Richard Shaw - President

Richard, FASLA, is currently working to retire from a decades-long relationship with Design Workshop. Richard graduated with honors from Utah State University and earned his master’s from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, where he was awarded the Jacob Weidenman Traveling Fellowship. He has taught Resort Design through Harvard University’s School of Design Professional Development Series. Richard is a fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects and a past board member of both the Landscape Architecture Foundation and the American Institute of Certified Planners. His work in both small-scale residential garden design and large-scale resort redevelopment, planning, and design has garnered many awards and commendations, including recognition by the American Society of Landscape Architects and the American Horticultural Society. Richard his wife Sarah currently live in Basalt.

Cindi Jacobson - Vice President

Cindi is a social scientist with over 25 years of experience working in conservation policy and management. Prior to starting her consulting business, she was the Chair of the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna Working Group of the Arctic Council and Senior Advisor for Arctic Conservation for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Alaska. During her tenure, she oversaw a science program that convened diverse partnerships to plan and implement large landscape conservation efforts throughout Alaska and Northwestern Canada. Previously, Cindi spent 12 years as an Assistant Director for the Alaska Department of Fish & Game’s Division of Wildlife Conservation. She received a B.A. from the University of Colorado and M.S. and Ph.D. from the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell University. She is a Senior Research Scientist at the University of Alaska Fairbanks and Affiliate Faculty at Colorado State University. Cindi and her husband Mike now live in Carbondale where they enjoy the abundant wildlife, hiking, skiing and spending time with their four dogs.
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David Corbin - Treasurer

A Midwestern native, David attended Denison University before moving to Colorado in 1975 where he attended the University of Denver, secured his J.D. degree, and subsequently practiced law before later transitioning into real estate and ski resort development. David’s resort development experience began in Beaver Creek in the winter of 1987/88 and he subsequently joined and served as Vice President of Development for Vail Resorts and later, Booth Creek Ski Holdings, working in Vail, Lake Tahoe, and New England. David joined Aspen Skiing Company in 2005, where he served as Senior Vice President of Planning and Development for nearly 17 years, overseeing a variety of master planning efforts and development projects, and bearing responsibility for design oversight, entitlements, regulatory compliance, NEPA and other environmental reviews, construction and turnover to operations of the Ski Company’s physical assets ranging from ski lifts to offices, lodges, employee housing and other facilities. David also served as a member of the National Ski Areas Association Public Lands Committee for over 20 years and for many years served locally on the boards of the Aspen SkiCo Environment Foundation, the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES), and, separately, ACES Foundation Board.  
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Stephen Bershenyi – Secretary

With an ancestry of Roaring Fork Valley pioneers, Stephen was born into a ranching family in Glenwood Springs and lives there now with his wife, Jo. He stewards the family property, the Lazy V Quarter Circle Ranch, a 640-acre high-mountain parcel protected by a conservation easement.  An English Literature and German Language double major, Stephen also earned his journeyman card as a control instrument and refrigeration pipefitter. Stephen’s career has been varied but centered mainly on facilities maintenance and later facilities management. He was the Director of Maintenance at National Jewish Hospital in Denver and later the Facilities Manager at AMC Cancer Research Center in Lakewood. Since returning to the valley in 1995, Stephen has worked in facilities management and construction and since 2005 as an artist blacksmith.
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Kelly Austin

Kelly is an attorney with extensive experience in investigations, corporate governance, and compliance. She established and ran the Hong Kong office for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, and twice served on the Firm’s Executive Committee. Kelly received her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia. She has been involved with non-profit organizations for many years, including in Asia and the United States.  She currently sits on the Board of the Sopris Mountain Ranch HOA, which oversees a 2,000 acre, 150-year-old working cattle and equestrian ranch below Mt. Sopris, and on the Benefactors Board for the University of Virginia College Foundation. Kelly and her family have a long-standing commitment to environmental conservation, wilderness education, and educational access issues. Kelly and her husband Donald have two college-aged sons and live in Basalt. Since moving to the Roaring Fork Valley, they have taken full advantage of the many outdoor experiences available in the Rockies. 

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Ted Behar

An avid outdoorsman, Ted has always been recharged and energized by time spent in nature and is happy to have his retirement focus on giving back and working to preserve nature's habitats for future generations.  He has managed family properties in Tennessee and here in Missouri Heights with a focus on providing natural and safe wildlife habitats. Ted received his B.A. in philosophy from Union College before advancing to The University of Rochester School of Medicine, as well as surgical residencies at UNC Chapel Hill and VCU. After a busy career as a plastic and reconstructive surgeon outside of Nashville, Ted and his wife Julia welcomed the opportunity to retire and pursue an active mountain lifestyle in 2019 upon moving to Carbondale. Ted serves on the Carbondale Clay Center's Board of Directors and is an active ceramic artist. He remains very involved in hands-in-the-dirt stewardship as part of Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers work crews and as a crew leader and a member of their project selection committee. He also contributes to many citizen-science projects. With any remaining free time, he skis, hikes, fly-fishes, cycles, and continues to try his hand at nearly any human-powered outdoor pursuit.
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Rich Carr

Rich is a partner in CCY Architects, a firm based in the Roaring Fork Valley and widely recognized as a leading voice of design in the American West. His background in mountain resort and community design has been applied to a wide range of projects, from nationally published residences to affordable housing to new resort communities all throughout North America, Asia, South America, and the Caribbean. Rich received his Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University after studies in Berlin and Vienna. He has been a member of the American Institute of Architects and the Urban Land Institute for over 25 years, is a past Vice Chair of the ULI’s National Recreation Council, and a former Board Director for the Art Base in Basalt. Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Rich spent his youth adventuring in the Sierra Nevadas and has had a lifelong passion for engaging with and exploring nature. His Colorado ties run deep as do those of his wife, Jen, a fifth generation Coloradoan.

Stephen Ellsperman

Stephen is a Colorado native with 28 years of experience in natural resource management, ecological systems analysis, and planning, permitting, and capital and operational project management. Stephen has significant experience in federal, local, state and private work environments. He has led planning, design, and implementation of important projects in many iconic locations, including on lands administered by the National Park Service, United States Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. After retiring from DHM Design, where he was a principal and Director of Ecological Planning and Design, Stephen joined the United States Forest Service as a senior staff officer focusing on environmental and infrastructure projects. He is passionate about the protection and understanding of native ecosystems and strives to harmonize project planning with ecological and engineering conditions for valuable outcomes. He has raised a family in the Roaring Fork Valley with his wife, Jennifer, the former principal at Basalt Middle School. He has two sons who have both recently graduated from college and are both working in the natural resource field. Stephen is passionate and driven in his outdoor pursuits which include skiing, mountain biking, fly-fishing, botany, hunting, and running.

Mike Folwell

​Mike is a fifth-generation Colorado native. He received a bachelor’s in history and a master’s in architecture from the University of Colorado. His architectural experience includes assisting the Prague City Council with planning and architecture, serving as an Honorarium Teaching Instructor and architectural studio reviewer and critic at the University of Colorado, Boulder and Denver, and running his own architectural practice for 14 years. Mike has received multiple AIA awards for both residential and commercial work and served on the Board of Trustees of Friends School in Boulder. Currently, Mike is a Senior Project Architect at Studio B, Aspen/Boulder, and is "empty-nesting" in Carbondale, with his wife and two dogs. Mike is passionate about the outdoors, especially mountains, skiing, art, design, food, wine, travel, and spending time with friends.

Stephanie Gianneschi

A recent addition to the board, ​Stephanie has a decades-long career as a professional educator across the western US, including Arizona, Washington, and Colorado. Raised in Colorado, Stephanie has earned degrees from the University of Denver and the University of Colorado. During her educational career, she served as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and principal in both urban and rural schools, developing an acute appreciation of the extraordinary effects of robust early childhood and equitable access for all children, especially those with existing vulnerabilities. Since moving to the mountains in 2014, perspectives were expanded to include the transformational impacts philanthropy and nonprofits can have on individuals, communities, and the outdoors. She finds it immensely gratifying to scale impactful opportunities by connecting resources with deserving individuals and organizations. When not working she spends time with her husband and two sons, and cat and pup exploring the outdoors and training for various triathlons.

Nicole Leonard

Nicole brings an expertise in regional planning, landscape architecture, and natural resource management to Aspen Valley Land Trust. A Manager at Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Nicole's behavioral analytics work influences policy and corporate leaders toward climate-friendly decision-making. Nicole moved to the Roaring Fork Valley in 2020 and today calls Carbondale home along with her husband, their 2 dogs, and 10 chickens.

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Betina Moreira Infante

Born in Washington, D.C., Betina has worked in business, strategic communications, and public relations in the Americas, Europe and Asia for over 25 years. She has a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning from UCLA, and is fluent in Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian. Betina pioneered outreach and communication strategies for the U.S. Agency for International Development while providing technical assistance and communications training to USAID missions in Southeastern Europe, Russia, and South Asia. She has lived and worked in development overseas in multiple continents and countries. During her time in Mongolia, Betina launched Breakthrough Public Relations, an integrated PR and marketing communications agency. Betina’s relationship with this region started when her kids began boarding at Colorado Rocky Mountain School. Having lived, worked and recreated overseas for decades, people often questioned where the Infantes would settle - The Roaring Fork Valley provided the answer with its magnificent beauty, protected wilderness, abundant outdoor activities, and welcoming community. Betina believes in a respectful and sustainable approach to caring for the valley and the surrounding areas, one that protects working lands and critical habitat for future generations. 


​​WE NEED THE LAND, AND THE LAND NEEDS YOU

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