Our People

GET TO KNOW US

Caroline Lewis

Founder & Senior Advisor

Yoca Arditi-Rocha

Executive Director

Olivia Collins

Senior Director of Programs

Helen Quinn

Director of Development

Joanne Pérodin

Senior Director of Climate Equity

Raymer Maguire

Director of Policy & Campaigns

Ian Quartin

Office Administrator

Diego Molina-Castrillón

Program Manager, Schools & Youth Programs

Bereatha Howard

Climate Equity Program Coordinator

Sarahi Perez

Miami-Dade Lead Organizer

Alika Esperson

Advocacy and Campaigns Associate

Laura Betts

Program Manager, Orlando

Christy Folk

Program Manager

Peyton Hoey

Regional Organizer Manager

Karolyn Burns

Education and Curriculum Manager

Daniel Dietch

CLEO Board President, Former Mayor of Surfside and Project Director for SCS Engineers where he provides strategic solid waste and environmental consulting services to municipal and commercial clients worldwide.

John Morales

1st Vice-President of CLEO Board, Chief Meteorologist for NBC6 South Florida.

Lindsey Wolfson Goldsmith

2nd Vice-President of CLEO Board, Asset Manager & Closing Coordinator at Pinnacle, a multi-family development and construction company dedicated to affordable/workforce housing.

Dr. Bernard Horowitz

CLEO Board Treasurer, Recognized internationally for his research on blood viral safety and the preparation and characterization of new therapeutics from blood.

Ed Freedman

CLEO Board Secretary, Consulted for over 40 years in human resources and employee benefits before retiring from the business world and moving to Pinecrest, Fla.

Tomás E. Castellanos

Miami attorney at Holland and Knight, and a member of the firm's Real Estate Practice. Mr. Castellanos focuses his practice on all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, including the financing, acquisition, disposition, leasing and development of real estate assets.

Delaney Reynolds

Founder of the Sink or Swim Project MiamiSeaRise.org

Dr. Harold Wanless

Professor at the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Miami, and was Cooper Fellow in the College of Arts and Sciences 2010-2013. From 1971-1992 he was a faculty member in Marine Geology and Geophysics at RSMAS, and in Geological Sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences since 1992.

Dr. F. Lynn Leverett

Board Member EmeritusA native of Lubbock, Texas, graduated from Texas Tech University and then from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio.

Cindy Lerner

Attorney, Former Mayor of Pinecrest, elected in 2008 until 2016. During her two terms, Cindy focused on a number of issues of importance to the community, including climate resilient practices, enhancing transit options, water quality, renewable and efficient energy practices, gun safety and sea level rise.

Brent Saiontz

Partner at PEP Capital, an investment firm that focuses on renewable energy and sustainability companies contributing to a lower carbon future. In the Miami community he serves as CFO of education nonprofit Achieve Miami.

Dr. Cheryl Holder

Cheryl L. Holder, M.D., has dedicated her career to caring for underserved populations and promoting diversity in the health professions through pipeline programs. Holder is a founding faculty member of the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. As the Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Community Initiatives, Holder integrates diversity, inclusivity, and social justice in all HWCOM programs and operations.

The CLEO Institute’s Expert Advisory Council has been established to provide local, state, and national guidance and support.
The council is composed of top climate scientists, doctors, environmentalists, teachers, former elected and government officials.

Ricardo Alvarez

President & Director, MITIGAT.com. Specialties: vulnerability assessment & mitigation.

Henry O. Briceño

Ph.D., Professor at Southeast Environmental Research Center & Department of Earth and Environment at Florida International University.

Julie Dick

Environmental lawyer who is a relentless advocate for hurricane and sea level rise preparedness, conservation of coastal resources, and responsible planning.

Nancy Gassman

Ph.D., Assistant Public Works Director - Sustainability, City of Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Maribeth Gidley

Ph.D., Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division (NOAA) CIMAS.

Ben Haley

Co-Founder of Evolved Energy Research

Brian Haus

Ph.D., A Professor in the Ocean Sciences Department at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

Ben Kirtman

Ph.D., Professor, Department of Atmospheric Sciences; Director, Cooperative Institute for Marine & Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS); Director; Center for Computational Science Climate and Environmental Hazards Program UM RSMAS.

Sumita Khatri

Professor of medicine at CCLCM/CWRU School of Medicine and an adult pulmonary and ICU physician with a specialized focus in asthma patient care and clinical research. Director of the Asthma Center at Cleveland Clinic. Vice Chair, Board of Directors and Mission Programs for The American Lung Association

Amy Knowles

Chief Resiliency Officer for the City of Miami Beach.

Michael E. Mann

Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science at Penn State, with joint appointments in the Department of Geosciences and the Earth and Environmental Systems Institute (EESI). He is also director of the Penn State Earth System Science Center (ESSC).

Jayantha Obeysekera

Director and Research Professor in the Sea Level Solutions Center, Florida International University.

Jacqueline Patterson

Founder and Executive Director at The Chisholm Legacy Project, prior to that she was the Director of the NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Program.

Brian Soden

Ph.D., Professor, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, UM RSMAS - Specialization: Tropical Climate Change, Climate Modeling, Remote Sensing.

Philip K. Stoddard

Ph. D., Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, FIU; Mayor, City of South Miami, and appointed by the White House in 2015 to the Governance Coordinating Committee of the National Ocean Council where he developed national policy for sea level rise.

Tiffany G. Troxler

Ph. D., Research Associate Professor, Southeast Environmental Research Center, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University.