Board Members

DeAnn Wilson

Green Building and Event Planning Committees

DeAnn Wilson, Realtor®, Green®, EcoBroker® and Property Manager.

DeAnn became interested in the environment while working at Aveda Corporation in Minnesota as their international marketing manager, she moved on to be the Trade Representative for the State of Minnesota specializing in organic food. DeAnn has spent the last 15 years marketing all aspects of the natural/organic products industry.

In 1999 she moved to California and began Bright Ideas Company, a marketing consulting firm that allowed her to work with a variety of different companies and non-profits lending them her creative marketing, fundraising and matchmaking expertise.  In 2006 DeAnn started Green Homes Santa Barbara and received her Realtor and EcoBroker licenses.  She combines her passion of caring for the environment and her care for her clients and their needs to make their real estate experience a very satisfying one.

DeAnn also enjoys serving the community as a board member of The Sustainability Project.  She is also a founding host of Green Drinks Santa Barbara a social networking group of green minded community members that gather each month at different SB locations! She is a member of the Santa Barbara Contractors Association Built Green and several national and local real estate associations.

Ellen Strickland

Ellen is the founder and owner of Livingreen, a green retail  business in Southern California providing products, service and information to both homeowners and the trades. Livingreen has been operating in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and online since 1999. Ellen also provides workshops and presentations on sustainable design/build challenges, owning and running a green business, and finding and using healthy and green materials in projects today.

Karen Feeney

Past-President, Former Chair of Parade of Green Building

Originally from the Bay Area, Karen fell in love with Santa Barbara after attending UC Santa Barbara.  Her career has evolved from her early days as a Land Use Planner for Santa Barbara County, to two decades with the Community Environmental Council, to her current position as Green Resources Manager for the pioneering green building contractor, Allen Associates.

A TSP Board member since 2002, Karen has played an integral role as Co-Chair of TSP’s Parade of Green Building in 2004 and 2005. She also helped to bring guest speakers Ed Mazria, Sarah Susanka, Bill Browning, and David Orr to Santa Barbara.

Gale Goldberg

Treasurer

For many years, Gale Goldberg has participated around the edges of The Sustainability Project,
& now joins others who bring much to the citizens of our community & region by developing outreach projects promoting needed awareness of the environment & our living more lightly on the planet. Ms Goldberg is a licensed architect with a background in landscape architecture. Her practice in these disciplines emphasizes client education about methods and materials that are good choices for low environmental impact. She is the author of BAMBOO STYLE – a book about living with bamboo indoors and out, architecture, interiors, furniture, furnishings and fine arts. Ms Goldberg teaches about the built environment through a course: “Kids Build SustainStable Architecture”. She has served on the board of The Fund for Santa Barbara, supporting progressive social change.

John D. Kelley, Architect

Educaton Committee ChairJohn D. Kelley, a California native, is a graduate of UCSB. After being involved in design and construction since 1972, he founded his award-winning architectural firm in 1989. Specializing in healthy, environmentally-friendly home design, he has completed projects in California, Colorado and Utah. A founding member of TSP and the Green Building Alliance, in 1996 he chaired Green Building Now, a three-day conference on green design and construction for our region. John continues to teach TSP’s adult education classes on green living.

Jennifer LeMay

Jennifer managed waste reduction and recycling programs for the County of Santa Barbara for several years before starting her own communication design firm J. LeMay Studios, where providing outreach strategies to promote sustainability initiatives and programs is an important focus. She served on the board of The Sustainability Project in its early days, and as a member of the steering committee for the Green Building Now Conference and Expo. Jennifer is also a contributing writer to Edible Santa Barbara Magazine.

Eric Lohela

President of the Board

Eric Lohela has lived across California from the mountains to coast, completing his degree at UCSB in Ethics and Public Policy.  He works as an Environmental Specialist in government managing composting and recycling systems.  He is also a frequent speaker locally and abroad on systems thinking, localizing food production, recycling, and personal action.  Eric joined the TSP board in 2008.

April Palencia, AIA

Board Member

April Palencia has been working for Peikert Group Architects, LLP, since 2004, focusing mainly on multifamily housing, but also enjoying mixed-use projects, small single family residential and a religious facility renovation.  Prior experience includes educational and public buildings.

She has served as an active board member of The Sustainability Project since 2000, contributing to the Parade of Green Building as volunteer coordinator (2000) and as co-chair (2001, 2002).  April has served as Secretary (2004), President (2005) and Past President (2006) and has participated on the Nominating Committee and Earth Day committee, among various others.  Most recently, April has been contributing to TSP’s annual Adult Ed lecture series.

Detlev Peikert, AIA

Board Member

Detlev Peikert is principal and founder of Peikert Group Architects, LLP.  Mr. Peikert was educated in Toronto, Ontario and has been working in the field of architecture for more than 30 years.  He has been licensed to practice architecture in California since 1984. His firm is a recognized leader in the design of multi-family, mixed use and affordable housing and has received more than 60 local, state and national design awards.

Mr. Peikert is actively engaged in community affairs and volunteers his time and energy to projects that address important community issues like affordable housing and sustainability.  In 1994 he was one of the founders of the Sustainability Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to implementing the principles of sustainability as applied to the built environment.  He has been responsible for organizing a number of conferences and seminars pertaining to the creation of livable communities and sustainable land use issues   He is past president of the board of directors of the American Institute of Architects, Santa Barbara Chapter.  He has served on the board of directors of the Community Environmental Council and he is currently on the board of the Sustainability Project of Santa Barbara, the Coastal Housing Coalition and the Garden Court Foundation.

Paul Poirier, AIA LEED AP

Past President

Paul Poirier is a principal architect and LEED accredited professional in the Santa Barbara Architecture firm Poirier+David Architects, designing both commercial and residential projects with emphasis on “green” building and design excellence.  He has worked as a member of the 2030 Coalition and the Green Building Alliance to reduce our carbon footprint on the Central Coast.  His experience has given him the opportunity to serve as President of the AIASB, The Sustainability Project, the USGBC California Central Coast Chapter, and most recently as Chair of the AIA California Council Committee on the Environment.  As a founding Board member of TSP, Paul is committed to maintaining the architectural beauty of the central coast, while improving the environmental quality and sustainability of our community for future generations.

Adam Sharkey, Architect, LEED AP

Board Member

Adam Sharkey is a licensed architect and associate at Blackbird Architects, where he is involved in design projects that range in type and scale. Of particular interest to him is the design of spaces that provide strong connections to place and landscape. As a LEED accredited design professional, Adam works to bring environmental leadership and innovation to his work and leisure activities.

Adam has been a member of TSP since 2001. He earned his bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from Pomona College in Claremont, CA, and received his Masters degree in Architecture from the University of Oregon.

Jessica Kolbe, Interior Designer

Board Member

Jessica Kolbe is the principle interior designer for her firm, Design Innovations. Founded in 1997, Design Innovations has completed residential and commercial projects in many of the Western States. Ms. Kolbe specializes in ground up projects promoting green and sustainable building practices from start to finish. Ms Kolbe joined the board of TSP in 2010 and brings experience with fundraising and volunteer coordinating from serving on other boards and committees in Santa Barbara. She is delighted to serve as co-chair for TSP’s fundraising committee.

Shawn Jacobson, Solar Consultant

Board Member

Shawn Jacobson is the Santa Barbara Solar Energy Consultant for REC Solar. He has has a diverse background in sustainability activism, green technologies, natural building and media production.

Shawn holds an A.A. in Graphic Design and Photography from SBCC, and a B.A. in Geography from UCSB.  Shawn co-founded the SBCC Student Sustainability Coalition, assisted in the development of the SBCC Center for Sustainability, was a member of the UCSB Ellison Hall Sustainability Committee, and currently serves as the Chair of the Ojai Valley Green Coalition’s “Built Environment” Council.