Patrick McGibney has lived most of his life on the central coast of California. Raised in Carmel, in 1974 he and his wife moved to Baywood Park, located in San Luis Obispo County, where he finished his Masters degree. Very active in the antinuclear movement, he was deeply involved in the protests at Diablo Canyon Nuclear power Plant, was a member of the Abalone Alliance and was involved in both blockades, skippering in blockaders by sea. During that time, as a solutions-oriented protest against Diablo Canyon, he and his wife built one of the first passive solar homes on the central coast of California , where they still live today. After the opening of Diablo Canyon, they spent 10 out of the next 20 years on the open seas in a small sailing craft, exploring the ever changing world. Between voyages, Patrick created two businesses: “Green Earth Realty” in 1992, which was the first environmental real estate company in the country, donating 20% of all their commissions to local, state, and national environmental NGO’s of their clients choice; and “Solutions”, founded in 1993, one of the few mediation firms in the country and the only one in the county. In 1999 he and his wife purchased 10 acres on the Carrizo Plain, CA, and in 2005 they started the Carrizo Lavender Farm; a non-commercial, non-profit, completely solarized farm, where they grow lavender and organic fruits and vegetables. A founding member of the non-profit organization Biodiversity First!, as of 2016 -. . . . he serves as their first CEO (Chief Environmental Officer).
Greg McMillan was born in Northern San Luis Obispo County (near Shandon). He is the 3rd generation of his family to be in this neck of the woods. He says, “We have always been agriculturalists and ardent naturalists and rabid environmentalists. Being involved in Biodiversity First! feels like the apex of my activism. When I am not involved in the organizational work you will find me tending to my olive orchard and cattle herd (Grass Fed of course), travelling to experience foreign cultures and flora and fauna, keeping a close watch on my beloved Carizzo Plain, or (too seldom) just sitting on my patio with my binocs and a bird book waiting for the sunset. We hope that you will have a look at our organization. If you have any question you can email me at greg@flyingment.com.”
Elizabeth Johnson is a visual artist who integrates environmental, cultural, and spiritual themes in her abstract and conceptual mixed media artwork. She has worked with non-profits creating ceremonial earth sculpture, doing historical research and exhibit design, as a gallery curator and exhibit coordinator, and as a contemporary fine art researcher for the Ruth Fash Art Talks. A longtime organic gardener, in 2007 she founded SLO Seed Exchange, a local seedsavers group with demonstration gardens and a seed library. Elizabeth has studied habitat in Kenya, backpacked in the Sierra Nevada, trekked in Nepal’s Himalaya, and participated in The Altai Project’s pilot study of Siberian montane corridors that support snow leopard habitat. Her goal is to grow her indigenous soul within contemporary culture and help repair a section of the tattered fabric of life on Earth. Her undergraduate college studies were fine art, architecture, and design.
Linda Seeley has been on the front lines of protecting the environment since her childhood in the hills and valleys of Northern Ohio. Her career as a midwife accentuated her awareness of the importance of clean water, food, and air, and since her retirement from midwifery, she has worked wholeheartedly in the environmental movement. Linda served on the Executive Committee of the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club for eight years, from 2007-2015 In 2015, along with others who love the Carrizo Plain, Linda helped form Biodiversity First!, where she serves as Secretary. As a spokesperson for San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace and member of the Nuclear Free Campaign of the Sierra Club, Linda is considered an authority on the dangers of nuclear power and the resultant highly radioactive nuclear waste. Linda becomes more convinced as time goes by that all life is interconnected and that preserving biodiversity through corridor connectivity, saving wild lands, and protecting air, water, and soil give her life deep meaning.