Seventh Generation Institute
Board of Directors

William J. Morris, President, is a life-long supporter of conservation and sustainable use.
He was a volunteer in Honduras and Colombia, where he worked with residents to build
local resource management skills that coupled sustainable use with small scale agriculture
and ecotourism.  A former Idahoan, Mr. Morris cherishes the natural heritage of the Rocky
Mountains and the open spaces of the western United States. Mr. Morris resides in Santa Fe
New Mexico where he has the opportunity to enjoy open space all year.

Lisa Degen, DVM, Vice President, is a veterinarian with a long-standing interest in
wildlife veterinary medicine.  She is an advocate of personal volunteerism, serving on
several professional veterinary boards and as adult literacy volunteer, in addition to her
work with 7GI. Dr. Degen resides in Florida where she owns the Village Animal Clinic and
(somehow) finds time to be a mom.

Mark Silano has recently joined the Seventh Generation board of directors and assumed
the role of Treasurer. A resident of Santa Fe, he brings 7GI twenty-five years of expertise in
nonprofit financial management. Mr. Silano provides financial consulting services to
nonprofit organizations and serves as the full time Financial Manager at the Forest Guild, a
national organization of professional forest stewards and associated natural resource
professionals that promotes sustainable forestry.    

Cynthia Wagstaff, Secretary, is an artist, writer, surfer and behind-the-scenes dynamo
who helped launch Seventh Generation Institute and has been an integral part of the
organization since the beginning.  Semi-retired, she divides her personal time between the
wilderness of Idaho and remote regions of Baja California Sur, where she writes and
illustrates children’s books, cares for abandoned dogs and enjoys long walks on the beach.  

Michael Moore is an avid hiker and skier and self-described vagabond.  Raised in rural
America and educated as an economist, he has lived in small towns around the Western U.
S., pursuing his outdoor recreational interests.  He has also travelled globally and is keenly
interested in the impacts of large-scale economic change on local environmental and social
dynamics. Now retired, he resides in Washington state.

Advisory Board

Lucy Moore has been an environmental mediator, facilitator and trainer since 1981. She
has worked with government agencies, communities, tribes, organizations and individuals
to help improve working relationships within and among entities, build public collaboration
and improve cross-cultural understanding.  She has helped groups solve problems, reach
consensus or negotiate outcomes related to endangered species, water rights, noise
pollution, hazardous waste clean-up, mine closures, Superfund sites, and land use conflicts.

Jennifer Steketee is a veterinarian who combines her interest in wildlife medicine with
her passion for the environment.  A native of Oregon who volunteered in Africa and has
lived in New Mexico for many years, Jennifer provides Seventh Generation Institute with
invaluable expertise on  wildlife handling and care. In her spare time, she runs marathons
and live-traps baboons.  

Amy Lewis is an independent consulting hydrologist who has worked in every corner of
New Mexico in her twenty-four years of experience.  She specializes in ground-water
hydrology; ground-water modeling; surface and ground-water investigations; water quality;
regulatory compliance and water resource planning.  She holds an M.S. in Hydrology from
the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology and a B.S. in Geology from Boise
State University. In addition to her technical qualifications, Ms. Lewis has extensive
experience working with stakeholders including acequia associations, citizen groups, the
Jicarilla Apache Nation, the San Ildefonso Pueblo, numerous nonprofit organizations and
governmental agencies at all levels. She is an avid outdoors enthusiast and observer of
nature. She serves on the New Mexico Geologic Mapping Advisory Board in addition to her
work with Seventh Generation Institute.

Deborah Finch, Ph.D., currently serves as Supervisory Research Wildlife Biologist at the
Albuquerque Lab of the Rocky Mountain Research Station, a division of the U.S. Forest
Service.  The current focus of Dr. Finch’s research is on riparian environments.  She is
interested in climate change and the vulnerability of species to shifts in climate and has
developed support tools that managers can use to assist species to adapt to changing
conditions. Past research has evaluated the effects of fire and the removal of invasive plant
species and fuel loads in riparian areas to reduce the risk of fire and determining the effects
of those measures on threatened and endangered species, water resources, soils, and
interactions between different elements of the ecosystem. Complimenting her work in
riparian areas of New Mexico has been extensive research into neotropical migratory birds,
particularly the Southwestern willow flycatcher,  in relationship to the effects of natural
resource practices and natural phenomena. In addition to her work with Seventh
Generation Institute, she is involved in Partners in Flight, an organization which she helped
to develop. Dr. Finch holds a Ph.D.in  Zoology and Physiology, from the University of
Wyoming, an M.S.in  Zoology, from Arizona State University and a B.S., Wildlife
Management, Humboldt State University.
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