March Coastal Resilience Webinar: Outreach & Engagement in Coastal Communities

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Join Restore America’s Estuaries for the March edition of our Coastal Resilience Webinar Series. This month, we’ll be joined by staff from RAE member groups Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), EarthCorps, and Tampa Bay Watch (TBW) to discuss education, outreach, and community engagement to further coastal resilience and restoration. Our expert panelists will be Tom Ackerman, VP of Education for CBF, Paige Lansky, Bay Grasses in Classes Coordinator for TBW, and Jorge Mendoza, Corps Program Manager at EarthCorps. Learn more about each of them below! 

Tom Ackerman – Vice President of Education, Chesapeake Bay Foundation

As the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Vice President for Education, Tom leads one of the largest and most compelling environmental education programs in the country, creating opportunities for students, teachers, and school leaders to experience and understand their connection to their environment. Tom facilitates environmental literacy partnerships with some of the largest school districts in the United States, co-chairs a progressive multi-state and federal collaboration, and promotes policy solutions to get more students learning outside. Tom is a National Geographic Explorer, recipient of the 2018 Youth Environmental Science Medal, and the Doherty Chair for Environmental Education.

Paige Lansky – Bay Grasses in Classes Coordinator, Tampa Bay Watch

Paige joined Tampa Bay Watch in January 2020. She is responsible for coordinating our Bay Grasses in Classes Program and assists with various restoration projects and educational programs. She has worked in environmental education and natural resource management across the eastern US from the mountains to the coast! She graduated from Michigan State University with a B.S. in Zoology, specializing in animal behavior and neurobiology. She is passionate about communicating environmental science in a way that is easy for everyone to understand. In her free time, she enjoys “herping” (looking for reptiles and amphibians), searching for native flora, hiking with her family, kayaking, and gardening

Jorge Mendoza – Corps Program Manager, EarthCorps

Jorge serves as the Corps Program Manager where he supports and supervises corps members throughout their experience at EarthCorps. Together with other staff, Jorge facilitates workshops and trainings that allow Corps Members to develop their leadership abilities and foster genuine connections with themselves and their communities. Jorge began his journey to conservation and environmental science at University of Redlands where he studied organic pollutants in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.