MEET THE TEAM

Co-founder & Executive Director

Co-founder & Scientist

  • Alison joins the team with nine years of experience managing community-based programming for arts, cultural, education and environmental nonprofits in Baltimore, Maryland. Motivated to further support the community’s needs for infrastructure reform, Alison worked as a volunteer manager, mobilizing a base of 4,500 volunteers to support the work of an NGO, Blue Water Baltimore, that improved local water quality by working with community members to fix city infrastructure through storm-water management projects and through legal and legislative advocacy. Additionally, she volunteered as an engagement director for a Maryland State Delegate, whose grassroots campaign succeeded in winning a 2018 Maryland State Senate seat.

Director of Programs & Policy

  • Andra spearheads the creation and implementation of the organization’s marketing and communications strategy. She accelerates 5 Gyres’ mission toward a plastic-free future by making otherwise complicated science and policy accessible and empowering individuals to join the movement. She has secured more than 100 articles about 5 Gyres’ research, reaching millions of people and making waves around the world.  Her work spans across 5 Gyres’ programs, from producing and editing the Trash Academy video series to leading the pilot Plastic-Free Parks campaign. As a PADI divemaster, Andra is happiest underwater and likes to disconnect by going on beach walks collecting trash washed ashore. Her go-to plastic swaps are solid dish soap, Stasher bags, and beeswax wraps.

Director of Marketing

  • Ginger joined 5 Gyres back in 2015 as our part-time Office Manager and has grown along with our organization over the years. Otherwise known as our “Chief Happiness Officer”, Ginger is proud to be the person behind the scenes keeping the gears turning. Ginger has a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from UCLA, and previously spent time volunteering on beach cleanups at Heal the Bay. Ginger’s favorite way to reduce her plastic footprint is to avoid fast fashion and instead go thrift shopping for unique, fun, and vintage looks!

  • Rachel has been with 5 Gyres since 2017, joining first as a Science Programs Manager and Development Coordinator. With her background in science (MSc. Ecology) and previous work with Sylvia Earle Alliance, she contributes both to research and fundraising. In her current role, she supports 5 Gyres’ Development department by managing foundations and corporate partners, maintaining an annual average grant income of 250k and a suite of 15+ Corporate partnerships. A former Socal surfer-bum, now returned east-coast urbanite, Rachel still enjoys surfing the river wave in her home city of Montreal, CA. She contributes to a plastic-free future by founding a startup that builds water refill stations for major festivals & event venues called O'land (inspired by her little guy's name, born around the same time, Ayeland.)

Operations Manager

Foundation & Corporate Relations Manager

Senior Federal Policy Lead & Programs Strategist

Community Manager

  • Paulita comes to the team from holding multiple positions with the world's largest ocean conservation in the world, Oceana. In her last role, she oversaw plastic policy where her team swiftly led a successful campaign on the National Park Service to eliminate single-use plastics. Paulita also worked as a direct advisor to the U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse on a climate initiative.

    Her career started in Belize where she published the first science on plastic pollution in the nation. Emory University then deployed her to the Virgin Islands to oversee a research team studying invasive lionfish in Crucian and Thomaian fishing communities. The study was funded by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and drew from interdisciplinary science and community building.

    She now leverages her diverse experience to develop and guide policy and programmatic work for 5 Gyres. In her free time, she loves to spend time by the sea with her family.

  • After being a 5 Gyres Ambassador for 8 years, Hannah joined the team to help amplify the work towards a future free from plastic pollution. Hannah grew up surrounded by the Great Lakes and has had a passion for protecting her local shorelines since childhood. With a background in sustainability, arts & marketing, along with an interest in exploring the intersection of creativity & sciences, Hannah's work has focused on uplifting local and global action towards a plastic-free future. She creates art with plastic pollution found on beaches, has worked on social campaigns with various environmental brands & organizations, and founded a Michigan-based nonprofit, The Cleanup Club, focused on local action & advocacy.

  • Marcus has led expeditions around the world to research plastic marine pollution, co-publishing the first global estimate and the discovery of plastic microbeads in the Great Lakes, which led to the federal Microbead-free Waters Act of 2015.  He and Anna founded 5 Gyres with an 88-day journey from California to Hawaii on the Junk Raft, built from 15,000 plastic bottles. Earlier, Marcus had rafted the Mississippi River, writing about the river and his experience as a Marine in the 1991 Gulf War in the book, My River Home. His second book, Junk Raft: An ocean voyage and a rising tide of activism to fight plastic pollution recalls the rise of the plastic pollution movement, growing steadily today.

  • With more than 20 years experience in environmental non-profit work—including marine conservation, coastal watershed management, community relations, and bilingual and sustainability education—Anna Cummins is an expert in the field. Her “Synthetic Sea, Synthetic Me” TEDx talk has been viewed and shared by thousands. Anna received her undergraduate degree from Stanford University, and a MA in Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute for International Studies.

  • Sara began her journey with 5 Gyres in 2019 as the Development Manager on the fundraising team. Now serving as the Development Director, she brings her past experience with ocean-related causes and nonprofit ninja skills to her job everyday. She has helped grow the 5 Gyres budget to $1M+ through meaningful cause partnerships, foundation funding, and diligent supporter stewardship. Since the ocean is her backyard and playground, she is passionate about what 5 Gyres is working towards and loves setting a good example for her daughter, Charlotte, as well as future generations of environmentalists. Her favorite way to go plastic-free is beeswax wraps instead of cling film!

  • As a biologist and ecotoxicologist, Lisa has published her work in leading scientific journals, including PLOS One, Marine Pollution Bulletin, and Environmental Science & Technology. Using science to inform solutions in the US and around the world, Lisa’s research investigates the sources, fate, and effects of microfibers to the environment, and she brings this expertise to policy-makers and brands. Inspired by innovation, Lisa’s work helps vet new technologies to determine whether they are effective to reduce plastic pollution. In addition to being a leading scientist in her field, she is also a passionate sailor. Her favorite plastic-swap, both at home and at sea, is merino wool for apparel.

Development Director

Director of Science & Innovation

  • Amanda is an accomplished non-profit fundraising consultant with over two decades of experience in strategic fundraising and management for non-profit organizations. She has a proven track record of successfully raising funds to support the future direction of organizations, including developing the necessary infrastructure, policies and practices to elevate and expand fundraising efforts across major and annual gifts, events, planned giving, and corporate and foundation giving. She brings her strong background in fundraising and corporate relations to 5 Gyres to further our mission of reducing the harm of plastic pollution.

  • Victoria is an oceanographic researcher who studies how plastics move from the land to sea, and the impact they can have on marine ecosystems. Victoria holds a M.S. in oceanography and is in the final stage of completing her Ph.D. at the University of Rhode Island. She has been lucky to study plastics around the globe, including during a Fulbright research fellowship in Vietnam, and using seawater microplastic samples collected in the around-the-world Ocean Race. In her free time, Victoria enjoys backpacking, surfing, and going on adventures with her dog, Bosun. Victoria is excited to take her passion for research on microplastics to the next level with the 5 Gyres team!

Microplastics Science Project Manager

Development Contractor

Our Board of Directors

  • Aaron is a Science Communication Coordinator at NASA, open water swimmer, and advocate for marine debris policy. He has worked at the European Parliament in the Sustainable Resources Directorate and at the European Commission in the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. He is also active in the ocean community as a previous Div. I swimmer, Jr Lifeguard program coordinator, and Washoe Indigenous Watercraft Camp co-founder.

  • Ashley serves as a Sustainability Project Manager with the City of Orlando's Office of Sustainability and Resilience. She will support myriad efforts across the Clean Energy, Green Buildings, Transportation and Water focus areas, drawing from over a decade of experience and expertise in sustainability project management, assessment and outreach. Prior to joining the city, Ashley served as Executive Director of Trash Free Maryland, the state's leading nonprofit dedicated to advancing policies and programs to reduce waste and eliminate litter.

  • Érico is a passionate operator, avid cyclist, and is often called part fish. After 10 years in the aerospace industry, from designing, building and managing fleets, he moved to the Bay Area in 2015 and has been dedicated to the growth of multi geography teams within financial inclusion, education, and energy efficiency. He spends his time as mentor and operations advisor to Skydeck Berkeley and making beach cleanups a morning ritual while walking his chocolate labrador. Hailing from NE of Brazil, Erico grew up on the coast where he developed a love for water sports, and also a sense of taking care of the environment and finding solutions to plastic pollution.

  • John serves as VP of Innovation at NYSERDA and founded Headland Advisors, which advises on investments in sustainability-focused opportunities. As an investor in and advisor to businesses in water, energy, and sustainable resource management, he formerly served in leadership and advisory positions at Natural Resources Defense Council and Locus Energy. His experience in renewable energy includes work as a consultant to the Department of Energy, as a board member and treasurer of the Executive Committee of the Solar Energy Finance Association (SEFA), and as an investment banker in the Global Energy Group at Credit Suisse.

  • Jonathan is a Chemical Engineer with a background in polymer research and manufacturing. For the last 10 years he’s been passionate about sustainability and protecting our precious environment through materials research and engineering. He brings subject matter expertise in both petroleum and biobased plastics. He currently works as a consultant providing technical advisory for businesses developing, testing, and manufacturing consumer plastics fit for today's sustainability standards with a special focus on biobased and biodegrading plastics.

  • Kathleen is a tech entrepreneur, environmentalist, and equality activist living at Ocean Beach in SF. She started collecting plastic fragments from surf spots around the Pacific in 2005 to educate consumers about plastic in our oceans. To promote equality, Kathleen produced an award-winning documentary, It Ain't Pretty about women in big wave surfing. She is the COO and co-founder of ecomedes, a silicon valley startup tacking sustainability for buildings, at the scale of software and data. She loves to be outside surfing and skiing with her husband Paul and 4-year-old son JJ.

  • Lacey has a background in civil engineering with a concentration in water resources and environmental engineering. She is the CEO and founder of Olokun Minerals, a startup focused on improving the water quality of brine wastewaters by filtering out metals and minerals that can then be used for more productive applications. She is passionate about finding solutions that improve human-environmental interactions and increase clean water access for vulnerable communities. She is a native of Jackson, Mississippi but has lived in Southern California since 2018.

  • Lian has been working as a principle program developer in digital media, advertising, and entertainment for the last 15 years, with a special focus on NFT creation, streaming applications, and cutting edge AI technologies. With a passion for the outdoors and sustainable consumption, she is focused on how data driven technology such as AI can positively impact the ocean and the environment, and bridging corporate and nonprofit measures. She also spent several years in the Himalaya India volunteering with the Tibetan and Ladakh communities on sustainable development and fundraising.

  • Pam Marcus is a dynamic entrepreneur and game-changer in the water bottle industry having founded Lifefactory®, Inc. in 2007. After years of working with infants as a neonatal feeding specialist, she became aware of the dangers of plastics, and combined with witnessing excessive plastic waste in hospitals, the idea for a glass baby bottle was born. Her passion for the environment and business experience has led to a teaching position at the Presidio Graduate School of Sustainable Management, Entrepreneur Mentor for their Think Beyond Plastic competition, and Senior Director of Consumer Products for the Think Beyond Plastic Innovation Forum and Business Accelerator. Her other interests include cryptocurrency, blockchain innovations, women's issues, and diversity and equality in the workplace.

  • Teresa leads the Oceans initiative for the Walton Family Foundation, which aims to protect oceans through sustainable, climate resilient fisheries. Before joining the foundation, Teresa was the seafood project manager for the Corporate Partnerships Program at Environmental Defense Fund, where she worked with leading seafood buyers to develop and implement sustainable seafood purchasing policies. She co-founded FishWise, an early leader in the sustainable seafood movement, and served on its board of directors. Teresa has a master’s degree in marine science and joint bachelors in environmental studies and marine biology from the University of California at Santa Cruz. She recently completed a certificate in Corporate Finance at the Harvard Extension School.