Who We Are

 

Staff

Jeff Howe, President

Kathryn Fernholz, Executive Director

Jim Bowyer, Director of Responsible Materials Program

Steve Bratkovich, Project Manager for Recycling & Reuse

Janet Bratkovich, Director of Environmental Education

Sarah Stai, Associate Ecologist

Matt Frank, Program Assistant

Adam Birr, Project Assistant

Don Heise, Project Manager

Jeff Bowyer, Associate

 

Current Interns

Matthew Thompson, Green Building

Pamela Foster, Research

Gretchen Trudeau, Renewable Energy Policy

Adam Zoet, Renewable Energy Policy, CURA/CAP Internship

Lacey McCray, Communications, Education and Policy

Lindsey Chaplin, Responsible Materials

Trevor McCalmont, Renewable Energy

 

 

Past Interns

 

Board of Directors


Board of Advisors

 

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Dr. Jeff Howe, Chairman and President of Dovetail Partners

Jeff Howe is an expert on creating Learning Organizations and on implementing organizational change. He has over 20 years of successful hands-on leadership experience in industry, including time as CEO and President of several companies. Organizations under Jeff’s guidance have received awards such as MN Handicapped employer of the year, WI Environmental Company of the year and as a Midwest finalist in the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award based on the company’s unique team culture. He brings both theory and practice to strategic business discussions. Jeff is involved with a number of “For Benefit” Boards and is the founder and Chairman of Dovetail Partners, an internationally recognized not-for-profit organization considered the premier “think tank” focused on developing creative solutions to topical strategic issues critical to the Natural Resources sector. Jeff is a very popular speaker on issues ranging from Green Marketing to the development of LEAN culture. He has authored numerous articles on planning, marketing, vision, conflict resolution, and culture development. Jeff received his B.S. degree from Bates College, an M.S. degree from the University of Maine, and a PhD from the University of Minnesota.


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Kathryn Fernholz, Executive Director
Kathryn has worked on development and forest management issues in a range of roles. With a consulting firm, Kathryn was a member of the environmental services department where her work included natural resource inventories, comprehensive planning, environmental impact assessments and the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). While working for the Community Forestry Resource Center, Kathryn developed and managed a group certification project for family forests and worked to increase local capacity to provide forest management and marketing services that are compatible with certification standards. Kathryn is also an experienced forest certification lead auditor. Kathryn has been a leader within the forestry community in the Upper Midwest through her service as Chair of the Minnesota Society of American Foresters and her appointment to the Minnesota Forest Resources Council. Kathryn served as  a member of the Advisory Board for the Blandin Foundation's Vital Forests/Vital Communities Initiative, and currently serves on the Minnesota DNR's Stewardship Committee, and the Forests for the Future Committee. She is a member of the Board of Directors for the Minnesota Environmental Partnership, Renewing the Countryside, the Forest Guild, and the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences Alumni Society. In 2011, Kathryn joined the NSF Joint Committee on Dimensional Stone Sustainability and became a member of the Board of Directors for the Sustainable Furnishings Council. Kathryn has a B.S. in Forest Resources from the University of Minnesota, College of Natural Resources and also studied at the College of Saint Benedict in St. Joseph, MN and Sheldon Jackson College in Sitka, Alaska.








 

 

Dr. Jim Bowyer, Director of Responsible Materials Program

Dr. Jim Bowyer is professor emeritus, University of Minnesota Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering. He is an Elected Fellow of the International Academy of Wood Science; President of Bowyer and Associates, Inc. – a wood science and bioenergy consulting firm; Member of the Governance Board and Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Temperate Forest Foundation (Portland, Oregon); and a Member of the Blandin Foundation Vital Forests/Vital Communities Board of Advisors. Bowyer has served as President of the Forest Products Society (1993-94) and of the Society of Wood Science and Technology (1987-88), Vice President of the Consortium for Research on Renewable Industrial Materials (1992-2003), and Chairman of the Tropical Forest Foundation (2002-2008). He was Head of the University of Minnesota's Department of Wood & Paper Science from 1984 to 1994, and Founder and Director of the Forest Products Management Development Institute at the University of Minnesota (an organization dedicated to education and development of industry professionals) from 1994-2003. He served as Project Leader of the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station project “Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Bio-based Materials and Products” from 1988 to 2003 and he also led a research team focused on global raw materials consumption and supply trends for more than 30 years. Dr. Bowyer earned a BS degree in forest management from Oklahoma State University (1964), a MS in forest products from Michigan State University (1966), and a PhD in wood science in technology from the University of Minnesota (1973). He has published widely on the topics of wood science and technology, environmental life cycle analysis, and relationships of wood and other raw materials use, forest policy, and environmental impacts. He is also coauthor of the leading introductory wood science textbook in North America Forest Products and Wood Science – an Introduction , now in its 5th edition, and of the widely used CD-ROM The Nature of Wood and Wood Products.


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve Bratkovich, Project Manager for Recycling & Reuse

Steve Bratkovich, Ph.D., has 36 years of forestry and forest products experience. His areas of expertise include urban wood utilization; business, marketing and strategic planning; primary and secondary wood processing; and sustainable forest management. Steve has authored over 175 forestry-related publications, articles and reports, and is a frequent contributor to forestry and industry trade journals. He currently serves as an Associate Editor to the Journal of Forestry and is Contributing Writer for Independent Sawmill and Woodlot Management magazine's “Green Column.” In 2002 Steve received the Excellence in Technology Transfer award from the Chief of the USDA Forest Service. Steve has also received outstanding service awards from the Ohio and Minnesota Society of American Foresters. Steve is a self-employed forestry consultant and frequently speaks across the country on urban wood use topics.


Janet Bratkovich, Director of Environmental Education
Janet has 30+ years of experience in elementary education and adult learning in New Hampshire, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Ohio and Minnesota.  Most recently she was employed by the Anoka-Hennepin School District (Minnesota) as a 4th grade teacher specializing in science and mathematics.  As a Math-Science Teacher Leader (MSTL) Janet collaborated with eductors and administrators to align instructional materials and methods to Minnesota Department of Education state standards.  Inquiry-based instruction was a focus of both her classroom and committee work.  Janet also has worked for the Minnesota History Center as a school programs facilitator and instructor and as a County Extension Educator (4-H) for the University of Minnesota.  Volunteer activities include Literacy Training and Teaching and coordinating adult volunteers to enrich reading and high-potential school programs.  Janet's hobbies include gardening and cooking which led to publication of her specialty mushroom cookbook, "Shittake Sampler". Janet has a B.A. in Elementary Education from the University of New Hampshire and a M.Ed. in Reading from Northeastern Oklahoma State University.


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Dr. Sarah Stai, Associate Ecologist
Sarah has over 15 years of experience as a field biologist, research scientist, educator, and consultant.  She has worked in diverse landscapes, from the prairie potholes of Manitoba to the Brazilian Pantanal, and with wide-ranging subjects, including waterfowl and wading bird ecology, wetland buffer dynamics, aquatic plant ecology, and grassland and tropical forest biodiversity.  Upon transitioning from academia to consulting, Sarah applied her analytical and communications skills to environmental impact assessments, regulatory compliance, and sustainable development education programs involving innovative stormwater management, green building, and conservation design. Key project experience included analysis of wildlife impacts for proposed wind farms, watershed restoration and outreach planning, environmental review and permitting for biofuel production, and research and development of innovative treatment for industrial wastewater.  Current interests include land use, water resources, renewable energy, and sustainable agriculture.  Sarah is self-employed as a freelance writer and editor and an ecological and educational consultant. She earned a BS in Ecology from the University of Minnesota and a PhD in Ecology from the University of Miami. She is a Certified Ecologist with the Ecological Society of America and a LEED Accredited Professional through the U.S. Green Building Council.


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Matt Frank, Program Assistant
 Matt has a background in environmental planning and design, working for companies in the private and non-profit sectors. Matt has a Bachelor of Environmental Design, with a focus on landscape architecture and urban planning, and a minor in architecture from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Prior to working at Dovetail, Matt interned at U-Plan Community Planning Studio in St. Paul, MN doing research on transit-oriented developments and their growth in relationship to future light rail lines in the Twin Cities. Matt then served as a design consultant for Metro Blooms, a Twin Cities based non-profit group, teaching homeowners about the benefits of rain gardens and designing plans for individual’s properties. Matt has also volunteered for a non-profit group named the Minnesota Design Team where he designed streetscape improvements and trail connections for Gaylord, Minnesota’s downtown economic improvement district. In 2011, Matt joined the Midtown Greenway Coalition in Minneapolis and became the Vice-Chair of their Greenspace Committee where he analyzes and maintains existing landscapes and plans for future plantings along a 5.5 mile long bicycle and pedestrian trail. Matt’s interests include sustainable landscape practices, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian planning, landscape architecture, urban agriculture, and renewable energy. When not at Dovetail, Matt enjoys traveling, landscaping, and bicycling.



Don Heise, Project Manager, Board of Advisors

Don Heise has over 25 years of experience with lumber and wood products, and over 14 years of experience working with FSC certification (Forest Stewardship Council). Don worked for 15 years as the National Sales Manager of Colonial Craft, a Minnesota company instrumental in the development of FSC and in 1994 was among the first ten companies in the US to become FSC chain-of-custody certified. Don has training in Architectural Drafting from the North Dakota State College of Science and was an active member of the Minnesota Wood Promotion Council where he served one year as vice president. His background allows him to integrate design into his woodworking projects, where he has spent time designing and building custom cabinets, and worked with everything from refurbished lumber to reclaimed tin siding. Today Don continues his passion for wood and innovation by splitting his time between Dovetail and being an independent wood products sales representative. His company, Architectural Wood Specialties, Inc., sources high-quality wood products, including FSC-certified and other sustainably-managed designations. Don joined Dovetail as a project manager in 2007 and as a member of the Board of Advisors in 2006. His enthusiasm for innovative design and knowledge of sustainable wood products make him an undeniable asset.


Jeff Bowyer, Associate

Jeffrey Bowyer obtained his BA in International Relations from the University of Minnesota, a degree program that included a year of study at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan. After receiving his Master's in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina in 1995, Jeff served as a Local Development Planning Volunteer for the U.S. Peace Corps in the Philippines. He then traded his flip-flops for a suit and tie when he moved to Washington DC, where he worked for a number of consulting companies, including Development Alternatives and The Louis Berger Group. In 2000, he joined the US-Asia Environmental Partnership (US-AEP), a program funded by the US Agency for International Development. As their Regional Urban Program Advisor, he provided strategic direction and coordinated US-AEP's urban environmental initiatives. Three years later, he moved back to Asia as the Thailand Country Coordinator for US-AEP. In that capacity, he developed and managed projects in the areas of air quality, solid waste management, and watershed management. For the past three years, Mr. Bowyer has lived in Manila, where he lives with his wife and step-daughter. He has spent much of his time working with the Asian Development Bank conducting research and writing on various environmental issues, including energy efficiency and climate change. Most recently, he served as a lead consultant in writing a report titled Toward Resource-Efficient Economies for Asia and the Pacific, which reviews the economic and environmental consequences of resource inefficiency in Asia and a number of measures that can be taken to reverse current trends. To date he has spent over twelve years in the development field.