Director and Board

Russel Barsh (Director) studied at Harvard, taught at the University of Washington, and worked for many years at the United Nations on indigenous peoples and their ecosystems before returning to the Northwest and organizing Kwiaht with the encouragement of long time friend Ken Hansen. With a background in human ecology he is especially interested in cultural and economic factors influencing human impacts on the environment, the role of schools, and adaptation of animals and plants to humans. He lives on Lopez Island.

Camilla Wilde (Board Chair 2023) grew up off-grid in the outer islands of the San Juan Archipelago where she volunteered for Kwiaht’s community science and restoration programs from childhood. While earning a BA in Fine Art from the University of Edinburgh she worked in education and artistic outreach for The Scottish Wildlife Trust and The Royal Botanical Gardens. She now lives on Lopez Island where she works to educate and engage local dialogue on environmental issues through her work at the local bookshop and as an illustrator

Shona Aitken (Secretary 2023) has a degree in Biology and Environmental Science from the University of Stirling in her home country of Scotland. She spent several years working for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and as a Countryside Ranger in Scotland and at a Marine Station on the west coast of Sweden, before moving to San Juan Island in 1990. Since then she has worked in education and animal care at Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, raising awareness of human impacts on local wildlife and their habitats.

Malcolm Suttles (Treasurer 2023)

Nick Teague