2012 Clean Lakes Alliance Community Board of Directors
Upcoming Agendas
About the Board
The Community Board of Directors is a composition of stakeholders, business people, and experts with a common goal to advance the Clean Lakes Initiative within the Yahara Watershed. The board will review the path and progress of the overall Clean Lakes Initiative including project prioritization, funding and execution.
Our diverse, talented and accomplished Community Board of Directors is dedicated to one common goal: Advancing the Clean Lakes Initiative within the Yahara River Watershed. Period.
We are pursuing such a singular focus because the economic, health and quality-of-life benefits of having clean lakes are almost innumerable. But none of them can be realized until the watershed is protected and until the lakes and waterways it nourishes are clean.
We invite you to meet the people committed to seeing that this goal is met. They’re the ones who, on behalf of the Clean Lakes Alliance, are working to review the path and progress of the Initiative, raising needed funds, and helping to guide the priority-setting, funding and execution of this vital and timely project.
Community Board Leadership Team
| Community Board Chair | Michael Gerner CLA Board of Directors Lake Mendota Representative |
| Community Board Vice Chair |
John Kothe Owner of Kothe Real Estate Partners Clean Lakes Alliance Board of Directors Business Community Representative |
| Co-Chair of the Clean Lakes Festival |
Jacci Meier Clean Lakes Alliance Board of Directors Administrator, Baird & Associates |
| Clean Lakes Alliance Outreach Committee Chair |
Brennan Nardi Editor of Madison Magazine Communications Representative |
| Clean Lakes Alliance Nominating Committee Chair | Bob Sorge Vice President of Madison Community Foundation Regional Representative |
Stakeholder Representatives
| Business Community | Dave Lumley CEO at Spectrum Brands |
| Business Community | John Kothe President of Kothe Real Estate Partners |
| Business Community | Kristin Kirkconnell Senior Vice President at American Family Insurance |
| Business Community | Randy Peterson Vice President Engineering and Corporate Services and Sustainabilty at Lands’ End |
| Business Community | Tim Metcalfe President at Metcalfe’s |
| Friends Group | Jim Lorman Professor at Edgewood College |
| Lake Business | Tyler Leeper Owner of Wingra Boats |
| Recreational | Chris Clark Head Coach of Men’s Crew University of Wisconsin – Madison |
| Mad-City Ski Team | Russ Tieman President of Mad-City Ski Team |
| Yahara Lakes Association Representative | Dick Adler President |
| Farm Representative | Jeff Endres Owner at Endres Berry Ridge Farm |
Geographical Representatives
| Monona | Bob Miller Mayor of Monona |
| Mendota | Michael Gerner Consultant at Michael S. Gerner CPA |
| Waubesa | Louisa Enz Realtor at Stark |
| Regional | Bob Sorge Vice President, Strategic Partnerships at Madison Community Foundation |
| Kegonsa | Bryon Thompson Executive Vice President of TermSync |
| Wingra | tbd |
| Cherokee Marsh | tbd |
| Rock County | tbd |
| Columbia County | tbd |
Government/Municipality Representatives
| Dane County Towns Association | Lyle Updike Board Member at Dane County Towns Association |
| Dane County Executive Designee | Dave Merritt Policy and Program Development at Dane County |
| Dane County Office of Land and Water Resources | Kevin Connors Director at Dane County |
| State of Wisconsin, DNR | Lloyd Eagan Director at State of Wisconsin |
| Lake and Watershed Commission | Melissa Mallot Chairman at Lakes and Watershed Commission |
| City of Madison Mayor Designee | Katie Crawley Assistant to Madison Mayor Liaison to Public Works (including Parks, Streets and Storm Water Utility) |
| Madison Metropolitian Sewerage District (MMSD) | D. Michael Mucha Chief Engineer and Director |
| USGS Wisconsin Water Science Center | tbd |
Talent/Knowledge Representatives
| Engineering | Lars Barber Principal at Baird |
| Technology | Tom Groth Global Director at ThermoFischer |
| Communications | Brennan Nardi Editor at Madison Magazine |
| Enviromental Advocacy | Jim Welsh Executive Director of the Natural Heritage Land Trust |
| Law | Brian Potts Senior Counsel, Foley & Lardner LLP |
| Science | tbd |
| UW Extension | tbd |
Community Board Member Bios
Community Board Leadership Team
Michael Gerner Community Board Chair
CLA Board of Directors
Lake Mendota Representative
Michael Gerner lives on the north shore of Lake Mendota with his wife and their four children. Because his kids enjoy summer and winter recreation, Mike says his family uses the lake year-round. They boat on it, ski on it, sail on it, skate on it. And protecting the Yahara River Watershed is the best way Mike knows to protect the lake that he and his family love.
Through his efforts on our Community Board of Directors, Mike is not only helping improve our lakes, he’s also adding to his already extensive record of community engagement. A CPA and the managing partner of the Madison office of Grant Thornton, Mike served a six-year term on the board of the United Way, as well as a five-year term on the Blackhawk Country Club board. He is a past president of the Yahara Lakes Association, and served on the executive committee of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce.
John Kothe Community Board Vice Chair
Owner of Kothe Real Estate Partners
Clean Lakes Alliance Board of Directors
Business Community Representative
John Kothe has plenty of family and work reasons for wanting to help clean up the Dane County lakes. First, his wife and their three daughters are involved in the Mad-City Ski Team, and John estimates that his family spends 150 days a year on our lakes.
Second, as a veteran of the areas commercial real-estate industry, John knows the important role lakes play when companies decide to locate in Madison.
One of the selling points of Madison is outdoor recreation,he explains.If the lakes are not clean one of our biggest attractions turns from a positive to a negative, and that hurts not only the marketability of Madisons commercial real estate but also local companies ability to attract and retain world-class talent.
Currently the owner of Kothe Real Estate Partners, John has a long history of success in working with commercial leasing. He previously served as the chief operating officer for T.Wall Properties here in town, and he managed a variety of Chicago properties for companies in Chicago. Now, he says, he is committed to helping our Community Board of Directors preserve and restore one of Madisons best business-recruiting tools.
Jacci Meier - Co-Chair of the Clean Lakes Festival
Clean Lakes Alliance Board of Directors
Administrator, Baird & Associates
Jacci Meier has been involved with the Clean Lakes Festival since its inception and serves as the Festivals representative on our Community Board of Directors. I am so excited about how the Festival has grown and that the Clean Lakes Alliance has come about as a result, she says.
An administrative assistant with W.F. Baird & Associates, Jacci grew up next to Lake Michigan. So she loves living in Middleton, where the lakes mean there’s always water nearby. But, with a husband on the Mad-City Ski Team and a preschool-aged daughter who wants to play at the beach, Jacci is concerned about the quality of that water.
Our lakes are such an amazing resource, she says, but it’s getting to the point where we can’t use them the way we want to.
In the Alliance, Jacci sees an organization ready to tackle the big problems facing Dane County lakes.
It’s such a good mix of all the right people and all the right organizations and groups. There are so many facets to cleaning up our lakes that getting it all under one umbrella will help us make progress,†she says.
Brennan Nardi CLA Outreach Committee Chair
Editor of Madison Magazine
Communications Representative
Brennan Nardi brings the perfect insider/outsider perspective to our Community Board of Directors. She grew up in Virginia, spent summers in northern Wisconsin, and earned her Masters in Journalism and Mass Communications from UW-Madison. Today she is the editor of Madison Magazine, which has earned more than two dozen press club awards and three national journalism awards. Not coincidentally, Brennan was named Editor of Year in 2007 by the Milwaukee Press Club.
She joined our Community Board of Directors to lend both the magazines support and her own efforts to help improve the lakes.
CLA’s efforts perfectly align with and complement Madison Magazine’s mission to inform, entertain and affect positive change in our community, she says. As a clearinghouse for ideas, information and solutions*and as host of a terrific public celebration and demonstration of our most precious natural resource*CLA will succeed in knitting the right groups together for positive, attainable results.
Bob Sorge CLA Nominating Committee Chair
Vice President of Madison Community Foundation
Regional Representative
Bob Sorge is known from his successful 15-year tenure as executive director of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra. Not as many people know, though, that Bob has had a hand in many of Madison’s other public endeavors. So it’s appropriate that his current title at the Madison Community Foundation is Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, because forming partnerships and leveraging their value for the betterment of all involved is a theme throughout Bob’swork.
In addition to his work on our Community Board of Directors, for example, Bob also serves on the boards of the Greater Madison Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Spirit of Greater Madison. And he volunteers with the American Red Cross, belongs to the Nature Conservancy, and is a past president and two-time Paul Harris Fellow with the Rotary Club of Madison.
The Clean Lakes Alliance serves as an intersection for many different interests, Bob says. He cites the lakes as a critical asset to the quality of life and economic development of the Madison area. Bob is a member of the steering committee of the new Madison Cultural Plan, of which the lakes play a key role.
There are several efforts afoot to provide greater public access to our lakes, but they must be clean for people to want to use them, he says.
Strategic Direction Committee Chair – TBA
Fundraising Committee Chair – TBA
Yahara Pride Farm Conservation Task Force – TBA
Stakeholder Representation
Dave Lumley – Business Community Representative
CEO of Spectrum Brands
Dave Lumley is president/CEO of Spectrum Brands, a $3.1 billion consumer-brands company with products in stores all over the world. He and his family live on a Madison lake, so he has seen for himself the year-after¬-year decline in water quality that concerns everyone at the Clean Lakes Alliance. When the company headquarters moved here recently, Dave had yet another reason to be conscious of the state of our lakes.
Our lakes are a major draw and we want to help clean them up, he says. The key here is to make people aware of the situation, give them a simple path, regardless of time and raise money to keep it going.
Dave says that when he attended last year’s Clean Lakes Festival and learned about what the Alliance was trying to accomplish, he knew he wanted to participate. Now Spectrum Brands sponsors Alliance events. And Dave shares his time, leadership and passion for our lakes as a member of our Community Board of Directors
John Kothe – Business Community Representative
President of Kothe Real Estate Partners
Kristin Kirkconnell -Business Community Representative
Senior Vice President at American Family Insurance
Kristin Kirkconnell brings high-level executive and information-services experience to our Community Board of Directors. She is the senior vice president of information services for American Family Insurance and previously served as the chief information office and senior vice president of information services for Atlanta-based AGL Resources, Inc.
It was information about the deteriorating quality of Dane County lakes, though, that led Kristin to our board.
I am particularly concerned about the health of our lakes and want to help find ways to reduce polluted runoff and other elements that threaten the health quality of our lakes, she explains. I think it is important to preserve our natural resources and sustain our environment.
Kristin cites a variety of reasons for feeling passionately about preserving Dane County’s lakes. They contribute to our quality of life, providing us a place to relax and restore in solitude or a place to enjoy as families and communities, she says. I also think it’s important to maintain our lakes to help our tourist economy here.
Randy Peterson -Business Community Representative
Vice President at Land’s End Inc.
Randy Peterson leads sustainability efforts for Lands End, a company that takes the concept so seriously that it’s part of his official title: Vice President of Engineering, Corporate Services and Sustainability. He’s been with Lands End for 13 years, and before that he held engineering, project management and corporate leadership roles with companies such as Sperry, Northrop Grumman, and McDonnell Douglas.
Randy’s experience is one reason why we are so pleased to have him on our Community Board of Directors. Thanks to his background, hes a big-picture expert who knows that details and logistics can make or break the best-laid plans. His commitment to cleaning up our lakes is another reason. As a recreational user of Lake Mendota and other lakes in the area, Randy knows the water quality needs to be improved.
My hope is that through the work of the Alliance we can make changes that will have a long-term positive effort on our lake system for all to benefit, he says.
Tim Metcalfe -Business Community Representative
President & Co-Owner of Metcalfe’s Market
Tim Metcalfe believes in community service. He says it’s a belief passed down from his late father, Tom: We are responsible for the welfare of the communities in which we live, work and play, is how Tim explains it.
Today, as president and co-owner of Metcalfe’s Market, Tim translates his words into action by serving on the advisory boards of the American Family Children’s Hospital and the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce. He also organizes the World’s Largest Brat Fest, which raises nearly $100,000 each year for worthy causes while simultaneously kicking off Madison’s outdoor party and grilling season. And, of course, he serves on our Community Board of Directors.
In high school I skied almost every day on Lake Monona, Tim says. I have a great passion for the quality of our lakes and for creating opportunities for access for all as I feel they are one of our biggest economic catalysts as Madison looks to the future.
Jim Lorman -Friends Group Representative
Professor at Edgewood College
Jim Lorman is a professor at Edgewood College who specializes in watershed management. For that, alone, he would be a valuable addition to our Community Board of Directors. But for Jim, specializing has meant decades of teaching and research, coupled with service on nearly water-related board and committee in the area. Friends of Lake Wingra, the Dane County Lakes & Watershed Commission, and the Yahara Lakes Legacy Partnership have all benefited from Jim’s leadership and support.
Jim’s official title is Professor of Biology. He is also the Academic Program Director of the Sustainability Leadership Graduate Program at Edgewood, and he has taught natural science, biology and interdisciplinary environmental studies for 28 years. Now his expertise and dedication to community involvement and sustainable waterway management also help guide the policies and efforts of the Clean Lakes Alliance.
Tyler Leeper -Lake Business Representative
Owner of Wingra Boats
Tyler Leeper used to work at Wingra Canoe & Sailing Center. That was before he bought the company and expanded it from eight to 33 employees and opened a second location. Now, every year, more than 20,000 people get out and enjoy an hour or a day on the water, thanks to Wingra Boats.
So you can bet he noticed what it did to his business when poor water quality closed Vilas Beach for days on end in 2006 and again last year.
I felt the impact immediately, Tyler says. Wingra Boats revenue decreased by 30 percent.
Need proof that clean lakes are an economic engine in our community? There is Exhibit One.
Since then Tyler has been on a mission to build awareness of the importance of clean lakes. He created an education station at each Wingra Boats rental locations. His company partnered with Edgewood College to offer a three-credit graduate course about the Wingra Watershed. This year, Wingra Boats also offers free weekly educational workshops. And, of course, Tyler has brought his substantial organizing and fundraising skills to a seat on our Community Board of Directors.
Chris Clark -Recreational Representative
Head Coach Men’s Crew at University of Wisconsin – Madison
Chris Clark has spent more time on more bodies of water than anyone we know. He is not only the hugely successful head coach of the UW-Madison’smen’s rowing program, he has also coached American teams at the World Championships, the Pan American Games and the U.S. Olympics. He spent his college years rowing at Stanford University and the University of California and won three Pacific Coast Championships. He competed across the pond (though presumably he didn’t actually row to get there) for Oxford University. Since 1979, Chris has rowed and medaled in regattas in 10 countries.
Clearly, he could coach anywhere. But Chris has been leading the Badgers to championship after championship since 1994. Which is why the health of Dane County’s lakes are so important to him.
“I have spent an enormous amount of time on Lake Mendota since my arrival in Madison in 1994. During that period, the water quality has eroded significantly,” he says. No pun intended, but as a rowing coach and as a concerned citizen, I know how important it is that we all pull together to save our lakes.
Russ Tieman - Mad-City Ski Team Representative
President of Mad-City Ski Team
Russ Tieman is president of the Mad-City Ski Team, and that’s just one reason he spends every spare minute on Lake Mendota. He also grew up waterskiing on all of Madison’s lakes and hanging out at his parent’s summer boathouse on the Middleton shores of Lake Mendota. And now he lives on the Belle Isle channel of Lake Monona.
“I wouldn’t live in Madison if it wasn’t for the lakes,” he says simply.
Russ is a financial advisor and registered representative with Kelly Financial, a Madison company specializing in retirement plans and life insurance. When he’s not working, though, Russ is waterskiing. He recently traveled to China with his team and yes, of course, he skied.
His passion for the lakes brought Russ to our Community Board of Directors, because he has seen first-hand the need to preserve and enhance Madison’s greatest natural resource.
“My hope is that we will bring more awareness about the condition of the lakes so that we can also bring additional dollars in to help clean up the lakes,” he says.
Dick Adler – Yahara Lakes Representative
President
Jeff Endres – Farm Representative
Owner at Endres Berry Ridge Farm
Geographic Representatives
Bob Miller – Lake Monona Representative
Mayor of Monona
Bob Miller is well known for his service on the boards of many Madison-area professional, community and civic organizations*all of which are better for his leadership. He’s a past chairman of the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, for example, and a past board president of the Yahara Lakes Association, the Madison Boychoir, and CTM Madison Family Theatre. He has also served on the Urban League of Greater Madison Executive Committee and on the Board of Trustees for the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art.
No wonder Madison Magazine dubbed him “the top draft pick” of area cultural and service groups and noted that Bob is connected, creative and committed to making Madison better. We couldn’t agree more with that assessment, which is why we are so pleased that he is a member of our community board of directors.
Bob is currently the mayor of Monona. He is also the owner of Compound Profit-Wisconsin, and the sales director of General Communications, Inc. He is the former chief operating officer of a statewide multimedia production company and was the vice president and general manager of WKOW-TV for nearly a decade. A graduate of the UW School of Journalism & Mass Communication, Bob also worked as a television reporter in a number of markets.
“Having spent much of the last 10 years working and volunteering on Yahara lake issues, I was pleased to join the CLA community board,” Bob says. Their vision and passion aligns with my own: cleaner, healthier lakes.
Michael Gerner Lake Menodata Representative &Â Community Board Chair
Consultant at Michael Gerner CPA
Louisa Enz – Lake Waubesa Representative
Past President of Yahara Lakes Association
Louisa Enz owns property on Lakes Monona and Waubesa and is the past president of the Yahara Lakes Association. She and her family enjoy fishing, sailing, wakeboarding and waterskiing on the lakes. And, as a licensed real estate broker with Stark Co. Realtors who has worked with buyers and sellers on all of Dane County’s lakes, Louisa is as knowledgeable as she is concerned about the state of our lakes.
Generally, clean lakes equal more businesses moving to town, she explains. Property values are affected by the lakes because buyers aren’t going to invest in real estate here if water quality is an issue.
Louisa is also active in the Junior League of Madison, the W Club and the Executive Women’s Golf Association. She says she is especially pleased to lend her support to our Community Board of Directors.
We have the expertise in Madison, we have the user groups, the lake organizations, the county, she says. I am excited that the Alliance has pulled together a great professional group and has included the business community, which is key. We are off to a great start.
Bob Sorge Regional Representative
Vice President of Madison Community Foundation
Bryon Thompson – Lake Kegonsa Representative
Executive Vice President of TermSync
Bryon Thompson and his family (wife Daniele, daughter Hannah (7) and son Colby (5)) live on Lake Kegonsa in Stoughton. They are an active family that water skies, swims, boats, fishes, skates and enjoys lake living all year round.
Bryon is the Executive Vice President of TermSync. In addition, Bryon has served as Board President for Leadership Greater Madison, a Chamber of Commerce program that teaches community leaders the importance of a holistic view of the community. He is also on the board for the Friends of Lake Kegonsa Society.
He’s excited to put his skills and network to work on cleaning up Madison’s lakes – something that’s so near and dear to his family and this great community.
Lake Wingra Representative – TBD
Cherokee Marsh Representative – TBD
Rock County Representative – TBD
Columbia County Representative – TBD
Government/Municipality Representatives
Lyle Updike – Dane County Towns Association Representative
Board Member at Dane County Towns Association
Lyle Updike is the Town Chair for the Town of Sun Prairie, and he joined our Community Board of Directors to share the perspective of people who live in Dane County towns.
“Town residents are the stewards of most of the land in the watershed,” he explains.
But Lyle is also the vice chair of the Dane County Lakes and Watershed Commission, a Boy Scouts of America chapter advisor, a volunteer for the county parks system, and an wilderness canoeing enthusiast. So he brings a wealth of professional, civic and life experience with area waters to his work with the Clean Lakes Alliance.
Lyle predicts that the public/private partnerships in the Alliance will lead to cleaner Dane County lakes.
I believe that citizen advocacy and direct action with our local governments are the most effective mechanism to maintain and improve the quality of our land and water resources, he says.
Dave Merritt -Dane County Executive Designee
Policy and Program Development
Dave Merritt can be found seemingly wherever competing interests in Dane County are working together for cleaner air and water. He directs the Dane County Clean Waters Initiative, for example, which brought government regulators, farming stakeholders, business leaders, and environmental advocates together at the same table. The result was an innovative, cost-effective program to reduce phosphorus in the lakes that has laid the groundwork for a stronger local economy and more sustainable agricultural development.
Dave is the former executive director of the Citizens Utility Board and a former project coordinator for the Dane County Clean Air Coalition. Also in Dane County, Dave was instrumental in coordinating the building of the state’s first community manure digester, which not only contributes to cleaner lakes and streams it also created green energy, green jobs, and strengthened the county’s dairy industry.
Dave’s success in getting diverse groups to pull together for goals that benefit everyone is greatly appreciated by everyone on our Community Board of Directors!
Kevin Connors -Dane County Office of Land and Water Resources
Director at Dane County
Kevin Connors earned his degree from UW-Madison’s College of Agricultural Engineering in 1975. Since then his career has focused entirely on the impact that people have on the waters of Dane County.
Kevin started as a soil conservation technician with the Dane County Soil & Water Conservation District and then spent several years as the County Conservationist for the Dane County Land Conservation Department. He has been director of the Dane County Land & Water Resources Department since 2005. In addition, Kevin is a past president of the Wisconsin Chapter of the Soil & Water Conservation Society and has chaired the Dane County Land Information Office for more than a decade.
Our lakes may well be the most studied lakes in the world, as is often claimed. But they are definitely the most studied lakes in Kevin’s world. He says that’s why he joined our Community Board of Directors.
The best efforts I’ve seen to really clean up water bodies and where we have had the most success*that’s happened through a community-led involvement, he says. Now the Clean Lakes Alliance is taking that effort to the next level.
Lloyd Eagan – State of Wisconsin, DNR
Director at the State of Wisconsin DNR
Lloyd Eagan oversees all Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources programs for the department’s 11-county South Central Region. She holds a UW-Madison Master’s Degree in Water Resources Management and has worked at the county, state and federal level on almost every kind of water-related initiative possible: water quality plans, flood-damage studies, acid rain programs, environmental assessments for navigation projects, and more.
An avid kayaker and passionate advocate for improving southern Wisconsin’s air and water quality, Lloyd says her position as a DNR regional director has brought her full-circle back to the lakes she once served as Dane County’s first lakes and watershed coordinator. It’s also allowed her to bring a wealth of knowledge about and experience with the lakes to her service on our Community Board of Directors.
The Clean Lakes Alliance is a group that can bring new energy and resources into the ongoing efforts to clean up the lakes,as she says.
Melissa Mallot – Lakes and Watershed Commission
Chairman at Lakes and Watershed Commission
Katie Crawley – City of Madison Mayor Designee
Assistant to Madison Mayor -Â Liaison to Public Works (including Parks, Streets and Storm Water Utility)
Katie Crawley began her position as an Assistant to the Madison Mayor Paul Soglin in May. Her duties include acting as a liaison to issues involving public works which includes, Parks, Streets and Storm Water Utility. The preservation and health of our area lakes play an incredibly important role in many areas in which she works.
Prior to her current position, Katie served as a staff assistant to United States Senator Russ Feingold for 18 years. She served both as a regional representative in eight counties and as Wisconsin Press Secretary. She has lived in Madison since 1985 when she moved here to accept a position at a local radio station as a reporter.
She and her husband are the parents of three children.
D. Michael Mucha – Madison Metropolitian Sewage District (MMSD)
Chief Engineer and Director
D. Michael Mucha is the chief engineer and director of the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District. He previously served for more than a decade as the director of public works for the city of Olympia, Washington, where he advanced a bold vision of creating a waste-free community.
Because of his history of success in bringing people together to tackle tough projects, Michael knows how important it is to build a relationship of trust and respect between interests that sometimes compete.
The key to trust is discovering reasons to work together to make a difference, he says.
The Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District plays a significant role in the stewardship of water throughout Dane County, so Michael is pleased to be able to represent the District on our Community Board of Directors.
“Along with others, we believe we are caretakers for tomorrow’s water,” she explains, “so we are excited to work with a broad cross-section of the community toward the important goal of clean lakes for everyone.”
USGS Wisconsin Science Center – TBD
Talent/Knowledge Representatives
Lars Barber -Engineering Representative
Principal at W.F. Baird & Associates
Lars Barber knows shorelines. The principal-in-charge of the Madison office of W.F. Baird & Associates, Lars is also a registered landscape architect who has headed multimillion-dollar shoreline development and restoration projects and studies here at home and far away. From waterfront improvements throughout the Midwest to boardwalks and harbors in the Caribbean and Canada, Lars has worked with miles of river, lake and ocean coastline.
As a result, Lars brings decades of relevant experience and specialized expertise to his work with our Community Board of Directors. And his big-picture perspective is enhanced by his passionate personal commitment to Dane County Lakes, as a Lake Waubesa homeowner and as the cofounder and vice commodore of the Waubesa Sailing Club.
The Dane County lakes system provides very unique and diverse opportunities that are unsurpassed on a national scale, Lars says. “They provide both an urban and natural setting for great fishing, wildlife and birding, power boating, sailing, kiting, paddling, ice-fishing, ice boating, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing.”
We couldn’t agree more!
Brennan Nardi Communications Representative
Editor of Madison Magazine
Tom Groth -Technology Representative
Director at Thermo Fisher Scientific
Tom Groth grew up in a family of public servants, his grandfather was a village president in Monona and went on to become the city’s first mayor, and his father served on the Monona city council.
Today Tom is the director of Practical Process Improvement for the Scientific Instrument Division at Thermo Fisher Scientific. And he combines his passion for clean lakes, his family legacy of volunteerism, and his company’s commitment to community action by representing Thermo Fisher on our Community Board of Directors.
I took swimming lessons on Lake Monona when I was a kid, and I’ve seen the lake deteriorate over the years, Tom recalls. I really want to see it cleaned up and back to the condition that it was in when I was younger.
In addition to Tom’s service on our Board, Thermo Fisher is a corporate sponsor of the Clean Lakes Festival. Tom says the partnership has been a good fit for his company, so he is pleased that it has grown to support the Clean Lakes Alliance as well as the Festival.
Our motto is “Cleaner, Safer and Healthier,” he explains. As we looked around the community two years ago, we saw that what the Alliance was doing to address the condition of our lakes was also the best opportunity there is to make them cleaner, safer and healthier for all of us.
Jim Welsh – Environmental Advocacy Representative
Executive Director of the Natural Heritage Land Trust
Jim Welsh, Executive Director. Jim has been Executive Director of the Natural Heritage Land Trust in Madison, Wisconsin since 2003. He leads the Land Trust’s work to conserve farm land, wildlife habitat, and recreation areas in Dane County and the surrounding area. Since Jim became executive director of the Natural Heritage Land Trust, the trust has more than doubled the amount of land it has protected. He has helped Jefferson County and several communities in Dane County set up farmland conservation programs.
Jim has devoted his professional career to land conservation and has worked in Wisconsin, California, Michigan, and Washington, DC with leading conservation groups such as The Nature Conservancy. Jim is a member of the Collaboration Council, a regional economic development group that seeks to grow the Capital Region’s economy in ways that preserve and enhance the quality of life. He serves on the Dane County Zoning & Land Regulation Farmland Preservation Plan Subcommittee and the Dane County Task Force for the Prioritized Revision of Chapter 10 Zoning Ordinance. Jim has master’s degrees in ecological restoration from the University of Wisconsin and natural resources policy from the University of Michigan.
Jim is an avid bicyclist, gardener, and woodworker. He likes working in his backyard garden and canoeing and kayaking on the Madison Lakes and Wisconsin River.
Brian Potts – Law Representative
Senior Counsel, Foley & Lardner LLP
Chair Economic Impact & Resource Committee
Science Representative – TBD
UW Extention Representative – TBD
