Board of Directors
Michael Jencks
Board Chair
Michael is a 5th generation Californian raised in a family with a strong tradition of public service. He is a teacher, lawyer, hiker, Bioneer, lover of all that remains wild, and a co-founder of two local non-profits, Ecologistics and BiodiversityFirst!
Stacey Hunt
Chief Executive Officer
Stacey spent her early years camping all over California and Oregon and playing at her family’s beach house at Monterey Bay. She raised her children to appreciate wild nature and now enjoys life in beautiful Los Osos. Since co-founding Ecologistics in 2010, Stacey has dedicated much of her free time to bringing environmental enlightenment to others.
Saba Asghary
Treasurer
Saba is a Cal Poly alumni, currently pursuing a master’s degree at Cal Poly in City and Regional Planning. She completed her bachelor’s degree is in Environmental Management and Protection with minors in City and Regional Planning and Sustainable Environments in 2017. Since then, she has tailored her nonprofit work and career path around those fields, which have ended up being her passion. She currently works as Environmental Planner for the civil engineering firm, 4Creeks. In her free time, you can find Saba at Spark Yoga, hiking trails, the beach, or planning her next big adventure with her friends!
Deborah Bayles
Board Member
Deborah joined the Board of Ecologistics in 2020. She brings her extensive background in e-commerce, education and business to her role as a Board Member. As a psychotherapist, she is passionate about the positive interaction of nature and psychology on the well-being of people. A former member of the Fallbrook Land Conservancy, she owned and cultivated an organic avocado orchard with over 300 trees in Fallbrook, California for a number of years, and was a docent of the Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve. She enjoys hiking, drawing, and spending time with her Golden Retriever and two parrots.
Dawn Carpenter
Board Member
Dawn Carpenter is Canadian born, lived in Southern California then in Toronto, Canada where she graduated from York University and now lives here in the Central Coast. Dawn has always enjoyed the outdoors beginning with camping trips in the Canadian Rockies and lakes with her family. She loves and respects the earth around her having seen such wonderful places as the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, mountain areas in Colombia, South America. Dawn volunteered helping with the Ecologistics’ conferences in the early years and have attended the conferences since then and now has become the latest member on its Board of Directors.
Serena Chelberg
Board Member
Serena joined the Board of Ecologistics in 2020. She is the granddaughter of Ecologistics co-founder Celia Zaentz, and attended several Central Coast Bioneers Conferences, which put into full bloom her growing interest in environmental issues. Serena lives in Tucson, Arizona with her husband, Brian and their three dogs. She hopes one day to start a 3-D ocean farming project.
Doreen Liberto
Program Director
Doreen is founder and managing partner of Earth Design International. She is a very experienced community planner, environmental planner, economic development advisor, educator, permit coordinator, professional facilitator and mediator. She is on the Udall Foundation, US Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution, and the National Roster of Environmental Dispute Resolution and Consensus Building Professionals. Ms. Liberto currently serves as the consulting Community Development Director for the City of King. She served on the San Luis Obispo County Planning Commission from 1999 to July 2005, and was Chairperson twice.
Amy McDonald
Board Member
Amy is a lifelong animal and nature lover who grew up in the Pacific Northwest and moved to the Central Coast in 2013. She graduated from Cal Poly with a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science and is currently attending Monterey College of Law. She is interested in environmental issues and plans to practice environmental law after graduating from law school. In her free time, Amy enjoys hiking, kayaking, rock climbing and spending time with animals.
Eva Ulz
Board Member
Eva Ulz recently took a detour from her lifelong career in museums and historic preservation to attend law school. She plans to practice environmental litigation with a focus on preserving California’s diverse cultural heritage. Eva discovered Ecologistics while she was executive director of the San Luis Obispo County History Center and later of the Coastal Awakening (one of Ecologistic’s fiscal sponsees). She has also served on the boards of several Central Coast museums and was a member of the California Preservation Program Steering Committee. Eva is currently a member of the City of San Luis Obispo’s Cultural Heritage Committee and volunteers for the California Preservation Foundation’s education committee.