Based in NYC, Emily coordinates waste audit planning and reporting, helping Great Forest clients understand their waste profiles and opportunities for improvement. Trained as a jeweler with a professional background in art education program management, Emily is fascinated by the material world and the concept that waste is a design flaw. She was motivated to pivot her career into sustainable waste management after adopting a low-waste lifestyle, which inspired a passion for circular design and environmental stewardship.
Emily holds a B.A. from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania; she is a DSNY-certified master composter, and she volunteers with Clean Bushwick Initiative, a grassroots organization centered on waste reduction and community well-being. She is a certified TRUE Advisor, trained in the TRUE Zero Waste Rating System.
Based in NYC, Violet’s role at Great Forest is to work with clients, ensure they are following the standards of waste disposal for their region, and assist them on any waste management inquiries. She has always had a passion for environmental sustainability as exemplified by her work history at various environmental non-profits. She holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies, with a double minor in Economics and Psychology from Connecticut College.
Jennifer comes to Great Forest with over 20 years of experience in the waste industry, serving in various capacities including as Accounting Manager, Customer Service and Office Manager. At Great Forest she is responsible for delivering comprehensive customer service to clients, handling all inquiries, managing accounts across departments, and problem solving. She is in the process of finishing a program at Long Island University for Business Management.
With a degree in Accounting and more than six years of experience in the field in her native Dominican Republic, Alfonsina joined Great Forest in 2019 to share her love and passion for numbers.
Liza Rivera works in customer service. She has been with the company for seven years, making sure that clients are taken care of and happy with Great Forest services.
In just over a year after he began work at Klein’s ShopRite of Jacksonville immediately after graduation from college, Kurt parlayed his experience performing customer service and bookkeeping duties into a job in the corporate accounting department for Klein’s ShopRite of Maryland, the parent company. He soon became controller and compliance officer for the half a billion dollar company. After moving back to New York City, Kurt took a temporary job at Bloomberg in human resources, before bringing his passion for accounting to Great Forest.
Danayia is an accounts specialist with over five years of experience in the field. She is great with numbers and analyzing them! She holds a degree in Accounting from Lehman College.
Yovelice is in charge of accounting at Great Forest, maintaining and overseeing financial operations. Her love of numbers and solid attention to detail ensures accuracy for our clients, while her extensive experience in customer service allows her to navigate even the most complicated of transactions. Since she began woking at Great Forest in 2007, Yovelice has embraced sustainability as a way of life. She acknowledges the company influence (and a certain amount of friendly peer pressure) in becoming more environmentally conscious, and in her recent decision to become a vegetarian.
Magdalene directs communications for Great Forest, handling press and outreach for the company and its projects. She oversees the production of the Great Forest Sustainability 101 blog and newsletter, content for the website, and pens articles and other thought leadership pieces on behalf of the company. She also guides social media outreach and the development of videos and other special projects for clients. Magdalene has spearheaded numerous national PR campaigns for some of the country’s leading arts organizations, nonprofits and corporations, including the J. Paul Getty Trust, the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize, and PBS. She is also an independent film and video producer. Her credits inclulde the award-winning feature “Falling,” a series of news-making shorts as well as a roster of commercials and corporate work. Magdalene holds a M.S. in marketing communications from Boston University.
In 2020 Sheila celebrated 30 years in the energy field. She started out as a reporter for the Energy Team of the Department of Capital Planning and Operations in Massachusetts, and went on to pioneering work in efficiency solutions for commercial and healthcare facilities in NYC. These solutions included securing three of the top NYSERDA/ARRA Federal stimulus grants awarded in response to the 2008 financial crisis. As part of a broad range of services addressing local sustainability ordinances at Great Forest, she has directed guidance under NYC Local Laws 84 and 87 of 2009 (benchmarking and energy audits), LL33/95 (building letter grades) and the Climate Mobilization Act of 2019 (LL97.) She has also consulted on successful USEPA Energy Star Partner of the Year applications, competitive Con Edison and NYPA incentive awards, and on procurement strategies built from demand limiting opportunities, deploying lessons learned to help craft testimony in rate design cases before Public Service Commissions in five States. Sheila was elected to the Board of Directors of the New York Energy Consumers Council in 2011. She holds a BA from Tufts University and is a Certified Energy Auditor (AEE.)