Our Mission
“To promote & implement excellence in natural resource, outdoor and environmental education for all Alaskans.”
ANROE collaborates with organizations, agencies, individuals & school districts to provide education resources, training, & networking opportunities about Alaska’s natural resources. Through its newsletter, mailing list & forums, ANROE members share information about environmental education tools, techniques, employment and professional development opportunities. We seek to implement the Alaska Natural Resource and Environmental Literacy Plan. ANROE is funded by memberships, sponsors and grants.
Vision
ANROE envisions a world in which…
- Alaskans of all ages are environmentally literate, lifelong learners who embrace cultural diversity and ecological principles to sustain Earth and all life forces.
- Individuals are linked with the tools to facilitate community-based environmental education programs and investigations of environmental issues.
- Alaskans view environmental education not as a subject area, but as a community-based, hierarchical process of developing six elements: awareness, appreciation, attitudes, ecological understanding, skills, and active stewardship.
- Educators, resources and organizations are linked in a way that builds trust and acknowledges diverse perspectives.
History
In 1984, a group of passionate, mostly part-time or underemployed environmental educators gathered after an Alaska Environmental Assembly meeting in Anchorage. They quickly recognized the need to organize to provide effective environmental education in Alaska.
The founding members developed by-laws and filed for incorporation as a nonprofit organization in 1985 and received approval from the State of Alaska in 1986. ANROE provided the first, and continues to be the only, organized statewide linkage between Alaska natural resource agencies and organizations developing education programs and materials and the teachers and “nonformal” educators who deliver the programs. In 1992, ANROE became the official state affiliate of the North American Association of Environmental Educators.
In 1998, ANROE received 501-c-3 nonprofit status from the Internal Revenue Service. The organization has had paid staff over the years, with the support of capacity-building grants. However, ANROE is primarily run by volunteers. Currently, ANROE is led by an all-volunteer Board of Directors and by committed members of the organization.
Board of Directors
ANROE is led by a board of directors, elected for 3-year terms. During the school year, monthly meetings are held via teleconference. One face-to-face meeting is held each year, usually in the fall.
Board members represent a broad range of professional and educational institutions and interests and provide ANROE with policy direction and guidance. Each board member serves on at least one committee. Committees are: Executive, Networking, Curriculum, Membership, and Training.
Board members support the organization’s mission “To promote & implement excellence in natural resource, outdoor and environmental education for all Alaskans.”
Kari Eschenbacher Young
President
Kari has been a lover of the outdoors since she was a young person growing up in the valley of the Yellowstone River in Montana. This influenced her to pursue her undergraduate degree in Outdoor and Community Recreation. An internship requirement is what led Kari straight to Alaska. She served as an environmental education SCA intern for a science camp hosted by the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge in 2011. This led to Kari becoming a seasonal ranger for the Kodiak NWR for five years where she worked as the camp director for the popular Salmon Camp. Kari has been working for the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council in Anchorage the past couple years as the Environmental Coordinator. In this role, she assists in the organization’s water quality program, environmental technical assistance with Indigenous communities, and environmental education outreach. She enjoys going on adventures with her husband, hiking, camping, birding, baking, and the Christmas holiday.
Veronica Padula (PhD)
Secretary
Veronica is a born and raised Jersey girl. She earned her undergraduate degree in Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology from Columbia University in New York. She discovered her passion for wildlife research during the summer between her junior and senior years, when she was a research intern for Wildlife Trust, investigating the overall health of black-crowned night herons living in the New York Harbor. Her undergrad mentor offered her a position on a project in Alaska the following year, and although she had never really considered Alaska before, she was ready for adventure and accepted the offer. It was perhaps the best decision she could have made, because she has not left Alaska since. In her 10 years since moving to Alaska she has earned her Master’s degree in fisheries and is currently pursuing her PhD. Her Master’s research investigated the genetic relationships of least cisco, a whitefish species that is broadly distributed across Alaska. Her PhD research investigates the impacts of plastic marine debris on food webs in the Bering Sea. She is also currently the Science Education and Communication Specialist for the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island Ecosystem Conservation Office, where she helps coordinate science programs for students. She believes anyone can be a scientist, and she hopes that by spreading her love and passion for all things science, she can make the field more accessible to everyone.
Tyler Katzmar
Treasurer
Tyler grew up in rural Pennsylvania and spent much of his childhood exploring his local forest and playing ice hockey. His connection to the outdoors only deepened when he moved to Alaska in 2009 to attend Alaska Pacific University. While obtaining a Marine Biology degree at APU, Tyler seized every opportunity to explore the terrestrial and marine backcountry. During his college summers, Tyler worked at a non-profit environmental education program serving Alaska Native youth in Homer. Summers “across the bay” awakened the educator in Tyler and his passion for marine biology melded with his desire to educate about the environment. Over the last 11 years Tyler has guided and educated folks all over Southcentral Alaska and the desert Southwest. Tyler currently works as a STEM Educator for the Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP) in Anchorage. He enjoys gardening, fishing, skiing, boating, and taking long dog walks with his wife and their pup, Junebug.
Tracy Wirak-Cassidy
Board Member
Tracy grew up hiking and exploring the Montana wilderness. She knew from an early age that she wanted to work with children and when she attended the University of Montana she pursed a degree in Elementary Education and Environmental Studies. She spent many summers working at outdoor education facilities including; the Teton Science School, Montana Natural History Center and the Glacier Institute. After completing her first teaching position in Montana she hopped on her bike and pedaled to Alaska with her sister. She fell in love with Haines, Alaska and founded a place-based summer camp, Haines Science Camp which she ran for 3 years before handing off the camp to a local museum and beginning a teaching position at the Haines School. Eventually, the pull to be working with kids outdoors drew Tracy out of the classroom and back into the environmental education field. She currently works for Takshanuk Watershed Council as the Education Coordinator. She provides watershed education to preschool through high school aged students in Haines, Klukwan, and Mosquito Lake.
Shannon Moore
Board Member
Shannon hails from Alabama, but has lived in Homer, AK since her fateful 2 month job commitment in early 2018. Growing up in Alabama, she spent many happy hours exploring the wild corners of her backyard and hiking with her family. She discovered environmental education soon after college, and worked at environmental centers in both Alabama and Argentina before heading up to Homer for a seasonal position with Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies. She quickly fell in love with Alaska, and now works with Coastal Studies as the School Program and Peterson Bay Field Station Coordinator, organizing and leading programs that explore the biodiversity of Kachemak Bay. She harbors a persistent travel bug and enjoys dabbling in photography, backpacking, and music, particularly when she has a violin to play.
In addition, the following educators serve as advisers to the ANROE Board of Directors:
- Molly Gillespie – Forestry Education Technician, Wasilla Soil and Water Conservation District
and Project Learning Tree Coordinator.
- Brenda Duty – Project WILD and Youth Education Coordinator for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Wildlife Conservation Division and past ANROE board President
- Robin Dublin– Alaska Department of Fish & Game
- Cathy Rezabeck– Retired USFWS Regional Conservation Education Coordinator & currently ANROE Special Projects Manager.
- Susan Rogers– Retired Science Teacher & Former Statewide Project Learning Tree Coordinator
- Kristen Romanoff– Statewide Wildlife Education & Outreach Coordinator, Alaska Department of Fish & Game
- Peter Stortz– Retired Associate Professor, Extension 4-H Fisheries and Natural Resources Specialist, Alaska Cooperative Extension Service