Garret Johnson ~ Executive Director
Prior to joining MNA, Garret worked in Washington, DC, where as director of federal affairs for the Pacific Forest Trust he led a national coalition advocating for land protection incentives in federal climate and energy legislation. Garret has also held a number of positions with The Nature Conservancy (TNC). He served as senior business adviser for TNC’s global conservation strategies division, and as assistant state director for the Michigan chapter of TNC. In addition to his work in conservation, Garret is a past vice president of The Economic Alliance for Michigan and a former policy adviser for the Michigan House of Representatives.

Paul Steiner ~ Operations Director
With a Master’s degree in agricultural economics, and a specialization in environmental and natural resource economics, Paul is a real asset to MNA. He not only manages daily operations (including expenditures and accounts), but also recruits and manages the MNA team, thereby helping to ensure the highest quality protection of the environment.

A generalist when it comes to nature; he sees the bigger picture and prefers to focus his attention on overall health of ecosystems. When Paul goes out to a sanctuary, he is not usually thinking about a single species or habitat, but how they fit into the broader landscape.

When he’s not working with MNA, Paul coaches the MSU fencing team and enjoys playing sports like basketball and volleyball. Paul and his wife, Aggie, live in Lansing with their daughter, Kate, and cats, Spark and Sabre.

Contact Paul by emailing psteiner@michigannature.org.

Andrew Bacon ~ Stewardship Coordinator
As the head of stewardship, Andy has a vitally important position at MNA: to ensure that all land entrusted to the organization is managed to promote ecological health and reflect our Mission and goals. And he has the knowledge and experience to do the job, mainly from a bachelor's degree in fisheries and wildlife management and previous work as the director of stewardship programs at two other environmental organizations.

Passionate in his desire to conserve wildlife diversity and protect non-game wildlife, Andy always knew he would be involved in environmental work. From his days as a Boy Scout and time spent camping and fishing with his family, he discovered early in life where his interests lay.

Andy is delighted to be both living and working in Williamston, where it is easy to enjoy lunch with his wife and two young children and head home after work to watch sports. When not working on MNA stewardship projects, you will still find him outside.

Contact Andy by emailing abacon@michigannature.org.

David Pizzuti ~ Land Protection Specialist
With a J.D. and a concentration in environmental and natural resources law, as well as experience with real estate, real property and land use law, David is uniquely suited to the position of land protection specialist. At MNA, he will be responsible for the land acquisition process and charged with helping update the legal files.  He hopes to use his experience to help MNA continue its mission of protecting land throughout Michigan.

David has been interested in the outdoors and wildlife ever since he started catching tadpoles as a kid and watching them turn into frogs. He has fond memories of catching frogs, salamanders, snakes, and turtles in his backyard. He has carried that interest into his adult life by getting first a bachelor's of science degree in natural resource studies and conservation and then a law degree. His main interests are promoting recreation and protecting biodiversity.

Originally from southeast Michigan, David currently lives in Petoskey with his wife, Susie, and two small boys, Will and Charlie, as well as an ever changing list of random pets like tadpoles, toads, praying mantises and fish. When not at work with MNA, he enjoys white-water kayaking, snow-skiing, hiking, bike riding, and travel both in the U.S. and abroad.

Contact David by emailing dpizzuti@michigannature.org.

Natalie Kent-Norkowski ~ Land Protection Technician
In a new role after years of stewardship work, Natalie now works to update and manage the organization’s sanctuary and legal files. She is also responsible for the GIS mapping used in sanctuary management, acquisition and communications projects. She has a bachelor's degree in zoology, which (together with her knowledge of MNA sanctuaries) has proven invaluable in her new role.

Monarch butterflies, pink lady’s slipper orchids and tadpoles first captured Natalie’s interests as a child growing up in Grayling. A trip to study ecology in Kenya cemented her love of nature. These experiences provided Natalie with a new perspective on the importance of protecting the world’s natural places, and the need for public understanding of conservation.

Living near Lansing with her husband Travis, Natalie enjoys hiking, gardening, beekeeping and working on various hobby farm projects in her downtime; her small flock of chickens continues to provide eggs for friends, family and the local food bank.

Contact Natalie by emailing nkent@michigannature.org.

Matt Hund ~ Communications Coordinator
Early on, Matt knew his passion for writing about the environment would lead him to communications for an environmental non-profit. He prepared by obtaining a Master’s degree in environmental journalism as well as a bachelor's degree in natural resources management and journalism. Now responsible for MNA news, PR, publications and events, he works hard to keep people connected to the environment.

When new to MNA, he jumped right in to communications and work to enhance the newsletter, bring in interns and set ambitious goals for his department. Besides promoting community outreach, he has his sights set on upgrading communications efforts to include more social media, marketing and video projects. His major goals are to increase membership and awareness of the importance of conservation.

When not working on communications projects for MNA, Matt lives in Lansing and enjoys getting outside and hiking, climbing, playing sports, nature writing and photography.

Contact Matt by emailing mhund@michigannature.org.

Adrienne Bozic ~ Regional Stewardship Organizer (Upper Peninsula)
For 15 years after completing her bachelor's degree in environmental interpretation, Adrienne took on a number of field jobs in environmental science and conservation. Eventually ending up doing plant surveys at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Adrienne completed work on her Master's degree in biology. Now she is responsible for organizing and working with MNA’s many volunteers in the Upper Peninsula to complete on-the-ground stewardship projects.

Focused on botany and rare native plants, Adrienne found her first interest in the environment leading nature walks for the neighborhood kids. She comes from a long line of outdoors people, including an uncle who helped with the original survey of what is now Yellowstone National Park.

Adrienne is an avid gardener and outdoor lover and loves to hike, backpack, canoe and travel to new places. She currently lives in Marquette with her boyfriend Wilfred and a cat and enjoys all things to do with music, as well as crafts and making jewelry in her free time.

Contact Adrienne by emailing abozic@michigannature.org.

Katherine Hollins ~ Regional Stewardship Organizer (Eastern Lower Peninsula)
Raised in Virginia, Katherine received a bachelor's degree in psychology, but discovered that the jobs that most interested her involved the environment. After working for the Student Conservation Association and returning to her studies, she received her Master’s in natural resources and the environment. Now she is responsible for organizing and working with MNA’s many volunteers in the eastern Lower Peninsula to complete on-the-ground stewardship projects.

Katherine loves that she has the opportunity to work where people are interacting with the environment. She hopes to increase and enhance these interactions in a way that leads to the mutual benefit of both people and their surrounding environments.

Eclectic in her tastes, she takes great pleasure in being creative when at home in Ann Arbor; she makes food others purchase such as cheese, yogurt, crackers and ravioli and also enjoys hiking, biking, camping, gardening, crafts, concerts and reading.

Contact Katherine by emailing khollins@michigannature.org.

Matthias Schultz ~ Regional Stewardship Organizer (Western Lower Peninsula)
With a Master’s in sustainable development and conservation biology, Matt is a huge asset when it comes to leading workdays and planning projects to protect rare habitats and species. Responsible for MNA’s many volunteers in the western Lower Peninsula, he enjoys being on the front lines with our stewardship team.

Matt’s vision of nature extends well beyond the borders of MNA. He prefers to focus on biodiversity, and believes it is a disaster that we are losing our natural heritage before scientists can begin to understand the intricate connections that make up the web of life. Protecting land through stewardship is right up his alley; he became an MNA steward and volunteer three years before joining the staff.

When not working on stewardship projects for MNA, Matt enjoys ice hockey, soccer, chess, ping pong, cooking, brewing beer and playing the piano. Matt and his wife, Anne Royer, live near Kalamazoo with their cat, Violet.

Contact Matt by emailing mschultz@michigannature.org.

Laurie Baum ~ Administrative Assistant
With more than 20 years of office experience, Laurie brings a wealth of knowledge and skill to MNA. Not only does she manage the office in Williamston and help maintain day-to-day operations, she is also invaluable in working with members to capture and share their knowledge.

Laurie’s primary interest in the environment is organic gardening, and she likes to grow and buy local. Her love of the outdoors comes from a childhood filled with trips to northern Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes, and she hopes to pass on her interest by taking her four children camping.

Living and working in Williamston allows her to be closer to her family, and she is thrilled to work with an organization that allows her to learn more about the environment and play a role in the protection of special natural areas around the state.

Contact Laurie by emailing lbaum@michigannature.org.