Nomination to the International Board
The World Trails Network (WTN) is pleased to announce to its members that voting is now open for additional members to join the International Board. Voting is only open to active WTN Members.
Voting runs from 18 – 30 June, 2020.
Members elected to the Board of Directors will serve a 4-year term. Directors may be re-elected for two additional terms. Members are welcome to self-nominate.
Members of the Board are responsible for making decisions and voting on the Network’s initiatives. These include (but are not limited to) administrative decisions, new projects and programmes, and strategic directions. Each Board member has a specific portfolio of responsibilities and may serve on Subcommittees of their choosing. The specific portfolios depend on the needs and the Board member’s interest. The Board of Directors meets virtually 4-6 times per year (via conference calls), with other discussions taking place via email. The Network depends on a vibrant and engaged International Board, for this reason it is important for Directors to be available and responsive. The time commitment to serve on the Board of Directors depends on the Board member and varies by task and degree of responsibility. Board duties take up 1-3 hours a month for Directors and 3-10 hours a month for most Officers.
Eligible candidates must be active members who:
- Have paid dues
- Are willing to serve if elected
- Do not hold a position in another organization that could be considered incompatible.
Please click on the candidate names on the right to read more about them.
When you are ready, you can then vote via the form below.
Please browse the candidates standing for election below:
Laura Belleville joined The Appalachian Trail Conservancy staff in 2005 as the Southwest and Central Virginia Regional Director, assuming the Conservation Director role in 2007. She currently leads a dynamic team of 25 staff in the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s conservation department on many programs, including trail management, land acquisition, volunteer development, education and outreach, environmental monitoring, and advocacy. Her organization works on the management of the 3515km Appalachian Trail corridor. She has a passion for engaging local communities and volunteers in conservation projects. She also serves on the board of the American Hiking Society. Laura is proud to work for an organization that aspires to implement the community building vision of Benton MacKaye, while protecting and promoting a premier hiking destination.
Fivos Tsaravopoulos holds two MSc titles in European Studies and Environmental Management. He is the Co-Founder of the Social Co-operative Enterprise “Paths of Greece“, and he has been actively involved with the implementation of walking trails across all of Greece since 2010. He has developed or helped with the implementation of several path networks on the islands of Sifnos, Kythera, Serifos, Karpathos, Kefalonia, as well as in Messinia, Marathon, Athens and Drama. During his free time, he likes climbing, hiking and he is a passionate photographer.
Jackie Randle has been the Director of Volunteer Programs for the Bruce Trail Conservancy (BTC) since 2002. As Director of Volunteer Programs, Jackie is responsible for setting the direction of the Volunteer Program, implementing new policies and procedures, providing training materials and developing new ways to provide access to necessary training resources. Since Jackie joined the BTC, the volunteer program has grown from 800 volunteers to over 1350 volunteers, representing 15% of the total membership of the BTC. Major projects include the 50th Anniversary of the Bruce Trail celebrations; creation of a standardized volunteer database; and the creation of an international image for the Bruce Trail Conservancy through the introduction of Friendship Trails and an ongoing presence at the World Trails Network. Jackie has a Bachelor degree in Anthropology, a post-graduate diplomas in Volunteer Management and Human Resources
Galeo Saintz is a conservation adventurer, trail founder and mountain wilderness guide. A founding member of numerous conservation NGOs including the mountain trail initiative Rim of Africa and the biodiversity corridor initiative Eden to Addo in South Africa.
Galeo is founding Chair of the World Trails Network, an international initiative championing the international trails industry and promoting the world’s leading trails and trail destinations. He completed his MSc at Schumacher College (UK), which focused on conservation corridors.
In his conservation work Galeo is Co-Chair of the IUCN CEESP Theme on Environment and Peace and its corresponding Task Force for Migration, Environmental Change and Conflict.
Maya is since 2018 the President of the Lebanon Mountain Trail Association (LMTA), and a Board Member and the head of the LMTA Education Committee since 2015. Her current role involves amongst other tasks taking strategic decisions with regards to supporting and sustaining the Lebanon Mountain Trail (LMT) as a responsible tourism destination, and she has also been in charge of developing environmental education programs along the trail, working with the Ministry of Education & public schools. Maya also completed the 30-day LMTA Thru-Walk hike in 2014.
In her profession, Maya is a sustainability and circular economy expert at EcoConsulting (www.ecoconsulting.net), an environmental consultancy which she co-founded in 2003 in the UK and established in 2008 in Lebanon. Maya holds an MSc (hons) in Environment from the London School of Economics and Political Science, is one of the main local trainers of the EU SwitchMed Green Entrepreneurship program, and a fellow of the Middle East Leadership Initiative (MELI), Class IV, of the Aspen Global Leadership Network.
Environmental leader with over 30 years experience in the environment, tourism and sustainability sectors in UK, Europe and Australia. Over 14 years leading not-for-profit organisations. Outstanding skills in stakeholder engagement and building partnerships across not-for-profit, public and private sectors. Well versed in governance of not-for-profits and accountability to stakeholders. Excellent track record of fundraising, communications, business planning and branding. Extensive management and motivation of teams, consultants and volunteers. Creative and strategic problem solver.
Key skills areas include:
- Establishing and leading organisations, programmes and teams
- Strong track record of effective change management and inspiring teams
- Business planning and strategy development
- Charity sector organisational management and governance
- Promotion of access to the countryside including National Trails and Rights of Way network
- Development of outdoor leisure and tourism partnerships
- Innovative and successful fundraiser
- Strategic communications, public relations, social media and media management
- Working in partnership, influencing and relationship management
- Developing campaigns and communication for environmental behaviour change
- Conservation, sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility
Pedro da Cunha e Menezes, 55, is a Brazilian career civil servant. Pedro has been Tijuca National Park Chief Superintendent, where he implemented the first trail system in a Brazilian protected area. He also served as Brazil National Parks Service (ICMBio) National Coordinator for Visitor Services and National Director for Parks Management, Law Enforcement, Fire Prevencion and Public Use. During his tenure, he conceived and coordinated the establishment of the Brazilian trails Network, and supervised the implementation of more than 2.000 km of new trails in Brazil.
As a diplomat, Pedro has served in Nairobi as Brazil’s deputy representative to the United Nations Environment Programme and he has travelled the World as a negotiator in the Convention of Biological Diversity, Ramsar Convention, Convention on Migratory Species, Convention on Climate Change as well as the United Nations Convention on the World Heritage Sites. Pedro is the Chair of IUCN’s Long Distance Trails Advisory Group.
Pedro has spoken on more than 100 conferences, and published over 300 articles and 12 books on trail related subjects, including the two only existing Trail’s signage manuals in Brazil.
Pedro is an avid hiker and mountain biker. As a volunteer, Pedro is Director of the Brazilian Trails Network and a Member of the Transcarioca Trail Board, the first long distance trail to be established in Brazil, which is his brainchild.
Martine’s personal and professional life has been rooted in her deep connection to mountains and rural communities. As an adolescent, Martine bore witness to the rapid and unsustainable overdevelopment of her village in Mount Lebanon. This experience inspired her to pursue a now 20+ year career in community and economic development, which has intersected with rural tourism, heritage conservation, mountain matters and hiking trails.
Martine became involved with the Lebanon Mountain Trail in 2007 through her work developing the first network of alternative tourism lodgings and guesthouses in Lebanon (DIAFEE). In 2015, Martine was elected VP of the Lebanon Mountain Trail Association, and would go on to serve as President two years later and Executive Director (2018-2019) of the association, providing leadership and oversight management of the trail’s development and promotion, community engagement, value chain development, partnerships, guides programs and advocacy work. Her policy work portfolio include the National Rural Tourism Strategy for Lebanon, and the legal framework for guesthouses in Lebanon.
Martine holds an Executive MBA from the Ecole Supérieure des Affaires (ESA)- ESCP-EAP, in Beirut; and a BA in Sales and Advertising from Saint Joseph University, in Beirut.
As a challenger and critical thinker with a hands-on mentality, I enjoy finding solutions to simple and complex problems. I like working with diverse teams as they often find more innovative solutions than individuals. My main expertise is in GTM Strategy and Operations.
Master of Science (MSc) in Management at HEC Paris, France
CEMS Double Degree, Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, India BSc in Management at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland Exchange semester, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
Manager, Global Go-to-Market Operations at DocuSign, France.
Social Impact Analysis for a pay-as-you-go solar panel provider, Kenya.
Outdoors sports include hiking, cross-country skiing, trail running.
If my nomination is approved, I bring to the board a wealth of experience gained over the years. In particular, I bring managerial experience gained from nearly 10 years of service in Kenya’s public sector. Having been a trainer over many years, I also bring experiences and skills in managing recreation ecology impacts in protected areas and their surrounding environments. Furthermore, my training as a trail audit expert gives me more technical skills which can be shared by the wider global trail network community. I also bring on board networking skills and opportunities gained over the years through my association with other like minded organizations (i.e. IUCN – TAPAS).
I also bring trail experiences from a developing country perspective. As an academician and researcher, being in the WTN board provides an opportunity to create trail research networks with relevant institutions i.e. AfrinNet – a research network where I am currently a founding member. The network consists of about 80 institutions from Africa and Austria with a focus on addressing research areas within the framework of Sustainable Development Goals.
As a board member of WTN International Board, it would be interested to work with international experts and share experience in the field of hiking trails management and operations. Georgia has to face the challenges of development of hiking trails. Due to the lack of experiences and knowledge, the country needs to create modern tools of trails management and ensure sustainable development. What I can bring to the World Trails Network International Board, is to participate in the planned activities and share experiences and passion with all members, collaborate on various projects. The core interest is to encourage sustainable building, development and maintenance of the trails in Georgia by sharing international expertise.