Board of Directors

Patricia Goodwin (Chairperson) works as a writer, producer and creative director in New York City and Ulster County. Previously, Patty co-founded Broadstreet, an internationally recognized creative services company, where for 20+ years she was Executive Vice President and Creative Director. In addition to event, video, print and web work for such prestigious corporate clients as Time Warner, Blackstone, Pfizer, and Daimler Chrysler, Patty has created informational videos for the Alzheimers Association, the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Empowerment Institute. She was Executive Producer and Creative Director for NYC2012's presentation to the U.S. Olympic Committee which helped New York City win its bid to become America's nominated host city for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. Cherishing her roots in the Hudson Valley and deeply committed to fostering sustainability here, Patty is proud to be part of the very first team of neighbors to reduce their carbon footprint using The Low Carbon Diet: A Thirty Day Program to Lose 5,000 Pounds, and is working, with SHV, to bring this easy, fun and important program into widespread use. She also sits on the Stewardship Council of Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, the board of the Woodstock Land Conservancy and the advisory committee for Feminist.com.

Ajax Greene's first career was traveling the globe as a world class rock climber. Trained by Bonnie Prudden, he spent 12 years in the fitness industry as a general manager and consultant, developing and revitalizing several multi million dollar athletic clubs; he was a pioneer in the early stages of the indoor rock climbing industry. He has appeared widely on television and radio promoting new products and business models. Ajax began his commitment to corporate social responsibility as CEO/co-founder of a company that manufactured high performance back packs and outdoor apparel out of recycled materials. He ran Community Prescription Service, a specialty mail-order pharmacy, doubling revenues, and then with a partner launched Visionary Health Concepts, a health and medical education company specializing in physician and patient education programs connected with HIV and Hepatitis. After selling his portion of the company in 2004, Ajax co-founded On Belay Business Advisors, a small business consulting firm that empowers leaders to create value in their companies and the world. In addition to his work in nurturing the Hudson Valley Sustainable Business Network and developing evaluation systems for SHV's board, Ajax also sits on the board of the Gunk's Climbers Coalition www.gunksclimber.org and is active with BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies) www.livingeconomies.org. He still climbs and pursues other adventure sports.

Tom Kacandes is a nationally recognized expert on recycling based industries and green economic development with an MBA from the State University of New York at Albany. With extensive experienced in government and the private sector, he recently served as the Director of Business Development for Tech City Properties. He is principal of Sustainable Technology Integrators, LLC, a firm that brings energy efficiency and green practicees to buildings.  

Victor-Pierre Melendez, a 5 year Kingston resident received his bachelor's degree in Environmental Science & Marine Biology from the University of Tampa, Florida. Over the span of the last 3 years he has worked in the City of Kingston's Economic Development department, performing business and commercial space inventories in Uptown Kingston and Scenic Hudson as an Outreach coordinator and community educator in the Ulster and Westchester County areas. Victor has sat on the Diversity Committee for the New York State Outdoors Education Association which serves environmental educators from the entire state of New York. As an entrepreneur, Victor has managed a café and art gallery/dance studio in the Downtown Waterfront district of Kingston, through which he hosts many environmental awareness and educational events for the surrounding communities. As he completes his Master Thesis on sustainable marketing for the revitalization of economic vitality within the Hudson Valley's inner city business districts, at Bard College's Center for Environmental Policy, he intends to focus his energy on sustainable business development and education in the region.

Deborah Nazon, Ph.D.  received her doctorate from RPI in Ecological Economics, an emerging approach to problem-solving that integrates community, environmental and economic interests.  Her research focus is on brownfields redevelopment as a competitive advantage strategy for urban revitalization, and stakeholder engagement strategies for achieving that goal.  She served as Assistant Provost for Institute Diversity at RPI, holding the first position of its kind on campus, with the charge to create a welcoming and productive environment that could capitalize on the creativity of all Rensselaer constituents.  With extensive experience in multi-stakeholder engagement, strategic partnerships and prejudice reduction, Dr. Nazon has worked in a wide variety of community participation processes.  Trained as a geologist, and applying that big-picture thought process to everything she does, Dr. Nazon  has a lifelong passion for the environment. She began her career as a science teacher.  

Jerry Robock has over 25 years of domain expertise in the petroleum industry in the technology of distribution and logistics and the terminal operations area and is presently a member of a biodiesel business development team at a major independent energy supplier. As one of the founders of the Hudson Valley Biodiesel Coop in Cottekill, NY, Jerry has been educating and advocating for alternative and sustainable biofuels in the Hudson Valley. Jerry founded Community BioFuels, LLC, to work in developing viable business opportunities for producing, distributing and using biomass derived fuels. As a demonstration, and being practical, Jerry brews his own biodiesel to both heat his home and fuel his diesel car. Jerry established the first Peace Studies major in the nation at Washington University, St. Louis, in 1969. Following an exploration of conflict resolution and active pacifism, Jerry as a graduate student in the Sociology department at Columbia University was a field researcher in a longitudinal study of the movement towards community, communes, in America. He later was a member of a kibbutz in Israel. He has traveled the world in business and pleasure; an academic director for the Experiment in International Living Jerry led students on semester abroad programs to Nepal and Greece. Trained as an archaeologist, Jerry was a member of a team to map Mammoth Cave in Kentucky and worked for the German government doing salvage archeology, from Bronze Age to Roman occupation, in the Bavarian section of Germany. Jerry is an active kayaker and, as a vegetarian, loves most ethnic veggie dishes.

Mayur Subbarao, Esq. is the Executive Vice-President of the Sustainable Profitability Group. Most recently, Mr. Subbarao was the Managing Partner of the New Energy Fund, a small-scale venture fund that has successfully placed investment capital into start-up companies and research groups in the alternative energy technology sector. Prior to joining the Fund, Mr. Subbarao was an Associate with the International Environmental Practice Group and Energy Group of the New York law firm of Beveridge & Diamond, P.C., advising clients on matters involving the implementation of legislation, regulations, and international agreements relating to environmental management and energy financing. Mr. Subbarao has worked extensively on issues of international environmental law, economics, and policy, including the architecture of the United Nations Global Environment Fund, the related Venture Capital Fund for Sustainable Development, and the forthcoming UNCTAD guidelines on greenhouse gas trading. Mr. Subbarao holds a BSc. in Economics from the London School of Economics and a J.D. from the New York University School of Law. He is a member of the New York State and New Jersey State Bar Associations.