Green Fund Committee

Anthony Mirabito, Co-Chair 

Anthony is a senior at NAU pursuing a B.S. in Environmental and Sustainability Studies with minors in Business and Biology. He possesses a deep-rooted devotion to wildlife and to wilderness, and he recognizes the fundamental responsibility businesses have to help safeguard those environments. To best prepare himself for that responsibility, Anthony’s goal is to pursue a Master’s Degree in Environmental Management at Duke University’s prestigious Nicholas School of the Environment and continue on to manage the Sustainability Department of a Fortune 500 company. Anthony is also the Coordinator of NAU’s Honors Ambassador team, so he is intimately involved with Sustainability and Honors initiatives across campus.

Genevieve Conley, Co Chair

Genevieve Conley is a fifth year student pursuing a dual-degree in Environmental Studies and Spanish. She returned in June from a year-long study abroad and internship program in Argentina. She will be conducting undergraduate research this fall, using ArcGIS and remote sensing to monitor flamingo populations in the northern, desert regions of Argentina. She is also the founder and co-chair of Girls Teaching Girls, an on campus organization focusing on the empowerment of young women. Genevieve is passionate about sustainability, including making green resources accessible to every student on campus. She was a member of the Green Fund in 2017, where she implemented the O2GO reusable container program on campus. She was born and raised in Santa Fe, New Mexico where she first discovered her passion for the environment. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, running, and cuddling her cat. Genevieve plans to pursue a career focusing on advancing women’s rights and environmental education, as well as developing environmental policy, after she graduates.

Rayna Bates, Secretary

Rayna is a sophomore majoring in International Affairs and minoring in Environmental Sustainability. Her passion for sustainability developed and intertwined with her interest in political affairs. With the combination of the two Rayna hopes to create environmental policies protecting and restoring the planet. Rayna also hopes to spread a deeper awareness around sustainability and earth healthy practices with the help of the Green Fund and other environment based organizations. Outside of sustainability Rayna enjoys spending time on the water, hiking, reading, listening to music, and learning new information.

Owen Murphy, Treasurer

Owen is a sophomore Mechanical Engineering student at NAU. Growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, Owen fostered a love of the outdoors predominantly through hiking and eventually through skiing and surfing during high school. In 2017 he travelled to Tanzania to volunteer at an orphanage and climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. The next year, he flew to Bali, Indonesia to volunteer in a turtle conservation facility on a nearby island, Nusa Penida. He was drawn to Flagstaff and NAU by the climate, study abroad opportunities, and school culture. He is also a Wilderness First Responder and volunteer courtesy patroller at Arizona Snowbowl. Throughout the rest of his time at NAU, he aims to further his knowledge of both sustainability and engineering in hopes of applying his STEM education to environmental initiatives.

Bryce Thayer, Public Relations

Bryce is a sophomore at NAU pursuing an Environmental Science degree with an emphasis in Administration and Policy and a minor in Environmental Communications. Having grown up on the ecologically diverse Southern California coast, Bryce’s love for the environment has been a huge part of his life since he was very young. In the future, he hopes to work with an sustainability-focused company to educate the public about the importance of environmental stewardship through outreach and creative projects such as documentary films. Other than caring for the planet, Bryce’s passions include mountain biking, road-tripping, backpacking, and playing shows with his band.

Sydney Adamonis, Events Coordinator 

Sydney is a senior pursuing a double-degree in Environmental Engineering and German. As part of the Global Science and Engineering Program at NAU, she has just returned from a year abroad in Germany where she took every opportunity to explore the natural beauty and cultural landmarks of Europe. In between her water internship and German classes, somehow Sydney was lucky enough to find the time to bike the hills of Ireland, ponder the work of Van Gogh, and climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Besides these memories, she hopes to bring back some of the environmental efficiency that she picked up while living a year among the Germans. And although she has committed herself to being a lifelong traveler, she still considers Arizona her home and is excited to be working with NAU and the Flagstaff community to make it as sustainable and green as possible.

Joseph Thomas, Graduate Intern

Joseph is a first year PhD student in the Earth Science and Environmental Sustainability program and an NAU Presidential Fellow. His research interests are primarily focused around paleoclimatology, with several ongoing projects that span from the northern Rocky Mountains to central Alaska. Joseph’s career goals include improving the current understanding of how climate has shifted, in the Arctic and high elevation regions of the northern Rocky Mountains, over the past 12,000 years. Additionally, Joseph has been involved in several educational and political science organizations throughout his masters (MS Geology, Idaho State University, 2019) and undergraduate degree (BS Geology, Western Colorado University, 2017), to promote the connection between scientists, the general public, and legislators. Outside of education, Joseph enjoys backpacking with his wife and two dogs throughout the southwest and Rocky Mountains.

Agnes Drogi, Faculty Advisor

Agnes is a professor of practice in the Construction Management program in the College of Engineering, Informatics, and Applied Sciences (CEIAS), as of Fall 2017. Prior to that, she was the director of Planning, Design and Construction at NAU, and championed sustainability across campus, contributing actively to the design and construction of (11) LEED Certified (Silver, Gold and Platinum) buildings on NAU campus. She has 27 years of project management experience, handling planning, design and construction of large commercial, industrial and institutional construction projects using multiple delivery methods (Design/Build, CMAR, JOC, Hard Bid). She successfully managed multi-million-dollar construction projects, with accurate budget and schedule forecasts.

She encourages her students to think about how, as construction managers, they will be in ideal leadership positions to help reduce the impact our build environment has on the natural environment.

Agnes has been living in Flagstaff since 2004, when she came up as a General Contractor’s project manager from Phoenix to manage the construction of the College of Business on NAU Campus.

She loves her new job as a teacher, engaging with students while keeping her connections with professionals in the construction industry.

In her spare time, you are most likely to find her riding the local mountain biking trails, skiing, trail running, having fun with her family and friends.

Michele Ann James, Faculty Advisor

Michele is a wildlife biologist and graphic designer. She completed her master’s degree at NAU in 2003 in what is now the Sustainable Communities Program, her Bachelor’s in wildlife biology at Colorado State University, and most recently, a post-baccalaureate degree in Visual Communication (graphic design emphasis) at NAU.

Michele is part-time faculty currently teaching three classes in the First Year Seminar Program: Slam Poetry and Art in Action, Zombies and Fear of the Future, and a science seminar, Hacking the Planet. She previously taught environmental communication at NAU. Michele was previously Research Coordinator in the Marks Lab of Aquatic Ecology and at the Center for Ecosystem Science and Society at NAU. In these positions, she focused coordinated research on the restoration of Fossil Creek, led the diverse Fossil Creek Stakeholders group, acquired grants for specific resource improvement and monitoring projects at Fossil Creek, and communicating science via website design and writing.

Michele loves living in Northern Arizona and loves teaching and meeting students. In her spare time she enjoys hiking and camping with her family, graphic design, photography, poetry, and traveling.

Jennifer Wade, Faculty Advisor

Jennifer Wade is a lecturer in the Department of Mechanical Engineering where she teaches engineering design and thermal fluid topics.  Prior to her time at NAU she worked in the development of catalysts to clean the exhaust of automobiles and refineries for a major chemical company and researched technologies to separate carbon dioxide gas from power plant exhaust for carbon capture and storage solutions.

Chad Stiller, Staff Advisor

Joshua Spear, Staff Advisor

Joshua Spear is currently employed at Northern Arizona University in the role of Senior Project Management and oversees multiple construction projects from conception to completion. In this role he has helped NAU achieve many honors including the USGBC Heavy Metals award two years in a row 2014 and 2015. This is an award for LEED projects that have gone over and above expectation of facility performance and aesthetics.

Matthew Muchna, Staff & Green Fund Business Manager

Matthew has his M.A. in Applied Sociology from NAU with a focus on Documentary Studies and Environmental Planning. His Graduate research was looking at social vulnerabilities faced by longtime residents in the Southside neighborhood through the Rio “de Flag” Project.  Matthew’s past experiences span the spectrum of User Experience (UX) Design Research,  Outreach & Facilitation, and Restaurant Management. This experiences help him craft creative solutions to solve many different types of problems. His focus is on strengthening the culture of sustainability at NAU and creating a road-map to carbon neutrality alongside community and regional partners. He is a long-distance trail runner and an average ping-pong player.