Amy Goldsmith, NJEF State Director, Belmar

Amy oversees all of New Jersey programs for NJEF and Clean Water Fund. She also serves on the Board of the NJ Work Environment Council, Earthshare New Jersey, Coalition for Affordable Housing and the Environment, New Jersey Policy Perspective, Fairness Alliance, NJ Working Families Alliance, Chairs the Coalition for Healthy Ports, founder of Newark-based Urban Environmental Institute, as well as serves as the governor's appointee to the NJDEP Clean Water Council. From 1994-1997, served as the National Coordinator for the Public Health Institute's (PHI) Jobs and Environment Training Consortium. Until 2002, was a member of the National Just Transition Alliance Curriculum Writing Team and Training Logistics Coordinator-working directly with environmental justice leaders and workers to use popular education methods to bridge the communication and organizing gap between them. Before joining NJEF in mid-1992, Ms. Goldsmith directed Clean Water Action/Fund's New England programs for seven years. In this capacity she organized and led a variety of public campaigns around groundwater, pesticides, Boston Harbor cleanup and solid waste. Prior to joining the New England staff, she served as the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Nuclear Referendum Committee, which focused on radioactive waste management issues. In 2004, she received an Environmental Achievement Award from NJ Governor McGreevey. She has a B.S. in Land Use Planning from the University of Minnesota, and served for three years as a research scientist with the University of Minnesota's Entomology Department.

David Pringle, NJEF Campaign Director, Trenton

For 20 years, David has been one of the state's leading environmental advocates at the local, state and federal level. He serves as NJEF's chief strategist, media spokesperson, and lobbyist with a particular focus on Trenton and electoral work on a very wide range of legislative and regulatory issues. He also serves on the Board of the NJ Highlands Coalition as Co-Chair of its Policy Committee, as a Trustee of Consumers for Civil Justice, and as the NJ Assembly Speaker’s public health appointee to the Drinking Water Quality Institute and chairs its Health Committee. Prior to joining NJEF, David was the campaign coordinator for New Jersey Public Interest Research Group's Campaign Against Toxics, Buy Recycle and Clean Water Campaign where he also served as a student organizer at Rutgers University. He has a B.A. in Biology from Princeton University. Dave also keeps busy living in an 80 year old house on the Rahway River a few blocks from downtown Cranford with his wife, Laurie, who runs a vo-tech school, and their 6, 9, and 11 year-old children, coaching basketball and soccer, reviewing homework, and mentoring various church and musical activities.

Jane Nogaki, NJEF Pesticide Program Coordinator, Marlton

Jane is the founding chairperson of NJEF. As an activist Jane has mobilized public support for NJ's Workers and Community Right to Know Act, Clean Water Enforcement Act, pesticide notification regulations, and the School Integrated Pest Management Act. Jane has assisted almost 100 school districts, municipalities, counties, the State of NJ and the NJ Highway Authority in developing Integrated Pest Management plans and policies. In the last year he has helped over 10 towns (including Ocean City) and 2 counties to adopt Pesticide Free Parks. She served as an environmental group representative on the US EPA's Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee and is currently a member of the NJ Department of Environmental Protection's Pesticide Control Council. A La Leche League Leader for 33 years, Jane became aware of the issue of pesticides in the environment and how they affect the first food of life, human milk, when she was breastfeeding her two daughters, Jennifer and Geraldine.

Lyle M. (Peggi) Sturmfels, NJEF Program Organizer, Belmar

Peggi works with schools to adopt green cleaning, no bus idling, and other protective measures. Coordinates NJEF's sustainable energy and power plant safety initiatives. Prior to joining NJEF, Ms. Sturmfels was Associate Editor of the Two River Times, Red Bank, NJ. Formerly a member of the Governor's Lyme Disease Advisory Council, cofounder and past president of Lyme Disease Coalition of NJ. Thirty years of experience and leadership roles in campaigns with special needs organizations, school boards, national, state (past vice president) and local PTAs.

Deborah Kim Gaddy, NJEF Environmental Justice Organizer, Montclair

Kim facilitates the development and implementation of NJEF/CWF's
grassroots-based environmental justice campaigns, networking and coalition
building efforts. She serves on the Essex County and Irvington (past chair) Environmental Commissions, NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and NJ Department of Health and Human Services Health Tracking Advisory Group, as well as vice chairs NJDEP's Environmental Justice Advisory Council. Kim is a member of the NJ Environmental Justice Alliance Steering Committtee. She is currently the NJ President of the International Black Women's Congress. She is also former Chief of Staff for Newark City Councilwoman Crump and founder/President of South Ward Cultural Center. She has a long history of being active on many Newark civic committees and was an elected school board member. She has a B.A. in Economics from Rutgers University and is the happy mother of three.

Jenny Vickers, NJEF Communications Coordinator and Organizer, Belmar

Jenny spent two years field managing Belmar's door to door field canvass before becoming NJEF's Communications Coordinator and Organizer. Jenny conducts grassroots campaigns and mobilization efforts, responds to inquiries for information, and makes referrals on a wide variety of environmental issues. She is responsible for all electronic communication systems (i.e email, list serve and web site), as well as produces organizational and educational materials. Formerly, the Program Assistant for the University Honors Program and Ethics Studies Program at East Carolina University, as well as Staff Writer/Editor of The East Carolinian Newspaper. She has a M.A. in International Studies from East Carolina University. Jenny is also a performing musician and published freelance writer.

Eric Benson, NJEF Field Canvass Director, Montclair

Eric started his NJEF career managing the door to door canvass staff in Montclair just as he graduated from Rutgers University with a bachelor's degree in Geography in 2001. The passionate and positively charged staff makes it exciting for him to go to work each day. With that, he brings new levels of environmental activism to our campaigns. Eric's life goal is to make the world more bicycle, pedestrian, and mass transit friendly for environmental, health and social reasons. Eric loves to travel and learn about issues by experiencing things first hand. Now a resident of Montclair, Eric also serves on the Essex County Environmental Commission.

Kirby Torrance, NJEF Field Canvass Director, Belmar

Kirby received a liberal arts degree from New York's Sarah Lawrence College in 2005. He then returned to his hometown, Seattle, to join the Working America/AFL-CIO (Wkam) field canvass. He later moved to the Twin Cities (MN) and joined a startup team in Rochester (MN) and full scale "get out the vote" effort. His work took him to assist the Washington Community Action Network in Seattle, Wkam in Portland (OR), and finally Clean Water Action, Minneapolis (MN). In Spring 2007, Kirby took the position of field canvass director for NJEF in Belmar. He believes protecting the environment is key to a positive future, and that substantial change only comes from the grassroots.