Leadership

Ruskin is the Executive Director and Secretary of Save the Redwoods League, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting ancient redwood forests for people—as a living link to the past and as a place to find inspiration now and always. Ruskin was appointed as Save the Redwood League’s Executive Director and Secretary of the Board of Directors in December 2006. He is the sixth leader in the organization’s 90-year history.

Since 1918, Save the Redwoods League has assisted in the purchase of more than 189,000 acres of redwood-related land in California. The support of individual members, public service organizations, private foundations, and the State of California has enabled the League to help build and protect 63 redwood parks and reserves.

Ruskin’s tenure with Save the Redwoods League began in 1997. In his previous role as director of conservation and education, he developed the plan for the League’s current and future conservation efforts—the Master Plan for the Coast Redwoods. This plan provides Save the Redwoods League with a science-based conservation agenda for all coast redwood ecosystems and guides the League in prioritizing protection of the remaining 5% of the world’s greatest forest for people to enjoy.

He also played a key role in the largest single land acquisition in Save the Redwoods League history—the 25,000-acre Mill Creek Redwoods. This landmark project created complete watershed protection for the spectacular ancient redwood groves of Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. Ruskin leads the League’s restoration work at Mill Creek, a model for forest restoration, using practices on the cutting edge of forest science to help damaged areas of the forest to recover and develop old-growth characteristics. He was also an integral part of the acquisition that doubled Montgomery Woods State Reserve as well as the purchase and transfer of Dillonwood Grove to Sequoia National Park.

Additionally, Ruskin established the educational framework Save the Redwoods League uses to encourage people of diverse ages and backgrounds to personally experience the redwoods and support their protection. He has sought to broaden support for redwood conservation and has created successful partnerships with diverse constituencies including government agencies, conservation organizations and the scientific community.

Before joining Save the Redwoods League, Ruskin worked as an environmental planner in the United Kingdom, Kuwait and the Sultanate of Oman. He studied geography at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and earned his master’s degree in rural development planning from the University of East Anglia in the U.K. Ruskin currently serves as the Chair of the Mill Creek Advisory Committee. He sits on the advisory councils of the Mendocino Land Trust and the Smith River Alliance, the steering committee for the Bay Area Open Space Council and is a member of the Society for Conservation Biology and the Society for Ecological Restoration.

Ruskin is dedicated to being an international steward for the redwoods and protecting this giant global icon for all generations. Born in Liverpool, England, he grew up in Ireland and southeast Britain and was first introduced to “Sequoia wellingtonia” (the California giant redwood) in an arboretum in England.

Jennifer joined the League in 2007 to lead the Education and Communications Programs of the new Outreach Department. A Bay Area native, she brings years of journalism, marketing communications and media relations experience in the public and private sectors. She holds a BA in communications and an MS in integrated marketing communications. “I joined Save the Redwoods League to give back to the community,” she says. “That’s important to me.”

Rolando joined the League in 2004 as the Chief Financial Officer. He was born in the Congo, lived in Brazil, South Africa and in New York, before finally making his home in San Francisco in 1990. He was a graduate of the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg and became a Chartered Accountant in South Africa, as well as a CPA in the United States. He has always been passionate about the preservation of the environment, and he finally decided to make the move to marry that passion with his professional vocation in joining the League. He says, “I am so gratified to be able to make my contribution towards the attainment of the League’s mission to save the redwoods. I am humbled when I reflect on these glorious trees and contrast the length of their existence with human history.”

Emily joined the League's staff in 2010 after studying redwood forest ecology for seven years. She has a PhD in the physiological influence of climate on coast redwood forest plants from the University of California (UC) . At UC, she discovered that 80 percent of redwood forest species can absorb fog water directly through their leaves to stay hydrated during California’s dry summer months. Emily conducted research as postdoctoral scholar at the University of California, Santa Cruz, on the drought tolerance of redwood forest ferns. In 2009, she worked with Chabot Space & Science Center to initiate a citizen science research project for the redwood forest that uses the sword fern as an indicator species of climate change. This project engages volunteers to collect important data needed to understand climate change impacts on local flora. She is a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, and continues to publish her botanical research in peer-reviewed literature.

"The redwood forest is home to truly amazing plants and animals that we are only just beginning to understand," Emily said. "I’m thrilled to support new innovative research that will help us unravel the many remaining mysteries about the ancient coast redwood and giant sequoia ecosystems."

Suzanne has over 25 years of fundraising, marketing, and conservation experience. She began her career at the Save the Redwoods League as Production Manager, where she wrote and produced all fundraising and communication materials.

Before recently returning to the League, Suzanne had held several leadership positions in development for the Western Region of the Trust for Public Land, a national conservation organization headquartered in San Francisco. Since 1994, she had worked in the capacity of Regional Director of Development, Major Gifts Officer, and most recently, as Director of Campaigns. Her fundraising experience at TPL included raising significant private capital in support of land acquisition projects, in addition to raising funds to launch several new programs at TPL, including the Urban Parks and Playground Initiative in SF and LA, the California Center for Land Recycling, the Hawaiian Islands Program, the California Coastal Campaign, and the Sierra Checkerboard Initiative.

Before TPL, Suzanne held the position of Director of Development for the California League of Conservation Voters and Friends of the River. Suzanne has been an active member of the Bay Area environmental community, and has served on many boards and advisory councils. Suzanne is a graduate of UC Berkeley where she studied physiological and clinical psychology. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, rafting, skiing, photography, music, gardening, international travel, and fine food and wine. She lives in Walnut Creek, California, with her husband and son.

Harry joined Save the Redwoods League's staff in 2011. He brings over 30 years of experience in the fields of law and real estate transactions. A practicing attorney since 1975, Harry Pollack was the owner of Conservation Partners, a conservation law firm dedicated to promoting the preservation of land for the public interest. In addition to his professional work, he has served on the boards of numerous nonprofit organizations. Harry assisted in the formation of the California Council of Land Trusts (CCLT). He now serves on CCLT’s Government Relations Committee and is also the chairperson of the City of Berkeley’s Planning Commission.