About I am the Director of Conservation Programs at the North Carolina Botanical Garden and adjunct faculty in the UNC-Chapel Hill Program in Environment, Ecology, and Energy (EP3).  My bachelor’s degree in biology is from UNC-Charlotte, and both a masters and Ph.D. in botany/plant ecology from VA Tech. I served as biology faculty at UNC-Greensboro and at the University of North Florida for a total of 10 years before coming to the North Carolina Botanical Garden in 1998. My primary responsibilities at the North Carolina Botanical Garden are to oversee the conservation and management of approximately 1,200 acres of natural areas, administer the Garden’s conservation seed programs, and direct rare plant recovery projects. I also does research on rare plant reintroductions and habitat restoration/rehabilitation and teaches classes on nature preserve design and management. I am a member of the NC Plant Conservation Program Scientific Committee, board member and past president of the NC Invasive Plant Council, member of the NC Pesticide Board advisory committee, former member and co-chair of the Orange County Commission for the Environment, board member of the Chapel Hill Parks, Recreation, and Greenways, and a former member of the Orange County (NC) Planning Board and Commission for the Environment, and he sit on several other conservation boards and committees.