Staff
Wendy Schneider
Executive Director
Wendy has undertaken a number of different professional endeavors over the course of her career, including working for campaigns and electeds on Capitol Hill, fundraising for a large national nonprofit, and practicing law at large international firms in Los Angeles. Thrilled to now be able to call herself a conservation professional, she has been leading Friends of the Inyo since 2017. When not working to protect the lands and waters of Payahuunadu, she enjoys spending time with her family and adventuring in the big mountains.
Kayla Browne
Desert and Renewable Energy Policy Director
When she experienced the beauty of the Eastern Sierra for the first time thru-hiking, Kayla knew she needed to make this area her home. After moving to Lone Pine from her home state of Michigan in 2017, she became involved with the Alabama Hills Stewardship Group, still volunteers with the Bureau of Land Management caring for the Alabama Hills, and spent the summer of 2021 working as a Trail Ambassador with FOI. She is excited to connect people and communities to the untouched landscapes that make this area so exceptional, focusing on Conglomerate Mesa and southern Inyo County. Kayla enjoys all the recreation the east side offers, including mountain biking, trail running, rock and ice climbing, hiking, and skiing.
Allison Weber
Forest and Water Policy Director
Allison moved to Mammoth Lakes when she was 13 and found her passion for the environment in the Inyo National Forest. She left the Eastern Sierra to study Conservation and Resource Studies at the University of California, Berkeley, where she managed an urban farm and got involved in public health research. Ultimately, her love for nature brought her back. When she is not working, she is a horse/mule woman, a rock climber, telemark skier, and long-distance trail runner. Allison has always wanted to work for Friends of the Inyo and got her wish when she started as the Keep Long Valley Green Coalition Organizer in December 2021. She is excited to do even more for the land and its denizens into the future with Friends of the Inyo.
Jaime Lopez Wolters
Desert Lands Organizer
Born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and having grown up in the mountains of Guatemala, Jaime developed a love of nature at an early age. He studied Environmental Science at Wageningen University in the Netherlands and worked with subsistence farmers in the Guatemalan highlands, encouraging the adoption of agro-forestry techniques. In the early 2000s he moved to Los Angeles to be with his partner, Sarah, and started working with Metabolic Studio on environmental art projects. That work first brought him to the Eastern Sierra and exposed him to the area’s majestic beauty as well as its environmental challenges. As Desert Lands Organizer at Friends of the Inyo, Jaime strives to protect the land and encourage people’s connection to nature and the web of life.
Joseph Miller
Indigenous Community Relations Coordinator
Joseph is a lifelong resident of Payahuunadü and a Tribal member of the Big Pine Paiute Tribe of the Owens Valley. Joseph developed a love of environmental service through his early work with the Big Pine Tribe focusing on permaculture techniques, community agriculture initiatives and health initiatives. His fondness for maintaining the connection to water and land was further realized through working in water quality monitoring and data collection with his home Tribe. Most recently Joseph has served in management roles for both Tribal enterprise and in environmental protection. Joseph enjoys quality time with his family, caring for plants, gardening, environmental stewardship, serving Tribal communities and exploring the high deserts of California and Nevada. In his role as Indigenous Community Relations Coordinator, Joseph hopes to foster meaningful dialogue and cultivate lasting relationships between Friends of the Inyo and the Native Tribes of the Eastern Sierra.
Izzy Taylor
Stewardship Director
Izzy stumbled into climbing in 2018 while procrastinating studying for her nursing degree at the University of Vermont. What started as a fun distraction quickly spiraled into a full-blown obsession with all things outdoors. In 2023, she hung up her scrubs to pursue a Master of Public Administration in Environmental Policy and Management through the University of Colorado. Izzy and her partner packed up their two dogs (both experts in dirt naps) and made their way to Bishop, lured by the Eastern Sierra’s epic climbing and skiing. Since January 2024, Izzy has served as the Stewardship Director for the Bishop Area Climbers Coalition, working to balance her love of climbing with a passion for protecting the land we recreate on. When not working or climbing, you can find her chasing her dogs, pretending she’s good at crossword puzzles, or daydreaming about mac and cheese after a long day outside.
Lauren Rose
Water Justice Organizer
Lauren has loved history and nature for as long as she can remember. She earned a B.A. in American History from UC Berkeley in 2018, and went on to get an M.A. in history of the U.S. West. She is currently a Ph.D. Candidate at USC, studying the history of water extraction in Payahuunadü. Motivated by her experience growing up and living in Los Angeles, she dedicated herself to learning everything she could about L.A.’s environmental and social impacts in Payahuunadü. Beyond her research, she helped organize graduate students at USC to create their first union. She also developed a passion for serving her community as president of her department’s graduate student association. After building this organizing experience, leadership ability, and historical expertise, Lauren wanted to apply these skills to the cause she cares the most about: helping to protect the Eastern Sierra. Lauren also loves to bake, hike, and camp.
Charlene Buff
Water Empowerment Organizer
Born & raised in Lone Pine, California and member of the Lone Pine Paiute-Shoshone tribe, Charlene brings with her over a decade of experience in design and marketing and an interest in land & water protection. When she isn’t designing for non-profits you can find her spending time with her family, working at the local food sovereignty garden or practicing yoga. Charlene’s interest in land and water protection is deeply rooted in culture and a love for the environment, as a Water Empowerment Organizer she looks forward to connecting with the community and engaging in meaningful conversations around water extraction.
Emily Ontiveros
Water Empowerment Organizer
Emily Ontiveros is originally from Wrightwood, CA and became familiar with the Eastern Sierra by traveling regularly up and down Highway 395 as a kid. She first lived in the area in 2018-2019 while working with the Big Pine Paiute Tribe of the Owens Valley on solar implementation. She has since worked and studied at the intersection of water issues, community engagement, and landscape design. Her experience has included working as a CivicSpark Fellow with California Department of Water Resources to help connect tribes to regional water planning efforts, supporting community-led engagement at the University of New Mexico’s Design + Planning Assistance Center, and designing and implementing riparian restoration projects with Fred Phillips Consulting. Emily has a Bachelor’s in Sustainable Environmental Design and a Master’s of Landscape Architecture. She is very grateful to be back in the Eastern Sierra and dreaming up ways we can better learn from and connect with the water, the land, and each other.
Jordan Marbury
Communications Manager
I’m stoked to be back for my second season with Friends of the Inyo, serving the Mammoth Ranger District as Trail Ambassador over the summer and now as Communications Manager. After years of dreaming about the alpine climbing in the High Sierra from back home in Georgia, I finally made the move to Bishop in 2022—leaving behind a desk job in advertising to chase granite spires and big mountain days. Last summer, I explored the far reaches of the Hoover Wilderness as the Bridgeport Trail Ambassador, covering 346.74 miles and gaining over 66,000 feet of elevation—learning the land by foot, one trail at a time. Now, I’m excited to bring that same curiosity and love for wild places to the Mammoth area. Whether you’re looking for trail beta, recent conditions, or just want to nerd out about bouldering (fair warning: I will talk your ear off), I’m always happy to share the stoke and help you build a deeper connection with this incredible landscape. The more time we spend out here, the more we realize how important it is to protect these places. I hope to inspire others to care for the Eastern Sierra and get involved with the work Friends of the Inyo is doing to keep these lands wild and accessible for everyone.
2025 trail ambassadors
Jean – Lead Trail Ambassador
Jean’s love for the mountains and rock climbing drew her west from Kentucky to Yosemite, where she spent years immersed in the Sierra landscape—as a member of Yosemite Search and Rescue, a backpacking guide with the Yosemite Mountaineering School, and for a decade, as an Interpretive Park Ranger in Tuolumne Meadows. This is her fourth summer working as a Trail Ambassador, and she’ll be covering the White Mountain Ranger District. Jean has a deep passion for wild plants and will be leading an interpretive walk, Sierra Forager, focused on edible and medicinal plants in the Sierra. You can also join her for her Nature-Based Yoga program at Pokonobe Marina, overlooking Lake Mary, offered weekly early July through mid August. Jean’s interpretive walks and yoga classes weave in storytelling, geology, ecology, and mindfulness, helping participants feel more deeply connected to the land. She’s passionate about helping people cultivate a sense of belonging in nature—through movement, mindfulness, and curiosity. When she’s not working, you’ll likely find her rock climbing, gardening, hiking, or practicing and teaching yoga.
Aiden – Trail Ambassador
Originally from Idaho, Aiden is spending his fourth season in the Eastern Sierra. He enjoys climbing, fly fishing, and backpacking, and is always excited to explore new trails. This summer, he’s looking forward to helping keep the Sierra’s trails in great shape—and to spending time observing the region’s birds and other wildlife.
Bella – Trail Ambassador
This is Bella’s second season as a Trail Ambassador with Friends of the Inyo. After a fulfilling season in the Whitney District, she’s excited to return—this time working in the Mono District.
Originally from the Wasatch Mountain Range in Utah, Bella brought her passion for the mountains to California. Before joining Friends of the Inyo, she spent two seasons working in Tuolumne Meadows. Her educational background includes a degree in International Studies, with minors in Environmental Studies and Parks, Recreation, and Tourism.
When she’s not working on the trails, Bella enjoys rock climbing, backpacking, birding, painting, and exploring everything the Eastern Sierra has to offer. She’s thrilled to spend another season helping care for the wild places she loves.
John – Trail Ambassador
After years as a Wilderness Ranger with Inyo National Forest and an Interpretive Ranger in the Bristlecone Pine Forest, I’m honored to continue protecting the places I love—maintaining trails, teaching Leave No Trace ethics, and preserving the Sierra Nevada’s wild heart. Every shovel of dirt, every cleared fallen log, and every conversation with a hiker is a chance to ensure these mountains stay resilient and radiant for all.
The Sierra has shaped my career and my soul. Now, I get to give back alongside a team just as passionate as I am. Let’s keep these trails clear, these peaks pristine, and this adventure alive!
Jordan – Trail Ambassador
I’m stoked to be back for my second season with Friends of the Inyo, now serving the Mammoth Ranger District as Trail Ambassador. After years of dreaming about the alpine climbing in the High Sierra from back home in Georgia, I finally made the move to Bishop in 2022—leaving behind a desk job in advertising to chase granite spires and big mountain days. Last summer, I explored the far reaches of the Hoover Wilderness as the Bridgeport Trail Ambassador, covering 346.74 miles and gaining over 66,000 feet of elevation—learning the land by foot, one trail at a time. Now, I’m excited to bring that same curiosity and love for wild places to the Mammoth area. Whether you’re looking for trail beta, recent conditions, or just want to nerd out about bouldering (fair warning: I will talk your ear off), I’m always happy to share the stoke and help you build a deeper connection with this incredible landscape. The more time we spend out here, the more we realize how important it is to protect these places. I hope to inspire others to care for the Eastern Sierra and get involved with the work Friends of the Inyo is doing to keep these lands wild and accessible for everyone.
board of directors
Tom Boo, President, Bishop
Tom Boo is a physician at Northern Inyo Hospital. He fell in love with the Eastern Sierra region in 1996 when he moved to Bishop from Ventura with his wife Helene. Six years later, he took a hiatus to work in public health, mostly in South Sudan and Kenya, and returned to Bishop in 2009. He is a volunteer medical director and a board member of Hospice of the Owens Valley and recently joined the Starlite Community Service District. Dr. Boo believes that working with Friends of the Inyo is a great opportunity to try to live by the maxim to “think globally, act locally.” He has a passion for natural places and has been deeply concerned about global and local environmental issues since his days as an undergraduate biology major.
Chris I. Lizza, Treasurer, Lee Vining
Chris is a lifelong resident of the Eastern Sierra who relishes the untrampled public spaces as much as the small social circles locals enjoy. He graduated from Mammoth High School in 1979, where he was elected Student Body President, and went on to receive a BA in Political Science at the University of Vermont, a Master’s from the American Graduate School of International Management in Arizona, and a JD from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. Although he does not currently practice law, he remains an active member of the California Bar Association. Since 1999, he has been owner and operator of the Mono Market, a community grocery store in Lee Vining, and works seasonally full time on the Mammoth Mountain Ski Patrol. He is a graduate of the Sierra Leadership Institute of the Sierra Business Council and has chaired the Mono Basin Regional Planning Commission from 2003 until he was appointed to the Mono County Planning Commission in 2011. Chris was chosen to serve as Foreman of the Mono County Grand Jury from 2008-9, is Captain, Training Officer, and Senior EMT on the Lee Vining Volunteer Fire Department and Treasurer of the Mono Basin Historical Society. As a longtime contributor to numerous environmental groups, Chris was invited by the Wilderness Society to lobby representatives in Washington D.C. in support of the Wilderness Bill sponsored by Representative “Buck” McKeon and Senators Feinstein and Boxer in a successful 2008 bipartisan effort. Friends of the Inyo welcomed him as a board member in early 2011. “As a conservationist and a business person, I believe I can bring many diverse interests together to achieve sustainable and sensible solutions to land use issues.”
Ellen Wehr, Secretary, Sacramento
Ellen grew up in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York and ventured west for college, graduating from the Evergreen State College in Washington State with a degree in environmental science. Following her passion for the environment, she graduated from Lewis and Clark Law School in Oregon with a focus in water law. After working on water and land-use issues for a decade in private practice law firms in Sacramento, Ellen now serves as General Counsel for the Grassland Water District, helping to deliver water to the 75,000-acre Grassland Resource Conservation District that includes private, state, and federal wildlife refuges in the San Joaquin Valley. Ellen’s interest in serving on the Board of Directors stems from her love of the Eastern Sierra and a desire to contribute to the organization’s work on matters of environmental and water policy, growing our membership base, and helping with programs and campaigns. She volunteers with campaigns led by the Access Fund and has served as a board member for a local non-profit rock climbing group. Her work in California connects her to many others in the water and environmental communities in Sacramento and throughout the state. Ellen lives on fertile ground in midtown Sacramento where she cultivates an urban garden and orchard with her husband Kevin and rescued German Shepherd, Emmylou.
Sam Roberts, Mammoth Lakes
Sam has been coming to the Eastern Sierra since before he could walk. When he was three his family moved to Cartago for two years to be closer to the mountains and his father’s work. Sam’s family loved the outdoors and summer vacations were always spent camping out. Camping trips led to backpacking, then on to rock climbing and mountaineering. His climbing adventures have taken him from the granite walls of Yosemite Valley to the summit of 24,580-foot Noshaq in Afghanistan. It was while working as a rock climbing guide in Joshua Tree National Park that he found another passion: photography. He has been a professional photographer for 25 years, first shooting outdoor adventures, then doing commercial and corporate work, and now mainly landscapes with his wife, Karen, a fine photographer in her own right. Sam has been active in several other conservation groups including the Friends of Joshua Tree, the LeConte Memorial Lodge and the National Parks and Monuments committees of the Sierra Club, and the California Wilderness Coalition. “I’m looking forward to give back to a region that has given me so much in my life.”
Sydney Quinn, Big Pine
Sydney Quinn migrated from the desert of Phoenix, AZ to the San Francisco Peaks of Flagstaff at the age of 17. Fortune had it that she learned to ski in a physical education program at Northern Arizona Univ. in 1968, which led to a passion for skiing. Moving to Mammoth in 1970 and an 18-year career of ski teaching began a lifestyle and reverence for the mountains through years of backcountry exploration in winter and summer. “Andrea Lawrence, one of my beloved mentors, was the impetus for my involvement in environmental activism beginning in the ’70s. She appointed me to the Mono County Planning Commission in the 1980s. That experience was a valuable education in non-partisanship and commitment to community. The benefits of living in the Sierra far outweighed any monetary gain or professional life—for a while anyway. A bit of panic set in at 40, and I decided to finish my masters in psychology and take a real job.” After 17 years at Mono County Mental Health as a psychotherapist, she retired and settled near Big Pine with her husband, Dennis, a magic dog, two crazy cats and a flock of chickens. With knees sacrificed to skiing and backpacking, she is settling more into a rural lifestyle with a garden of greens at the foot of the East Side of the Sierra Nevada. “Preserving our wondrous backcountry through the opportunities provided by Friends of the Inyo is an honor and commitment that I take seriously.”
Kyle Hamada, Torrance
Born in the Los Angeles area, Kyle grew up visiting the Eastern Sierra every winter and summer. He studied Environmental Science and Policy at Cal State University Long Beach, with a focus on issues affecting the California Desert. During his time in school, Kyle grew a deep appreciation for the lands in and surrounding the Eastern Sierra. He worked as an intern with the Barstow and Ridgecrest BLM field offices as a wilderness surveyor and as a route surveyor in the western Mojave Desert. Meanwhile, his years of experience in photography, videography, and digital media led him to work as a Producer in the advertising industry. He later moved to Bishop where he held the position of Communications Director at Friends of the Inyo from 2018 to 2021. Kyle has since returned to the Los Angeles area where he works as a Producer. He aims to leverage his range of experience and knowledge to help FOI achieve its mission. Kyle and his wife often visit the Eastern Sierra to climb, hike, and enjoy their favorite places.
Gregg Vane, Mammoth Lakes
I came to California in August 1971 to attend graduate school at the UCLA Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics. The first weekend at UCLA my new friends took me to the summit of Mt. Whitney. Later they took me cross-country skiing in the Lake Mary Basin. I was hooked by the Eastern Sierra and the Inyo National Forest in those first few months. I remain so today after having lived in Antarctica, Chile, and Argentina, and having traveled to mountainous regions in Asia and Europe. The time spent elsewhere has convinced me that there are many unique aspects of the Eastern Sierra region that make it worthy of our efforts to protect it. After UCLA I was hired by the Jet Propulsion Lab where I met my future wife. She was already a backpacker and cross-country skier in the Sierra. It was natural that when we started our family, the frequent summer backpacking trips into the Sierra continued even after we had twins three years after our son was born. No surprise that our adult kids are passionate about the Eastern Sierra region, too. We all helped build our home in Mammoth where most of us vote.
Nancee Murray, Sacramento
Nancee Murray is enjoying retirement after 28 years of service with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of the General Counsel, where her career focused mostly on water rights and water quality. She has a Business Economics degree from UC Santa Barbara and a Juris Doctor degree from UC Davis. Nancee spent several years in private practice focusing on environmental law, and was also an Assistant Attorney General for the Federated States of Micronesia in the early 1990s, as that group of islands became a new nation. She and her sons have spent many summer vacations hiking, fishing and recreating in the Mammoth, Bishop and Mono Basin areas. A native Californian, Nancee now lives in Sacramento and enjoys hiking, backpacking, bird watching, and planting native plants.
Dannique Aalbu, Bishop
Dannique first fell in love with the Eastern Sierra during the eight seasons she spent working in Yosemite National Park. As an environmental scientist, she is passionate about supporting sound science and promoting healthy and resilient ecosystems. She believes that connecting people with public land and open space can change lives and create lifetime conservationists. She lives in Bishop with her husband and daughter.
Advisory Council
Friends of the Inyo’s Board of Directors and Leadership Staff benefit from the knowledge and expertise of an Advisory Council made up of trusted Eastern Sierra community leaders:
- Lynn Boulton, retired IT professional and educator, local conservation advocate
- Chris Bubser, Town of Mammoth Lakes Council Member
- Stacy Corless, former FOI Executive Director, former Mono county Supervisor, Sierra Business Council
- Linda Emerson*, educator and retired attorney
- Jora Fogg, former FOI Policy Director, Conservation Lands Foundation
- Jose Garcia, English/Spanish professional translator, Bishop City Mayor
- Bob Harrington, former Inyo County Water Dept. Director
- Dave Herbst*, Herbst Lab aquatic researcher, former scientist with Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory (SNARL)
- Marty Hornick, former USFWS Trail Program Coordinator, INYO 350 Member
- Maria Jesus, conservation botanist
- Matt Kemp, local rancher
- Paul McFarland, first FOI Executive Director, DeChambeau Creek Foundation Program Officer, elected as Mono County District 3 Supervisor in 2024 Primary Election
- Bill Mitchel*, retired HR Director, Lockheed Corporation
- Martin (Desert) Powell*, retired hotelier in Lone Pine
- Mike Prather*, former educator and past Chair of the Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Club, Eastern Sierra Audubon, Inyo County Water Commission, and Owens Valley Committee
- Sara Steck*, retired ESL educator
- Frank Stewart*
- Todd Vogel*, Eastside Sports proprietor
* Former Friends of the Inyo Board Member
Consultants
Will Young
Bookkeeping Consultant
Will moved to the Eastern Sierra in late 2019 in pursuit of climbing and purpose. The Owens Valley holds a lifetime of opportunities for the former, and generations have found a calling in caring for this region since time immemorial. Finding small ways to contribute with his skillset, Will first served as a Trail Ambassador for FOI in the summer of 2022, and he now works for the organization as a bookkeeper.