REVIVE & RESTORE STAFF
ryan(at)reviverestore.org @RyanPhelan6
Ryan Phelan
Co-Founder and Executive Director
As the Co-Founder and Executive Director of Revive & Restore, Ryan works with the world’s leading molecular biologists, conservation biologists, and conservation organizations to envision and develop pioneering projects that apply cutting-edge biotechnologies to seemingly intractable conservation challenges. She has organized landmark workshops, bringing together global experts to identify the challenges facing endangered species and what genetic tools can be used or designed to help save them from extinction. In 2021, Ryan captured the TED stage in Monterey with her talk, titled “The Intended Consequences of Helping Nature Thrive.” In 2023, Ryan reflected on 10 years of progress at Revive & Restore with a seminal presentation at the Long Now Foundation, titled “Bringing Biotech to Conservation.”
Ryan is a serial entrepreneur, active in the for-profit and non-profit worlds. For two decades prior to her conservation work, she was a leader in patient-oriented healthcare and was the Founder and CEO of two healthcare companies focused on empowering consumers: DNA Direct and Direct Medical Knowledge.
emily(at)reviverestore.org
Emily Hatas
Vice President
Emily is a plant biologist with a lifelong love of nature and a commitment to making the world a better place through science. With a passion for sustainable agriculture, she has spent much of her career working in the fields of plant and animal genomics and advanced breeding. She has held leadership roles in business development, commercial strategy, and operations in startups and companies dedicated to applying cutting-edge biotechnologies to real-world challenges.
As Vice President of Revive & Restore, Emily focuses on expanding the impact of the organization by developing long-term strategic plans, engaging in new partnerships and development initiatives, and shaping our vision for the future of conservation biotechnology. She enables a team of mission-driven program managers and support staff by ensuring operational and financial needs are met, while evaluating new opportunities for impact and fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation. Emily holds a BS in Plant Biology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MBA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
ben(at)reviverestore.org @BenJNovak1
Ben Novak
Lead Scientist
Program Manager, Biotechnology for Bird Conservation
Ben J. Novak collaboratively pioneers new tools for genetic rescue and de-extinction. As lead scientist, he heads Revive & Restore’s de-extinction efforts and is the lead coordinator for conservation cloning projects, and in 2022 has expanded his role to include Program Manager for the newly launched Biotechnology for Bird Conservation program.
Ben’s primary passion is the restoration of the extinct passenger pigeon, the goal of Revive & Restore’s flagship project, The Great Passenger Pigeon Comeback. While passenger pigeons are Ben’s passion and specialty, the conceptualization and advocation of biotech-based genetic rescue solutions for all organisms have been a lifelong pursuit. Ben’s work at Revive & Restore also includes extensive education and outreach, the co-convening of seminal workshops, and helping to develop ongoing projects and scope new opportunities to expand genetic rescue science and applications through Revive & Restore’s Catalyst Science Fund and Wild Genomes Grants.
ashlee(at)reviverestore.org
Ashlee Hutchinson
PROGRAM MANAGER
As Program Manager, Ashlee develops and oversees applied genetic rescue projects for threatened and endangered species. She manages the Stem Cell program, which advances stem-cell focused projects that enhance wildlife conservation efforts. Ashlee is passionate about the use of advanced assisted reproductive technologies to protect vulnerable species.
After training as an embryologist, Ashlee completed her PhD at the University of Melbourne where she focused on the derivation of induced pluripotent stem cells from a marsupial. In addition, her research included the optimisation of conditions for marsupial IVF. Ashlee’s post-doctoral research at Monash University has centred around understanding the molecular regulation of spermatogonial stem cells.
liv(at)reviverestore.org
Liv Liberman
PROGRAM MANAGER
As Program Manager, Liv develops and oversees applied genetic rescue projects for endangered species around the world and helps craft Revive & Restore’s scientific focus. She manages the Advanced Coral Toolkit, which supports the development and field testing of cutting-edge biotechnologies for coral conservation. Liv shares her passion for the natural world through science communication, education, and citizen science, empowering people of all backgrounds to be environmental stewards.
Prior to Revive & Restore, Liv tested innovative strategies to increase the survival and fitness of threatened Caribbean corals in the face of climate change. She managed various collaborative projects that utilized “assisted evolution” approaches such as managed breeding and microbiome manipulation to boost coral genetic diversity and climate resilience, with the goal of informing reef restoration. Liv has a Ph.D. in Marine Biology and Ecology from the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, and a B.A. in Environmental Science from Barnard College.
marmee(at)reviverestore.org
Marmee Manack
Director of Operations
Marmee serves Revive & Restore as Director of Operations, helping to keep the organization running gracefully under the leadership of its Executive Director. Marmee oversees the daily operations which include donor management, accounting, administration, project coordination, website development, event planning, —and ensures the dynamic Revive & Restore global community stays connected.
Before joining our team, Marmee owned and operated a restaurant in San Francisco and then Berkeley for 13 years before moving into wine sales. As a Certified Sommelier, and conservationist who values sustainability and accountability, Marmee specialized in biodynamic wines and farming practices. Her love of nature has led to her appreciation for the biotechnologies being developed to protect it.
traci(at)reviverestore.org
Traci Eckels
Grants Manager
Traci Eckels has had a multi-decade career in non-profit fundraising and management. Her career has included securing significant funding for Public Media, national parks, universities, and affordable housing. She has served in just about every fundraising position including overseeing grants and gifts.
As a life-long conservationist, she is excited to be part of the Revive & Restore team. Her role as Grants Manager brings together her experience in fundraising and non-profit administration to the benefit of the organization. She administers both outgoing grants and incoming funding.
In her spare time she enjoys travel especially to parks and gardens around the world, reading, cheering on the SF Giants, riding her bike and going for walks, and spending time in her lovely garden at home.
kaylah(at)reviverestore.org
Kaylah Reeves
Executive Assistant to Ryan Phelan
Kaylah Reeves serves as Executive Assistant at Revive & Restore, providing high-level support to the Executive Director and Program Managers to advance the organization’s work in genetic rescue. With over seven years of experience in administrative support, project management, and relationship building, Kaylah plays a key role in ensuring efficient operations. Her background in Environmental Studies and passion for impactful storytelling support Revive & Restore’s mission to address the biodiversity crisis through innovative biotechnologies.
Prior to joining Revive & Restore, Kaylah honed her skills in client management and digital marketing, developing and executing marketing campaigns and building client relationships. Kaylah holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
elizabeth(at)reviverestore.org
Elizabeth Bennett
Director of Communications
Elizabeth amplifies Revive & Restore’s 50+ active projects with research teams across the globe. She ensures that the organization’s work to ensure the survival of endangered species compels diverse audiences to act on behalf of the teams working to save them. Collaboration, partnerships, and coordinated efforts offer the most effective paths to restore ecosystems and enhance biodiversity through the genetic rescue of endangered and extinct species.
Elizabeth’s entire career has been focused on animal protection. She has led communications and marketing teams at non-profit and mission-driven organizations committed to farmed animal advocacy, companion animal welfare, and wildlife conservation. She holds a PhD in Rhetoric from UC Berkeley.
Elizabeth and her family share their southern California home with a lively menagerie of adopted birds, turtles, and dogs.
Staff | Consultants | Board
Jennifer Moore
JENNIFER MOORE
Coral Biobanking Consultant
Originally from New Jersey, Jennifer fell in love with the ocean visiting the shore every summer and solidified her desire to dedicate her life to it while attending Sea Camp in the Florida Keys as a teenager. She received her bachelorʼs degree in Marine Biology from Boston University and her Masters in Biological Oceanography from the University of South Florida, where she began her passion
for coral reefs conducting research in Belize.
Jennifer has worked on the conservation of Caribbean corals her entire career. She joined NOAA in 2003 and listed the first-ever corals as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2006. Jennifer is the author of several ESA regulations and led the drafting of the Elkhorn and Staghorn Coral Recovery Plan.
Jennifer has been a celebrated NOAA resource manager for over two decades, winning numerous awards, including the Department of Commerce Gold Medal, for her outstanding accomplishments. Most recently, Jennifer focused on the recovery of the threatened Caribbean coral reef ecosystem as the Senior Manager for Mission: Iconic Reefs at the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
Stewart Brand
Co-Founder
Stewart Brand is co-founder of Revive & Restore and co-founder and president of The Long Now Foundation, where Revive & Restore was incubated for its first four years. The idea of bringing cutting-edge biotech to conservation first went public with Stewart’s 2013 TED Talk, “The Dawn of De-extinction.” Stewart has been an ardent conservationist since he was 10. That led him to get his degree in Biology from Stanford in 1960, focusing on ecology and evolution. The Whole Earth Catalog, which he created and ran from 1968 to 1984, purveyed a biological perspective on everything.
Besides earning a National Book Award in 1972, the Catalog and its later philanthropy became one of the founding pillars of the Modern Environmental Movement—as chronicled in the book Counterculture Green: The Whole Earth Catalog and American Environmentalism (2007 by Andrew Kirk), and in the feature film “Earth Days” (2009 by Robert Stone). Recently, in an effort to inspire environmentalists to follow science instead of ideology, Stewart wrote Whole Earth Discipline: The Rise of Ecopragmatism (2010, Penguin). The book has two chapters on the environmental benefits of biotechnology. In 2015 Brand was one of the authors of an influential essay, “An Ecomodernist Manifesto.” He also co-founded The WELL and Global Business Network.
Elizabeth Moore
Conservationist & Philanthropist
Elizabeth grew up in Massachusetts in an environmentally attuned family, spending days in a world of butterflies, birds and trees. Today, she is a conservationist and philanthropist whose contributions have significantly advanced environmental conservation efforts and science education in New England and the Gulf Coast. Her work has supported basic research in soil, microbiology, climate science, land conservation, and reef restoration, in addition to uniting science, the arts, and entrepreneurship. Her work is a testament to her commitment to the Blue Economy.
Elizabeth is a current board member at Roger Williams University and a past president of the TREE Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to tree research, exploration, and education. She is also a board member of the Mote Marine Aquarium and Research Lab, Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, Gulf Shellfish Institute, Florida Wildlife Corridor, the New College Foundation Board, and Lemur Conservation Foundation. She is a founding member of the Climate Adaptation Center.
Angus Parker
Private Investment Manager
Angus Parker is an investment manager and contract chief operating officer (COO), with experience managing the operations of non-profit organizations. He has served as the Director of Operations for The Nature Conservancy’s Asia Pacific Region and the COO of Island Conservation. Angus has an M.B.A. in Finance & Operations from the Wharton School of Business and an M.S. in environmental science from Johns Hopkins University. Angus is an avid diver and photographer.
Ryan Phelan
Co-Founder and Executive Director
As the Co-Founder, Executive Director, and President of the Board for Revive Restore, Ryan works with the world’s leading molecular biologists, conservation biologists, and conservation organizations to envision and develop pioneering projects that apply cutting-edge biotechnologies to seemingly intractable conservation challenges. She has organized landmark workshops, bringing together global experts to identify the challenges facing endangered species and what genetic tools can be used or designed to help save them from extinction. In 2021, Ryan captured the TED stage in Monterey with her talk titled “The Intended Consequences of Helping Nature Thrive.” In 2023, Ryan reflected on 10 years of progress at Revive & Restore with a seminal presentation at the Long Now Foundation titled “Bringing Biotech to Conservation.
Brad Stanback
Board of Directors, The American Chestnut Foundation; Board of Visitors, Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University; President’s Council, Southern Environmental Law Center; Commissioner, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
Brad Stanback owns and manages a 1300+ acre Research Farm in the Southern Appalachians between Asheville and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He is involved as a funder and advisor to many local environmental groups, particularly land trusts involved with protecting land through purchase or conservation easement. His hobby is Ecological Restoration, but done on a scale that most would consider well beyond a hobby. Brad’s particular restoration focus is with The American Chestnut Foundation, working to develop a disease-resistant American chestnut tree to restore to the Appalachian forest.
Matthew Winkler
Biotechnology Entrepreneur
Matt is a lifelong biologist and environmentalist. He received a B.S. in Genetics and a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of California at Berkeley. He joined the Zoology Department at the University of Texas at Austin as an Assistant Professor in 1983 and, in 1989, became an associate professor. In the same year, he founded Ambion Inc., a biotechnology company that pioneered the use of RNA technologies for biomedical research. In addition to Ambion, he also founded Asuragen, a molecular diagnostics company, and Mirna Therapeutics, a company specializing in cancer therapeutics. He is the author of over 30 publications and has 19 issued patents. He sits on the boards of Akoya Biosciences (AKYA), The Breakthrough Institute, Revive & Restore, Austin PBS, and several advisory boards associated with The University of Texas. He has a long-term interest in using biotechnology tools for conservation and environmental issues.
Jessica Green
Jessica Green, PhD, is an optimist who believes that emerging technologies can spark positive impact at scale. She has devoted her career to bridging science, health, and environmental security through leadership roles across public and private innovation ecosystems. A founding team member of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), she designs and leads high-risk, high-reward investments that propel health solutions beyond what traditional approaches can tackle.
Prior to ARPA-H, Jessica served as founding CEO of Phylagen, a microbiome data analytics company that mapped invisible microbial communities across the built and natural environment for Fortune 500 clients on seven continents. Under her leadership, the company scaled to a global team of more than 100 people and was named a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum. Earlier in her career, she was a professor of biology at the University of Oregon, where she co-authored over 50 peer-reviewed publications spanning theoretical ecology, microbial biogeography, and biodiversity.
Jessica has served on the Science Advisory Board of the Santa Fe Institute and the External Advisory Committee of the NSF Center for Pandemic Insights, and been recognized with honors including the Blaise Pascal International Research Chair, a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, and the TED Senior Fellowship.
David Lang
David Lang is an entrepreneur and writer. He is the Executive Director of the Experiment Foundation and the host of the Science Better podcast. Before that, he co-founded Sofar Ocean Technologies, OpenROV, and Open Explorer, which National Geographic acquired. He is the author of Zero to Maker. His work has been featured in The New York Times, WIRED, and Outside Magazine. He is a Senior TED Fellow, and his TED talks on ocean technology and conservation have received millions of views.
