Board of Trustees
- David Epstein, President
- Eric Stiles, 1st Vice President
- Michele Byers, 2nd Vice President
- John Thonet, Treasurer
- Michael Keady, Secretary
- Sandy Batty
- Tina Bologna
- Cynthia Ehrenclou
- Lawrence S. Fox
- James Gilbert
- Michael Henderson
- Christine Hepburn
- Mike Herson
- Ted Koven
- Tom Koven
- Dennis Miranda
- Maureen Ogden
- Laura Oltman
- Dave Pringle
- Jeff Tittel
- John Ursin
David Epstein is the President of Morris Land Conservancy. He currently serves on the Board of the Highlands Coalition and as Secretary for the Coalition for Conservation, and is a former Trustee of Morris Tomorrow. He also served on Governor McGreevey’s Highlands Task Force and the Garden State Preservation Trust, was President of the Environmental Fund for New Jersey, and was a founding Trustee of the Garden State Environet. David lives in Ramsey.
Eric Stiles is Vice President of Conservation and Stewardship at the NJ Audubon Society. His over 13 years of environmental and conservation experience include working as a senior zoologist at the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife, and earning a Masters of Science in Ecology and Evolution at Rutgers. He currently serves on the Board of the Highlands Coalition. Eric lives in Bernardsville.
Michele Byers is the Executive Director of the New Jersey Conservation Foundation. She currently serves as Advisor to the Hunterdon Land Trust Alliance, and on the Boards of the Highlands Coalition and the Center for Non-Profit Corporations. She has also served as Vice Chair of the State Planning Commission and on Governor McGreevey’s Highlands Task Force, was a former President of the Whitesbog Preservation Trust, former Chair of New Jersey’s Freshwater Wetlands Mitigation Council, and previously served on the Burlington County Agriculture Development Board. Michele lives in Pennington.
John Thonet is the President of Thonet Associates, Inc., an environmental planning and design consulting firm. He is a licensed Professional Engineer and Professional Planner and has had over 25 years of experience working in the NJ Highlands. He serves on the Board of the New Jersey Environmental Lobby, as well as Herley Industries, Inc., a manufacturer of defense components. John lives in Pittstown.
Michael Keady is President of Friends of Holland Highlands, a citizens group that he founded in Holland Township in order to oppose growing suburban sprawl in the community. Recently retired after nearly 30 years in AT&T’s Public Relations Department, he has applied his writing, media relations and community organizing skills to stopping developments that threatened C-1 streams in Holland. Originally from the Boston area, he received his undergraduate degree from Boston College and a Masters in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mike lives in Holland Township.
Sandy Batty is the Executive Director of the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC). Previously, Sandy was ANJEC’s Assistant Director, editor of the quarterly ANJEC Report and supervisor of ANJEC publications. She is a current member and former Chair of the Mountain Lakes Planning Board, was a member of the Environmental Commission, and was elected to two terms on the Borough Council. She also serves on the Board of the Highlands Coalition. Sandy lives in Mountain Lakes.
Tina Bologna is the Executive Director of the Harding Land Trust. She has over fifteen years of environmental experience with an emphasis in watershed planning, municipal programs, and environmental communications. She has served on the Boards of ANJEC and Garden State Environet, the Byram Township Environmental Commission, and several other municipal environmental committees and programs. Tina lives in Morristown.
Cynthia Ehrenclou became the Executive Director of Upper Raritan Watershed Association in February 2006, after over twelve years as the Association’s Development Director. She oversees all operations and program areas including a growing land preservation program. She established URWA’s Education and Outreach Program for children throughout the region and founded Wake Up Call, an environmental informational breakfast series for municipal leaders. She serves on the NJ Land Trust Council, Raritan Basin Watershed Alliance Steering Committee and is a member of Leadership New Jersey’s Class of 2007. Cindy lives in Bernardsville.
Lawrence S. Fox is President of Fox Valve Development Corp., an aerospace and flow controls engineering and manufacturing company located in Dover. He has a BSE in Mechanical Engineering from Princeton University and is interested in land use advocacy. He previously served on the Board of the New Jersey Conservation Foundation and currently serves on the Small Business Council of the Federal Reserve Bank of NY. Larry lives in Harding Township.
James Gilbert is a Senior Vice President at Merrill Lynch. He was the first Chairman of the NJ State Planning Commission and helped author the State Development and Redevelopment Plan. He also was instrumental in drafting the NJ Fair Housing Act. He serves on the Boards of New Jersey Conservation Foundation, New Jersey Planning Officials, Community Theatre (Morristown), New Jersey Future, and New Jersey Common Cause. Jim lives in Morristown.
Michael Henderson is a historian and a cultural resource specialist in American social history, material culture and decorative arts. He is a former superintendent of Morristown National Historical Park. He previously served on the Board of the Olana Partnership, currently serves on the Board of the Glen Alpin Conservancy, and is Secretary of the Morris County Historic Trust. Michael lives in Bedminster.
Christine Hepburn is a former social psychology professor, published author, and scientific researcher. She has served on the Boards of Great Swamp Watershed Association, Morris Land Conservancy, Morris Tomorrow, and Unity Charter School. She founded Madison Matters, was the first Chair (currently Vice-Chair) of the Madison Open Space, Recreation and Historical Preservation Advisory Committee, and is a member of Madison’s Planning Board and the Environmental Commission.
Mike Herson, a self-employed business consultant, serves on the Executive Committee of the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club, is the SC Highlands Issues Coordinator, and is Co-Chair of the SC North Jersey Group. He was a founding Trustee of Hackensack Riverkeeper, Inc., and currently serves on the open space committee of WMA5 and on the NJ Meadowlands Commission Renewable Energy Task Force. He lives in Oradell, where he served three years as Chair of the Environmental Committee, and was formerly Cross Acceptance Plan Representative, Municipal Stormwater Management Coordinator and a Planning Board member.
Ted Koven has a background in conservation, local governance, land acquisition and farming. He is a founder and former president of the Tewksbury Land Trust. He previously served on the Tewksbury Township Committee and is a former Mayor of Tewksbury. He has also served on the Boards of the Newark Museum, NJ Audubon Society and Upper Raritan Watershed Association. Ted lives in Lebanon.
Tom Koven is a member of the Musconetcong Mountain Conservancy, an organization formed to promote the preservation of New Jersey Highlands and surrounding environs. He is also a Sea Captain, international traveler and grassroots activist, and has been very active in land preservation activities. He previously served on the Bethlehem Township Environmental Commission, was Chair of the Bethlehem Township Open Space Committee, and was the liaison for the Spruce Run Initiative for Bethlehem Township. Tom lives in Hampton.
Dennis Miranda is Executive Director of the Rahway River Association, and the owner of Go Native, a nature tour company. He sits on the Hanson Park Conservancy Board of Trustees. He was the recipient of the 2004 New Jersey Audubon Society’s Richard Kane Conservation Award. He previously served as the Chair of the Northwest Jersey Group of the Sierra Club. He is also founder and former Vice Chair of the Highlands Coalition, a former Board member of the Palisades Nature Association, former Board member and Vice President of the Fyke Nature Association, former Board member and President of the Vernon Civic Association, founder and former chair of the Camden Greenways Working Group, and founder and former chair of the Arthur Kill Coalition. Currently, Dennis lives in Vernon where he is Cub Scout Den Leader.
Maureen Ogden has more than 30 years of public service experience and environmental leadership. She currently serves on the Boards of the New Jersey Conservation Foundation and the Highlands Coalition, and as Vice Chair, Energy, National Legislative Affairs Committee, Garden Club of America. She is a former member and past Chair of the Garden State Preservation Trust, and is a former member of the N.J. Committee of the Regional Plan Association. She is also a former member of the New Jersey General Assembly and Chair of the Environment Committee, and former Mayor of Millburn and Chair of its Environmental Commission. Maureen lives in Short Hills.
Laura Oltman is a member of the Newman & Oltman Guitar Duo and teaches at the Princeton University Department of Music. She is a member of the Phillipsburg Riverview Organization’s (PRO) Pohatcong Projects Committee and has served on the Township of Pohatcong Open Space Committee. She is also the Management Coordinator of PRO’s Pohatcong Grasslands Eastern Tallgrass Prairie Bird Sanctuary, Founding Director of the Raritan River Music and Artists-in-the-Community Cultural Outreach Program, and Founding Director of the New York Guitar Seminar at Mannes International Festival. Laura lives in Pohatcong.
Dave Pringle is the Campaign Director for the New Jersey Environmental Federation and has 18 years of experience as an environmental advocate working at the local, state and federal levels. Previously, he served on the Board of the Highlands Coalition, where he was a Vice President of the New Jersey State Committee and Co-Chair of the Legislative Committee. He is currently a Trustee of Consumers for Civil Justice, and the Assembly Speaker’s public appointee to the Drinking Water Quality Institute, where he is the Chair of the Health Committee. Dave lives in Cranford.
Jeff Tittel is Director of the New Jersey Chapter of the Sierra Club and is a prominent environmental leader in New Jersey. He co-founded Skylands CLEAN, and was instrumental in forming the Highlands Coalition. He currently serves on the Boards of the Highlands Coalition and Work Environmental Council, and is a member of the Environmental Summit. Jeff lives in Lambertville.
John E. Ursin, Esq. is a partner at the law firm Daggett, Kraemer, Eliades, Kovach & Ursin in Sparta. His practice includes litigation, substantial transactional matters, land use, and municipal law, and he was recently named to the New Jersey Law Journal’s list of Top 40 Lawyers in Jersey under 40 years old. He is currently the Municipal Attorney for the Borough of Hopatcong, secretary of the Sussex County Bar Association and vice chairman of the District X Fee Arbitration Committee. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Project Self Sufficiency and the Advisory Board of Birthhaven. John lives in Byram.