ABRA Staff & Directors - Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance

STAFF

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/GIS ADMINISTRATOR – DAN SHAFFER was ABRA’s Geographic Information Systems consultant for 9 years. He was the principal architect of ABRA’s Compliance Surveillance Initiative (CSI) mapping system and has been responsible for the technical aspects of ABRA’s Conservation Hub. His goal as Executive Director is to grow the capabilities and sustainability of the organization by increasing ABRA’s visibility, deepening and expanding its partnerships, and creating a solid financial foundation for the future.

REGULATORY/LEGAL COORDINATOR – ANDREW YOUNG leads ABRA’s campaign to improve public accessibility of critical environmental information and works in close collaboration with partner organizations to hold regulatory agencies accountable using all tools from FOIA requests to litigation. He is a Board Member of the Cowpasture River Preservation Association and West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.

COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR – OLIVIA MILLER is a writer and strategic communications professional. She is responsible for managing ABRA’s media communications, website development and maintenance, and newsletter production.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CHAIR – ALLEN JOHNSON is also Chair of the Eight Rivers Council and Coordinator for Christians for the Mountains.

VICE-CHAIR – DAVID SLIGH is an environmental attorney and Conservation Chair of Wild Virginia.

TREASURER – ROBERT BURNS is Director of Non-Profits at Eastern WV Community and Technical College.

BEN LUCKETT is an environmental attorney with Appalachian Mountain Advocates.

JUDY RODD is Executive Director of Friends of Blackwater.

RANDY KESLING is Conservation Chairperson of the West Virginia Chapter of Trout Unlimited and a Board Member of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.

RICK WEBB retired in 2014 as a Senior Scientist with the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Virginia. He is a Board Member of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.

OFFICERS

SECRETARY – OLIVIA MILLER

ABRA CONSERVATION HUB

ABRA’s Conservation Hub program promotes responsible resource management by providing access to critical information needed for effective public involvement in environmental review and oversight.

Following the defeat of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline in 2020, ABRA initiated the Conservation Hub to support informed public engagement with the broader range of environmental issues confronting the Allegheny-Blue Ridge Mountain region. The Conservation Hub builds on the analysis and information sharing capacity achieved through ABRA’s Pipeline CSI project during the years of ACP opposition.

The Conservation Hub is based on the use of GIS mapping to provide details and context for land development projects and management practices that involve risk of environmental harm, as well as for environmental preservation and restoration initiatives. The Conservation Hub also provides access to regulatory documents and assessments related to specific projects or issues.

Multiple Conservation Hub sites, focused on individual projects or issues, have been developed collaboratively with ABRA’s partners and allies. Going forward, we invite conservation groups, individuals, and communities to provide ideas for new Hub sites and GIS mapping that can contribute to informed public engagement on behalf of environmental integrity in the Allegheny-Blue Ridge region.