About Us
Board of Directors
Ara Erickson
Chair

Ara is the vice-president of corporate sustainability at Weyerhaeuser, one of the world’s largest private owners of timberlands and one of the largest manufacturers of wood products in North America. The company is proud to manage one of the most sustainable, versatile resources on earth – forests – while making products that people need.

“I unabashedly love forests and am enamored by all the amazing benefits they provide. I believe we can work alongside nature to grow trees to turn into products we all rely on, every day, while at the same time ensuring forests are cleaning the air, filtering water, providing canopy and wildlife habitat, and just being absolutely beautiful and stunning in their own right. American Forests is working to create a world where these benefits are balanced and valued.”
Pamela Tate
Vice Chair

Pamela Tate served for 28 years as President and CEO of The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), a national, non-profit educational organization committed to expanding lifelong opportunities for adults and advancing experiential learning and its assessment. Since 2018-2019, Tate has devoted her life to addressing the climate crisis. As a Certified Climate Reality Leader and Chair of the Campaigns Committee of the Chicago Metro Chapter of Climate Reality, Tate works on regenerative agriculture practices, tree conservation and preservation, electrification of public transit and private vehicles, and federal and state policy to de-celerate global warming.

“I have followed and supported the terrific work of American Forests for a number of years and believe this is our climate moment — when we must take major programmatic and policy action at both the local and federal level to save the forests and larger ecosystems of which we are a part. The work of American Forests, in my view, is central to solving the climate crisis and I am excited to become a part of this important effort.”
E. Zimmermann (Zim) Boulos
Treasurer

Zim is very active in the Jacksonville, Florida, community. He has been a board member of Greenscape, the nation’s second oldest community tree planting organization, since 1988. Zim founded the Greenscape Flowering Tree Sale, which has since added more than 200,000 trees to the area’s landscape.  He has been recognized by the state of Florida with an Urban Forestry Award.

“From my own experience, I know that trees and parks play a major role in making cities healthier and better places to live. American Forests is a champion for urban forests from coast to coast.”
Holly Alpine
Secretary

Holly Alpine most recently served as Microsoft’s Sr. Program Manager of Datacenter Community Environmental Sustainability, investing in Nature Based Solutions in 45 communities around the world. She also co-founded and co-led Microsoft’s employee engagement program for sustainability, growing the group to around 10,000 global employees. She is a Seattle-based plant-powered avid outdoor adventure enthusiast and loves many adventure sports.

“No other organization I have come across possesses the staggering combination that American Forests holds of our shared deep-seated passion, arc towards justice and equity, technical capabilities, national reach, and the resources to get things done. I am beyond thrilled to be able to contribute to their mission.”
Jad Daley
President and Chief Executive Officer

Jad is the 40th president and chief executive officer of American Forests, centering the nation’s oldest forest conservation NGO on climate change and social equity and overseeing near ten-fold organizational growth since 2018. He has been a pathfinder on nature-based solutions, having co-founded the Forest-Climate Working Group in 2007 and established the first climate change program at The Trust for Public Land in 2010. In 2024, Jad was named to the TIME Climate 100 and Washingtonian 500 in recognition of his longstanding climate leadership.

Jad serves as Co-Chair for the U.S. Chapter of 1t.org and as a member of the U.S. Forest Service Forest Research Advisory Council. He has been a lead author and advocate on historic federal policy wins, including the federal REPLANT Act, forest provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, Highlands Conservation Act, and legislation establishing the U.S. Forest Service Community Forest Program.

Jad is a widely published writer, from peer-reviewed research on climate-smart forestry to opinion pieces in outlets such as TIME, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Hill, and more.

Jad has a B.A. from Brown University and a master’s degree in environmental law and policy from Vermont Law School awarded summa cum laude. In his spare time, he is a passionate endurance athlete, having represented the USA three times at the ITU World Duathlon (run-bike-run) Championships and twice finishing in the top 150 of the New York City Marathon.

“I yearn for game-changing progress on the urgent challenges of climate change and social equity. I am inspired by my belief that trees can provide transformational impact in these areas, and the knowledge that we are doing work daily that can save lives and our climate, changing the trajectory of our nation.”
Paul G. Boynton

Paul is the recent past CEO of Rayonier Advanced Materials, a global producer of high-value cellulose fibers and forest products, and previously CEO at Rayonier, a leading forestry company with timberland assets across the US and New Zealand.  Before Rayonier, Paul spent nearly a decade at 3M running businesses such as Scotch-Brite® and O-Cel-O® sponge products and Post-it® flags.  Paul serves as a director of the Brink’s Company and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Jacksonville Branch and a member Board of Governors for the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement.

“I’m excited and honored to be part of American Forests and to support their invaluable initiatives to help create a more sustainable environment. I’ve spent a career working in forestry and with forest-based products and I’m passionate about the positive role forests can and should play in climate change solutions.”
Taldi Harrison

Taldi is chief program officer at the Foundation for America’s Public Lands, the official charitable partner of the Bureau of Land Management. In this capacity, she oversees the Foundation’s government relations, community engagement, and program development. With nearly 20 years of experience working on public lands, Taldi plays a key role in shaping and executing strategic initiatives, including leading the Foundation’s grantmaking programs. Taldi serves on the Board of Directors of EasTrail Partners and the Recreate Responsibly Steering Committee. Raised in the Flathead Valley in Montana, Taldi is an avid outdoors woman who enjoys hiking, mountain biking, climbing, mountaineering, skiing, and camping with her partner and two young daughters.

“At the Foundation for America’s Public Lands, we believe everyone should have access and feel connected to their public lands and waters, yet millions of Americans lack access to a quality green space close to home. When governments, nonprofits, and business leaders come together to ensure resiliency of our public lands and waters, communities win. American Forests plays a catalytic role in bringing these entities together to ensure restoration and reforestation is happening at scale across America.”
David Hunter, Ph.D.

David is Senior Advisor for Government and External Relations at the Electric Power Research Institute. He is an earth scientist by training and life-long environmentalist with 30 years’ experience in energy and environmental policy.

“I’m passionate about climate change and trees, so I was naturally drawn to American Forests’ ground-breaking work in both. While my career has been dedicated to climate, my pastime is teaching my children the magic and majesty of America’s forests, and the joy of planting and caring for trees on our farm in Western Maryland.”
Nes Parker

Nes Parker is a Principal leading Sustainability for Deloitte’s Government & Public Services (GPS) Practice. Nes has led strategy-focused transformations for government, nonprofit and philanthropic clients to achieve outcomes that are good and equitable for people, planet, and prosperity.

Nes is passionate about applying Deloitte’s capabilities and solutions for social impact. She was a founder and leader of Deloitte's Anti-Human Trafficking (AHT) Community, Refugee Community of Interest (RCOI), and Deloitte to International (D2i) teams over the years which support various pro bono projects and thought leadership. She serves on the board of Free the Slaves and is an advisor to the board for Survivor Alliance, which leads the fight against modern day slavery and elevates the voices of experts with lived experience. She is thrilled to bring these experiences to the Board of American Forests.

Nes holds a BA from Vassar College and a MPA from Columbia University. She is based in Washington, DC with her partner and their English Bulldogs.

“Healthy trees have so many benefits for environmental, physical, and mental health in our communities. The burdens of declining forests, like many climate risks, fall heavily on people and communities who historically may have had little power, representation, or resource. American Forests is doing important, equity-focused work to ensure that the benefits of nature are accessible to all.”
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