People

In May 2022, Jen Adkins stepped into the role of Executive Director, after many years of being a member, supporter, and partner of Delaware Nature Society. She is a fifth generation Delawarean with a deep appreciation and love for its people and places.

Jen brings over 25 years of experience in land and water conservation in the region and state, including leading the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary as it’s Executive Director for more than ten years. She has a passion for conservation through collaboration and building relationships between diverse stakeholders to pursue common goals. Jen is an experienced non-profit manager who has worked in conservation at the federal, regional and local levels through positions with American Rivers, The Nature Conservancy, the Land Trust Alliance, and the Brandywine Conservancy. She is also an active volunteer on the board of the Urban Bike Project and the Christina Conservancy, as a member of the Delaware Sierra Club’s Environmental Justice committee, and an appointee to the State of Delaware’s Water Infrastructure Advisory Council and New Castle County’s Open Space Advisory Board.

Jen lives in Wilmington, Delaware where her favorite things to do are walking, hiking, biking, playing tennis, and socializing with friends and family outdoors, especially near the Christina and Brandywine Rivers where she is a frequent visitor to the Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge, Markell Trail, South Wilmington Wetlands Park, and Brandywine Park.

Adam received his BS in Political Science from George Washington University and went on to earn his Masters in Philanthropic Studies from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy where he was a member of the Nu Lambda Mu honors society.

He has helped found several small nonprofits in Delaware and he currently serves as a board member and the immediate past president of the Spur Impact Association – a group that, in 2022, raised over $2.6M in 24hrs for nonprofits in Delaware. Adam volunteers for several nonprofit organizations including Sanford School, Hero-Hunts Foundation, and Spur Impact Association.

He has been a manager and has led fundraising, events, and major gifts programs for the American Cancer Society, Freedom Alliance, The Salvation Army, and the Phi Kappa Psi Foundation.

He has contributed articles about nonprofit leadership and engagement in different publications including Planned Giving Today magazine, the 2018 Giving USA Report of Philanthropy and Andrew Olsen’s 101 Biggest Mistakes Nonprofits Make and How You Can Avoid Them.

Adam loves to see the people that he works with thrive doing the things that they are passionate about. In his personal time Adam enjoys family time with his wife Jaime and their two children, Jackson (10) and Avery (6), traveling together as much as they can and spending time at the Delaware beaches!

Mark Nardone is a lifelong Delawarean who has more years of experience in media and communications than he cares to admit. As Director of Advocacy, he collaborates with other conservation organizations and local communities to ensure that public policy and legislation works to protect the environmental and the health and welfare of all. He lives in Wilmington with his wife and two sons. In his free time, Mark enjoys leading Cub Scout Pack 88 through Scouts BSA and, with his family, swimming in the ocean, walking in the woods, camping, fishing, and snow sports. If he has a minute on his own, he likely has his nose in a book.

Bio coming soon.

Michele (Wales) Quinlan, Farm Manager & Site Director of Coverdale Farm Preserve, has been a member of the Delaware Nature Society staff since 2000.

Blending a lifelong love of the natural world and a degree in Elementary Education, Michele began her career in the outdoor classroom teaching environmental education. An early introduction to organic agriculture and permaculture offered an exciting opportunity to share the possibilities of growing food with environmental integrity.

Michele is responsible for leading the “boots-on-the-ground” implementation of a multi-year Master Plan for Coverdale Farm Preserve. The visionary plan transitions the site into a model regenerative production farm integrating both plant and animal operations. Alongside the farm operation, the Master Plan makes space at the table for the community to learn, engage, support, and enjoy Coverdale Farm through programs for all ages, a teaching kitchen, our on-farm Market at Coverdale Farm, and seasonal events.

When not busy on the farm, Michele enjoys gardening, beekeeping, cooking, traveling, and tending her home flock of heritage ducks, many dogs, and a hilarious cat with her husband, Shaun.

Tina comes to Delaware Nature Society with extensive experience managing educational programs for youth, families and adults at multiple sites and in positions of increasing responsibility for the YMCA of Delaware and the YMCA of Greater Brandywine. Tina’s experience includes camp, out-of-school-time programs, and licensed early childhood programs. Tina is an approved trainer for the Delaware Institute for Excellence in Early Education, the American Camping Association, the Darkness to Light child abuse prevention program and the American Red Cross, and completed a certification program titled “Outdoor Learning in a Nutshell” with  the Eastern Region Association of Forest and Nature Schools.

Joe Sebastiani, Director of Adult Engagement, has been working for Delaware Nature Society since 1998 and grew up in Kennett Square, PA. He specializes in teaching adult nature classes on a wide variety of environmental topics. Joe is a co-leader of our Delaware Master Naturalist program, runs our Eco-Tours program, and oversees adult volunteerism and bird-related citizen science programs.

Bio coming soon.

Kristen Travers blends over 25 years of experience in conservation and environmental education to engage diverse audiences in opportunities to connect with, and steward, nature. She has worked extensively with watershed and conservation organizations to provide mentoring and technical training and has led the development of nationally available education resources. Her work includes fostering strategic partnerships that conserve habitat and biodiversity and improve water quality. Kristen’s love of the environment stems from her childhood family experiences camping and getting happily lost in the woods leading her to pursue a degree in Environmental Science and later an MEd in Training Design & Development. In her spare time, she can often be found hiking, kayaking the Brandywine, or caring for her exuberant (aka messy) gardens.

Mike Valenti joined the Delaware Nature Society (DelNature) as Director of Abbott’s Mill Nature Center in March 2023. He came to DelNature from the Delaware Forest Service, Delaware Department of Agriculture, where he worked in forest health, wildland fire, land acquisition, and his last 12 years served as Forestry Administrator. During his tenure, many milestones were reached including permanently protecting 2,919 acres of forestland, the expansion of Delaware’s wildland firefighting program, and a complete update of the Delaware Forest Action Plan in 2020. Mike carries his commitment to accomplishment, enthusiasm, and passion for land conservation to his new position at Abbott’s Mill.

Since 2002, Mike has maintained an adjunct faculty appointment at Delaware State University and taught courses in entomology and dendrology and currently teaches a graduate course in population biology. This educational skill set will be an asset to DelNature when it comes to connecting people with the natural environment.

A noteworthy part of Mike’s previous employment was his participation in wildland firefighting. He has served on 23 out-of-state wildland fire deployments, mostly in the role of crew boss. He led 20-person crews throughout the western U.S., most notably in the states of Idaho, Montana, and California.

Mike lives in Dover with his wife Amy. They raised four boys, all of whom, like their dad earned the rank of Eagle Scout. Although his sons have long aged out of Scouting, Mike still remains active as a volunteer adult leader in Del-Mar-Va Council having witnessed firsthand the benefits of Scouting and desiring to pass on those timeless values to the next generation of young men and women.

Dennis is a lifelong Delawarean and a strong advocate for protecting our environment. He has been a non-profit executive since 2015 and has a long history as a volunteer and board member/officer for many Delaware non-profit organizations. Dennis previously worked as a senior financial executive for several companies in aviation and manufacturing industries.

Dennis also served several terms as State Representative in the Delaware General Assembly. His focus as a legislator was on conservation, energy efficiency, and open space and farmland preservation. He co-authored legislation to increase the state’s Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards, requiring utilities to derive more of their energy from renewable sources. Dennis served as a board member for the Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility, promoting the expansion of renewable energy.
Dennis is a proud University of Delaware alum with degrees in Accounting and in Financial Management. He also earned an MSE in Technology Management from the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science and The Wharton School. Dennis is currently working on certificate in Non-Profit Management from LaSalle University.

Dennis currently serves as the Board Secretary for Opera Delaware and is on the Board of the Arts Consortium of Delaware. He volunteers with Delaware Shakespeare, City Theatre Company, and Chapel Street Players.

Matthew Williams joined Delaware Nature Society (DelNature) as Director of DuPont Environmental Education Center in July 2023. His focus is on educational programming, conservation, community outreach, and inclusion of underserved populations.

He is the founder of Conscious Connections Inc. (CCI), an organization focused on uplifting communities through education, exposure, and economic opportunities in the arts and agriculture. His background includes work in social services and education, where he gained insights into the needs of vulnerable populations.

He holds a Master of Arts Degree in Education and has successfully built community programs while working with major corporations like McGraw Hill’s School Education Group and The Nemours Foundation. He is also the first African American member of Lead Delaware, a program in the food and fiber industries. Matthew’s career is dedicated to creating positive change in underserved communities.