Team Member Group: Staff

Ellie grew up in a suburb of Chicago, where she developed a love for nature, exploring the riparian areas and the forest preserves of Cook County. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Organismal Biology and Ecology from Colorado College in 2023.

After moving to North Carolina for a vegetation monitoring internship with Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Ellie quickly fell in love with the region and transitioned to the nonprofit sector by joining EcoForesters. She believes that people have just as much power to help the environment as we do to harm it—and that through active stewardship, we can begin to heal our ecosystems and our communities. In her role at EcoForesters, she blends education and outreach with hands-on conservation work, helping to share the stories of the forests and the people working to protect them.

Outside of work, you can find her cooking, exploring the outdoors, tackling DIY projects, reading about botany and ecology, dancing to live music, and spending time with friends and family.

Maria hails from the midwest where she was raised in southwestern Ohio and went on to study Natural Resources and Environmental Science at Purdue University. Before moving to the Southeast, Maria spent three years in the Bay Area of California working as a grants specialist for the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority. During this time she managed a wildfire prevention grant program for Marin county residents to utilize on private parcels and wrote grant proposals for landscape-scale wildfire prevention projects. She has been working throughout the Southeast for the past year as a conservation crew leader for American Conservation Experience where she has had the opportunity to implement projects that range from habitat restoration and vegetation management, forest stand improvement work, trail tread construction and improvement, and storm cleanup. In her free time, Maria enjoys hiking and camping, completing home improvement projects, watercoloring, and she is currently working on a camper van conversion.

Born in the coastal town of San Pedro, California, Sal grew up in the city. At 12, he moved to Tennessee and later attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He started college as a Civil Engineer but quickly switched over to Forestry having grown to love the mountains and all things nature. While in college he began to appreciate the complexity of various ecosystems and their dependence on fire. Having graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Forestry, focusing on Restoration and Conservation he immediately went on to pursue his passion for fire. Sal traveled back to his home state to work on a fire crew in Whitethorn, California. After spending the summer fighting fires and getting lost in the Coastal Redwoods, he began to miss the Appalachian Mountains and wanted to return. In the spring of 2024, Sal found EcoForesters and has since made WNC his home. Outside of work, Sal enjoys running further and faster than he should, watching Star Wars, building Legos, eating, and relaxing.

Mia grew up on Louisiana’s coastline, and because of the environmental challenges affecting her home, she developed a deep interest in ecology. She worked as a ranch  hand and trail guide during high school and college, which only encouraged her  longing for a life spent outdoors. She graduated from the University of Louisiana  with her B.S. in Biology, concentrating in Marine Biology, Ecology, and Evolution.  An internship with the Yellowstone Native Fish Conservation Program pushed her to pursue aquatic fieldwork after graduation, so she secured a position tagging  salmon in Northern Idaho. Shortly afterward, the South called her home, and she  began anew in forestry conservation as an EcoForesters restoration technician. In her  leisure time, she enjoys music, creative writing, hiking, kayaking, and cuddling with her cat, Binx.

Michael grew up in Indianapolis, IN and has always been fascinated by the natural world, especially animals. In 3rd grade for a school project he wrote “when I grow up I want to be a conservationist,” probably inspired to do so from watching Steve Irwin and Jeff Corwin nature shows. Growing up in Indiana, his first introduction to invasive plants was managing bush honeysuckle and autumn olive with his Boy Scout troop. He earned a B.S. in Professional Sales and Marketing from Indiana University in 2018, then worked a variety of jobs including English teacher in Thailand, mailing station clerk, substitute teacher, and election technician. Michael finally transitioned to conservation work in 2021, participating in a season of backcountry trail construction in the Adirondack Mountains with the Student Conservation Association. Since then he has committed to conserving and restoring natural spaces for the benefit of everyone, both human and non-human. In his free time, Michael enjoys puttering in the backyard, riding bicycles, volunteering with local organizations, and adventuring with his girlfriend, Morgan, and hound dog, Luna. Among his favorite trees are sycamores and longleaf pines, among his favorite flowers are goldenrods and yarrow.

EcoForesters is lucky to have a gang of dogs to brighten our office! Skipper, Lilah, Lola, and Blue (and sometimes more!) work hard to welcome everyone that comes into the office. Mostly they are just looking for treats, but either way, they make us all feel loved and have a positive impact on the EcoForester’s community. We know they support our mission because one of all their favorite activities outside of the office is going for hikes in the woods!