Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council Chairman and Board of Directors

Meet the FLEPPC Officers and Board of Directors

Officers

	James N. Burch Chair Big Cypress National Preserve 239/695-1111 Email:Jim_Burch@nps.gov James N. Burch has provided stewardship of natural systems in southern Florida for the National Audubon Society, Collier County Natural Resources Department, Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, the US Geologic Survey Biological Resources Division, and Florida Gulf Coast University. He is a member of the Florida Academy of Sciences, Society of Wetland Scientists, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is currently employed by the National Park Service as a Resources Management Supervisory Botanist at Big Cypress National Preserve and oversees the exotic plant management program.


	Dianne Owen, Treasurer Florida Atlantic University Telephone: (954)236-1085 E-Mail: dowen@fau.edu Dianne Owen is the Treasurer. She received her PhD in biochemistry from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland in 1983. She now works as a Research Associate in Biological Sciences at Florida Atlantic University.

	Hillary Burgess, Secretary Living Collection Manager Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden 305-667-1651 ext.3343 E-mail: hburgess@fairchildgarden.org Hillary Burgess is a transplant from Michigan. She began her time in Florida as an intern for the Everglades National Park's vegetation management program, and then worked as a biological technician for the Hole-in-the-Donut restoration project in the Park. She is currently the Nursery Manager at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Miami. She has a bachelor's degree in biology from Albion College.

	Karen Brown, Editor University of Florida Telephone: 352/392-1799 / Fax: 352/392-3462 E-mail: kpbrown@ifas.ufl.edu Karen Brown is the editor for Wildland Weeds magazine. She has a Master's degree in Library and Information science from the University of South Florida. She works at the University of Florida's IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.

	Jim Burney, Past-Chair E-Mail: jburney@avcaquatic.com Jim Burney is currently President of Aquatic Vegetation Control, Inc., an invasive plant control and ecological restoration contracting firm in Florida. He has been with AVC since 1995 and assumed the position of President in 2002. He earned a BS and MS Biological Sciences from the University of Central Florida and holds a Professional Wetland Scientist certification from the Society of Wetland Scientists. Mr. Burney was Chair of the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council for 2005-06 and has been reinstated in this position for 2009-10 to fill the void left by the premature departure of the rightful Chair. As Chair of FLEPPC, he is also a Director for the NAEPPC.
Board of Directors
	Mike Renda mrenda@tnc.org Mike Renda is an Invasion and Restoration Biologist for The Nature Conservancy. He began working in Florida in 1993 at Blowing Rocks Preserve where he was responsible for restoring the preserve’s vegetation and hydrology, managing an on-site native plant nursery, and coordinating sea turtle conservation activities. Mike currently chairs the Treasure Coast Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area, and works on statewide invasive species and CISMA projects for The Nature Conservancy. He received his Master’s Degree in Plant Biology from Rutger’s University in 1991 and his Bachelor’s Degree in biology and chemistry from the State University of New York in 1987.

	Michael Yustin myustin@martin.fl.us Michael Yustin has a MS in Environmental Science and has 12 years if experience in land management, invasive plant removal and ecosystem restoration. For the last 6 years he has been the Environmental Lands Coordinator for Martin County. During that time he has coordinated land management activities on close to 10,000 acres of land for the County. He has also been an active participant on the local Treasure Coast Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (TCISMA) and helped found and write the bylaws for that working group. He also helped the working group secure grant funding, rank and prioritize species and develop private partnerships. One of his main overall interests is in founding stronger cooperation and information sharing among other public and private land managing entities.

	Erin P. Myers erin_myers@fws.gov Erin Myers is the Private Lands Biologist with US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in South Florida. Currently, she provides technical and financial assistance on management of invasive plant species, declining habitats and declining species through USFWS Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program implementation. She assists South Florida private landowners and other partners with management of Florida’s unique habitats for wildlife. She has worked with Florida private landowners over the past eight years, specifically assisting with wildlife disease issues, nuisance wildlife issues, wildlife habitat and forestry management, invasive vegetation management and incentive program implementation. She is a board member of the Florida Chapter of the Wildlife Society, board member of The Wildlife Society’s Invasive Species Working Group, co-chair of the Florida Invasive Species Partnership, member of the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council, member of the Longleaf Alliance, member of the Society for Range Management and offers veterinary assistance to the Florida Panther Capture Team.

	Dan Bergeson danb@sepro.com Dan Bergeson is an Aquatic and VM Specialist for SePRO Corporation. He holds a B.S. in Agronomy and Pest Management from Iowa State University. Dan currently resides in Oldsmar Florida.

	Biagio (Ben) Gugliotti Lake County Water Authority 352-343-3777 ext 37 bgugliotti@lcwa.org Ben Gugliotti works for the Lake County Water Authority as a Land Resource Project Coordinator. The Water Authority manages over 6600 acres of conservation lands throughout Lake County. Ben oversees the invasive exotic plant control and prescribed fire programs. He also works with listed species and helps with all aspects of land management activities. Ben received his B.S. in Biology from the University of Central Florida in 1996. He has worked in the environmental field for the last 13 years. Ben has also been a member of the Native Plant Society.

	Robert L. Farley Senior Landscape Architect, PBS&J 850-580-7864 rlfarley@pbsj.com Certifications Certified Professional Roadside Vegetation Manager Registered Landscape Architect, Florida USGBC LEED Accredited Professional ISA Certified Arborist Professional Affiliations National Roadside Vegetation Management Association International Society of Arboriculture Education M.F.A., Fine Arts, Louisiana State University B.L.A., Landscape Architecture, Louisiana State University

	Patricia L. Howell Broward County Parks and Recreation/Environmental Section (954) 357-8137 phowell@broward.org Pat Howell is a Natural Areas Specialist with Broward County Parks and Recreation in the Environmental Section. She has been a member of the Florida Exotic Pest Plant Council for more than 15 years. Employed by Broward County Parks and Recreation for 22 years, where she has worked for 6 years in regional parks, 6 years in a nature center, and the past 10 years in the Environmental Section. Her responsibilities have included park management, natural area management, park programming, exotic plant removal, photo monitoring, plant and animal inventories, prescribed burns, and documentation of rare and exotic plants. She also serves on the FLEPPC List Committee.

	Jackie Smith Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (561) 722-2479 Jackie.Smith@myFWC.com Jackie served on the FLEPPC board from 1994 – 1997, and served as Secretary from 1999 – 2002.