Mélina joined Delta Institute in November 2022 and serves as Senior Lead for the Nature-Based Climate Solutions portfolio. Mélina came to Delta with a wealth of experience as a multicultural program manager and policy maker with specific expertise in climate resilience and sustainable agriculture. She has worked for various international and national entities dealing with climate, agriculture, water and community development projects. Mélina graduated from Sorbonne University and Nanterre University in France and has Master’s degrees in agronomy, international relations, and ethnology. In her free time, Mélina enjoys hiking and travelling with her family.
Natalie oversees a spectrum of projects within Delta's Sustainability and Support Services portfolio, focusing on environmental sustainability and technical assistance for brownfield redevelopment. With nearly a decade of expertise in brownfield redevelopment, community engagement, and urban planning, she brings broad experience to the Delta Institute team. Her background includes urban planning and redevelopment efforts, such as leading Spanish-first community engagement, contributing to site planning for a decommissioned power plant in Virginia, and delivering planning services to communities across Minnesota and the Midwest. Natalie is an American Institute Certified Planner by the American Planning Association. In her free time, Natalie loves walking and biking around new cities, expanding her 1980s music playlists, exploring new restaurants, and hiking and running on any trail she can find.
Mackenzie serves as Senior Specialist for Delta's Finance and Operations Department, and provides interdepartmental support to Delta staff, specializing in HR, accounting, operations, and executive assistance. Prior to joining Delta, Mackenzie worked for a financial management services company that specialized in real estate investment. She has a B.S. in Recreation, Parks and Tourism Sciences with a certification in Professional Event Management from Texas A&M University. In her free time, Mackenzie enjoys camping and tries to visit at least one national park a year. She also enjoys hanging out with her dog, Quincy, eating Mexican food, and traveling home to visit her family in Texas.
Lucas Chamberlain serves as Specialist, Programs. Prior to joining Delta Institute, Lucas worked as a farm manager and a soil ecologist for the Chicago Botanic Garden and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also served as a Science Communications Fellow and volunteer research assistant for the John G. Shedd Aquarium. Lucas is an adjunct faculty member of SAE Institute – Chicago where he teaches Environmental Science. He is also a member of the Soil Science Society of America. He earned his BS in Anthropology from Illinois State University and his MS in Plant Biology and Conservation from Northwestern University. His soil health research was recently published in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. Lucas loves to play music and spend time at Lake Michigan with his wife and their dog, Dottie.
Gillian serves as a Programs Associate at Delta Institute. Prior to joining Delta, Gillian spent the last three years working on interdisciplinary research projects that cover topics such as agricultural conservation, decision-making, sociology, and psychology. She also served as a volunteer lead for The Nature Conservancy in Ohio, leading preserve maintenance efforts, environmental education, and conducting community outreach efforts in urban areas. Gillian holds a B.A. in Political Science, specializing in Democracy & Law, and an M.S. in Environmental Studies from The Ohio State University. In her free time, she enjoys watching movies, reading old books, cooking, and lounging with her cat, Poco.
Sidney (Sid) serves as Delta's Chief Development Officer, and oversees organizational external relations, fundraising, board relations, and marketing. He is responsible for monitoring and evaluating donor relations for grant-supported work and engaging Delta’s array of donors and governing Board of Directors; he has solicited $100M+ on behalf of Delta. He manages departmental functions and is the point person for media relations and online promotion efforts. Sid has 20 years of resource development experience and previously served as development director for a small regenerative farming and food safety nonprofit, a gifts officer for Heartland Alliance for Human Rights & Human Needs, and in steadily increasing development roles for multiple Chicago-based social service agencies since 2006. He is also a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Mongolia; was adjunct faculty at Loyola University Chicago; and has been a presenter for the Axelson Center since 2014. He is a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE), and a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Chicago Area Peace Corps Association. He is frequently exhausted from attempting to keep up with his kindergartener.
As Chief Financial Officer for Delta Institute, Helen is responsible for all of the financial, administrative and operational aspects of the organization as well as C-suite level leadership. She brings more than 15 years of experience in a leadership capacity in accounting and administration in the nonprofit, government, and private sectors. A native of Chicago, Illinois, Helen holds a B.S. in Accounting from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee and M.S. from Keller University in Accounting and Financial Management. In her spare time, she loves football and traveling.
As a Specialist in Delta’s Nature-Based Climate Solutions portfolio, Will helps communities research, plan, finance, and implement innovative environmental projects that enhance climate resilience and address equity concerns. Will has nearly a decade of experience as a water policy consultant in the Great Lakes region, with expertise in green infrastructure, sustainable agriculture, local food systems, watershed planning, and drinking water quality and access. He has worked with environmental NGOs, the public and private sectors, civil society, and academia to advance equitable environmental policies. He served as adjunct faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences. Will has a Master's of Urban Planning/Master of Public Administration and a PhD in Freshwater Sciences from UW-Milwaukee. In his free time, Will loves cooking, attending concerts, and exploring cities by bike.
Dean Lim serves as a Senior Associate, Programs, at Delta Institute, where he supports initiatives across Delta’s three program areas. Prior to joining Delta, Dean worked as a Project Engineer and Estimator, managing construction projects across various sectors, including healthcare and data centers. He holds a B.S in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a primary concentration in Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Systems from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In his free time, Dean enjoys playing soccer with friends, catching live concerts, and biking around the City of Chicago.
Patrick serves as Delta’s Director of Donor Stewardship, a role in which he leads and supports individual giving, events management, digital marketing, earned revenue development, and the Delta Emerging Leaders associate board. During his tenure, he has quadrupled revenue for Delta’s annual BOOST event, saw year-over-year growth for Delta’s holiday giving campaigns, doubled email marketing performance metrics, and co-chaired Delta’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. Patrick previously served as the development and alumni relations director for the George M. Pullman Education Foundation and as associate director for communications at the Midwest Augustinians. He holds an M.S. in Nonprofit Management from Spertus College, a Certificate in Nonprofit Board Education from BoardSource, and a Certificate in Organizational Leadership in DEI from Rice University. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from Adler University.
Jenny B. Par serves as Senior Associate, Programs, for Delta and is is involved in conducting research, engaging in community outreach, and implementing spatial analysis to increase the impact of Delta’s work in communities throughout the Midwest. Before joining Delta in 2022, Jenny previously worked as a lead (Pb) risk assessor for the Milwaukee Health Department, conducting lead inspections and assessments to prevent childhood lead poisoning in the city. Jenny has a B.S in Environmental Science from Loyola University Chicago and a M.S in Sustainability Management from University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. During her free time, Jenny enjoys hiking, camping, listening to podcasts, and collecting postcards and stickers from her travels. She also loves spending time with her two dogs.
As a Specialist in Delta’s Environmental Finance Center for EPA Region 5, Willy draws on his background in environmental engineering and policy to help communities address their water infrastructure needs. Before joining Delta, Willy served in several roles at an engineering consulting firm – design engineer, construction engineer, funding administrator, design manager, and project manager. Wearing those different hats, Willy has helped municipal utilities, landfills, and food and beverage companies with wastewater compliance, renewable energy projects, biosolids management, and more. Willy has a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Colorado and an M.S. in Environmental Policy from the University of Michigan. In his personal time, Willy loves checking out local concerts, running on Chicago’s lakeshore and forest preserve trails, rock climbing, and snowboarding.
As CEO, Bill drives strategy behind Delta’s collaboration with more than 180 communities in Chicago and throughout the Midwest to solve environmental challenges and spur economic development. He balances high-level decision-making with tactical implementation. Further, he sets an authentic and inclusive culture, including personally engaging with all staff consistently. Bill’s accomplishments include: Working with 1,400 farmers and foresters to reduce climate change impacts; Implementation planning for the Chicago Climate Action Plan—focusing on residential and commercial energy efficiency mitigation strategies that most impact greenhouse gas emissions; Helping establish the Michigan Saves program, an energy efficiency loan program that has $160M in its loan portfolio; and incepting a venture decision framework to spin off and scale initiatives. He has over 20 years of experience in systems analysis, environmental science, and consulting. He earned his BS in Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology and Environmental Studies from Tulane University and his MS in Environmental Analysis and Decision Making from Rice University. He is a 2019 Notable LGBTQ Executive for Crains Chicago Business.
Katherine is responsible for administering the financial and operational aspects of the organization and assisting with grant management and I.T. She has worked in non-profits for her entire career, including a family foundation, a university, and smaller programmatic organizations, totaling 22 years of experience in the field. Katherine grew up in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., and stayed in Chicago after receiving her B.A. in Sociology from the University of Chicago. She loves spending time with her husband, doing DIY projects, and catching up on TV and movies.
Jamie serves as a Senior Specialist on Delta's programmatic team and brings a decade of environmental advocacy, climate adaptation, and community development experience to support the equitable implementation of green infrastructure and natural climate solutions. Prior to joining Delta Institute, Jamie worked to address environmental justice, housing affordability, and car-dependent development in communities across the U.S. while on the Land Use & Development team at Smart Growth America in Washington, DC. Earlier in her career, she served as a CivicSpark AmeriCorps Fellow where she worked on energy assurance and climate action planning in Northern California, and she worked on the Climate Change and Nature & Wildlife teams at the Natural Resources Defense Council in Chicago. Through the years, Jamie has co-spearheaded several Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committees and continues to be dedicated to initiatives that build capacity and trust in communities disproportionately affected by climate impacts and communities that have been marginalized by racist land use policies. Jamie holds a B.S. in Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a M.S. in Sustainable Urban Planning & Design from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology School of Architecture and the Built Environment in Stockholm, Sweden.
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