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.

Erin serves as Director of Learning & Organizational Development for the University of Missouri System Office of Human Resources. Erin holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology/Anthropology from Truman State University and a master’s degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Middle Tennessee State University.

Before her focus shifted toward human resources, Erin helped establish and grow a young nonprofit organization in Tennessee and aims to bring that experience to bear in her work with GLT. After several years away, Erin and her husband David returned to their home state of Missouri in 2019. In her free time, Erin enjoys hiking, cooking, and reading.

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.

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.

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.