Angela George is the federally-appointed State Forester for the state of Missouri, under the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. Prior to taking this position, Angela served as a forester at the Missouri Department of Conservation, where she assisted landowners in sustainably managing their timber resources and improving their wildlife habitat, and conducted these same forest management practices on state land.

Angela’s love for nature began as a child, and her passion for forest ecology and active land management came from working in the redwoods near San Francisco. Angela holds a BA in biology from Truman State University and an MS in forestry from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She has held numerous leadership roles in the fields of forestry and resource management, including serving as a member of the University of Missouri School of Natural Resources’ Advisory Council and as secretary of the Missouri chapter of the Society of American Foresters.

Leah comes from Chicago, Illinois and currently serves as a Biometrician and Geneticist at the Missouri Department of Conservation and as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Prior to pursuing her PhD in Zoology at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Leah worked as a technician for the US Forest Service in Michigan and served on wildland firefighting crews in western states. She also helped describe patterns of evolution in neotropical songbirds for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. More recently, Leah has taught courses in mammal ecology and genetics at Missouri S&T and Stephens College.

Leah has accumulated over 20 years of experience in natural resources and conservation genetics, publishing her research and providing technical support for others. Most of her current work focuses on freshwater fish conservation in Missouri, but she recently partnered with Ducks Unlimited for a $1.3 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Federation for bottomland hardwood restoration and swamp rabbit monitoring in Missouri’s bootheel.

Leah grew up visiting family and spending time outdoors in the forests of western Pennsylvania, which led her to a career in ecology and natural resources. Despite experiencing life in California at UC Berkeley for her B.A and in Colorado at Denver University for her M.S., she gravitated back to the Midwestern US: not just for its remaining wild spaces and ecosystems but also for its combination of cultural, biological, and economic systems. She believes that Midwesterners have a special partnership and history with their land that can create resilience in the face of environmental degradation, and she relishes the opportunity to engage in positive change.

David Galat (PhD) is a large river ecologist with over 45 years’ experience on a diversity of river restoration and endangered species recovery programs. He’s served on the faculties of the University of Nevada-Reno, Arizona State University, and the University of Missouri where he remains a Cooperative Associate Professor, Retired, in the School of Natural Resources.

He spent 22 years as a Fisheries Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Cooperative Research Units and thereafter was Science Adviser to The Nature Conservancy’s Great Rivers Partnership. His professional interests include ecology and restoration of large river-floodplain ecosystems, ecology and conservation of native riverine biota, the role of science in informing natural resource policy, and application of collaborative adaptive management to ecosystem rehabilitation.

David has served on numerous national and international science advisory committees related to these topics. He has authored over 100 publications and advised over 20 graduate students.

David and his wife Diana Papoulias live at Chinkapin Bluff, a 144-acre Greenbelt Conservation Easement along 1.7 miles of Cedar Creek in Callaway County. They manage this mixture of riparian and upland forests, reconstructed prairies, and wetlands for ecological diversity of native biota as well as maintaining a large garden and orchard.

Steve is a Natural History Biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation in Columbia, Missouri. He worked for MDC out of St. Joseph since 2011 and transferred down to Central Missouri in 2022. Prior to working for the Department he was the Park Ecologist for Forest Park Forever in St Louis. He has a Master’s Degree in Ecosystem Science and Management from Duke University in Durham, NC and a Bachelor’s Degree from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. He currently lives in Columbia with his wife Ariel and kids Oliver and Margaret.

Steve was first introduced to the outdoors through outdoor activities such as camping, backpacking, and canoeing, and he decided to pursue a career in natural resources after spending a summer working at a summer camp in the San Juan Islands, Washington, watching seals give birth and kayaking in phosphorescent waters. His interests include native plants, gardening, and studying the intimate relationships between native plants and insects.

Matt Bear serves the financial protection needs of families and small business owners while operating the COUNTRY Financial – Matt Bear Insurance Agency. He specializes in Auto, Home, Life and Commercial Insurance.

In addition to his 10 years in the insurance industry, Matt also brings advertising, sales and philanthropy experience to the Greenbelt Board. Matt is active in the local business community in various ways, including serving as a Columbia Chamber of Commerce Ambassador and as the Assistant-Treasurer for Rotary Club of Columbia (Downtown).

He grew up in St. Louis West County and graduated Mizzou in 2006. The following year he married a native Columbian and they have two kids. The family attends Memorial Baptist Church, and they supported Greenbelt for several years prior to Matt joining the board.

Growing up Matt regularly visited national parks and he has a deep appreciation for nature and the beautiful outdoors. As a watercolor and ink artist he enjoys painting plein air as time allows.

Dave recently retired after 30 years of raising Katahdin Hair Sheep. He and his wife, Carol Fulkerson, live at Birch Cove Farm, an 85-acre property protected by a conservation easement held by Greenbelt, located just west of Fulton along Stinson Creek. Most of the farm was strip mined for coal in the 1940s and left for dead. Since Dave and Carol moved to the property in 1988, the land’s pH and organic matter levels were restored to normal ranges through managed grazing without use of fertilizer or lime.

A native of central Missouri, Dave was born in Warrensburg, graduated from Jefferson City High school, received his Bachelor’s degree from Lincoln University with a double major in History and Philosophy, and earned a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Denver. His entire professional career was spent in public service in Missouri.  After 13 years as a librarian, beginning at the West Plains Public Library as their first accredited librarian, then as the University Librarian at Lincoln University,  he moved to the Missouri Office of Administration, Division of Budget and Planning. As the Senior Analyst for Criminal Justice, he handled the budget for the Department of Corrections, the Judiciary, and the Public Defender. Breaking down the silos between these three agencies, Dave was able to start drug courts in Missouri, expand house arrest, privatize health care in prisons, and secure funding for both restorative justice programs and drug treatment. After winning the Budget Officer of the Year award from the National Association of Budget Officers and being named the State Employee of the Year for Missouri, he finished his career as the Director of the Division of Administration and Budget for the Office of the State Courts Administrator.

In the 20 years since his retirement from the state, Dave has served as both the Treasurer and the President of Katahdin Hair Sheep International as well as on the boards of the Missouri Sheep Producers and Greenbelt Land Trust. He enjoys “healing the land”, reading, gardening, building his N Scale model railroad, and generally “comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable”.  He considers himself as a simple (former) sheep farmer from Callaway County.

Robin is a Biology Professor at William Woods University. He teaches courses like Vertebrate Zoology, Ecology, Animal Behavior, Conservation Biology, and many others. He has lived in Missouri since 2005, moving from California to get his PhD in Avian Ecology from the University of Columbia-Missouri. Prior to attending graduate school, Robin did field work from nest searching to mist netting with Point Reyes Bird Observatory. His dissertation looked at the nesting ecology of the Acadian Flycatcher. 

At William Woods he gives his students as many field experiences as possible, regularly teaming up with various Missouri professionals and organizations (including Greenbelt) to help provide these high impact experiences. He also takes a class to Costa Rica over Spring Break to do field work.

Robin has always been passionate about conservation and land management and has been affiliated with Greenbelt since 2016, including service on Greenbelt’s Conservation Committee. As a lover of nature and believer in protecting our open spaces, volunteering with Greenbelt has been a perfect match. He lives in Columbia with his partner, Leah, and his son, Reed.

Cody Smith is the owner of MO Woods & Wildlife, a Missouri-based real estate brokerage and habitat management company.

Cody found a love of the outdoors while exploring the woods, creeks, & rivers of the Ozarks as he grew up in central Missouri. As a result of this love, Mizzou's School of Natural Resources became an obvious choice as he pursued a higher education. After graduating with two bachelor’s degrees in Fisheries & Wildlife Sciences and Forestry Sciences with a minor in Biology, an opportunity to work for one of the country's premier natural resource agencies overcame his desire to explore the wide open spaces of places like Wyoming & Alaska in the Western US. After 6+ years with the Missouri Department of Conservation Cody started MO Woods & Wildlife, transitioning from a government employed Resource Forester to a self employed Natural Resource Consultant. Cody entered real estate professionally as a Land Agent with Midwest Land Group, one of the fastest growing land brokerages in the Midwest. At the beginning of 2020 Cody obtained his license as a broker in the state of Missouri and added real estate to the services offered to MO Woods & Wildlife's clients.

The variety of Missouri's outdoor activities that Cody enjoys recreationally marries well with the variety of work he encounters while helping his landowners reach their diverse goals regarding their land. If he's not chasing his son, he'll likely be chasing fish, ducks, deer, or turkey somewhere in Missouri.

Erika Werne, MIM, CFRE, spent many years earlier in her career as the development director for a multi-million-dollar, grant-making health foundation. She earned her Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) credential through demonstrated success in securing philanthropic support, developing innovative programs, and managing complex nonprofit operations — expertise she is now excited to contribute to Greenbelt Land Trust.

Erika is currently employed as a pharmacy technician with CoMo Compounding Pharmacy and has recently rekindled her love of literature by joining the bookselling team at Barnes & Noble. In addition, she serves the Columbia, Missouri Kennel Club as Treasurer and Judges’ Hospitality Chair.

A Missouri native, Erika grew up camping with her family on their forested property in the Ozark foothills and spent her summers at Camp Sacajawea near Sam A. Baker State Park.