Media Contact:
Amanda Gillooly
Communications Manager
Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GASP Announces Election of Five New Board Members
The Group Against Smog and Pollution (GASP) is delighted to announce the election of five new members to its board of directors, adding valuable experience and expertise to the watchdog group’s team.
The new members, who will serve three-year terms, include:
Shawn C. Dalton, who is a fellow with Human Impacts Institute, where she is involved with its Stories of a Just Transition Pittsburgh. She previously served 10 years as an environmental board member and certified advocate with One Pittsburgh, now One PA. She also volunteered with Sierra Club’s Ready for 100 campaign. Shawn has an associate’s degree in accounting and more than a decade of experience working within marginalized communities.
Kelly Henderson, who is the co-founder and co-owner of Just By Nature, a Pittsburgh-based environmental justice consulting firm, as well as the K-12 Education Coordinator and adjunct faculty member at Chatham University’s Eden Hall Campus. She previously worked for both the Green Building Alliance and Venture Outdoors. Henderson earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from Colgate University as well as master’s degrees in teaching from Chatham University and science in sustainable energy systems from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.
Greg Kochanski, who is a senior software engineer at Google who previously worked at AT&T and Lucent Technologies. Previously, he worked as a visiting researcher for Rutgers University and a senior research fellow at the University of Oxford. Kochanski earned his undergraduate and doctoral degrees in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Chie Togami, who is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Pittsburgh, where she serves as a graduate student assistant at Pitt’s World History Center. She’s earned myriad fellowships and awards for everything from collaborative research to excellence in teaching and serves on the board of Quaker Voluntary Service. In 2021, she collaborated with GASP and Pitt’s World History Center to create “Extraction,” a three-part podcast that examines the 120-year history of U.S. Steel Corp. and the people and places that figure deeply into this company’s environmental and social legacy. Togami earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental policy from Williams College and received her master’s degree in sociology from the University of Pittsburgh.
Dr. Noe Woods, who is an obstetrician/gynecologist at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital and serves as an assistant professor of ob-gyn at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. She also works with the Birmingham Free Clinic, which provides medical care to underserved communities. Additionally, Woods conducts research on the environmental impact of medicine and healthcare sustainability and recently earned a Climate Health Organizing Fellowship through Harvard University. Woods earned her undergraduate degree from Cornell University and her medical degree from Temple University. She completed her residency at the University of Vermont.
GASP Board President Jonathan Nadle said he is thrilled the board has grown by five members – increasing the board size by a little more than a third.
“The new board members are jumping in feet first, already taking an active role in furthering our work of cleaning up the Pittsburgh region’s air, involving more communities, and increasing GASP’s effectiveness,” he said. “We are fortunate to have new members from a diversity of backgrounds who bring an array of knowledge and skills. We look forward to our expanded board tackling the issues we all care about deeply.”
GASP Executive Director Patrick Campbell agreed.
“The experience, knowledge, and passion that our new board members bring to the team is just awesome,” he said. “I look forward to working with them to make 2022 the most impactful year yet for GASP.”
GASP is a nonprofit citizens’ group in Southwestern PA working for a healthy, sustainable environment. Founded in 1969, GASP has been a diligent watchdog, educator, litigator, and policy-maker on environmental issues, with a focus on air quality in the Pittsburgh region.
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