The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Ty Colman
Ty is a Principal and Senior Consultant at Point380, LLC. In this role, he combines his engineering and management background to assist clients with the implications and implementation of crucial resource management. Working with numerous Fortune Global 500 clients, spanning all seven continents, Mr. Colman has worked on projects in process efficiency and improvement, strategic sustainability planning, carbon tracking and reporting, product design and material selection, operational feasibility studies, data interpretation and summation, and advanced applications and models. Mr. Colman’s work has spanned a variety of industries, including consumer products, utilities, municipalities, renewable energy, mining, printing and publishing, finance, and green building.

Mr. Colman holds a master's degree in Engineering Management from the Colorado School of Mines, where he also earned a Bachelor's degree in Metallurgy and Material Engineering, with a minor in Economics and Business. Mr. Colman is an adjunct faculty member in the Urban Sustainability M.A. program at Antoich University, Los Angeles. Mr. Colman has been a LEED AP since 2005.

>> Read more about Ty

Jim Deters
Jim Deters is an entrepreneur who has spent the past 13 years building organizations that deliver elegant enterprise and consumer web and mobile applications. He is passionate about fitness, food, the environment and creating opportunities through entrepreneurship and education.

He is active in supporting nature conservation through The Nature Conservancy and entrepreneurship at the Coleman Center for Entrepreneurship at DePaul University in Chicago and the Leeds Business School at the University of Colorado in Boulder. Jim’s past experience includes co-founding Ascendant Technology, where he was responsible for the strategic direction of Ascendant and its more than 400 employees. In October 2010, Jim, along with his wife, Alicia and Chef Lon Symensma, launched a new restaurant in Denver named ChoLon Bistro.

Jim believes all enterprises should be social enterprises and in 2011 founded Galvanize, an incubator community for early stage entrepreneurs. Through Galvanize, Jim is striving to provide seed capital, mentorship and an innovative collaborative space for triple bottom-line organizations.

Jim is a business graduate from DePaul University in Chicago with degrees in Economics and Business Management, with a specialty in Entrepreneurship.

Sarah Dominick
Sarah Dominick is an Engineer at Denver Water in Denver, Colorado.  She holds two degrees from the Colorado School of Mines:  a bachelor of science in engineering with a civil specialty and a masters of science in environmental science and engineering. Her master's thesis topic was Endocrine Disrupting Activity Changes during Water Reclamation Processes. She is the treasurer for the Rocky Mountain Section of the American Water Works Association and has been working with the Denver Sister City of Axum, Ethiopia, on their water system.

Karen Eller
Karen Eller is passionate nature enthusiast who currently works as an Independent Fundraising Consultant. A native Hoosier, Karen studied English and Geology at Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. She began her fundraising career as an intern with The Nature Conservancy -- a position that fueled a decade-long pursuit of global wildlife conservation. She opened The Nature Conservancy's first philanthropy office in downtown Austin, TX and eventually relocated to San Francisco where she oversaw the individual major gifts program in Silicon Valley. After taking a break to travel the world, Karen served as the Director of Development for FoodCorps, a national service organization that connects kids to real food and helps them grow up healthy. In her spare time, Karen's focus turns to the world beyond as she explores models for green and conservation burial in America.

Eli Feldman
Eli Feldman is the president and founder of Conscience Bay Company, a Boulder-based private equity firm investing in commercial real estate and raw land in Colorado. Conscience Bay equates property ownership with responsibility, and produces profits while practicing good stewardship. Eli is a 2005 graduate of the University of Colorado School of Law. Prior to forming Conscience Bay, he practiced water rights law with Porzak Browning & Bushong, LLP. He has also worked on municipal water conservation with Western Resources Advocates and streamflow protection with the Colorado Water Trust. Eli loves to fish, ski and wander in the Colorado backcountry.

Dirk Hobman
Specializing in portfolio analytics and construction, Dirk Hobman has served as an independent consultant to the financial and software industries for over a decade. He is a Certified Investment Management Analyst®, holds a master's degree in ecology through the Graduate Degree Program in Ecology at Colorado State University, and earned his bachelor's degree as a double major in computer science and German at Middlebury College in Vermont. With a passion for black and white photography, he can often be found wandering the American West with camera in hand.

Ben McConahey
Ben grew up in Littleton, Colorado and developed a passion for the outdoors and environmental stewardship at an early age. He earned his bachelor's degree in politics from Princeton University and his master's degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. Ben has experience in international business operations and management after spending two years in Guatemala operating an agricultural trading company. He is also a former employee of The Nature Conservancy in Colorado where he leveraged his MBA training to engage in transformational land conservation work and cutting edge strategies to restore and protect streamflows in Colorado. Since then, Ben has worked in the private sector developing and financing triple-bottom line solar energy projects for schools, non-profits, and municipalities; managing long-term sustainable land development projects that integrated agriculture, conservation, and renewable energy with place-appropriate real estate development; and currently, providing creative private capital solutions to the massive water infrastructure crisis facing the United States.

Jenni Mullins
Jenni is a Midwest transplant with a rich and varied background in environmental communication. Her passion for the natural world was first inspired by outdoor experiences in rural Illinois and weeks at summer camp in the woods. While receiving a Natural Resource degree from Colorado State University, Jenni worked for The National Park Service in education and outreach. After graduation she spent some time in the corporate world but soon realized non-profits were a better fit. This led Jenni to a field season on the shortgrass prairie with The Nature Conservancy that quickly opened her eyes and sealed her fate. She has worked on the development side of environmentally focused organizations in Colorado ever since. Outside of work you will find her playing in the mountains, baking cupcakes, and participating in various community efforts.

Karen Ryan
Karen Ryan is LiveWell Colorado’s Policy Director and in this position she works to promote healthy eating and active living through state-level policy advancement, coalition building and by providing technical assistance to LiveWell Communities. Previously, Karen worked in both federal and local park and recreation agencies and most recently headed up Norris Design’s Park and Recreation Planning Division, providing strategic planning and consulting to agencies around the country. Karen’s educational background and career started in the policy arena with the Outdoor Industry Association, analyzing federal legislation, lobbying and organizing coalitions to support active recreation, conservation and small business issues. Karen is extremely passionate about improving individuals’ and communities’ quality of life, which she believes is strongly tied to active lifestyle opportunities and conservation of our natural resources.

Andy Vuong
Andy is currently an independent management consultant with over a decade of experience providing management consulting services to U.S. government, international government, and commercial defense related organizations. His expertise resides in developing business and human capital strategies, and conducting business process and workforce management improvements initiatives. Andy also has experience in change management, performance measurement, and strategic communications.

Andy was raised in Annandale, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D.C. He attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and graduated with a degree in Computer Information Systems in 2002. He moved to Colorado in 2006 and currently resides in downtown Denver. Andy is married and has a crazy (but cute) dog named Ozzie.