Staff 2023

Leadership & Staff List

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Kim Elliman, President and CEO

Kim Elliman, President and CEO

OSI president and CEO Christopher “Kim” Elliman has been with OSI since 2004. Over the past three decades, he oversaw a remarkable era of programmatic and geographic expansion for OSI, during which the organization grew from a local, Hudson Valley land trust into a nationally recognized conservation leader active in 16 states in the eastern U.S. and three Canadian provinces. Throughout that time and working with a wide range of partners, OSI has protected more than two million acres. Under Elliman, OSI has become a national leader in the promotion of innovative and effective land protection, highlighted by the 2020 enactment of full funding for the $900 million annual federal Land and Water Conservation Fund. Elliman also oversaw OSI’s adoption of its Parks program, expansion of efforts to support grassroots organizations, and the promotion of greater diversity in the field of conservation. In addition, he instituted a slate of internal and external initiatives at OSI that embrace diversity and inclusion and the creation of safe and welcoming open spaces for everyone. In addition to his work at OSI, Elliman has served with boards and foundations including The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; Overhills Foundation; Samuel Freeman Charitable Trust; The Wilderness Society; Yale School of the Environment Steering Committee; and the Wildlife Conservation Society.

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Tally Blumberg, Open Space Institute Executive Vice President
Image Credit: Amanda Gentile

Tally Blumberg, Executive Vice President

Serving in an executive function at OSI since 1996, Blumberg provides management and strategic oversight for the organization’s robust programmatic initiatives. Working with OSI’s staff and Board, she directs long-term planning and growth, fundraising, and program integration. Blumberg oversees initiatives including Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; OSI’s many leadership roles serving the greater land trust community through the Conservation Capital, Conservation Communities, and Outdoors America Programs; and liaises on governance issues with the Board of Trustees. Prior to joining OSI, she worked in nonprofit leadership, administration, and fundraising in both the conservation and historic preservation fields. She holds a bachelor’s degree in American History and Environmental Science from Bowdoin College, and a degree in Conservation Biology from Columbia University’s Center for Environmental Research and Conservation. Blumberg serves as Chair of the Board of the American Littoral Society, and serves on the New York Advisory Board of the Land Trust Alliance and the Advisory Committee for Glynwood.

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Nate Berry, Open Space Institute Chief Land Protection Officer
Image Credit: William Amos Photography

Nate Berry, Chief Land Protection Officer

Nate Berry manages OSI’s land acquisition projects across the eastern U.S. With a talent for creative and complex deal structures and financing, he is responsible for assessing conservation priorities and funding opportunities, deal negotiation, and due diligence. After graduating from Yale College with a B.A. in Economics, Berry joined OSI as a consultant, later becoming a Project Manager, head of Stewardship, and before taking his current position, ran OSI’s Loan Program. In 2014, with the opening of an office in Charleston, South Carolina, Berry launched OSI’s Southeast land acquisition program which has protected more than 70,000 acres over the past decade.

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Samayla D. Deutch, Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Image Credit: William Amos Photography

Samayla D. Deutch, Senior Vice President and General Counsel

Samayla Deutch has been with OSI since 2004. Before coming to OSI, she had over 30 years in private practice concentrating in all aspects of commercial real estate as a partner in the Boston law firm Sherburne Powers & Needham, and counsel to the New York City law firm Seward & Kissel, LLP. She previously served as a Trustee of the New England Aquarium in Boston, a Board member of the Garde Center for the Performing Arts in New London, Connecticut, and a Board member of the New London Development Corporation. She is a graduate of Wellesley College (AB) and holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago Law School and a Master of Laws degree from George Washington University Law School. She is a member of the Bars of New York, Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia. Deutch oversees the full range of legal matters affecting OSI, including real estate acquisitions and dispositions, grants, loans, contracts, leases, conservation easements, stewardship and governance issues and non-profit law. She also has primary responsibility for the organization and management of the legal department.

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Eileen Larrabee, Open Space Institute Chief External Affairs Officer
Image Credit: Amanda Gentile

Eileen Larrabee, Chief External Affairs Officer

Eileen Larrabee oversees and manages the OSI’s communications and development functions, including media relations, publications, public and community relations, fundraising, and reputational risk assessment. As a member of the management team, she works to shape OSI’s strategic goals, programming, and policy. She joined OSI in 2011, when she helped launch OSI’s Parks program. Prior to her tenure at OSI, Larrabee served as Director of Public Information for the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. She also worked for 16 years in the New York State Assembly, including eight years in the Majority Press Office. Larrabee holds an undergraduate degree from St. John’s University and a master’s degree from the Rockefeller Institute of Public Affairs and Policy at the State University of New York at Albany.

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Kathy Moser, Open Space Institute Chief Conservation and Policy Officer
Image Credit: William Amos Photography

Kathy Moser, Chief Conservation and Policy Officer

Kathy Moser directs OSI’s Parks, Stewardship and NY Government Relations programs and serves on the OSI Management Committee. She ensures OSI’s work in Parks, Stewardship and NY policy promotes the organization’s strategic plan. Moser is the primary OSI liaison for NY state agencies, the Legislature and the Governor’s office. Prior to OSI, Moser was appointed Deputy Commissioner for Natural Resources at the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in December 2011. She directed DEC’s portfolio in Lands/Forests, Fish/Wildlife, and Marine Resources. Moser has also worked as Managing Director for Strategic Initiatives at World Wildlife Fund. She held various senior positions at The Nature Conservancy in New York State (Acting State Director) and in their International Program (Regional Director for Central America) from 1992 to 2009.

Staff List

Christopher "Kim" J. Elliman - President and CEO
Caleb Abbott - Outdoors America, Deputy Campaign Manager
Robert K. Anderberg - Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Michio Agresta - Conservation Fellow
Toluwalase (Ennie) Akinwunmi
- Conservation Fellow
Mike Baden
- Director of Human Resources
Naomi Bailey - Accounting Associate
Annie Bergelin - Design & Capital Projects Manager
Nate Berry - Chief Land Protection Officer
Tally Blumberg - Executive Vice President
Charlie Burgess - Stewardship Manager
Brad Burns - Staff Attorney
Mariah Caldwell
- Manager of Institutional Giving
Abby Chan - Senior Strategy Manager
Evan Chen - Accounting and Reporting Manager
May May Cheng - Controller
Matt Decker - Land Project Manager, Northeast
Samayla Deutch - Senior Vice President and General Counsel
Karen Doescher - Office Manager, Albany & Senior Data Associate
Suzanne Donovan - Land Associate
Kip Eisen - Senior Paralegal
Julia Feller
- Senior GIS Associate
Siobhan Gallagher Kent - Director of Communications
Christine Gallina - Land Program Associate, Southeast
Maria Garcia - Communications Manager
Malik Geraci - Land Project Fellow
Becky Gerard
- Senior Director of Administration
Alice Gleason - Senior Vice President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer

  • Open Space Institute staff outing to Harriman State Park.
  • Staff volunteer cleanup day at Bannermans Island, New York.
  • Staff enjoy an autumn day on OSI's River-to-Ridge Trail, New Paltz, New York.

Susie Goodell - External Affairs Fellow
Elissa Goonan - Conservation Communities Manager
Tom Gravel -
Senior Land Project Manager, Northeast
Pauline Greenbaum
- Paralegal
Jennie Greer - Senior Vice President of Philanthropy
Melanie Griffin - Director of Institutional Giving
Joel Houser - Director of Capital Grants
Katie Jilek
- Communications Manager
April Johnson - Administrative Associate
Neil Jordan
- Director of Geospatial Strategy
Tatum Justice - Land Project Manager, Northeast
Peter Karis - Vice President for Parks and Stewardship
Brooks Kieran-Kaufman - Vice President and Assistant General Counsel
Eileen Larrabee - Chief External Affairs Officer
Dene Hofheinz Lee
- Vice President of Land, Northeast
Jeff LeJava - Vice President & Associate General Counsel
Edwin Merino - Senior Accounting Associate
Patrick Moore - Associate Director of Land, Southeast
Kathy Moser - Chief Conservation and Policy Officer
Brendan Murphy - Stewardship Manager, Southern New York
Emily Offen
- Director of Development Operations and Events
Justin Park - Senior Grants Manager of Land, Southeast
Neris Pena - Administrative Associate
Jessica Puglisi - Visual Design Manager
Bill Rawlyk - Senior Project Manager, Mid-Atlantic
Nick Richardson - Senior Vice President, Capital Strategies, Conservation Capital
Michaela Roberts
- Parks Project Manager
Aisha Rodriguez
- Strategic Initiatives Associate
Lucio Rojas - Senior IT and Facilities Associate
Hallie Schwab - Conservation Planning Manager
Michelle Sinkler - Development & Special Projects Manager, Southeast
Lesley Kane Szynal - Outdoors America Director
Yasemin Unal-Rodriguez - Conservation Capital Associate
Nick Wallover - Parks and Stewardship Program Manager, Southeast
Amy Wasserman - Office Manager, SC
Jessica Watson
- Vice President of Conservation Communities
Abigail Weinberg
-
Senior Director of Research
Maria Whitehead, Ph.D. - Senior Vice President of Land, Southeast
Kae Yamane - Cartographic Designer
Ling Zheng - Accounting Manager, Financial Operations

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