Advisory Council members support PEA's strategy and programs by sharing expertise, supporting staff, and creating community connections.
Michael Banner
Founder, Island CultureZ
Michael "Magneto" Banner is the founder of Island CulturZ, a group working to build grassroots infrastructure and community resilience in East Winston, with a focus on urban farming and land reclamation. A self-described "Original from Da Island Community," Michael plays an important role in the local dialogue around sustainability and community self-reliance and has created an inspring narrative from his rallying call of #NoSleepTilIsland.
William M. Barnette
Director, Office of Environmental Assistance and Protection
Forsyth County
Minor Barnette serves as Director of the Forsyth County Office of Environmental Assistance and Protection. He has been employed by Forsyth County government for over 33 years, working to protect public health and the environment in the local community.
Alan Cary
Senior Vice President for Wells Fargo Advisors
Alan is based in Winston-Salem and leads a group of advisors that help families and businesses grow, maintain, and preserve their wealth. Prior to this role he was the Market Leader in Southwest Chicago, covering 135 advisors. He held the role of National Business Manager for the Private Wealth Financial Advisor Group, and the Regional Business Manager for the Midwest Region. Alan has been with Wells Fargo Advisors and predecessors since 2004 and has lived in Richmond, VA, St. Louis, and Naperville, IL. Prior to joining the firm in 2004, Alan worked for various consulting firms in New York City. Alan has a Bachelor’s Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a MBA from Virginia Tech University. Alan and his wife, and two teenage children relocated to the Triad area in the summer of 2022. Their family is passionate and active in volunteering with local food banks and ministry programs abroad.
Iris L. Cole
Founding Partner, She Raises the Bar
Founder & CEO, Do Good Artist
Iris is a social entrepreneur and Founding Partner of She Raises the Bar, a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability consulting firm, and Do Good Artist, a social impact design firm. Her background includes 20+ years of experience working as an executive and CSR/sustainability consultant in both the public and private sectors. Iris currently serves as the Co-President of the REACH Women’s Network and immediate past Board President for the Hispanic League. She also serves on the boards of Piedmont Federal Savings Bank, Reynolda House, Leadership Winston-Salem, Arts Council, Flywheel Foundation, Senior Services, WS/FCS Equity Advisory, and the Forsyth County Early Childhood Education Task Force.
Dr. S. Shree Dorestant
Chief Sustainability Officer, City of Greensboro
Shree leads the continued development of the City of Greensboro Office of Sustainability and Resilience with varied programs and initiatives, and is responsible for transforming the shift toward a more sustainable future for City operations and beyond. Shree has a broad professional background in the public sector encircling agricultural conservation, biological sciences, sustainability and overall environmental analysis. Before relocating back to NC in May 2022, Shree worked for the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and was responsible for the coordination and implementation of a Stormwater Management Program Plan for all major boroughs of NYC. Shree earned her doctoral degree in Environmental and Social Sustainability from Colorado Technical University. She loves upcycling, eco-art projects, eating farm-to-table meals, and exploring nature’s natural oasis.
Sharee Fowler
Director, Nonprofit Management and Community Leadership Program, Salem College
T. Sharee Fowler is an Assistant Professor and Director of the Nonprofit Management and Community Leadership Program at Salem College and serves as a co-director for Salem's Center for Women's Political Engagement and Public Service. She has 20+ years of experience working to advance meaningful social change through community organizing, advocacy, and systemic transformation strategies. In addition to teaching, Sharee is a certified facilitator prepared by the Center for Courage and Renewal and currently co-facilitates Circle of Trust© gatherings for individuals working in the nonprofit and public sectors. She also serves on the Forsyth Freedom Federation’s steering committee, the 18 Springs Community Healing Center’s advisory board, and is a member of the Voices of God’s Children, a multi-racial community choir dedicated to the preservation of African-American spirituals as a musical art form.
Gayle Goldsmith
Environmental Attorney/ Director of Global Stewardship
Gayle has been working on environmental issues since the late 70s. She has a master’s degree in environmental science; and is an attorney with a master’s degree in environmental law. Concern for environmental issues has been a driving force and impetus for her work with citizen groups, and with governmental and non-governmental agencies and organizations. She is currently on the board of International Human Rights Consortium (IHRC) as the Director of Global Stewardship and is the Chair of NC Climate Solutions Coalition.
Rev. Dr. Gary Gunderson
VP FaithHealth, Atrium Health
Rev. Dr. Gary Gunderson is a beekeeper near Old Salem and VP of FaithHealth for Atrium Wake Forest Baptist Health. He is faculty at both Wake Forest University's school of medicine and divinity. Rev. Dr. Gunderson is married to TC, who is also faculty at Wake Forest University, with four daughters.
Stan Meiburg
Executive Director, Center for Environment and Sustainability
In 2017, Dr. Stan Meiburg joined the faculty at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, following a 39-year career with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. From 2014 to 2017, Dr. Meiburg served as EPA’s Acting Deputy Administrator, the agency’s second highest position.He is currently chair of the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission, a member of the Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, and a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. Dr. Meiburg holds a B.A. degree from Wake Forest University, and masters and doctoral degrees in political science from The Johns Hopkins University.
Margaret Norfleet
Co-Founder/CEO of Beta Verde
Margaret Norfleet Neff is the Co-Founder/CEO of Beta Verde, a multi-pronged creative collaborative with sustainable food at the core of its programming. Margaret takes on challenging projects that create synergy and economy in target communities where food, people and creative thinking are key players. Margaret’s extensive experience in creating for profit and nonprofit businesses (including landscape architecture, a theatre company, an award winning jam and pickle line, and the Cobblestone Farmers Market) has led her to consulting on adaptive reuse development projects across the country that embrace essential food components such as kitchen incubators/accelerators and food markets, each responding to the need for job opportunity and greater access to sustainably produced food.
Russell Smith
Professor of Geography at Winston Salem State University
Dr. Russell M. Smith is a Professor of Geography in the Department of History, Politics & Social Justice at WSSU and the Faculty Lead for the Spatial Justice Studio at the Center for Design Innovation (SJS @ CDI). His research interests include a variety of topics related to spatial (in)justice including: local government boundary change and urban sustainability. Dr. Smith supports projects, programs and initiatives aimed at addressing spatial (in)justice issues on campus and in the local community.
Terri LeGrand
PEA Co-founder and Climate Reality Project Leader
Terri LeGrand is a lawyer, college administrator, and community advocate who lives in Forsyth County, North Carolina, with her family. She currently serves as the Director of Enrollment Integrity and Optimization at Wake Forest University, where she specializes in compliance and student information systems. A passionate community advocate, Terri is the co-founder, past-President, and former Executive Director of Piedmont Environmental Alliance. Terri received training from Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project in 2019. Since that time, she has shared Vice President Gore’s slide show dozens of times. Terri looks forward to sharing with you this presentation and to answering your questions about the existential threat of our time, Climate Change.
Kyana Young
Professor of Engineering at Wake Forest University
Dr. Kyana Young is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Engineering and Department of Biology at Wake Forest University. She is a member of the Center for Functional Studies and a faculty member of the African American Studies program. Her interests include water treatment (drinking, stormwater runoff), human rights, disaster relief, education, social action, K-12 outreach, and more at the intersection of environmental engineering and public health, with previous water treatment technology projects in Haiti, India, Sierra Leone, Hong Kong, and China. Dr. Young currently serves as the Water and Health Committee co-chair, and a Governing Councilor in the Environment Section with the American Public Health Association and as the co-Director of the Girls as Citizen Scientists program in Forsyth County. She was also involved in the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization as an executive editor for the Global Water Pathogen Project at Michigan State University.
Nancy Young
Retired Public Relations Professional
Nancy Young worked in all areas of public relations for more than 40 years, including serving as director of corporate affairs for Sara Lee Personal Products, corporate vice president of communications and community relations for Russell Corporation, and retiring as director of public and media relations at Winston-Salem State University. She has served on the board of numerous nonprofits locally, as well as the Centers for Nonprofits in North Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia.