Staff & Contractors
Talented individuals contribute a diverse array of backgrounds and expertise to manage and implement the Coalition's programs:
Gretchen Schubeck
Executive Director
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510-859-8026 x702
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For the past 18 years, Gretchen has played a leadership role in the development and implementation of community-based, sustainability programs at both the local government level and in the non-profit sector. From 2003 to 2011, she worked for EcoMatters Environment Trust in Auckland, New Zealand including serving as Executive Director for five years. Gretchen has extensive experience in the development of partnerships and collaborative working relationships with local government, community organizations, funding agencies and the private sector. She is committed to seeking out and working alongside community stakeholders who share the Bay-Friendly Coalition’s holistic vision for landscaping and gardening in the Bay Area.
Gretchen was born and raised in California and attended City College of San Francisco before graduating magna cum laude from San Francisco State University with a B.A. in Urban Studies.
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Deborah Sherman
Manager, Admin. & Operations
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510-859-8026 x701
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Deborah joins Bay-Friendly from the for-profit world having worked in a variety of management and operational capacities. With a background in math and computer science, she spent her early career as a systems analyst and software developer for Price Waterhouse. She later ditched the suits, donned a camera, and explored more creative pursuits working in the commercial photography industry for nearly 15 years, both as a freelance photographer and as a business consultant to other photographers. Most recently, Deborah contracted for the innovative startup software company Godengo based in Emeryville, bringing order to their financial and administrative processes after the departure of their original CFO. In her free time, she enjoys blogging, cooking, gardening (the Bay-Friendly way of course!), and playing with her adorable cats.
Deborah graduated magna cum laude from UCLA with a B.S. in Applied Mathematics. |
Justin Breck
Administrative Assistant
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510-859-8026 x707
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Justin is Bay Friendly's Administrative Assistant. A California native, he completed a BA in Psychology from the University of California at Davis and has an affinity for the flat farmlands of the Central Valley. He loves all things outdoors and has a penchant for travel, which has led him to road trip around the United States, backpack through South America and live in Australia. While in Australia, he honed his administrative skills working for the University of Melbourne and the Peter McCallum Cancer Centre. He is currently taking courses in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and plans to use mapping as a tool for resource conservation. |
PROGRAMS IMPLEMENTATION
Lori Caldwell
Bay-Friendly Nursery Talks Educator
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Lori began her Bay-Friendly journey as a Master Composter in 2006 and hasn’t looked back. She has continued to apply her compost expertise at Little Hills Farm, managing their Earth Tub system, as well as becoming a seasoned compost educator. For the past three years, Lori has led Bay-Friendly Gardening hands-on workshops throughout the Bay Area and trained new educators. In Alameda County, Lori is the primary liaison with Bay-Friendly partner nurseries and coordinates the new nursery talk series, which includes Lose Your Lawn and Edible Design & Production.
In her ‘free’ time, Lori is helping build a new garden at her daughter’s school - Haight Elementary in Alameda and getting her kids’ hands in the dirt as much as possible. Lori has a B.A. from SFSU
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Maureen Decombe
Rated Landscapes Program Manager & Bay-Friendly Landscape Trainer
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510-859-8026 x705
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Maureen has been involved in the world of sustainable landscape design and management for over twenty years, with a background in agricultural research, organic farming, fine gardening for public gardens and private clients, and organizational development. Maureen is a Past President of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers-California Chapter, and served as the Education Co-Chair for the California Landscape Contractors Association-SFBA Chapter, where she organized the 2002 Sustainable Landscaping, Tree Summit, and Art in the Garden seminars. |
Ben Duggan
Alameda County Garden Tour Coordinator
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Photo: Lacy Atkins / The Chronicle
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Ben Duggan helps organize the Bay-Friendly Garden Tour and developed and writes for the Bay-Friendly Gardening blog. He has over 15 years of experience working in the waste reduction and recycling field, including a long stint as a consultant with the StopWaste Business Partnership. Ben’s hands-on gardening work happens at Windy Hollow Farm, a family homestead on 20 acres of coastal prairie. He is very interested in, and has experience installing greywater, rainwater catchment and irrigation systems.
Ben has a B.A. in Geography & Human Environmental Studies and is a trained Eco-Village Design Educator.
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Jen Ketring
Regional Garden Tour Coordinator
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510-859-8026 x703
Photo: Lacy Atkins / The Chronicle
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Jennifer gardens in the coastal prairie at Windy Hollow Farm in Northern California, an off-the-grid organic farmstead she and her family established on a parcel of undeveloped former ranchland. At Windy Hollow Farm she grows vegetables and raises pastured hens for self-sufficiency, and cultivates cut-flowers for local weddings. She shares her knowledge of sustainable and environmentally-friendly gardening practices through consulting work with StopWaste.Org and the Bay-Friendly Coalition. Jennifer also gardens with students participating in the Pacific Community Charter School’s “Growing Green in the Garden” program.
Jennifer is a Certified Permaculture Designer and Eco-Village Design Educator with a B.A. in Geography & Human Environmental Studies.
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Rebecca Suzanne
Nursery Outreach & Education Program Manager
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510-859-8026 x708
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Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Rebecca has a deep appreciation for its natural beauty and vibrant communities. With over 20 years of experience in marketing and event production, she has worked with a diverse group of non-profits, corporations, small businesses and government agencies. A certified Master Gardener since 2005, Rebecca is passionate about creating garden spaces that nurture the environment, the body and the soul. She is particularly interested in the issues of food security and sustainable growing practices.
Rebecca attended UC San Diego before graduating from UC Santa Cruz with a B.A. in Sociology.
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Debi Tidd
Bay-Friendly Landscape Trainer
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510-859-8026 x704
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Debi is Bay-Friendly's lead landscape professional trainer and has over 25 years experience teaching sustainable landscaping and environmental education in the Bay Area. As a consultant for the our Water Our World Program, Debi works with nurseries and hardware stores to train staff and customers on less-toxic pest management. For over 10 years, Debi worked as the Education Director for the Gardens at Heather Farm in Walnut Creek, a 6-acre organic demonstration garden, and has taught classes on soils, native plants, pest management and sustainable landscaping techniques through the College of Marin and Strybing Arboretum. She has written several public information brochures including, The Ten Most Wanted Bugs in Your Garden, A Kid's Guide to Backyard Bugs, and Growing Gardens From Garbage: A Guide to Composting, Mulching and Grasscycling. She has degrees in Conservation of Natural Resources/Environmental Studies, Literature, and multiple teaching credentials from UC Berkeley.
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