Oregon Forests Category
Norie Dimeo-Ediger
As director of ORFI’s K-12 education programs, Norie leads and coordinates K-12 teacher professional development for OFRI. Her accomplishments include working with natural resource institutions such as the Oregon Zoo and Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve, where she provided professional development to teachers in science education. She has master’s degrees in both science education and adult education. In 2011, she was recognized nationally for her work with Project Learning Tree, a program of the American Forest Foundation and the Council for Environmental Education. Also in 2011, she received the Oregon State Forester’s award for excellence in forestry education. Her favorite outdoor activity is walking in the woods.
Ashley Jones
Graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology. Currently, the Projects Coordinator at Seneca Family of Companies, a third generation to the business my Grandfather started 63 years ago. My time is spent doing high school outreach, facilitating an in-house scholarship program and days out on the tree farm with the Foresters. My committees include Lane Families for Food and Forests and the Selection Team for OSAC scholarships.
Jordan Benner
Jordan is the senior public outreach manager for the Oregon Forest Resources Institute. He manages the agencies advertising program, website development, and video department. Jordan made his way to the Institute through a career in advertising and is a graduate of the University of Oregon School of Journalism. When he’s not at work, he’s usually “called in sick” to go fly fishing on the Deschutes.
Beth Krisko
Beth came to FTF after years of experience as a naturalist, program manager, and director of environmental and outdoor education programs. She has a Master’s degree in Environmental Science from Miami University, with an emphasis in Forest Ecology, and a science teacher credential from Antioch University. In 2010, Beth was awarded a fellowship with the National Audubon Society’s Together Green program, which recognizes leaders in conservation. Beth oversees the administration of the organization, leads strategic planning, and coordinates the forestry education programs. She is passionate about the work of the organization, specifically, bringing awareness to the human-environment connection, and teaching people about their natural resources.
Top Ten / Film of the Year / Category Judges
Dustin Whitaker
Dustin Whitaker has enjoyed telling stories through film since he got his first camera at the age of 13. He worked all summer in the heat and saved up $700 for a camera he bought at Sears. It was different times back then. Everything was still 4:3 in the video world and shallow depth of field was only a dream. None the less he kept story as his main purpose and now enjoys telling stories about the UofO community.
Keegan O'Brien
Keegan O’Brien is a local filmmaker who graduated from Portland State University’s film program in 2016. In late August, he’ll be joining Chapman University’s Dodge College in Los Angeles to pursue an MFA in Film Directing. He currently spends his days between Eugene and Portland making short films and nervously staring at a wall anticipating Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Kitsann Means
Kitsann has a BFA in theatre from Southern Oregon University in Ashland Oregon, and an MFA from University of Southern California, Los Angeles. She has been teaching theatre for thirty years and has been the theatre specialist at Oak Hill School in Eugene for the past eleven years. She specializes in original works and has produced original plays involving youth in Russia, China, London, and Thailand, where her company performed an original musical for the King.
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Braxton Haugen
An 18-year-old independent filmmaker currently attending school at the University of Oregon. His movies center around stories from his life and ideas he sees best shared through video. Haugen has grown up both in front of and behind the camera, hosted televisions shows, directed commercials, and worked on a team to bring a series to Netflix. His autobiographical films are often rooted in themes of childhood and nostalgia. He is also a former recipient of the ECFF’s Film of the Year. You can see all of his work on his YouTube channel. (youtube.com/braxtonhaugen)