Board of Directors

Our projects are as diverse as our talents. Our Board of Directors, Advisors, and Staff have experience as educators, administrators, fundraisers, financial advisors, counselors, project managers, and are, of course, avid outdoor enthusiasts.

George Barnett, President, Executive Director

A former Eagle Scout and Assistant Scoutmaster, Mr. Barnett graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering.He is a former member of the National Rifle Association, is married to his first wife, has three adult sons, and one grandchild. He is a retired executive of a private international oil company. His experiences include design engineering & construction and operations of refineries, chemical plants and oil field facilities in Europe, Australia, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the Far East. He was the chief executive of major petroleum product manufacturing and retail companies in South East Asia, the Far East and in China. George is an active member of the Trails and Parks sub-committees of the Alpine Planning Group, an officer of the Alpine High School Citizens Committee and chairman of Supervisor Jacob’s Revitalization Sub-Committee for active parks and recreation in Alpine.

Timothy Todaro, VP and Treasurer

A partner with Rice Hall James in San Diego, Mr. Todaro is a Chartered Financial Analyst. He created an endowment fund for the land trust to ensure we have sufficient funds to manage the organization and our conservation lands long into the future. Mr. Todaro is an avid cyclist and rides both on the road and trails in San Diego’s back country. Mr. Todaro has been effective in attracting major donors to the land trust and is the Chair of Back Country Land Trust’s Finance and Investment Committee.

Ann Pierce, Secretary and Education Director

Besides serving on the board of BCLT, Ann is a member of the Alpine Union School District Board of Trustees. Having been a resident of Alpine for more than 30 years, she been actively involved in local schools since 1989. In 2005, Ann enrolled as a graduate student at SDSU in the School Counseling program, which is focused on the needs of a diverse, multi-cultural student body. In Summer 2005, she was chosen to be a collaborator in the Native American Scholars & Collaborators Project (NASCP). NASCP prepares Master’s level graduate students in counseling and specialist level graduate students in Psychology who are committed to serving Native American students. She graduated in 2007 with her Master’s in School Counseling, and a PPS credential. Believing that our young people are our most valuable natural resource, Mrs. Pierce continues to work with students and teachers to promote the use of Wright’s Field for educational enrichment and service learning, while expanding the land trust’s efforts to educate students further east in our neighboring mountain communities.

Travis Lyon

Travis Lyon is a real estate broker and the owner and managing director of Sperry Van Ness | Valley Commercial Real Estate. Lyon is an elected member of the Alpine Community Planning Group and currently serves as the group Chairman as well as an active member of Parks, Trails, & Conservation subcommittee. His career has provided him a strong background in planning and land use issues and he is committed to keeping Alpine beautiful. Lyon was born and raised in the Imperial Valley and moved to Alpine in 2009 with his wife Sarah. Travis and Sarah live on the southern edge of Wright’s Field preserve and enjoy walking the trails with their twin daughters Reagan and Taylor. Lyon currently serves as the BCLT Director of Land Use & Planning.

Scott McMillan

Scott is a San Diego County native, and has spent much of his life living and working in the communities and open space areas of our County’s backcountry. Scott earned a degree in Biology at San Diego State University, where he specialized in botany, plant ecology, and native habitat restoration. Today, Scott is a part-time instructor of botany at SDSU, where he helps to inspire and teach the next generation of enthusiast. Scott has been a biological consultant in the County for over 25 years, specializing in the assessment, restoration, and management of Southern California’s rare and endangered species. He has worked on restoring and managing a wide range of species and habitats in San Diego County, including coastal sage scrub for the California gnatcatcher and coastal cactus wren, riparian woodlands for the Least Bell’s vireo, vernal pools for the fairy shrimp and rare plants, native grasslands for the Quino checkerspot butterfly, burrowing owl, and San Diego thornmint, creosote scrub for the desert tortoise, and many more. As BCLT’s Director of Resources, Scott combines this professional experience with a passion to educate people of all ages about the incredible places and precious biological resources protected and managed by BCLT.

Patrick Williams, Ph.D., Geologist

Renee Owens

Renée has been promoting wildlife and habitat conservation ever since she organized a river restoration campaign in upstate NY at age 12. In 1994 she established an international environmental consultancy working with the public and private sector, based in San Diego. With a M.S. in Ecology, another in Environmental Science, and certification from UCSD in adult Education and Communication, she has taught at several colleges including Boston University’s Tropical Ecology Program in Ecuador. While living in South America she conducted pioneering research on anacondas, as well as highly endangered giant otters, crocodiles, big cats, and birds; her work was filmed by National Geographic and BBC and was awarded the National Geographic Research and Exploration Award. In 2017 she received the local Sierra Club’s highest award for her leadership in terrestrial and marine conservation, in 2019 she was presented with a Special Commendation for Contributions to Environmental Conservation from the City of San Diego. As President of the Wild Zone Conservation League she helps develop wildlife conservation projects throughout the Southern California bioregion. Renée is a long-time resident of east county and excited to be working with the BCLT to protect San Diego’s wild heritage for current and future generations.