Bio :

As ONDA’s Stewardship Director, Gena engages ONDA’s community in hands-on restoration projects that improve desert habitat in key watersheds and migration corridors. Gena has been a member of the ONDA staff since 2007, starting as our Badlands Wilderness Coordinator, and then our Public Lands Coordinator as her role grew to cover more desert terrain in Central Oregon.

Growing up in Portland, Gena enjoyed exploring the wetlands and rivers around her home. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science from Colorado College with a focus on international conflict resolution. Drawn back home to Oregon, she joined the Oregon Student Public Interest Research Group (OSPIRG) at Central Oregon Community College to organize voter mobilization campaigns, petition drives, and wilderness hikes.

Gena was elected to a four-year term on the Bend City Council in November 2018. When she’s not out exploring public lands, Gena enjoys drawing, cooking and chasing after her young daughter.