Alexa Whipple - Project Director
Alexa is the Director of the Methow-Okanogan Beaver Project. As a Restoration Ecologist, she works for sustainable, effective, and collaborative solutions to challenging environmental and social conditions. She is a co-chair of the WA Beaver Working Group, the WA Beaver Policy Group, and the National Beaver Working Group’s Policy & Legal Committee. She is also a 2020 graduate of BeaverCorps, the Beaver Institute’s Wetland Manager’s Beaver Coexistence training program. Alexa has called the Methow & Okanogan Watersheds of the Upper Columbia in north central WA State home since 2001. She has studied songbirds, carnivores, plant communities, sustainable agricultural practices, and post-wildfire recovery of western riverscapes. Alexa completed her BS in Wildlife Biology at Virginia Tech and MS in Ecology at Eastern Washington University where she focused on beaver-mediated restoration of degraded streams across western NA.
Joe Weirich - Restoration Coordinator and GIS Specialist
Originally from Wisconsin, Joe received his bachelors in ecology from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire in 2013. After graduating, Joe worked with the Bureau of Land Management in Baker City OR, first as a riparian surveyor, then range technician, and finally as a wildland firefighter. In 2019, Joe left Baker City to pursue a Masters in restoration at Eastern Washington University. There Joe met Alexa Whipple and became hooked on beavers, studying how beaver wetlands impact fire severity in the North Cascades. After completing his Masters, Joe joined MOBP where he leads field crews in restoration projects, helps land stewards coexist with beavers, and educates the public about how awesome beavers are! Joe also aids MOBP’s project planning and monitoring with his GIS and drone skills. Joe spends his spare time working around his yurt, kayaking on the Methow River, and cooking exorbitant meals with his girlfriend and their cat
Willy Duguay - Restoration and Outreach Specialist
Willy Duguay is the Restoration and Outreach Specialist for the Methow-Okanogan Beaver Project. He graduated from Liberty Bell High School (Winthrop, WA) in 2015 and from Gonzaga University (Spokane, WA) with a degree in Biology in 2019. His background in wildland firefighting (5 years) allowed him to see up close the impact of megafires on ecosystems and human communities throughout the Western US. Willy worked alongside Alexa in Summer 2018 as a field assistant for her Master’s research, and has been a “beaver believer" ever since, especially in the context of fire, drought, and climate change. He loves working alongside the MOBP team towards a more sustainable, watery, and lush future for Okanogan County. Outside of work Willy enjoys hiking, gardening, playing basketball, and floating the Methow River.
Julie Vanderwal - Project Manager
Julie works at the intersection of ecological restoration and education, dovetailing her studies in environmental technology and child development. She was an early adopter of beaver dam analogs, installing BDAs in the Chesaw Valley starting in 2014. Julie has integrated ecology into a variety of educational contexts, from residential outdoor to public K-12 schools, to community education programs. Her first collaboration with the Methow-Okanogan Beaver Project was in 2010 when the crew live-trapped beaver from the Okanogan River for relocation in the highlands. She has followed the organization with avid interest ever since! Julie is a peat-free native plant nursery owner/operator, Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner, singer/songwriter, and educator, and has recently started regenerative farming. After a childhood spent moving rocks in a creek and playing with native plants and chickens, this career only makes sense!
Livvie Bright - Outreach Specialist
Livvie recently graduated from Whitman College with a degree in environmental studies and politics. She interned with the Methow-Okanogan Beaver Project during the summer of 2023 and is thrilled to be joining MOBP full-time to help document and share the incredible work we are doing, and advocate for beavers in the Methow and beyond. Livvie is passionate about building more interconnected and resilient communities and ecosystems and believes that beavers are integral partners in doing so! In her free time, Livvie enjoys hiking, climbing, cooking, making art, lying in the sun, and jumping into lakes and rivers.
Emma Burgess - Seasonal Technician and Education and Outreach Assistant
Emma graduated from Western Washington University in 2023 with a BS in Environmental Science and an emphasis in freshwater and terrestrial ecology. In college, Emma worked for the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association as an environmental educator and restoration technician. She also participated in WWU’s Sustainability Pathways program based in the Methow Valley which included a fellowship with the Cascade Carnivore Project during which she completed backcountry surveys for Canada lynx in the Pasayten Wilderness. Emma moved to the Methow to work for MOBP and loves her role as a restoration technician and outreach specialist; she also works for a local bakery. In her free time, Emma can be found in the mountains foraging for medicinal wild plants and herbs or rock climbing.
Jason Llewellyn - Vegetation Specialist
Jason started working with MBP in the spring of 2023 and loves it so much! He was a wildland firefighter for the Forest Service for 22 years and now owns and operates Lost Creek Forestry. Jason provides MOBP with locally-sourced materials for our restoration projects and helps out with construction. He’s also our chainsaw expert, helping clear access paths at project areas, harvesting and prepping posts for woody structures, and specialty felling for wood-loading projects. He supplies willow stakes for us to plant at restoration areas, helps out with trapping as needed for our beaver relocation program, and assists with the construction of coexistence devices. Jason lives on a little homestead in the Okanogan highlands, near Havillah, Washington. He is honored to be a part of this amazing team and loves the work we do.