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STAFF AND BOARD


Executive Director

BOB ZIMMERMAN joined CRWA as Executive Director in January 1991. Under his direction, CRWA has initiated groundbreaking ecosystem analyses and land-planning studies, helped rewrite land and water regulation, developed restorative technologies, and won major battles over the Big Dig Charles River Crossing, Charles River parkland, and water and wastewater impacts. Member: Massachusetts Water Resources Commission, MIT Sea Grant College Program State and Industry Advisory Committee, Earth Share New England Board of Directors and Past President, Earth Share of American Board of Directors, MassDEP Fees and Programs Advisory Committee, and past elected member of the Littleton Board of Health. Prior to joining CRWA, he was a founder of, and headmaster for, the National Sports Academy in Lake Placid, New York. He has degrees in history, English, and Middle English from Central Michigan University, and worked for two years as a consultant to the energy industry.


Deputy Director and General Counsel

MARGARET VAN DEUSEN, Esq. directs CRWA's advocacy work, provides general legal representation, provides legal support to other environmental organizations, and aides in general staff management. Member: Massachusetts Bar, U.S. District Court for Massachusetts, U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, MWRA Water Supply Citizens Advisory Committee, Emerald Necklace Citizens Advisory Committee. Ms. Van Deusen received her JD, New York University School of Law, and prior to joining CRWA she was a public defender, Assistant Attorney General in the Environmental Protection Division, and partner at Rubin and Rudman in Boston.


Director of Projects

KATE BOWDITCH directs all of CRWA's science projects. This year, she has focused extensively on CRWA's Blue Cities Initiative, building a strong staff team of engineers, designers and planners whose focus has included the design of Harvard's North Allston campus, and the development of pilot Green Streets in Boston. She is responsible for CRWA's numerous science, research and modeling projects, including the Upper Charles River Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) project, water quality testing programs, and streamflow modeling efforts. She also coordinates CRWA's stormwater policy and regulatory programs, working in partnership with the Conservation Law Foundation to develop stronger state and federal programs to reduce stormwater pollution. Kate has been on staff at CRWA since 1994, and serves on many environmental community projects, including Brookline Conservation Commission (Vice Chair) and Muddy River Oversight Committee (Chair, Water Quality Committee). She received her MA in Geography/Water Resources Management, Boston University and is a hydrologist by training.


Finance Manager

SUZANNE CARLEO, BS Accounting, University of Minnesota. After serving as a Senior Auditor for KPMG Peat Marwick LLP and as a financial analyst for RBC Dain Rauscher, Inc., Ms. Carleo joined CRWA in April 2004. She oversees CRWA's financial activities including management of daily operating transactions, and preparation of financial statements.


Senior Engineer/Watershed Modeler

NIGEL PICKERING, PE, BS, Agricultural Engineering, University of Natal, South Africa; MS, PhD, Agricultural Engineering, Cornell University. Dr. Pickering is CRWA's computer modeling and mapping expert. His work assesses impacts to the Charles, both to surface water bodies and groundwater. He has also done extensive design and modeling work for CRWA's SmartStorm rainwater retention system. Dr. Pickering has authored or co-authored numerous technical papers and publications. Prior to joining CRWA, he was a soil and water engineering consultant in Gainesville, Florida, Ithaca, New York, and Maracaibo, Venezuela. Member: American Society of Agricultural Engineers, American Geophysical Union, MassGIS Advisory Committee.


Director of Development

PEGGY SUNSHINE has directed fund raising for CRWA since 2005. Her efforts have helped CRWA increase unrestricted, corporate and family foundation revenue each year enabling the organization to grow. A native of Colorado, Ms. Sunshine received her undergraduate degree in education at University of Colorado and went on to do graduate studies in business and fund raising at Colorado State University and the University of Wisconsin. A seasoned development professional in the Boston area for 12 years, Ms. Sunshine was Senior Major Gifts Officer for UMass Boston during their $50 million Capital campaign, led a fundraising campaign for fourteen private schools which raised $45 million for curricular improvement and helped raise $6 million for a capital campaign in Scranton, PA. Ms. Sunshine is a member of Associated Fund Raising Professionals, Earth Share New England and Friday Forum. Prior to becoming a fund raiser, Ms. Sunshine was a museum curator in New York.


Urban Restoration Specialist

PALLAVI MANDE, BA Architecture, T.V.B. School of Habitat Studies, New Delhi, India; MPhil., Environment and Development, University of Cambridge, U.K.; Masters of Architecture and Urban Design, Washington University in St. Louis, MO. Ms. Mande has extensive experience in urban design and environmental planning and has worked on inner city neighborhood revitalization in cities all over the U.S. She joined CRWA in July 2005 to work on Environmentally Sustainable Urban Development and Restoring Urban Water Environment projects as an urban restoration specialist. In addition to reviewing development projects within the watershed, she is involved with public outreach and education, environmental and site assessments, zoning review, fieldwork and research on Low Impact Development (LID), Smart Growth and sustainable development. She is a member of the American Planning Association, Congress of New Urbanism, and the Indian Institute of Architects.


Watershed Scientist

JULIE DYER WOOD, BA Mathematics, Boston College; MS Environmental Science, University of Massachusetts, Boston. Prior to signing on as Rita Barron Fellow, Ms. Wood was an AmeriCorps volunteer with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources where she participated in stream surveying and restoration. She also worked as a Program Educator for the New England Aquarium. At CRWA, Ms. Wood works on a variety of projects including the MET Find-it and Fix-it Shoreline Surveys, Total Maximum Daily Load development and our volunteer water monitoring program.


Office Administrator/Outreach & Volunteer Coordinator

REBECCA SCIBEK WICKHAM, BA Environmental Studies, Allegheny College. Ms. Wickham spent three years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ghana, West Africa, doing environmental education, community outreach, and volunteer support. Her work at CRWA includes overseeing volunteers for our monthly water quality monitoring program and annual Charles River Cleanup, managing CRWA's electronic and print newsletters and other publications, and providing support for other projects as needed.


Membership and Events Manager

LEIGH HEFFERNAN, BA International Relations and MS Project Management, Boston University. Prior joining CRWA, Ms. Heffernan was the Membership Relations Coordinator for the International Sign Association in Alexandria, Virginia. She handles donor and board member relations, database management, and events logistics alongside Ms. Sunshine in CRWA's development department.


Finance Assistant

ADAM REMILLARD, BSBA, Accounting, AA, Liberal Arts, Suffolk University and South Lake Tahoe Community College, respectively. Before joining CRWA, Adam worked as Finance Manager and Owner of The Main Event snowboard series, and as staff accountant for Waban Software and Credo reference. At CRWA, Adam has joined the finance department to assist with contract administration.


CRWA Board of Directors

Robert F. Sproull, President
Sun Microsystems

Ralph W. Abele, Vice President
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

John Clark, Treasurer
Clark Planning, Inc.

Edward Englander, Clerk
Englander & Chicoine P.C.

Lee P. Breckenridge
Northeastern University School of Law

Gordon Burnes
OpenPages

Scott Darling
MBTA

John P. DeVillars
BlueWave Strategies

Bernie Dreiblatt
Three Leaf Marketing

James Healy
Boston Duck Tours

Jonathan D. Katz
Partners Health Care

Attila Klein
Brandeis University

Virginia M. Lawrence
NESCAUM

Sharon Malt

Stephanie Pollack
BlueWave Strategies

William J. Tedoldi
proVENTURE Business Group, Inc.