The Ecosystem Investment Partners team brings deep experience in private equity management, real estate investment, conservation finance, environmental policy, ecological restoration, environmental permitting, mitigation credit sales & marketing. Our diverse and complementary skills encompass all the disciplines involved in successful mitigation banking and full delivery restoration projects.
Nick Dilks co-founded EIP in 2006 and has extensive experience in land conservation, finance, private equity fund management and real estate. Prior to EIP, he spent 10 years with The Conservation Fund, most recently as its Vice President for Real Estate. He has a BA in Environmental Science & Policy from Duke University and an MBA from the University of Maryland.
Adam Davis has over thirty years experience in owning and running businesses that align economic incentives with environmental outcomes. He has focused specifically on mechanisms that enable land-based offsets and the financial value of natural systems since the late 1990’s and is one of the national leaders in this investment space. Along with Nick and Heath, he is involved in all aspects of EIP investment and company operation, and he heads up national policy engagement for EIP as a board member of the trade association that EIP is active in, the Ecological Restoration Business Association (“ERBA”). Adam originally hails from Baltimore, earned a BA from Cornell University, and now lives with his family in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Heath Rushing has over 20 years experience investing in natural resource real estate and conservation opportunities across the US. Heath was a co-founder of Fountain Investments, Inc. and New Nevada Resources, LLC. He has a BBA from Mississippi State University.
David Urban has over 28 years experience in wetland and stream restoration. David is a nationally recognized expert in mitigation banking, is the past President of the Ecological Restoration Business Association, and was a permit officer with the Chicago District of the US Army Corps of Engineers. David has been directly responsible for the design, permitting, construction, management, and/or monitoring of over 49 mitigation and restoration projects in 11 different Districts of the US Army Corps of Engineers since 1995. David has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University, a MS in Environmental Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology, and was commissioned in the US Navy for 5 years.
Katherine Birnie has cross-disciplinary experience in real estate acquisition, conservation finance and ecosystem service market analysis and research. Prior to joining EIP, Katherine was Conservation Innovation Program Manager at the Maine Coast Heritage Trust where she launched an initiative to develop and implement new project finance approaches to land conservation. She has also served as Project Manager at the Peninsula Open Space Trust in California. She has a BA in Biology from Williams College and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.
Nelly Perkins has over 20 years of banking, finance and real estate experience. Prior to joining EIP, she worked for Preston Scheffenacker Properties Inc., a real estate investment and development company, where she served as Senior Vice President and Controller overseeing all aspects of accounting and tax preparation, as well as investor reporting. She also worked for Bank of America and predecessor banks for ten years in several specialty lending groups. Nelly received her undergraduate degree from Washington and Lee University and her MBA from the University of Baltimore.
Zachary Davidson has experience in project development, capital markets, natural resources, environmental sustainability and research. Prior to joining EIP, Zack was an Analyst in the Investment Bank at Barclays in New York. While at Barclays, Zack provided capital markets advisory services to a variety of stakeholders in the Natural Resources sector. He has a BA in Environmental Studies from New York University.
Glen Williams has more than 20 years experience in complex conservation real estate and project management experience across the US. Glen was Vice President of the national non-profit American Land Conservancy for several years overseeing a multitude of conservation and restoration projects. Prior to joining EIP, Glen was co-founder of Terra Firma Associates LLC a private consulting firm specializing in assisting clients in the monetization of ecological assets. Glen has a BA from the University of California Santa Cruz.
Kyle Graham has over 15 years experience delivering environmental projects and programs. He previously served as Executive Director for Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, implementing large scale coastal restoration projects. Kyle earned a B.S. in Biology from the University of North Carolina and a M.S. in Biology from Appalachian State University.
Trygg has experience in real estate, research, natural resources, and environmental restoration. Trygg previously worked for EIP for two years as an Analyst and Associate prior to leaving for business school at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, where he received his MBA with a concentration in real estate. Prior to his first stint at EIP, Trygg worked at Trout Unlimited and played professional baseball for the Boston Red Sox organization. Trygg received his BA in environmental studies from Yale University.
Troy Anderson has nearly 20 years of experience in ecological restoration and construction, including prairie, wetland, savannah, streams, lakes, rivers and unique habitats requiring critical regulatory performance standards. Prior to joining EIP, Troy worked for private ecological restoration firms including Applied Ecological Services where he served as Vice President, managing multiple offices and a wide range of large restoration projects. Troy graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Biological Aspects of Conservation.
Stephanie has over 12 years of experience in the environmental industry, managing projects and providing ecological expertise to inform project design and entitlement processes. She is certified as a Professional Wetland Scientist and Trainer of the California Rapid Assessment Method. Most recently, she worked as a senior restoration ecologist in the private sector, managing projects across a variety of ecosystems throughout California and providing biological assessments, federal and state entitlements, and oversight to construction and monitoring. Other prior roles include work as a health scientist, where she evaluated human and environmental exposure scenarios, and as a field biologist, where she supported biological assessments, remediation, and entitlement within industries including the oil, gas, mining, transportation, and energy sectors, as well as for the US Army and Navy. Stephanie graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a degree in ecology.
Joe has experience identifying new markets for mitigation banking, working with developers to solve their environmental restoration needs and developing mitigation banks. Prior to Joining EIP, Joe was the director of operations for Meritract, a nationwide mitigation banking company. Joe served two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malawi, focusing on agroforestry, environment, business, and education initiatives. Joe earned a BS from James Madison University and a master of environmental management, master of forestry, and a graduate certificate in international development from Duke University.
Jaime has over 16 years of experience preparing and reviewing permit applications, conducting wetland delineations/botanical and wildlife surveys, developing mitigation plans, and performing ecosystem restoration throughout the United States, including Appalachia, the Mid-Atlantic, the Mid-West, and Southern regions. Prior to joining EIP, she worked in the public sector as a state regulator and has held positions in the private sector ranging from permitting specialist to environmental division manager. Jaime received a BS in marine biology/environmental science with a minor in chemistry from the University of Tampa and a MS in biological oceanography from the Florida Institute of Technology.
Joann is a certified public accountant with a variety of accounting and finance experience. Prior to joining EIP, Joann was an Accounting Manager for Greenspring Associates where she worked on the management company and quarterly fund financial statements. She also worked as an Accounting Manager for Videology, Inc. managing the month end close processes for the North America region. Joann began her career working in the Assurance and Advisory Business Services Practice at Ernst & Young, LLP. Joann graduated Magna Cum Laude from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting. Joann also earned her Master of Science degree in Accounting and Business Advisory Services from Towson University.
Liam Brooks has experience in environmental policy, renewable energy and environmental markets, and research. Prior to EIP, Liam worked as a Research Associate at Karbone, where he evaluated regulatory policy and energy market data to inform investment decisions for a variety of stakeholders. Liam received a BA in Economics and Environmental Studies from Hobart and William Smith Colleges.
Abby is a certified public accountant who, before joining EIP, worked as a fund accountant for Greenspring Associates maintaining fund records and preparing financial statements. She also worked for a large, non-profit health system as a staff accountant conducting month-end closes and reconciliations . Abby earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from Kennesaw State University and received her Master of Business Administration from Loyola University Maryland.
Fred was a visionary environmental investor, conservation hero, strong leader and friend to the EIP family for over a decade. Prior to co-founding EIP in 2006, Fred was a co-founder of Capital Resource Partners and the founder of the Upper Clark Fork Mitigation Bank in western Montana. Please click on this link for an article that describes more about Fred’s extraordinary life and his contributions to our firm and conservation.
