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Board of Directors

Douglas Kilgore (he/him)

PRESIDENT

Doug was born and raised in the Connecticut River Valley.  He then traveled west, gathering degrees at Reed College and University of Chicago.   For 20 years he represented janitors and hospital workers as a staff member and elected officer of SEIU Local 6 in Seattle. In 2003 he became the Executive Director of the Worker Owner Council- a Building Trades organization representing interests of workers by engaging companies where pension funds are invested and advocating good corporate governance and fair treatment of workers and suppliers. In 2021 he retired with plans to continue this work as a consultant.

Since 1987 he has lived in Roslyn where he played a leading role in the community organization, RIDGE, prior to its dissolution in 2011.  RIDGE initially focused on reform of Washington forest practice regulations but later turned to land-use and water resource issues in Kittitas County- especially those presented by the development of the Suncadia Resort adjacent to Roslyn. In 2011 RIDGE, Futurewise and the KCCC won a victory at the Washington State Supreme Court that led to a comprehensive settlement of water and land-use regulations in Kittitas County. Between 2014 and 2017 he served on the Roslyn City Council. Doug joined the CELP board in September of 2021.

Steve Robinson (he/him)
VICE PRESIDENT

Steve is the owner of an Olympia-based public relations company which specializes in serving Native American Tribes. He was Public Affairs Manager and Policy Analyst for the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission for 26 years, working closely with the late, great Billy Frank, Jr. He has also worked in corporate public affairs, served as Chief of Public Information and Public Affairs Director for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, Advertising Manager for a major real estate company in Portland, Oregon and worked several years as a daily newspaper reporter.  He is a journalism graduate of the University of Oregon and a veteran of the U.S. Army. He has served as President of the Washington State Information Council, of the Salmon Homecoming Alliance and has been active with numerous other committees and organizations, including the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians and the National Congress of American Indians.  Steve is a board member of Washington Wild, the University of Oregon Climate Change Project and The Sierra Club and adviser to the Pacific Education Institute, the Climate Reality Project, the Olympia Arts & Heritage Program and JRMD (Berundi, Africa Youth School & Orphanage) and the Clearing Environmental Education Magazine Board. He has received numerous awards for journalism and citizenship, ranging from two Emmy Awards for film production to the George Washington Medal of Honor.

Sharon Haensly (she/her)

SECRETARY

Sharon Haensly has represented Native American tribes since 1993, after a few years as an attorney for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  She has a B.S. in Natural Resources from Cornell University and a J.D. from the University of Oregon.  In the early 1990’s Sharon was a staff attorney for the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community.  From 1996-2009, she worked for several Seattle law firms that represent Native American tribes.  From 2009-2022, Sharon served as staff attorney for the Squaxin Island Tribe.  Her practice has covered a wide range of tribal issues with a particular focus on Treaty fishing and shellfish rights protection, including water law and streamflow protection. 

Stephen J. Hirschey (he/him)

TREASURER

Steve been a manager and policy analyst working on many aspects of water resource management across the state over a 33-year career. With the Washington State Department of Ecology, Steve developed and promulgated instream flow rules, and water right administration policies and rules. He spent time managing 22 staff implementing the Water Code and well drilling programs in Ecology’s Bellevue office, and also served as a senior analyst for water resources. With the King County’s Department of Natural Resource and Parks, Steve worked with local land use and water issues including water and land use planning, reclaimed water, asset management, utility wastewater management, and public water service issues. Steve also chaired the King County Utilities Technical Review Committee, tasked with reviewing local utility plans and making recommendations to the King County Council for plan approval. Steve received a B.S. in Natural Sciences from St. John’s University, and his M.S. in Environmental Studies from the Evergreen State College. Steve is married and the father of two children and enjoys snow skiing, hiking, and gardening.

Patrick Williams (he/him)

Patrick is a Seattle-based attorney with a solo practice dedicated environmental, land uses law, and water law. His litigation experience includes challenges to land use decisions and water right permits. He has litigated at all levels; from administrative boards to the State Supreme Court. Prior to opening his practice in 2009, Patrick was staff attorney for the Center for Environmental Law and Policy for three years. During that time he worked on water policy issues including rule making and oversight.

Willie Frank III (he/him)

Willie Frank III is a Nisqually Tribal member who was elected to the Tribal Council at the age of 27, one of the youngest ever members. Today, he serves as chairman, as well as a member of CELP’s board.

A graduate of Evergreen State College with a B.A. in Native Studies, Willie loves working for his people and carrying on his father’s legacy and message. He says, “I believe we need to work toward moving our tribe forward while continuing to protect our treaty rights and tribal sovereignty. I believe that our salmon and natural resources are still the foundation for who we are today”.

Jim Weber (he/him)

Jim has been a policy analyst working on salmon habitat protection on behalf of Pacific Northwest Indian tribes.  Over a 35 year career, Jim worked at the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, the Skagit River System Cooperative, and the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, along with a stint as an in-house attorney for the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation.  Jim has a B.A. from Pitzer College and earned his J.D. from the Northwestern School of Law at Lewis and Clark College.  He is also a member of the Oregon and Washington State Bar Associations. Jim Joined the board in December of 2018.

 

Adriana Maestas (she/her)

Adriana is the daughter of Roberto Maestas, the founder and longtime Executive Director of El Centro de la Raza. Born into a local activist family with strong ties to communities of color and tribal communities in Washington State, Adriana has a long history of social justice activism and advocacy work. She is deeply committed to combatting the climate crisis and environmental and ecological matters, including resource preservation and wildlife protection. Adriana has undertaken pro bono legal work on immigration, child advocacy and voter protection cases. Professionally, Adriana is a banking lawyer with 15 years of experience, currently serving as Senior Legal Counsel for Lloyds Banking Group and Secretary of the North America Executive Committee. Prior to entering private practice, Adriana was a law clerk to Judge Weinberg de Roca at the Appellate Chamber for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in The Hague, Netherlands. Adriana holds a B.A. from Stanford University and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. She is a member of the Washington Bar, the New York Bar and is pending qualification as a solicitor in England and Wales. She is also a member of the Stanford Law School Alumni Executive Committee. Adriana is fluent in Spanish.

Gary Morishima (he/him)

Gary has been the Natural Resources Technical Advisor to the President at Quinault Indian Nation since 1974. He holds a PhD in Quantitative Science and Environmental Management from the University of Washington and is an Affiliate Professor with the University of Washington’s School of the Environment and Forest Sciences. Gary has over 40 years of experience in computer simulation modeling, natural resource management, legislative processes, policy analysis, mathematical statistics, workshop organization and conduct, conflict resolution, and meeting facilitation. Gary is a member of many committees and technical groups including, Pacific Salmon Commission Technical Committees, Washington State Department of Natural Resources Carbon Sequestration Advisory Group, National Congress of American Indians Climate Action Task Force, Chehalis Basin Science Review Team, and more. Gary joined our board in September of 2021.

Scott Schuyler (he/him)

Scott is a member and lifelong resident of the Upper Skagit Tribe; his mother is an Upper Skagit and his late father was Oneida. He attended Skagit Valley College, and took fisheries courses at Evergreen State College, and the University of Washington. Serving as the Natural Resources Policy Representative for his Tribe since 1987, Scott has been instrumental in protecting the Skagit River from mining and other destructive activities. Currently Scott is working with the City of Seattle to restore flows in the 3 mile dewatered stretch of the Skagit River. An avid tribal fisher for over 43 years, Scott is also a proud father of four and grandfather of six.

 

Jean

Jean Melious (she/her)

Jean Melious returned to the board after a brief hiatus. Jean is a lawyer and a professor in the Environmental Studies department of Huxley College of the Environment, Western Washington University. She has practiced land use and environmental law for the past three decades.

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Claire Newman (she/her)

Claire earned her B.A. cum laude in Political Science from Carleton College in 2005, where she studied indigenous peoples’ struggle for land and sovereignty in the United States, Canada, and Russia and the laws and judicial institutions governing them. In 2012, Claire received her J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law where she was the Managing Editor of the Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy. ‘

Claire advises and represents tribal governments on fundamental issues of sovereignty, including the exercising of treaty hunting and fishing rights; federal reserved water rights; alleged waivers of sovereign immunity; tribal governments’ exercise of regulatory and adjudicatory jurisdiction, and the applicability and constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act.

Outside of work, Claire can be found adventuring in the mountains and waterways of the Pacific Northwest with her family, running, traveling, and growing, making, and preserving food from her garden. She most recently served as Chair of the Washington State Indian Law Section f2018-2019) and currently volunteers to improve affordable housing in her community on Vashon Island.

Lori Carpenter (she/her)

(inactive)

Lori is a senior professional wetland scientist, certified by the Society of Wetland Scientists and is an FAA certified unmanned pilot. She has worked extensively as a wetland hydrologist and regulatory scientist within surface waters and the vadose zone in the arid west. Her work focuses on watershed functions of wetland and stream environment zones within aquatic resource delineations and mitigation projects which includes water rights, land use and habitat assessments. She studied surface water hydrology and chemistry at the University of Nevada, Reno and then followed with a Master of Science degree in Hydrology and Hydrogeology assessing climatic conditions that form seasonal wetlands. She utilizes drones with remote sensing to better understand watershed conditions via vegetation and habitat mapping at the field spatial scale, cross referenced with Landsat imagery. Lori joined the CELP board in December of 2021.

 

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