The East Coast Greenway Alliance relies on a unique collaboration between staff members, elected officials and volunteer advocates to advance the Greenway.

Our Greenway Team

Meet the staff members and volunteer leaders who ​are spearheading the development of this ambitious, 3,000-mile linear park.

Meet the East Coast Greenway Alliance

Our staff members work from our headquarters on the Greenway in Durham, N.C., and from five remote locations along the route.

We value the diversity of perspectives, cultures, and experiences found throughout the Eastern Seaboard. We strive to respect and represent these diverse voices and we work to ensure that the Greenway's economic, environmental, and health benefits reach everyone, especially underserved communities.

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The East Coast Greenway Alliance staff at its 2023 staff retreat in Portland, Maine.

Staff Members

Headquarters Staff:

Executive Director | Dennis Markatos-Soriano

Deputy Director | Niles Barnes

Senior Director, Marketing & Communications | John Martin

Creative Director | Mary-Paige McLaurin

Operations Manager | Catherine Kitchin

Grants & Membership Manager | Debra West 

Field Staff:

National Greenway Director | Allison Burson

Northern New England Manager Emily Paskewicz

Southern New England Manager | Bruce Donald

Mid-Atlantic Manager | Daniel Paschall

Virginia & Washington, D.C. Manager | Elliott Caldwell

North Carolina Manager | Andrew Meeker

Florida Manager | Robert Barto

TriangleTrails Initiative:

Program Manager | Rashawn King

Board of Trustees

Board of Trustees News

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June 27, 2023

Video: Meet Board Vice Chair Atiba Mbiwan

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June 1, 2023

Video: Meet Trustee Regina Yan

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May 4, 2023

Video: Meet Board Chair Brandon Douglass

Advisory Board

Members of the East Coast Greenway Alliance Advisory Board are specialists in a variety of fields who lend their expertise and experience to support the Alliance's mission.

pat king

ECGA Co-Founder, Newton, MA, Chair

Patricia King

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Executive Director, Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, St. Johns Island, SC

Dr. J. Herman Blake

ryan chao

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, Washington, DC

Ryan Chao

ashley cooper heath

Paratriathlete, Kingsland, GA

Ashley Cooper-Heath

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Community Organizer, Atlanta, GA

Devin Cowens

nedra deadwyler

Founder, Civil Bikes, Atlanta, GA

Nedra Deadwyler

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American College of Financial Services, New York, NY

Azish Filabi

paul freestone

Advocate, Davidson, N.C.

Paul Freestone

olivia glenn

Senior Advisor for Equity and Chief of Staff, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Camden, NJ

Olivia Glenn

sarah hancock

Nonprofit leader, Cambridge, MA

Sarah Hancock

karen harley

Haliwa-Saponi Artist, Hollister, NC

Karen Harley

eleanor horne

Co-president, Lawrence Hopewell Trail, Lawrenceville, NJ

Eleanor Horne

patty huff

Vice President, Florida Bicycle Association, Everglades City, FL

Patty Huff

diane jenks

Host/Producer "The Outspoken Cyclist," South Euclid, OH

Diane Jenks

stanley katz

Retired Director, Princeton Univ. Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies, Princeton, NJ

Dr. Stanley Katz

eleanor mcmahon

President & CEO, Trans Canada Trail

Eleanor McMahon

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North Carolina State Senator, District 20

Senator Natalie Murdock

bill nesper

Executive Director, League of American Bicyclists, Washington, DC

Bill Nesper

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Milbank Professor of Geosciences and International Affairs, Princeton Univ., Princeton, NJ

Michael Oppenheimer

shaunak patel

President, Parks Hospitality Group, Raleigh-Durham, NC

Shaunak Patel

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Professor Emeritus, Raleigh, NC

John Pucher

hannah quimby

Executive Director, Quimby Family Foundation, Portland, ME

Hannah Quimby

dave read on bike

Vice President, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Topsfield, MA

David Read

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Principal, Vice President of Urban Planning, McAdams, Raleigh, NC

Mitchell Silver

vignesh swaminathan

Crossroad Lab, Cupertino, CA

Vignesh Swaminathan

pablo torres

Associate Director of Energy & Climate, RTI, Durham, NC

Pablo Torres

karen votava

ECGA Co-Founder, Retired Executive Director, South Kingstown, RI

Karen Votava

kenneth withrow

Senior Transportation Planner, Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, Raleigh, NC

Kenneth Withrow

Greenway Council

Our national body sets route standards and reviews new Greenway segments to ensure they meet those standards.

Council Chair: Andy Clarke, Virginia 

Jeff Behm, New York 

Scott Bogle, New Hampshire

Jack Boyle, New Jersey

Eric Brenner, Washington, DC

David Connelly, North Carolina

Rob Dexter, Connecticut

Heather Dunigan, Delaware

Kathleen Gannon, Rhode Island

Robert Gaston, Maryland

Jack Keene, Maryland

Terry Landreth, Georgia

Chris Linn, Pennsylvania

Dale McKeel, North Carolina

Melissa Miklus, Maryland

Steve Mitchell, Connecticut

Colin Moore, Florida 

Dave Read, Massachusetts

Mary Roth, Delaware 

Phil Riggan, Virginia 

Boaz Shattan, New York 

Dick Woodbury, Maine

Together, let's grow the Greenway

Recent record-setting funding for design and construction goes directly to building the East Coast Greenway - as it should. The East Coast Greenway Alliance needs your support to continue our advocacy work that is fueling completion of the Greenway. The Alliance has a sustained track record of turning every dollar donated to our nonprofit into $100 in public infrastructure investment. Invest today and support the growth of the East Coast Greenway from Maine to Florida.