STAFF
Theo Eliezer (Executive Director) traveled the world with her mother Michele throughout her formative years, settling in New Orleans in 1999. Her childhood experiences as a member of an array of communities sparked her life-long interest in community dynamics within environmental contexts. This passion led her to embark on anthropological research projects in China and Morocco. Her experiences and education formed her interdisciplinary studies major: International Traditions of Healing and corresponding thesis entitled Jnun, black magic, and healing in Morocco. Theo received her B.A. from Warren Wilson College, which is nationally recognized for its student training and work in the environmental conservation, community sustainability, and renewable energy sectors. While a student at the college, Theo managed a medicinal herb garden, led workshops, and designed volunteer projects. After only three weeks of evacuation from New Orleans due to hurricanes Katrina and Rita, she returned to the city resolved to contribute to the rebuilding process. To make her efforts most effective, Theo researched the environmental conditions of present-day New Orleans and how practical phytoremediation and bioremediation projects can restore soil quality. Theo finds Replant New Orleans to be an ideal fit for her sensibilities as an active environmentalist and a long-time resident of New Orleans.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Kristen Hite (Board of Directors) works for the international program of Environmental Defense Fund. She previously worked in New Orleans for the U.S. government while moonlighting as a piano player in the French Quarter. A founding member of SustainUS, Kristen has been a spokesperson for international youth during UN negotiations and chaired the peace working group. While in law school, she was an editor of the Georgetown International Environmental Law Review and co-organized a symposium on the environmental impacts of war. Kristen is a graduate of Wofford College (B.S. biology, B.A. Spanish) and the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador (M.S. gestión ambiental/environmental management). She hails from southern Appalachia and loves bluegrass music and the mountains.
Amy Jenkins (Board of Directors) is a long term New Orleans resident dedicated to creating awareness about Permaculture and sustainability. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from the University of New Orleans, and her Permaculture Design Certification from Ecocentro IPEC, Pirenopolis, GO – Brazil. She also studied Bioconstruction – building with sustainable materials such as cob, adobe, brick, ferrocement, recycled materials, bamboo, and wood – at Ecocentro IPEC. Her research and professional experience has included: invasive species research; soil, air and water sampling; environmental impacts of hurricanes on wetland habitats; hazardous materials recovery and remediation in wetlands; environmental restoration planning; wetland determination; wind farm construction oversight in wetlands; wind farm construction monitoring regarding Stormwater Pollution Protection Plans; and heavy equipment use in wetlands. She has worked with various levels of Federal and State government along with many non-profits to achieve environmentally ethical solutions to large and small scale issues. Amy promotes globally sustainable solutions for recovery and rebuilding New Orleans.
Hillary Strobel (Board of Directors) earned a Master's Degree in Social Science: Interdisciplinary Studies, from San Francisco State University before moving to New Orleans in 2006. She also holds certification from the San Francisco Department for the Environment as an Organic Gardening and Composting Educator, and has given numerous workshops to the public on organic gardening techniques and compost. She founded Replant New Orleans in the spring of 2006 to help address the elevated levels of toxins that were found on a city-wide level following the flooding, to build healthy soils through the use of compost and other organic soil amendments, and to plant as many trees as possible to replace those lost in the storm. Hillary is the founder and principle consultant for Elasticity Consultants, which focuses on appropriate technology use and development, as well as free exchange of information and ideas to affect positive action in these ever-changing times. She is a passionate lover of the ecosystem, and especially of lush, healthy, and sustainable urban environments.
