Board of Directors

Season Snyder
Jack Chapman
Izabela van Amelsvoort
Jeff Bakker
Pat Deacon
Dan Stuart
Jennifer Neill
Karen Cedar
Jennifer Lau Balsdon
Val Deziel
Tom Purdy
Steve Rankin
James Appleyard
John F. Foster

President
Vice-president
Secretary
Treasurer
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director
Director

Burlington ON
Delhi ON
Cambridge ON
Burlington ON
Waterloo ON
Toronto ON
Stouffville ON
Windsor ON
Kitchener ON
Roseneath ON
London ON
Chatham ON
Toronto ON
Oshawa ON

To contact any of our directors, please send an email to info@tallgrassontario.org and your message will be forwarded to the appropriate person.

Executive

Season Snyder

President

Season Snyder is a Senior Plant Ecologist, Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions. Season is President of Tallgrass Ontario.

Jack Chapman

Vice-President

Jack Chapman is a past president of Tallgrass Ontario and currently serves on the Executive Committee.

Jack was representative of Ontario Natural Resources and Forestry Fire Management Branch in establishing Tallgrass Ontario in 2001. Jack is retired from Forestry and Fire Management and lives in Norfolk County.

Izabela van Amelsvoort

Secretary

Izabela van Amelsvoort is a Terrestrial Ecologist with North-South Environmental Inc. and is the current Secretary of Tallgrass Ontario.

Izabela completed a B.Sc. in Environmental Science (Guelph) and Masters in Forest Conservation (Toronto). She has since worked in environmental consulting as a Terrestrial Ecologist with a primary focus on botany. Her experience includes tallgrass prairie and other restoration projects and managements plans as well as studies and research relating to Species at Risk in Ontario.

Jeff Bakker

Treasurer

Jeff Bakker is a business initiatives director at RBC with an interest in environmental restoration and invasive species control.

Directors

Pat Deacon

Director

Pat Deacon is a Terrestrial and Wetland Biologist at Natural Resource Solutions Inc., Waterloo, Ontario.

Pat was first introduced to tallgrass prairie and oak savanna remnants of Cambridge and Brantford as a stewardship technician with the Waterloo Stewardship Council. He is interested in the management of remnants and the creation of new tallgrass sites throughout southern Ontario. He has attended several North American Prairie Conferences and enjoys visiting prairie sites throughout western Canada and the U.S. mid-west. He works as a Terrestrial and Wetland Biologist at Natural Resource Solutions Inc. in Waterloo, Ontario.

Dan Stuart

Director

Dan Stuart is a Terrestrial Ecologist with Azimuth Environmental Consulting, Inc. in Barrie, Ontario and is past president of Tallgrass Ontario.

Jennifer Neill

Director

Jennifer Neill is a Consulting Ecologist with Sage Earth Environmental & Restoration during the day and a multidisciplinary Artist by night.

Karen Cedar

Director

Karen Cedar is a Naturalist for the City of Windsor and manages the Ojibway Prairie Complex.

Jennifer Lau Balsdon

Director

Jennifer Balsdon is a Project Manager with Impact Assessment Agency of Canada in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Val Deziel

Director

Val Deziel completed her Hon. BSc in Restoration Ecology at Trent University.

Val has experience as a field technician on various wildlife research projects working with provincial governments, universities, and First Nations. She joined NCC in 2012 and is now responsible for coordinating and conducting stewardship work in the Rice Lake Plains, including invasive species control, species at risk surveys, Prescribed burns and tallgrass prairie/ oak savannah habitat restoration.

Tom Purdy

Director

Tom Purdy is a retired environmental educator. He has a special interest in prescribed fire and the fire ecology in relation to tallgrass prairies and savannas.

Steve Rankin

Director

Steve Rankin is retired from the Ontario Public Service. Steve is past president of Tallgrass Ontario and currently serves on the Executive Committee.

James Appleyard

Director

James is a venture capital investor and entrepreneur. He serves as chair of the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Arts, vice-chair of the Canadian International Council, and as a senior fellow of Massey College at the University of Toronto. James and his family are currently restoring a farm property in Dufferin County, Ontario

John F. Foster

John is a Teacher and Botanist who completed his B.Ed. and H.BSc. at Lakehead University. He volunteers for many environmental and art groups.

Previous Directors of Tallgrass Ontario (years served in brackets)

Cathy Quinlan (7), Mark Emery (6), Wayne MacMillan (2), Peter Carson (6), Lee McLean (6), Lindsay Rodger (4), Paul Pratt (6), Ken Nentwig (6), Christine Elliot (4), Tony Jovan (2), Will Wilson (3), Paul Ohara (2), John Haggeman (5), Jane Bowles (4), Graham Buck (9), Nikki S. May (6), Todd Farrell (5), David Morris (2), Ken Towle (5), John Henderson (2), Scott Martin (7) Alistair MacKenzie (3), Kathy Hodgins (3), Glenn McLeod (3), Kristen Thompson (2), Dan Barcza (6), Barbara Macdonell (5), Dan Lebedyk(9), Carol Dunk (2), Elizabeth Reimer (6), Danielle Aullenback (3).

Others who made significant contributions: Wasyl Bakowsky, Paul Smith, Mary Gartshore, Allen Woodliffe, Don Gordon, Ron Ludolph and Kyle Breault.