New staffers join team at Dungeness River Nature Center

The Dungeness River Nature Center (DRNC) has a trio of new staffers, the organization announced recently, including a new executive director.

Frank Lowenstein, whose career blends forest conservation, climate mitigation and environmental justice, is the new executive the the center.

Lowenstein has “a strong focus on community engagement and the benefits of conservation for people … and he’s looking forward to helping DRNC fulfill its ambitions and potential,” Nature Center officials noted.

He and his life partner Darcy Schultz moved to Sequim this summer.

Most recently, Lowenstein led the climate equity and justice program Solar Helping Ignite Neighborhood Economies (or SHINE) for the international nonprofit Rare (see shinecoaliation.org). Prior to that he served as Chief Operating Officer for New England Forestry Foundation (NEFF), helping to lead that organization to focus on forests’ potential in climate mitigation.

Early in his career, Lowenstein worked as a staff scientist for the Lake Champlain Committee, looking to protect water quality through a watershed approach, and then for The Nature Conservancy for more than 20 years, with roles ranging from leading community-based conservation in rural New England to leading the organization’s work on climate adaptation worldwide.

Leshell Michaluk-Bergan is the new volunteer coordinator for the Dungeness River Nature Center and the Dungeness Protection Island Refuge.

She had her recently put down roots in Sequim after his retirement from Boeing this past spring.

Her career in outdoor education and conservation began more than 20 years ago as an onboard naturalist with BC Ferries. Since then, she’s worked at several positions including time at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium. There, she worked with the youth volunteer team and served as the community science coordinator, training volunteers to lead beach walks, monitor purple martins, and conduct pika counts.

Michaluk-Bergan said that, as the volunteer coordinator for the Dungeness River Nature Center and now the Dungeness Protection Island Refuge, her goal is to help volunteer teams “navigate change and unite as a powerful force dedicated to the Dungeness River.”

Jennifer Waters-White is the DRNC’s new communications coordinator. An East Coast native, she grew up in a small town in South Carolina before taking time to travel and finding the Olympic Peninsula.

She has a degree in media and communications and has a background in working with nonprofits and cause-related work.

“The outdoors has been a central part of my life since childhood, and I’m deeply honored to have the opportunity to work here and contribute to protecting the natural world that has always inspired me,” Waters-White said.

”My passion for environmental conservation and good causes drives my commitment to using media as a tool for positive change. I’m a believer in the power of storytelling, and I strive to use my media skills to craft narratives that not only inform but inspire.”