People

My name is Abigail Ridge and I am the Education Programs Coordinator for the North Carolina Forestry Assocation. I graduated from North Carolina State University in May 2023 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology with a concentration in Wildlife Sciences, and minored in Environmental Education, Entomology, and Plant Biology. 

Embedded in NOAA’s Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and the Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab (GLERL), I am part of a NOAA team implementing the Great Lakes B-WET program funding watershed education projects for K-12 students and Indigenous youth. I also create and manage content for websites, social media, and other promotional outlets for the regional program.

Resuming an interrupted educational journey, Mike is majoring in Park and Resource Management, with a Minor in Environmental Communication and Heritage Interpretation, at Slippery Rock University.

I have been working in education since 2004 as first a teacher's assistant and a substitute teacher and for the past nine years as a teacher and have worked primarily with students with disabilities throughout the entire time. We moved recently from Florida to North Carolina and I am seeking a non-traditional teaching position and would love to work as an outdoor educator and intend to obtain my Environmental Education Certification.  I have always loved nature and the outdoors, having camped and hiked all over the United States throughout my lifetime and having traveled to many national and state parks.  

Michael Zanetti grew up in Connecticut. He is an author and a proud environmentalist. He has been a member of The Nature Conservancy for almost 20 years. Michael enjoys creative writing and music. He taught piano for many years and studied literature at Fairfield University. Michael's stories reflect his love for animals and nature.

Joe E. Heimlich, Ph.D. is Co-Director for the COSI Center for Research and Evaluation, and a Senior Researcher in the Center’s Lifelong Learning Group.  His research and evaluation work focuses on projects related to informal learning and capacity building for zoos, nature centers, parks, gardens, science centers, and other museums.  He is also an Academy Professor Emeritus with The Ohio State University where he was an Extension Specialist in museums and organizational capacity building, served as Leader, Environmental Science for OSUE, and held appointments in the School of Environment and Natural Resources, the Environmental Science Graduate Program, and the College of Education and Human Ecology.  Joe has been engaged in environmental free-choice learning for over 35 years and is the author of over a hundred academic journal articles, chapters, and books, and has written more than 350 reports, fact sheets, bulletins, white papers, and popular publications.