Citizens Advisory Committee

The Citizen Advisory Committee (CAC) provides community input to SBEP and assists the Program in sharing information with the public. The CAC also develops action plans to support SBEP programs and projects in an effort to influence public policies that impact our Bay and its resources.

If you would like to become a volunteer member of the CAC, please contact us here or call the SBEP office at 941-955-8085 for additional information.

Click here to download the SBEP CAC Bylaws.

Citizen Advisory Committee Members

(List presented in alphabetical order following CAC Officers)

Jim Eliason

Jim Eliason

CAC Chair 2023-2025

Jim is a local business owner who has lived and fished in Manatee County since 1998. He previously served on advisory panels and committees for the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council and is currently a board member for the Manatee Fish and Game Association.

Michael D'Imperio

Michael D’Imperio

CAC Vice Chair 2023-2025

Michael D’Imperio is the Water Resources Agent with UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County. Michael’s work focuses on outreach and education related to Surface Water Quality and Water Conservation with specific program areas in stormwater pond management, surface water quality, drinking water quality, reclaimed water, and household water conservation. He provides educational programming to industry, HOAs, youth groups, and public audiences. Michael’s background includes work in the areas of public water utilities, bivalve aquaculture, and education.

Michael has a B.S. in Environmental Studies from East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania and a Professional Science Master’s Degree in Environmental Science from Stockton University. In his spare time, Michael enjoys personal fitness, cooking and gardening. On the weekends you can find him kayaking through mangroves, walking local trails with his dog, or enjoying our area's award-winning beaches.

Woody Woodworth

Woody Woodworth

CAC Secretary 2023-2025

Growing up in Kissimmee, Woody loved being connected to fishing and other outside pursuits. He graduated from UCF before becoming an officer in the United States Air Force. He flew fighter aircraft and eventually became an airline pilot. Having retired as an Airbus A330 captain, Woody looked for ways to become involved in preserving the Florida of his youth. He is a Florida Master Naturalist and is the Charlotte County coordinator for the Florida Horseshoe Crab Watch, participated in the "Eyes on Seagrass" program, and is a member of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers as well as multiple fishing conservation organizations.

He also assisted with juvenile tarpon monitoring and recently tagged juvenile sawfish while volunteering with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). Aside from trying to master the fly rod, Woody loves spending time on the beach and rooting on all Tampa Bay sports teams.

Alison Albee Photo

Alison Albee

Alison's career has spanned more than 35 years in the environmental field working in private industry, non-profit research, and city and county governments. Her experience includes wastewater treatment and environmental laboratory management, energy and water conservation, and sustainability. She has a degree in Chemical Technology and a degree in Environmental Science and Policy from the University of South Florida.

Alison has lived in the Sarasota area for more than 35 years and she enjoys sailing, kayaking, diving and fishing. She has been an active member of the Longboat Key Turtle Watch for more than 15 years. She is the President of the Sarasota Bay Foundation and sits on the board of the Suncoast Waterkeeper.

Mekayla Baliles

Mekayla Baliles

Mekayla is the general manager of Harts Landing, a waterfront bait and tackle shop in Sarasota Bay. She helps rescue pelicans and other wildlife from entangled fishing gear. In an effort to prevent such impacts, Mekayla developed a wildlife-friendly fishing program for her staff and local fishermen. She is passionate about doing her part to keep Sarasota Bay clean and healthy!

Justin Bloom Headshot

Justin Bloom

Justin is the founder and the Board Vice-Chair of Suncoast Waterkeeper. He is an attorney with significant experience developing and directing programs and projects for environmental groups in addition to decades of legal practice focusing on environmental issues. He also serves on the board of Tampa Bay Waterkeeper and Waterkeepers Florida, which represents 14 Waterkeeper organizations throughout Florida. Additionally, he serves on the board of the Florida West Coast Resource Conservation and Development Council and has been a member of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program’s Citizens Advisory Committee for nearly a decade.

Justin graduated from New College of Florida in 1991 with a BA Degree in Environmental Studies. He completed his law degree at Tulane University in 1996.  His legal practice over the last 25 years has focused on public interest environmental law, as well as toxic tort and class action pharmaceutical plaintiff’s litigation.  During that time, he has worked on staff with Hudson Riverkeeper as an investigator, staff attorney and project manager and Waterkeeper Alliance as a Director. Justin lives in Sarasota with his wife and two children.

Sarah Denison

Sarah Denison

Sarah is the Interpretive Programs Manager for the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, a non-profit dedicated to protecting land and water in Southwest Florida for the benefit of people and nature. When not in the office, she can be found guiding paddle tours, teaching outdoor recreation skills, and helping people create personal connections with nature. Sarah holds a BA in Environmental Studies from New College of Florida and a MA in Sustainable Tourism from the University of South Florida. From 2016 to 2018, she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in rural Jamaica. Sarah was raised in Jupiter, FL but has lived in Bradenton since 2010 and cares deeply for the area’s wildlife and natural places. Her interests include kayaking, camping, fishing, gardening, snorkeling, and cooking.

WAYNE DOUCHKOFF EDT

Wayne Douchkoff

Wayne's passion is the outdoors whether exploring, learning, or teaching others. As a kayak guide and environmental educator, his joy comes from helping others have an 'aha' moment. Besides being an ACA/BCU Certified Kayak Instructor/Coach, Certified Interpretive Guide (NAI), Advanced Florida Master Naturalist (U of FL) he is also an instructor in the University of Florida Master Naturalist Program. The Florida Society for Ethical Ecotourism recognizes WayneAdventures as a Certified Gold Ecotour Provider. Best described as a lifelong learner, he isn't leaving this world until he learns everything!

Alia Garrett

Alia Garrett

Alia Garrett is the sustainability program’s outreach coordinator for Sarasota County, in the University of Florida/IFAS Extension & Sustainability department. She is responsible for education and outreach projects to encourage sustainability actions in the community. Alia leads planning and implementation efforts for sustainability events and workshops and supports efforts to create a sustainable community across Sarasota County. Previously she worked as an Energy Program Specialist for Sarasota Housing Authority and also helped establish the non-profit Turn the Tide for Tarpon.

Alia has a Master's degree in Global Sustainability from the University of South Florida. Alia has lived in Florida for most of her life and completed a graduate internship at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Fort Pierce. Her personal interests include vermicomposting, traveling, snorkeling, and hiking.

Marion Kuster

Marion Kuster

Always a lover of the natural world, Marion is an advocate for protecting the environment. Most recently, she was president of the Green Lake Conservancy Foundation in Wisconsin, which has preserved and protected numerous acres of environmentally-sensitive lands. In addition to protecting and restoring Green Lake, the Foundation helps educate the public about environmental stewardship and sustainable land management. A former educator, she’s working on her French to enhance communication with her grandsons who lived previously in Paris. She volunteers as a Lakes Committee member in her neighborhood, and at the Anna Maria Island Elementary School’s edible garden.

Cliff Lundin

Cliff Lundin

As an avid outdoorsman, Cliff is excited to work with the SBEP and the CAC to impact the future of Sarasota Bay. Cliff works as the Associate Director of Admissions at New College of Florida. He has been a resident of the Sarasota-Manatee community since 2012. He received a BA in Psychology from New College of Florida and remained in Sarasota after graduation. He went on to earn his MS from Prescott College to study Environmental Studies with a concentration in Conservation Biology. While earning his degree from Prescott, Cliff researched bromeliad populations on both native and non-native tree species on an island in Sarasota Bay. In his free time, Cliff enjoys hiking, gardening, learning about ethnobotany, and cultivating native, edible landscapes

Jack Merriam

Jack Merriam

Jack retired after serving as the Environmental Manager for Sarasota County. He worked for the organization for 12 years and his background in resource management includes stints with the St. Johns River Water Management District, Florida Department of Environmental Regulation, Florida Department of Natural Resources, Florida House of Representatives, and Hillsborough County. Jack completed his graduate and undergraduate degrees at the USF College of Natural Sciences. He’s been involved with SBEP as a member of the Management Board and previously served as Chair of the CAC. Jack was honored with a SBEP Blue Dolphin Award in 2012. Jack enjoys fly fishing, kayaking, sailing, bird watching, and sunset views.

Paul

Paul Murphy

Paul Murphy is the Founder and Organizer of the Sarasota Vegan Society and the Sarasota Area Director for A Plant-Based Diet.org. His vegan group has monthly events at local vegan-only restaurants, outings in nature (hikes, beach walks and kayak tours) with vegan picnics, documentary screenings, activism, and various environmentally related issues impacting wildlife and nature.

Paul is involved with numerous organizations relating to having passion of life, appreciation of nature and well-being for all. He enjoys trail hiking, barefoot beach walks, kayaking, long distance cycling, and reading ancient Indian texts. A few of his talents are as a yoga teacher, yoga therapist, raw vegan chef, a law of attraction life coach, a whole food vegan chef, writer, painter, artist, and mechanic.

LOU NEWMAN

Lou Newman

Lou has degrees in veterinary medicine from Cornell University and veterinary pathology from Michigan State University. His early years were spent as a large animal cowboy vet and rancher in Montana; his later years as director of veterinary diagnostic laboratories at the University of Kentucky and the University of Georgia. In addition to teaching on cruise ships following retirement, Lou has served as a volunteer veterinarian at Mote Marine Laboratory, Pelican Man Bird Sanctuary and in Great Britain during the Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak. Lou is best known locally for his wildlife and bird photography.

Ken Pierce

Ken Pierce

Ken is a resident in both Sarasota and Manhattan. He is active with the San Remo Homeowners Association and Friends of Roberts Bay. He retired following a career as a consultant for the publishing industry. After serving as editor of the Columbia Journalism Review and as a writer and editor for Time Magazine, he worked for several years as a consulting editor for National and International Wildlife Magazines published by the National Wildlife Federation. He also served as a consulting publisher for other magazines focused on finance, mutual funds and cruise resort travel. Ken earned a MA Degree in General Studies in the Humanities and a BA Degree in Tutorial Studies from the University of Chicago.

PiersonShawn

Shawn Glen Pierson

Shawn joined the CAC in 2016. Shawn served on several other boards in the city, including the Sarasota County Tree Advisory Council and the City of Sarasota Parks, Recreation, and Environmental Protection Advisory Board. Shawn has lived in several places tied closely to large expanses of nature and water and the issues of human interaction with nature. His education and career are fundamentally concerned with how humans create interventions in and utilize the natural environment over a wide range of exclusive or mutual benefit. Shawn received his undergraduate education in Architecture and Planning at The Catholic University of America School of Engineering and Architecture, continued his education at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, and is the founder of the nonprofit Friends of Bobby Jones Golf Club, Inc.

Cyndi Seamon

Cyndi Seamon

Cyndi joined the CAC in 2008 at the request of the Town of Longboat Key. She has served as an officer of her condo board since 2007. She is also an officer with Longboat Key Turtle Watch and does volunteer work for Mote Marine Laboratory and Keep Manatee Beautiful. Cyndi earned the President’s Volunteer Service Award from Mote in 2010 for contributing 4,000 volunteer hours. She moved here from Minnesota in 2002. Cyndi grew up in Iowa and Wisconsin where she enjoyed fun times on various lakes and rivers. She moved to Minneapolis after graduating from UW-Eau Claire. Her hobbies include sailing, kayaking, snorkeling, and scuba diving.

BRAD TANNER

Brad Tanner

Brad is the expert guide for SBEP’s Bay Wise Kayak Tours Program. He’s also the Manager of School Programs for Mote Marine Laboratory. Brad was born in New Jersey and lived in North Carolina prior to moving to Sarasota in 2004. He has a B.A. in Environmental Science and a Master's Certificate in Informal Science Education. Brad has led hundreds of kayak tours to expand awareness of coastal habitats and marine life. His interests include scuba diving, hiking, boating, skiing, jogging, international travel, and most recently, leading meditation classes for Kadampa Meditation Center. He has completed two marathons, four half marathons, and a handful of triathlons.

Picture of man in front of trees

Mark Traugott

Mark joined the CAC in 2018 after attending the 2018 Environmental Summit in Sarasota and meeting Jay Leverone, Ph.D., Program Scientist for the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program. When Mark explained to Jay that he cared deeply about the environment, and was also a Real Estate Broker, Mark was asked to fill a need on the CAC. Mark grew up in Sarasota and has always loved the outdoors, especially activities on (and in) the coastal waters. Mark was also a Boy Scout leader for many years, teaching scouts to have a love and respect for the environment, and encouraging two of his sons to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.

Professionally, Mark earned his bachelor’s degree in Real Estate and Urban Land Studies from the University of Florida in 1975. Over the course of his varied experience in real estate and construction, Mark has notably accumulated over 25 years experience as a Professional Real Estate Appraiser and is also a Real Estate Broker. He now enjoys helping sellers and buyers of real estate. When he is not working in real estate, he takes an active role in learning more about environmental issues as well as being a liaison between the local real estate business community and the Estuary program. He has also joined other environmental groups since joining the Estuary Program. Mark enjoys social activities and a variety of outdoor activities, including tennis, golf, working out and enjoys swimming along the beach for exercise – which fuels his passion for working for clean water with SBEP.

Rob Wright

Rob Wright

Rob retired from a long career as the Neighborhood Environmental Stewardship Team (NEST) Coordinator for Sarasota County and now serves as the Conservation Chair for Sarasota Audubon. He has a B.A. Degree in Geography/Coastal Zone Management from Florida Atlantic University and has been involved in the administration and implementation of environmental management programs in the public and private sector for over 30 years. He grew up in Nokomis and is a lifelong Florida resident with extensive experience in developing and providing environmental education and outreach programs dealing with water resource issues.

Honorary CAC Members

Suzi Fox Ed

In memory of Suzi Fox

Suzi moved to Anna Maria Island with her family in 1987. Shortly afterwards, she started volunteering for AMI Turtle Watch, eventually becoming their director in 1996. She was incredibly dedicated to protecting the waters and wildlife surrounding her home and work. In 2011, Suzi joined the SBEP Citizens Advisory Committee, devoting her time and energy to SBEP as the only organization she choose to volunteer for during her time on the committee. Suzi's contributions have greatly enhanced the environmental efforts of our entire community. She was an incredible example of compassion, care, and stewardship of marine wildlife and the places they call home. She passed in late September 2022.

SteveFosteredt

Steve Foster

Steve was born and raised by the world’s greatest parents in Martinsville, Indiana on a small farm in the country where he spent as much time as possible exploring nature. He’s an avid outdoorsman who loves to hike, camp, hunt and fish. Steve was the Science Department Chair at Southeast High School in Bradenton where he taught a biology honors course, marine science, and a marine science honors course.

In memory of Charles Edwards

Charles moved to Sarasota in 1993 after a career of teaching, research and administration in biology. His interest in the environment led to him joining the CAC in 1994. His daughter’s interest in sustainable development has helped him in thinking about some of our problems. He lived in Maryland, Utah, Minnesota, New York, worked and traveled abroad, and resided in Plymouth Harbor on Sarasota Bay until his passing in late 2016. The SBEP awarded Charles a Blue Dolphin Award in 2012.

In memory of Virginia Sanders

Virginia was an artist, photographer and avid environmentalist who helped organize the Longboat Key Turtle Watch Program and the Sister Keys Conservancy, which contributed to the Sister Keys being protected as a community resource. Virginia was a three-term president of both the Longboat Key Garden Club and the Sun Coast Camera Club in Bradenton. She also served as a volunteer at Mote Marine Laboratory for more than 25 years. This dedicated citizen raised her family in the Chicago area before relocating to Florida. Virginia passed away in 2016.