SIMON ABRAMSON, Assistant Director & Instructor – Simon Abramson grew up in New Jersey where, as a child, he explored the forest, streams and wetlands at the cul-de-sac on his road. Simon has a B.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont where he focused on the relationship between a healthy human psyche and a healthy natural world. He has staffed and studied with various wilderness schools throughout the Northeast including the Institute for Natural Learning, White Pine Programs and the Vermont Wilderness School. When he’s not in the woods or in the water, Simon is designing and building websites and other internet solutions.

JOE BERGSTEIN, Caretaker – Joe is a relative new comer to the New Paltz Area having moved here several years ago from Hoboken, New Jersey.   He is awestruck by the beauty of the Hudson Valley and is inspired by the mission of Wild Earth.  Joe is particularly interested in contributing his time and energy to bringing Wild Earth nature-based programs to more youth in the region.   He serves on a number of community groups in New Paltz and is a serious amateur musician, always in search of others to jam with.  Joe has worked at the USEPA over the past two decades and is married with two daughters.

LARRY BROWN, Instructor – Larry has been a builder in the Hudson Valley for more than 30 years. He specializes in energy-efficient, passive-solar houses on and off the grid, using local materials and non-toxic finishes wherever possible. Since the early 1990s, Larry has also been a New York State certified installer of solar-electric systems. He has been an instructor for Solar Energy International for ten years, training students in the design and installation of renewable energy systems. Larry has raised three children and built several homes for his family. He presently lives in log cabin that he designed and built. Larry has been closely aligned with the land, the plants, the mountains, and the streams of the Catskill Mountains for the last 40 years.

DAVID BROWNSTEIN, Executive Director – In 2004, David co-founded and, today, is the Executive Director of Wild Earth, where he seeks to help regenerate healthy community culture and create opportunities for people to connect with themselves, each other and the Earth.  Prior to founding Wild Earth, David worked as a wealth advisor on Wall Street for twelve years before realizing a life dream – fully sharing in the care and parenting of his three children, and creating a small family farm.  Today, the Brownsteins raise dairy cows, goats, chickens, bees and vegetables in season.  David also maintains an active counseling practice called Root Connections, where he focuses on helping individuals, couples, groups and business leaders identify and manifest their unique vision.    david@wildearthprograms.org

ABRAH JORDAN DRESDALE, Instructor – Abrah is a landscape designer, outdoor educator, and artist. Her research on the Native American Medicine Wheel for her undergraduate honors thesis at SUNY New Paltz opened doors into the world of naturalist mentoring. Since 2004, Abrah has taught outdoor education with an emphasis on girls’ empowerment at Wild Earth, Vermont Wilderness School, and Omega Institute’s Teen Camp. Her love of naturalist teachings inspired her to study botany and medicinal plants at the Wildflower School of Botanical Medicine, Austin, TX. While living in Austin, she also received a Permaculture Design Certification. In 2009, Abrah moved to western Massachusetts to complete her Master of Arts at the Conway School of Landscape Design.  Most recently, she has been mentoring 11-12 year-old girls through Wild Earth’s Crescent Moon Girls program in the Hudson Valley and started a sustainable landscape design and planning business, Feeding Landscapes, in Greenfield, MA. Abrah brings her background experience to Wild Earth, using her mentoring skills paired with ecological knowledge of the landscape as tools to facilitate positive change in partnership with people and communities. www.issuu.com/abrahdresdale

CHARLENE DYE, Caretaker – Charlene grew up playing in the woods, creeks, and lakes of central Georgia. One of her earliest memories is of her dog, Butch, given to her at birth by a cousin. This relationship grew into an enduring love of all animals, which led directly to her love of nature. Butch probably led her first excursion into the woods. Charlene holds an M.A. in literature from Sonoma State University and an M.S. in Southern Culture from the University of Mississippi. She is a retired teacher, among many other things too numerous to mention here. Charlene is Noli and Evie’s grandma; they have participated in Wild Earth programs from its inception.

DINA FALCONI, Instructor – Dina Falconi is a clinical herbalist with a strong focus on food activism and nutritional healing. For over twenty years, she has been teaching classes about the use of herbs for food, medicine, and pleasure, including wild food foraging and cooking. She produces Falcon Formulations natural body-care products and Earthly Extracts medicinal tinctures. She is a founding member of the Northeast Herbal Association, a chapter leader of the Weston A. Price Foundation and on the board of Slow Food-Hudson Valley. An avid gardener and wildcrafter, Dina is passionate about agricultural ecology and has completed the Permaculture Design Certificate Course. She is author of Earthy Bodies & Heavenly Hair: Natural and Healthy Personal Care for Everybody.

PETER FERLAND, Instructor – Peter has been connected to Wild Earth ever since his son was an “Autumn Acorn” with Red Fox Friends.  He is a Ring 2 member of the Art of Mentoring hosted by the Vermont Wilderness School and was an instructor for the boys program “Track & Sign” for over 45 full-day programs and overnight campouts.  He has been a support person for two local rite-of-passage events for teen boys. The process of one of them is the subject of a documentary movie he’s making.  He teaches playwriting to eighth graders, raises chickens and loves a good story.

Alisha Mai Frank hails from southwestern CT, where she grew up roving an expansive patchwork of 2-acre woodlands, clamoring across barnacled boulders lining Long Island Sound, and capturing crickets to feed to her coddled leopard frogs. She studied acting at Emerson College and graduated from Hampshire College with a self-designed B.A. in ecosystem mimicry ag and community circus theater. Alisha Mai has worked with Vermont Wilderness School, the Institute for Natural Learning, Earthworks, Wolftree Programs and White Pine Programs. She draws upon her backgrounds in theater and circus to create zany and magical nature-immersion experiences. Alisha Mai is certified in Wildlife Track and Sign (Level II) through CyberTracker, and is a Wilderness First Responder. She designs landscapes with AppleSeed Permaculture, teaches vinyasa yoga, and performs aerial silks.

ESPERANZA GONZALEZ, Instructor – Esperanza moved to the Mid-Hudson Valley in 2004 to pursue her studies in education. Through the years, she has gravitated towards arts and nature-based learning. In 2006, she discovered Waldorf Education and Wild Earth Wilderness School, and since then, she has worked closely with both schools. From these teachings, she has formed a nature-based children’s theater troupe called All Seasons. She currently lives on an herb farm with eight other friends. Community, nature, and creation are the foundation for all her “doings”!

TAMA JACKSON, Instructor – For the last decade, Tama has pursued his relationship with the natural world through primitive survival, naturalist, and mentoring skills. He has been primarily influenced through participation in Native American ceremonies, NVC training and professional practice as well as thousands of hours in the woods.  Tama completed a two-year program at the Regenerative Design Institute in Northern California. He is a graduate of the North American NVC Leadership Program, holds a Permaculture Design Certificate, is a Certified Level 2 Archery Instructor, a Level 1 Circus Yoga Instructor, and is certified in CPR and Basic First Aid. He participated in a nine-day wolf tracking intensive in Ontario Canada. Tama has taught at three of the major wilderness schools in the North East.

PIERRE KUYL, Caretaker -Pierre was born in 1964 in Brussels, Belgium, the youngest of seven children. As a child, he spent much time hiking in the woods of the Ardennes Mountains, collecting mushrooms and wild berries, fishing rivers and streams. After obtaining his BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, he spent four months backpacking in North and South America. This would ultimately bring him a job opportunity at Daikin, a Japanese company based in Osaka, where he worked from 1989 to 1992. Pierre met his wife, Patricia, in Osaka where they got married. Together they climbed Mount Fuji, explored the Japanese countryside and backpacked in South-East Asia in their spare time. In 1992, they moved to the Hudson Valley and, finally, to New Paltz in 2006, where they happily are raising three children. In New Paltz, they found, through Wild Earth and Mountain Laurel Waldorf School, a supportive community of dedicated and caring people. When not working on Solar Energy projects for his company, Pierre enjoys good food and the outdoors with his family and friends.

PATRICK LINSEY, Instructor – Patrick grew up rambling around farm fields and forests in rural Western New York.  After receiving a degree in Environmental Education from the University at Buffalo, Patrick moved down to the Hudson River/Catskills area in 2004, and has let his roots dig in here. He currently lives along the base of the beautiful Shawangunk Mountains near Rosendale. He has worked for the Buffalo Audubon Society, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, the Ashokan Field Campus, and most recently works for Wild Earth Wilderness School and the High Meadow School in Stone Ridge. Working as an instructor and teacher assures Patrick the gift of learning something new everyday alongside his students.  His passions include backpacking, canoeing, growing food, reading, and being active in his local community.

AMY LITTLE, President – Amy has diverse training and experience in wilderness and environmental education, cultural diversity, civic engagement, agriculture and environmental policies, community organizing and non-profit management.  Certified by Project Wild, Backcountry Patrol and White Mountain Outdoor Leadership Center, Amy grew up spending most of her time outdoors, exploring her first love: Nature.  She has been a teacher in other nature programs and with Wild Earth as an Instructor, Program Coordinator and Caretaker. As an activist, Amy has launched and lead non-profits and community-based organizations advocating on a broad range of social, economic, agriculture and environmental issues.  Amy is currently on staff at NESAWG, the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working group, and is Strategy Advisor to the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. She is very excited about permaculture homesteading in the Hudson Valley. Amy wants to know, “Where is your wilderness edge? How can we take you there?” and “What do you hope for Wild Earth Wilderness School?”

TYLER MCNAMARA, Instructor – Tyler McNamara emerged from two years in the belly of the Vermont Wilderness School apprentice program in 2005, and has been working with wilderness schools in Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York ever since. Tyler’s current vision is to incorporate his exter-wilderness passions and talents into his work with children and young adults. Things like artistic writing, mountain biking, and card/board gaming, will become mentoring environments through Tyler’s clever craftsmanship.

THOMAS MELI, Instructor – Thomas has studied primitive skills and nature awareness with great naturalists such as Tom Brown Jr., Dan Gardoqui, Dan Hansche, and George Leoniak. He is a Level 1 Track & Sign interpreter through Cybertracker International – the most rigorous tracking certification in the world. Thomas completed the White Pine nine-month tracking apprenticeship, attended a weeklong bird language intensive, and served as a seasonal naturalist at Mohonk Preserve for two years.

DYAMI NASON-REGAN, Instructor – Dyami’s passion for nature-connection work comes from being raised in the beautiful Rondout Valley. She still remembers the magnolia tree that taught her how to climb trees. Her commitment to the community and the natural world that raised her inspires her work with the future generations of this bioregion. She graduated from Empire State College with a self-designed B.S. in Nature-Based Mentoring and is now pursuing an M.S. from Gaia University where her focus is developing nature-connection programs for girls moving into adolescence. Wild Earth is the forum from which Dyami offers the world the gifts of her deepest soul work: mentoring teenage girls to build connection to self, others and the Earth.

ROLANDO NEGOITA, Instructor – Rolando was born in 1955 in the Transylvania region of Romania. In 1979, he graduated from the Romania Fine Arts Academy with a BA in metalsmithing. He spent the rest of his time in Romania as a sculptor and jeweler. Rolando came to the US in 1990 with his wife Alexandra and son Luka where, together with Alexandra, he opened a studio in New York City designing jewelry and clothing accessories for several fashion-design companies. Since 1990, Rolando has also been an Associate Professor at the Parsons School of Design (New School University). In the late nineties, Rolando and his family moved to New Paltz, New York, where he started dedicating more time to hobbies such as bow and knife making. Soon he began teaching workshops on bow and knife making for kids and adults. Rolando enjoys working with children in his shop, as well as teaching them the ways of the wilderness. In his spare time, he loves rock and ice climbing.

Tanya Robie, Instructor – With over a decade of experience in childcare and early education, Tanya is a playful, loving and attentive educator.  With a degree in Environmental Education from Prescott College and a Masters in creative writing from Spalding University, Tanya brings a love of stories and a well of creative thought to her passion for the great outdoors.  Tanya has worked with both Wild Earth’s Kestrel and Screech Owl camps.

SARAH SNOW, Caretaker & Marketing Consultant –

LAURA ANN TOMASO, Caretaker & Fundraising Events Consultant -

PAUL TOBIN, Instructor -