The Network of Oregon Watershed Councils looks to leaders in the business, natural resources and nonprofit communities throughout Oregon to provide us with support and professional counsel. The following individuals have accepted our invitation to serve as members of our Advisory Council.  While the Network’s Advisory Council is not a decision-making body, their expertise, experience and guidance are crucial to the success of our efforts.  We offer our sincere appreciation to each of these extraordinary Oregon citizens.  Thank you for your commitment to the Network of Oregon Watershed Councils, and to councils throughout the state.

Steve Barton, General Manager, KLCC (retired)- Steve Barton was General Manager of KLCC since 1987 and retired in early 2009.  He previously worked in construction and is a co-owner of a business that has done contracting and property management.  Steve’s public service has included stints on the Board of Directors of National Public Radio, the Glenwood Water District Board, and numerous other public radio industry and nonprofit boards. He currently serves on the Boards of the Consortium for Public Radio in Oregon, Inc.; Downtown Events Management, Inc.; and Eugene Area Radio Stations. He also is actively involved in the Eugene Rotary Club. Steve is a life long resident of the Eugene area and currently lives on a small ranch outside of Cottage Grove where he and his wife raise Arabian horses.

Michelle Bussard, Executive Director, Forest Park Conservancy - Michelle Bussard has enjoyed nearly 25 years of serving in the world of non-profit alchemy.  She recently accepted the honor of serving as The Forest Park Conservancy’s Executive Director/CEO where she has been tasked with transforming the organization from a Friends group into a Conservancy that is responsible for the long-term preservation, enhancement, and management of Forest Park. Previously, Michelle served as the Executive Director of the Johnson Creek Watershed Council in the Portland metropolitan area, during which time she also led the Organizational Development Team that presented the case for creating the Network of Oregon Watershed Councils. Prior to serving with the Johnson Creek Watershed Council, Michelle led the National Council of the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial for 5 years, building the organization from a desk and fax machine to a national commemoration that explicitly recognized and honored the role and story of Native Americans prior to, during and following the Lewis and Clark Expedition. From 1993-1997, Michelle served as the President/ CEO of Leadership Washington and in 1984 began her career as a non-profit executive at the D.C. Downtown Partnership. She holds a Bachelors in Environmental Studies/Urban Sociology from UC Santa Cruz and a Masters of Urban and Regional Planning from George Washington University.

Julia Doermann, Oregon State University Instructor- Julia Doermann is an instructor at Oregon State University, teaching graduate and professional courses on Water Governance and Conflict Resolution.  She also is an independent consultant and writer with a focus on natural resources and water policy, governance, sustainability, and conflict transformation.  Prior to this, Julia served on a team of natural resource advisors to Governor Kitzhaber of Oregon for seven years reframing, shaping, and implementing new public policies on salmon and watershed restoration, forest ecosystem health restoration, wildfire, and sustainability.  She also worked for six years as a water and public lands policy analyst for the Western Governors' Association in Denver, CO and Washington, D.C. serving the governors of 21 western states and territories.

Deborah Dyson, Attorney at Law - Deborah Dyson specializes in nonprofit law and has worked with watershed councils on a variety of legal matters.  She has been in the legal profession for 23 years, first as a paralegal and then an attorney, and she brings her corporate and tax background to provide full-service legal counsel to nonprofits. She has assisted many organizations in forming nonprofit corporations and obtaining tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service. Her legal work includes advising nonprofits on employment issues, preparing and reviewing contracts and policies, conducting organizational audits, and advising on tax exemption and corporate issues. She also conducts seminars and trainings on board and staff development.  Deb represents a variety of nonprofit organizations including watershed councils, charter and private schools, museums and cultural organizations, government sponsored nonprofits, and many social-service organizations.  She received her Juris Doctorate (JD), cum laude, from Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, D.C., in 1988. 

John Runyon, Senior Ecologist, ICF Jones & Stokes – John Runyon manages the Planning/Regulatory Team in the Jones & Stokes’ Portland Office, overseeing water resource inventory and planning projects.  He has over 20 years of experience in natural resource management, monitoring, and policy.  John has served as the coordinator for the McKenzie Watershed Council and he has been a board member for several nonprofit organizations—currently serving on the board of the Forest Park Conservancy.  In his consulting practice John works on watershed assessments and aquatic habitat restoration projects with watershed councils throughout Oregon.  

Charles F. Sams III, Director Tribal & Native Lands Program, Trust for Public Land- Chuck is Cocopah, Cayuse, and Sioux.  He grew up on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Northeast Oregon. He is the national director for the Tribal & Native Lands Program of the Trust for Public Land.  Chuck has worked in the non- profit natural resource management field for over 15 years.  His primary work has been in salmon and watershed restoration throughout the Pacific Northwest with tribes and urban centers.  He has served as the executive director for the Columbia Slough Watershed Council, the Community Energy Project, and the Earth Conservation Corps.  He also serves on the boards / councils of the Umatilla Tribal Community Foundation, Oregon State Parks Trust, The Resource Innovations Group, River Network, Indigenous Waters Network, Indian Dispute Resolution Services, Young Environmental Professionals of Color, and USS Ranger Foundation.  Chuck holds a bachelor of science in business administration from Concordia University.  He is a veteran of the U.S. Navy where he served as an intelligence specialist.  He resides in Portland, Oregon near the N' Chi Wana (Big River - the Columbia River).

Susan Schwartz, Director of Development, Komen for the Cure, OR & SW Washington Affiliate - Before joining Komen for the Cure, Susan Schwartz was the Chief Administrative Officer at River Network for over seven years.  As staff, she has had more than 30 years of nonprofit experience in managing development, finance, human resources, and special events. She has also been a board member of several nonprofit organizations, serving as treasurer of the Reading for Success Foundation, treasurer of The Jane Austen Society of North America, and President and Treasurer of Komen for the Cure. Susan is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College, received her MBA in Finance at Rutgers University Graduate School of Business, and did additional graduate work in nonprofit administration at the New School. She did extensive consulting in New York before finding happiness as an Oregonian.

Stacey Triplett, Strategy Center, Metro Regional Government (Metro) - Stacey Triplett is Senior Managing Analyst in the Office of the COO.  She serves as lead for the collaborative Strategy Center responsible for cross-agency coordination and policy initiative assessment.  Previously, she served as team leader of the Nature in Neighborhoods initiative from when she joined Metro in 2005 to late 2008. The Nature in Neighborhoods team is Metro’s first interdepartmental effort to encompass regulatory and non-regulatory habitat protection actions (including low impact development practices) for urban watershed health.  The team prepares outcomes reporting on regional and local actions and to date has administered over 1 million dollars in grant funds to support local partners’ actions in conservation and education.  She holds a bachelor of arts in government/public policy analysis from Pomona College and a master’s in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.  Her community service activities include the fund development committee of TACS: supporting nonprofit success. She was a River Renaissance Advisor for the City of Portland and member of the Natural Resources Section of ORPA (Oregon Recreation and Park Association).  Stacey has also volunteered for The Chalkboard Project, City Club of Portland, Community Cycling Center and Southwest Washington MESA (Math, Engineering and Science Achievement program).