Nice to meet you!
Our small but mighty staff and Board of Directors are in constant collaboration planning, recruiting, promoting, fundraising for, and designing fellowships that empower and delight.
In short, we work hard, have fun, and love what we do.
Our Team
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Executive Director
Cassidy brings a strong background in management, leadership development, and guiding, paired with a deep appreciation for the natural world, to her role as Executive Director of Wild Gift. She earned her Master’s in Environmental Management from Western Colorado University, focusing on mountain community resiliency. Prior to joining Wild Gift, Cassidy worked as a mountain guide in Idaho and mentored stakeholders and students on sustainability projects. Under the trees, in the snow, or floating on mama ocean are Cassidy’s favorite places to be.
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Backcountry Guide
Joe has dedicated his life to exploring wild country and sharing the joys of the backcountry through guiding. He holds a BA in Outdoor Education, a Master’s Degree in Geography, and a Ski Mountaineering Guide Certification from the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA). Additionally, Joe is a founding member of the United States Hut Alliance and a professional member of the American Avalanche Association.
Joe guides throughout the great ranges of the world, leading climbing, trekking and ski expeditions in Idaho, Utah, Alaska, South America, Antarctica, Japan, Norway, Canada and the Himalaya. In addition to guiding, Joe has built 6 ski huts in the wild mountains of Central Idaho and has run Sun Valley Mountain Huts since 2000. Joe has worked with the Wild Gift from its inception, guiding treks in Alaska, Idaho and Utah. Joe continues to be inspired by the wild country and loves to share his experience and stoke in the backcountry.
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Program Manager
Jacinta has dedicated her career to combining her academic background in justice and inclusion, with her love of the outdoors. Jacinta graduated from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, with a law degree in 2019. Her studies focused on intersectionality theory, gender, and mental health. With a love of the outdoors and a passion for inclusivity, she started working in diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the outdoor industry. She has also worked as a ski instructor in Japan and a freelancer in the outdoor industry in the creative space. This path then led her to work with us as the program coordinator at Wild Gift. Jacinta believes the outdoors can help teach us many life lessons, and has been a place of solace and learning for her personally. She feels excited about being able to help extend these experiences to those who are interested in the Wild Gift Fellowship. Jacinta is somewhat of a nomad but is more recently based in Canada. She is committed to her daily yoga practice and is an avid hiker and skier. She also loves to read, cook, and drink matcha lattes.
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Backcountry Guide
Francie St.Onge was born and raised in Minnesota, where some say she skied out of the womb. Pursuing her life-long interest in natural history and ecology Francie obtained a B.S. in Forestry Resource Conservation with a minor in Wilderness Studies in 1995. After guiding wilderness expeditions and ski tours in the continental U.S and Alaska for 3 years she went back to complete an M.S in Recreation Resource Management and Environmental Education with a minor in Spanish in 2000.
During her years in graduate school Francie had the unique opportunity to work with Dr. Gordon Haber in Denali National Park, helping to observe and gather data about wolves in the Park. She also guided educational tours and gave evening presentations about wolf ecology and predator-predator interactions at the Denali Backcountry Lodge. Francie’s primary area of study was working with Hispanic elementary school children to explore Environmental Education in a multi-cultural context.
In December of 2000 Francie and her husband Joe took over Sun Valley Trekking, a backcountry hut outfitting and guide service based in Hailey, ID. For the past 20+ years she and Joe have been outfitting the huts and developing a backcountry guide program in Sun Valley. Francie founded and led the first Wolf Ecology Tours in 2007 in collaboration with Defenders of Wildlife and Idaho Conservation League to provide a local, field-based educational program about wolf ecology for the public.
Francie continues to run the Sun Valley Mountain Huts business with Joe and staff, while raising 2 daughters and occasionally training for ski marathons. Francie has been leading the Wild Gift Treks for about 20 years and it is one of her most inspiring and cherished opportunities.
Board of Directors
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Board Secretary
Pete is the co-founder of Tamarack Media Cooperative, which helps environmental initiatives communicate their work through websites, videos, and print materials. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. He has served on the boards of Wild Gift, the DREAM Program, the Vermont Land Trust, and the Vermont Natural Resources Council. During a hiatus from the Green Mountain State, he worked at the San Diego Zoo and Defenders of Wildlife; he also directed education programs at a black bear sanctuary in northern Minnesota. Now attached to his computer most of the time, he appreciates more than ever the wilderness opportunities provided by Wild Gift. He and his family live in his hometown of Burlington, Vermont.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Lisa began working on Kuli Kuli while in the Peace Corps in Niger, West Africa. As a volunteer in her village’s health center, she gained an understanding of nutritional challenges faced in West African villages and how moringa can help address those challenges. Prior to Kuli Kuli, Lisa served as the Communications Director at Mosaic, wrote political briefings for President Obama in the White House and worked at an impact investment firm in India. Lisa has been recognized as a Forbes 30 Under 30 leader, a Udall Scholar and a “dedicated humanitarian” by the Muhammad Ali Center.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Bio coming soon.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Alex is a sustainable food entrepreneur with expertise in plant-based innovation and ethical sourcing of ancient ingredients from smallholder farmers in the Andes. His current venture Muyu MilQ is working to launch Quinoa and Chocho milks that support regenerative farming and also provide the perfect dairy free latte. After years living in Peru where he worked in fair trade industry, micro finance, and improving rural livelihoods through agro-biodiversity, Alex completed his MBA at the University of Oxford as a Skoll Scholar in 2019. He also holds a BA in Anthropology from Brown University. When he is not working, Alex enjoys any excuse to spend time outdoors and is always looking for new culinary adventures.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Anne-Marie is a Senior Program Manager for North America Sustainability at Amazon, overseeing decarbonization strategy and execution for first, middle, and last mile transportation. She holds an MBA and MPS in International Agriculture & Rural Development from Cornell, and served in the Peace Corps in Benin as an Agriculture Advisor from 2014 to 2016. As a resident of Colorado, Anne-Marie can often be found exploring the outdoors with her toddler, golden retriever, and husband in tow.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Jack currently works as the Field Operations Manager with the Emerald Necklace Conservancy where he manages tree care initiatives and landscape restoration projects throughout 1,100-acres of Boston's public parkland. He grew up in Massachusetts with a love for outdoor spaces and forests, and holds a BS in Environmental Studies from Yale College and a Master of Environmental Management from the Yale School of the Environment. He has a background in urban forestry and wildlife research, and has worked to found programs dedicated to increasing accessibility to parks and outdoor spaces for members of low-income and BIPOC communities. Wild Gift prompted Jack to work on a venture called Outdoor Rep that focused on gear distribution through brand partnerships to reduce barriers to camping and backpacking experiences.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Michael Kass (Founder, Story & Spirit) is a convening designer, facilitator, coach and thought partner for leaders and organizations dedicated to weaving a new story. Michael's work revolves around bringing deep humanity, connection, and a sense of the Sacred back to leadership and change work and he's been privileged to work with clients ranging from tech leadership teams to grassroots not-for-profits to international CEOs. Michael is an ICF Certified Coach, Certified Breathwork Facilitator, has completed Four Directions Training with Rites of Passage, is a Reiki Master Teacher and probably likes chocolate more than you do. Reverence and relationship with the natural world has been a cornerstone of Michael's personal and professional life for over a decade and he's thrilled to support Wild Gift's work!
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Board Treasurer
Wild Gift helped Chris launch Vermont Farm Tours in 2009, which he ran for ten years before switching careers from food and agriculture to finance and real estate. Chris completed his MBA in 2017 and currently works for Image Relay, a B Corp business software company based in Burlington, VT. In his free time, Chris can be found binging on podcasts about entrepreneurship, technology, and design while backcountry skiing, mountain biking, or gardening.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Wild Gift helped Sashti begin WeRadiate from its initial stages as an ecological-focused company. The wilderness trek provided a strong connection to nature helping lay the foundation of reviving degraded soil.
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Wild Gift Board Member
Leo works at the intersection of outdoor recreation, conservation, and social impact, and recently completed his MPA in Sustainable Solutions from Presidio Graduate School. He has been working in outdoor education for the last seven years, currently working for Summer Search as their National Outdoor Programs and Evaluation Consultant. Previous to Summer Search, he was an educator and wilderness instructor with Alzar School, BOLD & GOLD, and NOLS. He is excited to use this knowledge to bring equity-focused community engagement and innovation to Wild Gift.
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Board Chair
Sarah loves her work with UC Santa Cruz’s new graduate program in coastal science and policy where she works with inspiring young leaders who are working on solutions to today’s biggest environmental problems. To both her work and engagement with Wild Gift, Sarah brings extensive experience in the areas of monitoring, evaluating, and learning, facilitation, fundraising, and organizational effectiveness from her time as a consultant, nonprofit program director, and environmental planner. She is a graduate of the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University in Coastal Environmental Management and UC Santa Barbara in Aquatic Biology. As one of the inaugural Wild Gift fellows, Sarah has seen the organization grow and been inspired by numerous cohorts over the years. Sarah joined the Wild Gift Board in 2019 and has served on the fellowship selection committee for the 2015, 2017, and 2019 cohorts. Sarah has worked across many geographies to help communities conserve their natural resources most notably in Fiji, American Samoa, the Wider Caribbean, and US West Coast. Sarah splits time between Oakland and Santa Cruz, CA and enjoys coaching ultimate frisbee with her husband and getting out in nature with their lovable, albeit boisterous, dog Brie.
Since its founding in 2002, Wild Gift has supported more than 100 environmental and social entrepreneurs working around the world in education, sustainable agriculture, affordable housing, energy efficiency, community development, public policy, wetland conservation, and much more.
Many of our Fellows go on to receive national and international recognition for their innovative ideas and work and many return to Wild Gift as mentors, board members, and supporters.
We’re on a wild journey.
Over 20 years later, Wild Gift continues to connect and empower leaders through immersive wilderness experiences and dynamic professional programming.
We are excited to continue building our community of alumni, donors, innovative entrepreneurs, and partners.
“The Wild Gift was more than a trip, it was an introduction to a new way of living and thinking grounded in the natural world.”
Make a donation to Wild Gift
Empower the next generation of environmental entrepreneurs by donating to our Wild Gift fund.