Staff

Twenty-three talented staff contribute a diverse array of backgrounds and expertise to manage and implement Build It Green's programs:

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Administration

Sara Morency
As Operations Manager, Sara is responsible for developing and maintaining effective internal operations at Build It Green, including management of the following areas: office infrastructure and facilities, administrative department, IT, internal communications, staff meetings and events, and some human resources. Sara knows that Build It Green’s staff are its biggest resource and as such, makes staff and team development a key focus of her work. Sara is very enthusiastic about her role at BIG, as her professional passions include internal communications, staff and organizational development, and group facilitation. As a lifelong environmentalist, she believes strongly in Build It Green’s mission - she knows the high human and environmental costs of traditional building practices and sees transformation of the building industry as a critical aspect in the fight against climate change.

Previously, Sara worked as a Supervisor and Lead Client Service Representative in the Community Veterinary Services Department of the San Francisco SPCA, offering financial options to enable low-income San Francisco pet owners to afford veterinary care. Sara’s first non-profit position was in her hometown in Virginia, working in the Land Conservation Department of the Piedmont Environmental Council – it was this experience that solidified Sara’s commitment to work in the non-profit sector for social and environmental change.

Sara graduated from Tufts University with a degree in Environmental Studies and Political Science. In recent years, she has taken courses in Business and Spanish at City College of San Francisco and Laney College, and has enjoyed attending various CompassPoint workshops for non-profit professionals. She is a Certified Green Building Professional and plans to continue her green building education through Build It Green’s guild meetings and advanced trainings.

 

Kalene Nickelson
Kalene is very pleased to be part of Build It Green’s administrative team, supporting the company’s operations and the recertification of CGBP graduates. Kalene grew up in Ukiah, Ca – a town founded with “back to the land” values that influenced her commitment to environmental consciousness. In recent years, Kalene worked at Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco where she provided social services, acceptance, and compassion to homeless and marginalized people. She sees Build It Green as another vehicle for social prosperity and enjoys learning about green building practices.

Kalene became a Certified Green Building Professional in August of 2009 and plans to take the Advanced CGBP course in August 2010. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from San Francisco State University.

 

Camela Nitollama
Camela joined the Build It Green staff in 2008, bringing to the organization previous administrative experience with the University Centers at UC San Diego. She explored energy and environmental issues in her undergraduate career, and developed a real passion for environmental justice while working with various grassroots groups in the Philippines. As a member of the Build It Green team, Camela looks forward to contributing to an inclusive environmental movement, and broadening her knowledge of building healthy and environmentally conscious communities and spaces.

Camela earned her B.A. in Political Science and minor in Psychology from UC San Diego and is a Certified Green Building Professional.

 

David Myers
David brings ten years of experience in the non-profit and education fields to his position as Development Manager. Before joining Build It Green, he held fundraising, operations, and student services positions at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley; the San Francisco Film Society; and the University of California, Los Angeles.

As Development Manager, David oversees the organization’s sponsorship, membership, councils, and guilds programs. These programs allow him to interact with Build It Green’s diverse stakeholders. With his commitment to work in the nonprofit sector and longstanding interest in real estate development, he is excited be a part of the dynamic green residential building industry. David received Bachelors of Arts in American History as well as American Literature and Culture from the University of California, Los Angeles.

 

Annette Hartsfield
Annette coordinates Build It Green’s grant seeking efforts, including prospect research, proposal writing, and reporting out on Build It Green’s various contract and grant activities. She also writes articles for the organization and serves as editor of the Green Post, Build It Green’s monthly e-newsletter. She has been with Build It Green since 2006, when she was hired as administrative coordinator and bookkeeper. A life-long environmentalist, slow food enthusiast, and fledgling urban gardener, Annette is happy to be working for an organization committed to fighting climate change.

 

Prior to joining Build It Green, Annette worked part-time for a financial advising firm while completing her Master’s Degree in Cultural Anthropology at San Francisco State University. Her thesis examines social control, identity, and the myth of the American Dream in the context of gated communities. Annette received Bachelor of Arts Degrees in Psychology and Anthropology from Arizona State University.

 

Karen Beck
Karen currently serves as Build It Green’s Web Master, helping to update their website and coordinate other website-related projects. Originally hired in 2005 as the Membership Manager and Council & Guild Coordinator, Karen took a break from her responsibilities at Build It Green to have her son Owen in early 2007. Immediately after returning from maternity leave, she worked part-time to coordinate marketing materials and events before taking on the Web Master role.

Karen is on the board of the Michael Lee Environmental Foundation, is an active member of the local chapter of the California Native Plant Society and is a Certified Green Building Professional. She loves spending time with her family, running, hiking, kayaking, skiing and is involved at her now 3-year-old son’s parent participation preschool.

Prior to joining Build It Green, Karen worked for eight years as an Environmental Product Line Specialist and Website Manager for Electric Power Research Institute in both Palo Alto, CA and Brussels, Belgium.

 

Brittany Deal
Brittany's bio is coming soon!

 

 

Cynthia Beaulieu
Cynthia brings to Build It Green over twelve years of bookkeeping and human resources experience. A Bay Area native, Cynthia has enjoyed the entrepreneurial spirit of the region and worked for several small or startup businesses. Cynthia is pleased to be a part of a company with a purpose. Cynthia is near completion of a B.S. in Environmental Studies, with an emphasis in Health & Safety at San Jose State University. She also holds a Certificate in Hazardous Materials Management from U.C. Santa Cruz Extension.

In joining Build It Green, Cynthia will be able to utilize both her career experience in Bookkeeping and Human Resources and her educational background in environmental studies.

 

Kimara Smith
Prior to joining Build It Green, Kimara worked as a Bookkeeper/Secretary for The United Association Plumbers and Steamfitters Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee. She brings with her 10 years of hands-on accounting experience working in various types of industries from wholesale to retail to unionized to private. She joined the Build It Green to learn more about the “green” industry and more volunteer opportunities.

In joining Build It Green, Kimara will be able to utilize both her career experience in Bookkeeping and her educational background in business management and accounting.

 

GreenPoint Rated

Tenaya Asan
Tenaya brings 30 years of experience in the residential construction industry to her position as Program Manager of the GreenPoint Rated program. She uses her construction knowledge and management capabilities to direct this rapidly expanding program. She is responsible for overseeing rater training and certification; ensuring quality assurance for rated projects; providing education and support to builders, raters, designers and others; and developing program protocols and procedures.

Her 12 years experience with building and remodeling homes equips her with a thorough understanding of all phases of construction. Another 15 years experience as a construction defect analyst provides her with unique insights into problematic construction techniques. With this experience, she contributes an understanding and passion about the essential qualities of green building and their benefits to homeowners, builders and the general public. She is a California licensed General Contractor, a Certified Green Building Professional, a Certified GreenPoint Rater and a HERS rater. She has a Masters degree in Education and is certified as a Green Building Professional from Sonoma State University.

 

Amy Dryden
Amy brings a combination of her experience as a residential builder and planning consultant with a focus on ecologically and socially minded building to the GreenPoint Rated Program.

With ten years experience in residential construction (non profit and for profit), Amy has a working knowledge of all trades and phases of construction in new construction and remodel projects. She has contributed to green building specifications and guidelines and LEED projects for affordable housing and has been assisting Habitat East Bay with their green building efforts since 2000. Recently, as a planning consultant, she has developed planning and design proposals and policies from the watershed scale to the site scale, addressing ecological and social goals through community planning in Los Angeles, North Carolina, and Hawaii.

Amy is a Certified Green Building Professional, a Certified GreenPoint Rater, a LEED-AP, and a HERS rater and has completed work in each capacity. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Boston University and a Master in Landscape Architecture and a Master in City Planning from UC Berkeley.

 

Christopher Becker
Christopher brings over 15 years of architectural design and affordable housing experience to the GreenPoint Rated Program. As Project Manager, he assists with rater trainings and certifications; quality assurance for rated projects; education and support to builders, raters, designers and others; and development and implementation of the GreenPoint Rated Program. & Prior to joining Build It Green, Christopher served as the lead designer for a 4 story affordable housing prototype that incorporated a range of green building features including an innovative Trombe wall for the street façade and grey water irrigation system for the communal rear yard. He has also served as the project manager and/or designer on a range of building types from single-family renovations to high-rise mixed use developments, many of which incorporated green building features. Before returning to school to get his architecture degree, Christopher also worked on the developer side of many projects, both as a development and planning consultant for several non-profit developers as well as the Resource Development Manager for East Bay Habitat for Humanity.

Christopher is a Certified Green Building Professional and a Certified GreenPoint Rater. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from Columbia University and a Master of Architecture from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

 

Korin Crawford
Korin's bio is coming soon!

 

Kris Knutson
Kris joined Build it Green in 2009 as an Associate for the GreenPoint Rated program, bringing a diverse background in residential building, energy performance and building science. He supports the organization’s GreenPoint Raters, Advisors and Certified Green Building Professionals. In addition, he manages the Green Product Directory and answers the “Ask an Expert” hotline.

Prior to working with Build it Green, Kris managed the Home Services project at Southface Energy Institute in Atlanta, GA - overseeing HERS Ratings, Manual-J load calculations, Manual-D duct design, new home design reviews and answering building science & home comfort troubleshooting calls from the public.

A native of Seattle, Kris attended the University of Washington, earning a minor in environmental studies. In 2004 he toured Western Europe by bicycle, visiting biodiesel plants, wind farms and traditionally build Dutch and German buildings. Kris went on to work towards sustainability by helping construct Seattle’s first biodiesel plant and later worked as a building performance technician for a home performance contractor. Kris is a Certified Green Building Professional, RESNET HERS Rater and LEED NC Accredited Professional.

Janell Jacks
Janell manages and coordinates Build It Green's Professional Training and Certification program. In this capacity, she draws on 25 years of Corporate Training experience in developing, implementing and managing world-wide training programs. Prior to joining Build It Green, Janell led Construction, Human Resource and Technical Writing program development at SJSU Professional Development, while introducing new courses (including Green Building, E-Learning and Blended coursework) to meet the emerging market needs.

Janell has hands-on construction experience, having remodeled several homes. She majored in Marketing and minored in Computer Science, along with professional courses. Her certifications include Construction Management, Technical Writing, Marketing, and several technical computer certifications.

While taking green building courses and designing a Green Building Certificate Program, she became passionate about green building and decided to join Build It Green. She is both Green Advantage Certified and a Certified Green Building Professional.

 

Cindy Newson
As the Events Project Manager Cindy has responsibility for overall implementation of events in the Professional Training Department. She manages the process from scheduling, planning, marketing, registration, delivery and follow up. Cindy has several years of both nonprofit and event management. She obtained her Bachelor of Social Work degree from Central Michigan University and has since been drawn to the world of nonprofits as a way to utilize her management skills for a meaningful purpose. Working at Build It Green provides the opportunity to be involved in an area that is so important to the future health of our planet and all of us that live here.

Cindy's interests include travel, gardening, music, comedy, hiking, being auntie to over 60 nieces and nephews, and playing with her dog, JJ.

 

Kevin Beck
Kevin is the Lead Trainer at Build It Green. Prior to joining Build It Green, Kevin was a trainer for all of the Advanced Certified Green Building Professional Trainings at Build it Green. He is also a certified trainer for the California Building Performance Contractors Association (CBPCA). Kevin’s own company,Building Performance Services, is a Bay area building Science consulting firm dedicated to helping architects, builders and homeowners make homes more comfortable, healthier, and energy efficient. He specializes in home performance and building technology consulting with a focus on preventing and resolving problems related to building design, construction, and operation.

Kevin has been in the residential construction industry here in California for over thirty years. He was in the very first group to be certified as a Certified Green Building Professional here in the bay area in 2003. He is a lifelong student of Building Science and Home Performance. He’s is a practicing Building Performance Institute (BPI) Building Analyst and Shell Expert, a Certified Energy Plans Examiner, GreenPoint Rater, LEED Rater, and residential and light commercial energy consultant.

 

Michele Brown
Michele brings over 10 years of non-profit and program management/event coordination experience to her position as Project Manager for the Green Building Professional Guilds. She has managed and coordinated the Guild Program since 2009 and greatly enjoys working directly with green building professionals and continuing education. Before managing the Guilds, Michele managed the Green Home Tour Program at Build It Green for four years, as well as the Professional Training Program for over a year.

Prior to joining Build It Green, Michele was the Community Programs and Visitor Services Manager at Hidden Villa Farm and Wilderness Preserve, coordinating multicultural and environmental education programs/events for the public. While there, she particularly enjoyed producing sustainable building and design workshops for both the public and building professionals.

Michele received her Bachelor of Science degree in Management from the Pennsylvania State University in 1995 and is a Certified Green Building Professional.

 

Danielle Pittman
A San Francisco native and enthusiast, Danielle joins Build It Green with a dynamic background as a persistent event coordinator and tenacious office manager with the dogma of a former professional athlete. Danielle's first non-profit job position in sales and office management at the San Francisco Symphony was inspired by over a decade of hands-on experience in the classical arts. Her talents include ballet, modern jazz & tap dancing, chamber/choral singing, as well as instrumental focuses in piano, guitar & tenor saxophone.

Coming from a diverse family with an exceptional history of medical and military leadership, Danielle is an avid community supporter, volunteering for outreach and fundraising events regularly for organizations such as Glide Memorial Foundation, the Red Cross and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Danielle is in pursuit of her scholastic interests in Philosophy & Cultural Anthropology while completing a Mass Communications Major with a minor in Psychology. With her passion for event planning, community involvement and entertainment, she is a complimentary addition to the Professional Training department as Program Associate. She currently is a Certified Green Building Professional as well as Computer Core Hardware and Operating Systems (A+) Certified, and last but not least, a Certified Life Guard.

 

Darius Ingram
Darius' bio is coming soon!