Bob Conley, Chair
Since 2012, Bob has proudly served as the Mayor of his hometown of Madison NJ. As Mayor, he is a champion for ideals such as: positive leadership, fiscal management and responsibility, respecting the great resource of our volunteers, strengthening of partnerships within Madison and with other communities, and in reinvesting in the community. With a background in volunteerism, Bob has always been an extremely loyal and active member of the community. Having worked at the Madison YMCA from the 8th grade and working his way up the ladder until he retired as the Vice President of Operations in fall of 2018, Bob is keenly in tune with his community and its needs.
Bob’s incredible service to the community has been honored numerous times over the years by a variety of organizations. In 2015 Drew University recognized him twice for his efforts to strengthen the relationship between the university and community. In 2014 Conley received the Boy Scouts of America Patriots Path Council Lifetime Achievement Award for service to the community. In June of 2018, he received the Service Award from Chapter 17 (State of NJ) of the Association of YMCA Professionals (AYP), recognizing his contribution to the YMCA movement and the AYP. And in October of 2015 he received the prestigious New Jersey Rotary Vocational Service Award for his vocational service achievements.
Trina Mallik, Vice Chair
Trina Mallik (she/her) is Vice President of Global Programs at the Institute for Sustainable Communities. She oversees the Institute’s programs in Bangladesh, China, India, Thailand, the US, and other countries across Asia. After starting her career as a mechanical engineer, where she designed coal-fired power plants, Trina has dedicated her career to fighting climate change.
Most recently she worked as the Director of Climate Mitigation at The Nature Conservancy, New Jersey Chapter. At the Nature Conservancy Trina advocated for and facilitated the implementation of New Jersey’s climate change policies, and helped ensure the passage of New Jersey’s leading electric vehicle bill and amendments to the Global Warming Response Act. She co-led the effort to pass the Energy Efficient Appliance Standards, which Governor Murphy signed into law in January 2022.
Trina has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland, a Masters in Engineering Management from George Washington University, and a Masters in Business Administration from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Randy Jones, Treasurer
Born and raised in New Jersey, Randy Jones is the co-founder and Managing Director of The Brunswick Group, an Information Technology Consulting and Executive Search firm based in New Brunswick, NJ. Randy is an avid fly-fisherman and triathlete. He has served for nearly two decades on the Franklin Township Open Space Space Advisory Committee and over the past decade as a Board Member and Chair of the New Jersey Audubon Society. He is also a member of the Somerset County Open Space Advisory Committee and the Board of Advisors for the Rutgers University Zimmerli Art Museum. Randy resides in Franklin Park, NJ with his wife and daughter.
Marsha Benovengo, Secretary
Marsha Benovengo was employed in the Travel Industry for over 17 years and sales for approximately 29 years. In her Conservation and Advocacy work, Ms. Benovengo has always sought to educate and inform while championing the work of community members and bringing residents into partnership as involved citizens.
An avid flyfisher, Ms. Benovengo serves as President of Central Jersey Trout Unlimited and is Chair of the New Jersey State Council of Trout Unlimited, where she directs the efforts of approximately 3500 Anglers and conservationists working to conserve, protect and restore the cold water fisheries of New Jersey. And, to ensure that we include a diverse population in the work that is done throughout NJ communities, while leaving a future that is better for generations to come.
In July 2022, Ms. Benovengo was honored with the Trout Unlimited Mortensen Award for Outstanding Volunteer Leadership, the highest award given to a Volunteer. Additionally, Ms. Benovengo works on the Advisory Committee of the New Jersey School of Conservation as an advocate for the work and education offered by the NJSOC. She holds a degree in Elementary Education from the City College of New York, a Certificate in Youth and Theology from the Princeton Theological Seminary, and Certificates in Nonprofit Management and Meeting and Event Planning from Brookdale Community College.
Jill Aquino
Jill Aquino completed her Bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Maryland College Park, attained her nursing degree from County College of Morris in NJ, completed her School Nursing Certification at Seton Hall University in NJ, and attained her Masters in Nutrition from the University of Bridgeport in CT. Jill was a school nurse at Newton High School in Sussex County, NJ for 16.5 years. During that time, Jill oversaw a three year, $30,000 wellness grant awarded by the state of New Jersey to bring health and wellness to her school community.
Jill resigned from her school nursing position at the end of June, 2021 to follow her true passion, environmental health nursing. Prior to Jill’s school nursing career, she worked as a pediatric nurse at Overlook Hospital in Summit, NJ, was a child and adolescent crisis psychiatric nurse at St. Clare’s Hospital in Boonton, NJ, did pediatric home care in Morris, Sussex, and Warren Counties, and did early intervention nursing in those same counties in NJ.
Jill spoke to Congress as a representative of Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE) on September 14, 2021 in Washington, DC about the need for bold investments in electric school buses for our nation’s children to dramatically reduce the heightened asthma rates across our nation, and especially those plaguing our marginalized communities. Jill also spoke to Rep. Josh Gottheimer’s office on September 16, 2021 about electric school buses, other climate issues, and potential interventions relevant to his 5th district in NJ in which Jill resides.
Jill was a panelist for the American Lung Association’s creation of a 20-minute video segment that aired on October 14, 2021 as part of the Children’s Environmental Health Network’s (CEHN) virtual Healthy Children’s Day program, which focused on the need to transition to electric school buses to protect children’s health and dramatically decrease the asthma rates across our nation. Currently, Jill works as the Community Coordinator at NYU Medical School in the Environmental Medicine Division on a five-year grant awarded by the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). This dynamic position sets the stage for bringing back to food sovereignty, the Ramapough Lunaape Turtle Clan, who are suffering from food scarcity as a result of the Ford Motor Company’s dumping of toxics on the Ramapough’s land in the 1960’s-1970’s in Ringwood, NJ.
Patty Cronheim
Patty Cronheim is the president of Cronheim Consulting LLC, which provides expertise in environmental and energy advocacy and strategic planning. A lifelong NJ resident, Patty has spent her career working to fight for conservation and environmental issues across her home state, emphasizing the intersection of human health and energy. As the prior Campaigns Director for New Jersey League of Conservation Voters, she was responsible for overseeing the development and management of New Jersey LCV’s Campaigns Department. She is co-founder of ReThink Energy NJ, and led community organizing to oppose fossil fuel projects such as the PennEast Pipeline and the Northeast Supply Enhancement Project. Patty has a Master of Science from Columbia University in Nutrition and Applied Physiology. She has served on the National Pipeline Safety Trust Stakeholder Engagement Group, advocated in NJ and DC on pipeline safety and health issues, and is a 2021 recipient of the Presidents Volunteer Service Award. She currently volunteers on the board of ReThink Energy NJ, the Pinelands Preservation Alliance C4 Board, The Never Off Duty Advisory Board, and the Advisory Board of The Watershed Institute.
Brian Lestini
Brian Lestini, MD, PhD is the President of Oncology at Biohaven, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative medicines for patients with unmet medical needs including cancer. He has held numerous executive leadership roles within the pharmaceutical industry, including having previously served as Chief Executive Officer at Pyramid Biosciences and Vice President of Oncology Development at Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS). Brian received his MD and PhD degrees from Case Western Reserve University, completed his residency at the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, and received fellowship training at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He is a volunteer and advocate with a number of non-profit organizations, including GreenFaith and the American Cancer Society. Brian lives in southern New Jersey with his wife and two daughters, where his favorite outdoor activities include hiking and kayaking.
Kerry Kirk Pflugh
Kerry Kirk Pflugh is the Executive Director for the New Jersey School of Conservation. She is responsible for overseeing the operations, management and implementation of the educational programs, services and activities at the NJSOC as set forth in the mission statement, and strategic plan under the auspices of the Board of Trustees. The NJSOC has been providing students and teachers with environmental education experiences and training for more than 75 years.
The NJSOC is internationally recognized as a leader in providing educational programs in the four curriculum areas using unique methods of experiential learning and learning through discovery.
Ms. Pflugh was responsible for spearheading the successful effort to save and reopen the historic environmental education field center and is now working to restore the former CCC campus. Working with the environmental and educational community and champions in the state legislature, Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation in 2022 assigning the Friends of NJSOC legal responsibility for the management of the historic environmental education center. In 2023, the Friends signed a 20-year lease to operate the site. Previously, Ms. Pflugh had a 35-year career as a social scientist in the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection focusing on strategic communication planning to ensure citizen participation in environmental management decision-making, and where she served as the Director for Local Government Assistance at the New Jersey for six of those years.
Ms. Pflugh is also the chair of the Warren County Environmental Advisory Committee, charged with advising the Warren County Commissioners on environmental matters in the county. She serves as a trustee on the Lake Hopatcong Foundation, Hackensack Riverkeeper and New Jersey League of Conservation Voters.
Julia Somers
Julia Somers is Executive Director of the New Jersey Highlands Coalition, which represents a diverse network of organizations—small and large, local, regional, and statewide—and individuals. Its mission is to represent their common goal to protect, enhance and restore the resources of the New Jersey Highlands and to preserve the quality and quantity of drinking water both for the 850,000 people who live in the Highlands as well as the more than four million people living elsewhere in the state who depend on Highlands water. Prior to 2006, Julia was Executive Director of the Great Swamp Watershed Association, a membership-based organization working to protect the land and water of the ten towns of the Great Swamp watershed in Morris and Somerset Counties. Julia serves on the Boards of the Coalition for Affordable Housing and the Environment and the New Jersey Environmental Lobby. She also serves on her community's Open Space Committee. Julia, her husband and family live in Green Village.