Our Team

Matthew Druckenmiller - Director

Dr. Matthew Druckenmiller (PI) is serving as the NNA-CO Director, overseeing the overall coordination and daily operations of the office and its team. He is also responsible for the office’s cooperation with NSF’s NNA Working Group to ensure alignment with NSF strategies and programming. He brings over 15 years of transdisciplinary research experience in Arctic and sub-Arctic regions, often in close collaboration with Arctic communities. He also brings experience in participating with a host of national and international Arctic research and policy institutions, including the Polar Research Board (PRB), the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC), the Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH), and the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC).

Nikoosh Carlo - Advisory Boards Lead & Co-Chair

Dr. Nikoosh Carlo (Co-PI) is Koyukon Athabascan, CEO of CNC North Consulting, and the co-chair of the NNA-CO advisory boards. In this role she will lead the boards in ensuring the work of the NNA-CO is grounded in our guiding principles and that the boards’ guidance is integrated into NNA-CO activities. As the founder and chief strategist of CNC North Consulting, Dr. Carlo, helps clients develop a vision for their climate change and Arctic priorities and build momentum to achieve change. She has worked across political divides for State Senators, Ambassadors, and Governors on issues of Arctic governance. Her true passion is working with organizations that support climate change equity, and the well-being of Arctic residents and Indigenous peoples.

James Temte - Community Extension Office Lead

James Temte (Co-PI) is a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe and will lead the NNA-CO Community Extension Office at Alaska Pacific University (APU). James is currently the Director of APU’s Office of Research and Community Engagement. He will support current and future efforts of Indigenous organizations and Indigenous-led collaborations to engage Arctic Indigenous peoples and communities in the work of the NNA-CO. James brings over 15 years of experience working with Tribes and Tribal organizations on social and environmental science initiatives.

Anne Gold - Education and Outreach Lead

Dr. Anne Gold (Co-PI) is leading the NNA-CO education and outreach activities. She is the Director of the CIRES Education & Outreach Program and brings more than a decade of experience connecting scientists, communities, learners and teachers through meaningful educational activities around Geoscience topics and expertise in measuring the impact of these efforts.

Elena Sparrow - Education & Outreach Field Office Co-Lead

Dr. Elena Bautista Sparrow will serve as co-lead of the NNA-CO’s education and outreach field office at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. She is a Research Professor and Education Outreach Director at UAF’s International Arctic Research Center, bringing more than 20 years experience working with educators and community members in engaging youth in environmental and earth  science in Alaska and beyond. She established the Alaska GLOBE program a year after the  GLOBE program, currently a 122- country citizen science network, launched worldwide in 1995.

Katie Spellman - Education & Outreach Field Office Co-Lead

Dr. Katie Villano Spellman is a life-long Alaskan and will co-lead the education and outreach field office at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Dr. Spellman is a Research Associate Professor at UAF’s International Arctic Research Center who is passionate about plant ecology, education and community-centered science. She will work collaboratively within the NNA-CO to support and guide educator and youth engagement in the NNA community.

Twila Moon - Research Synthesis Lead

Dr. Twila Moon is leading the NNA-CO efforts to support and expand convergence research and to enhance connections between NNA research activities and national-level decision makers. Dr. Moon is Deputy Lead Scientist at NSIDC and brings more than a decade of experience in Greenland-focused research and expertise in science-stakeholder communication.

Noor Johnson - Social Sciences & Knowledge Management Lead

Dr. Noor Johnson (Co-PI) is leading efforts to support the involvement of social scientists and social science methods within the NNA community. She will also support efforts to build capacity for community-led data management and recognition of Indigenous data sovereignty. Noor is a Research Scientist at NSIDC, where she is PI and co-lead of the Exchange for Local Observations and Knowledge of the Arctic. An environmental anthropologist, Noor has more than a decade of experience working in collaborative, interdisciplinary research environments focusing on the involvement of Arctic residents in environmental change research and policy.

Andy Barrett - Open Science Lead

Andy Barrett is leading NNA-CO efforts to promote and support open science within the NNA community.  Andy is an Associate Scientist at NSIDC with more than two decades of experience in cryospheric research in the Arctic, as well as in temperate latitudes; dataset production; data analysis; and scientific software development.

Jessica Kaagyugaq Lewis-Nicori - Indigenous Engagement Coordinator

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Jessica Kaagyugaq Lewis-Nicori is Yup’ik from Chefornak and serves the NNA-CO as the Indigenous Engagement Coordinator. She supports the Community Extension Office at APU’s goals using her background in Wildlife Biology and Conservation, secondary education, and gained knowledge of ecosystem workings, including the importance of the land, that come with growing up in a Yup’ik small community to support the NNA-CO.

Jenna Vater - Program Manager

Jenna Vater serves the NNA-CO as Program Manager. She provides community coordination and engagement, office management, and support to research, data management, and educational outreach activities. Jenna’s background is in working with Indigenous communities to center their perspectives and worldviews in healthcare and higher education.

Merritt Turetsky - Senior Strategic Advisor and Space Coordinator

Dr. Merritt Turetsky will serve the NNA-CO as a strategic advisor with the goals of helping the entire team implement accountability milestones and connect NNA-CO activities with complementary groups and networks internationally.  She also will help coordinate logistics and resourcing for NNA-CO space and activities that occur on the CU Boulder campus.  Turetsky brings more than 20 years of experience working in northern Canada and Alaska as well as playing strategic roles in large international research networks.

Heather McFarland - Science Communicator

Heather McFarland is Communications Lead at UAF’s International Arctic Research Center. She will help with NNA-CO science communication efforts. Heather has experience in science writing, graphic design, science graphics, social media, communicating to diverse audiences and community outreach. Heather’s background is in Arctic biology and conservation.

Katie Boyd - Evaluator

Kathryn (Katie) Boyd is an Education and Outreach Associate at CIRES. She works on the evaluation efforts on multiple large education projects and will serve as the evaluator for the NNA-CO. She will be utilizing culturally responsive evaluation methodologies to assess the project processes and outcomes. She has a background in atmospheric science as well as science education research. Her professional interests include science education, outreach, and communication, specifically helping to build bridges between academic science and local communities.

Christi Buffington - Education & Outreach Specialist

Christina Buffington is a Science Education Specialist with the International Arctic Research Center (IARC) and an Adjunct Faculty with the Natural Resources and Environment Department at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). As the Project Coordinator for several community and citizen science projects across the Arctic and beyond, she works with communities, educators, youth, and scientists to braid Indigenous knowledge and Western science in arctic climate change monitoring, education, and resilience. She also coordinates the Alaska GLOBE Partnership and collaborates with GLOBE educators, students and scientists world-wide. Christina brings over 20 years of experience in community-based applied science and education work.

Alyse Thurber - Education and Outreach Associate

Alyse Thurber is an Education and Outreach Associate at CIRES. She is currently working as a curriculum developer on the QGreenland project. Prior to joining the CIRES Education and Outreach, Alyse was most recently a high school science teacher in Genoa, IL. Before becoming a classroom teacher, Alyse worked as a program instructor at Kestrel Educational Adventures in Gloucester, MA and was a GK-12 teaching fellow at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Alyse earned her M.S. in curriculum and instruction at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her BA in Biology at Middlebury College. She believes that encouraging a passion for science and the natural world in students is best done through engaging in authentic science questions.

Alison Gregory - Knowledge & Data Management Associate

Alison Gregory is leading the NNA-CO efforts to create a comprehensive database of Arctic community and Indigenous organization reports and documents to better facilitate community engagement in Arctic research. Alison holds a Masters in Environmental Sociology from Colorado State University and a Bachelors Degree in Atmospheric and Oceanic Science from CU Boulder. She is passionate about uniting science and community and has a wide-range of experiences with stakeholder engagement among policymakers, rural communities, and activists.