Bozeman, Montana, flying a modified vintage 1957 Cessna 172 he calls “the little Red Plane.” Chris brings that same skill set to LightHawk, applying his background in aerial documentation to conservation missions across the Northern Rockies.
Position
Program Manager – Wildlife
Location
North Carolina
Conservation Team
Brooke George
Brooke brings nearly two decades of wildlife conservation expertise to LightHawk, collaborating with agencies and universities on species management, monitoring protocols, and habitat restoration across the country. Her fieldwork spans coastal Florida to Washington’s Cascade Range, including aerial surveys and working with pilots to capture Rocky Mountain elk.
She holds a degree in Wildlife Biology from Colorado State University. Outside of work, she’s an avid potter and enjoys hiking, kayaking, and camping.
Position
Strategic Communications Manager
Location
Washington
Conservation Team
Clint Burson
Clint brings more than 15 years of communications experience to LightHawk. Before joining, he served as Director of Government Relations and Communications for the Missoula, Montana Chamber of Commerce, where his work ranged from overseeing chamber communications to fostering relationships with elected officials, agency leadership, and economic development leaders. He also spent nearly a decade in media at a daily newspaper in Hamilton, Montana.
Clint has a lifelong connection to aviation, having grown up in the passenger seat of a Mooney with his father at the controls. He volunteers as a board member for EAA 517 and creates the chapter’s monthly newsletter, and learning to fly himself is on his bucket list. In his spare time, Clint enjoys hiking, skiing, fishing, and photography, and spending time with his family.
Position
Office Manager
Location
Colorado
Conservation Team
Chelsea Baird
Chelsea brings an extensive background in development, administration, and finance to LightHawk, along with a personal connection to aviation through her husband, Andy, who is a pilot. She is committed to supporting LightHawk’s mission and bringing her organizational expertise to the work of conservation flying. Outside of work, Chelsea loves being outdoors, backpacking, hiking, fishing, and cooking.
Position
Chair, Board of Directors
Location
Colorado
Board of Directors
Kimberly Eckert
Kimberly brings nearly two decades of experience in finance, investment management, and natural resources. Originally from rural Montana, she earned her MBA from Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business and has worked in New York and Denver across investment banking, energy, and entrepreneurial ventures, including serving as CFO of a geothermal energy startup.
She is passionate about sustainable resource use and community service. In addition to serving on LightHawk’s board, Kimberly volunteers with the International Rescue Committee in Denver, leads the Tuck Alumni Chapter of Colorado, and serves as Treasurer of the Junior League of Denver Foundation.
Position
Vice Chair, Board of Directors
Location
Massachusetts
Board of Directors
Benjamin Cohen
Ben is an attorney based in Atlanta and Boston who brings a lifelong passion for aviation to the LightHawk board — he soloed a glider at 14 and today flies a G36 Bonanza and Citabria, holding tailwheel and seaplane ratings. He joined the board in 2025 after serving as a LightHawk volunteer pilot, bringing a deep commitment to both conservation and aviation safety.
Position
Treasurer, Board of Directors
Location
Indiana
Board of Directors
Chris Lee
Chris Lee brings over 25 years of aviation industry experience to the LightHawk board. His career began in 1998 at Cessna Finance Corporation, where he held various Regional Sales Manager positions based in Kansas, Washington, Massachusetts, and Texas. In 2017, Chris joined SkyVenture International as their Global Vice President of Sales, and in July 2020, he joined the 1st Source Bank Aviation team as Relationship Sales Officer and Vice President, based in Austin, Texas. He now serves as President of the Aviation Division at 1st Source Bank.
An active aircraft owner, Chris is a Commercial Pilot with Instrument, Multi-engine, land, and sea ratings, and holds multiple jet type ratings.
Position
Secretary, Board of Directors
Location
Maine
Board of Directors
Josh Marvil
Josh has worked in environmental consulting and finance across national and international organizations, and currently serves as managing partner of a private investment partnership in Maine. He is a Director of the National Aviation Hall of Fame, a former Chairman of LightHawk, and Chairman Emeritus of the Board of Trustees at the Chewonki Foundation, a nonprofit environmental education institution. Josh received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, his M.S. from the University of Colorado, and his MBA/MAFM from the University of Chicago. He is an instrument-rated commercial pilot who flies a Cirrus SR22.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
Colorado
Board of Directors
Evan Anderman
Evan is a geological engineer and award-winning conservation photographer whose aerial work explores the environment from above, bringing both a technical and artistic perspective to LightHawk’s mission. A Private Pilot since 1987, he flies a Cessna 206 and is experienced in mountain flying across Colorado and New Mexico, and also serves as a LightHawk volunteer pilot.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
California
Board of Directors
Erin Cooke
Erin is San Francisco International Airport’s first Sustainability Director, where she creates, implements, and reports on the airport’s Strategic, Sustainability, Zero Waste, Resilience, and Decarbonization Plans. By brokering high-impact emissions reduction investments within SFO’s $7.8 billion capital program, she has helped the airport cut greenhouse gas emissions by 41%, open its first zero net energy building, ban plastic food ware and water bottles, and become a global leader in Sustainable Aviation Fuel deliveries.
Erin previously served the City of Cupertino as Deputy City Manager, where she helped launch Silicon Valley Clean Energy, a countywide community choice aggregation program. She holds a Master’s in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University, is a LEED AP, and serves on the boards of the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure and the ACI World Environment Standing Committee.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
Tennessee
Board of Directors
Kate Hackett
Kate brings more than 25 years of conservation and nonprofit leadership to the LightHawk board, currently serving as Managing Director of Lands at Ducks Unlimited, where she leads efforts to protect and restore critical landscapes and water resources. Her career includes leadership roles with Delaware Wild Lands, The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Forest Service, and UNICEF, spanning land acquisition, water resource protection, public policy, and strategic communications.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
New York
Board of Directors
Steve Kent
Steve has been involved with the outdoors and aviation from early childhood. He started with Cessna Aircraft Company as an Airframe and Powerplant mechanic with Inspection Authorization, which led to a variety of positions with increasing responsibility, including Propeller, Caravan, and Citation Sales. A highly experienced demonstration pilot, he loves sharing amazing aircraft with prospective owners.
Recently retired from his role as Regional Sales Director for Textron Aviation Propeller Products, serving the Northeast U.S. and Eastern Canada, Steve is an avid seaplane owner and pilot. He previously served as LightHawk’s Board Chair and continues to serve as a volunteer pilot and board member, appreciating the chance to leverage the unique airborne perspective to advance conservation across various watersheds. Steve and his wife, Kristine, reside in southern New York.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
Oregon
Board of Directors
Alex Polvi
Alex Polvi is a technology entrepreneur and pilot based in Bend, Oregon. He co-founded and led two venture-backed infrastructure companies, CoreOS (acquired by Red Hat) and Cloudkick (acquired by Rackspace), and has served on the boards of both nonprofit and private organizations, contributing his flight and technology experience. A certificated flight instructor, Alex flies extensively in the backcountry, mountains, and on the water. He volunteers his flying and mapping skills for conservation, using aircraft and drones to map wild places.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
Colorado
Board of Directors
Erin Manzitto-Tripp
Erin is a research scientist and educator whose work has focused on plant and lichen biodiversity and conservation, both across the United States and internationally, particularly in the Neotropics and Africa. She is an Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Curator of Botany at the University of Colorado-Boulder’s Museum of Natural History. Her research has produced descriptions of hundreds of species new to science, along with checklists documenting what plants grow where, and why, and popular regional field guides.
Erin brings ample board and administrative experience, along with a career of community outreach, to LightHawk. She is also a Commercial Pilot and a first officer with SkyWest Airlines, and volunteers as a LightHawk pilot. For fun, she flies her Cessna Cardinal across the country, exploring, camping, scoping out new airstrips, and collecting plants and lichens to document biodiversity and promote conservation of Earth’s most remarkable biota.
Position
Member, Board of Directors
Location
Arizona
Board of Directors
Will Worthington
Will is the founder and president of Pipetech International, an engineering firm that specializes in testing and failure analysis of water and petroleum pipelines worldwide. He graduated from West Point and was a commissioned officer in the regular Army and Arizona Army National Guard for 30 years. He was an officer with the Army Corps of Engineers with many challenging assignments all over the world, including two years in Vietnam. He supervised the design of a $4.5 billion water project for the Bureau of Reclamation and holds three U.S. patents for pipeline diagnostic test inventions. He has over 4,800 hours as pilot in command and holds commercial pilot and flight instructor certificates. Will is a registered professional engineer in Arizona and California. He is a LightHawk volunteer pilot and received the Spirit of LightHawk award in 2012.
The most important seat is empty.
It’s yours — as a volunteer pilot, a partner, or a supporter of the mission.