For all media inquiries please contact Caitlin Higgins at (907) 258-6175. For all other inquiries, please contact the appropriate staff person listed below. If you are unsure about who to contact, please call (907) 258-6171 to reach our main line.
Caitlin Higgins, Executive Director | Susanna Orr, Political and Outreach Director | Statewide Energy Coordinator | Alora Preuss, Development Director | Climate Change Coordinator | Betty Jo Pritchett, Communications Director | Dwayne Lee, Finance Director I Lou Wright, Summer Intern
Caitlin moved to Alaska in January 2005 to join Alaska Conservation Alliance (ACA). She is a Green Corps graduate and has worked on environmental campaigns across the country, ranging from cruise ship pollution to mercury contamination and nuclear waste storage in Yucca Mountain. Prior to joining ACA, Caitlin worked on the November 2004 elections with MoveOn PAC in Iowa. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 2003 with a BA in Biology and Environmental Studies. Caitlin completed her Masters in Public Administration at the University of Alaska, Anchorage.
Email: caitlin@akvoice.org
Susanna has lived in Alaska for nearly twenty years and is a 2005 graduate of the University of Alaska Anchorage where she studied English, U.S. History, and Women’s Studies. Since 2002 she has been actively involved in elective and legislative politics across the state including municipal, legislative, gubernatorial, and initiative campaigns and a stint at a legislative aide. Susanna is currently enrolled in the Masters of Public Administration program through the University of Alaska Southeast. She is a runner and currently in training for her first full marathon, a fair weather scooter commuter, and lives in Anchorage with her four year old daughter.
Email: susanna@akvoice.org
Alora has a great love of nature and is passionate about protecting the environment. She moved to Alaska in the summer 2009 and joined the Alaska Conservation Alliance (ACA) in August 2009. Prior to joining ACA, Alora worked for various community causes in the Bay Area of California, including fund-raising for St. Jude’s Hospital, and the American Cancer Society. She also worked the California State Department of Rehabilitation and served as Development Director for NAVH, the National Association for the Visually Handicapped. Alora attended the College of Marin and the University of California at Berkeley.
Email: alora@akvoice.org
Betty Jo came to Alaska in the summer of 2009 with her husband and two boys. Betty Jo's husband is active duty army and that was the impetus behind their move. Though this is her first non-profit position, Betty Jo has years of office management/administration and volunteer management experience. Before comeing to the Alliance, Betty Jo had been in the financial services industry for 6 years and was looking for a career change. "I'm excited about this job and having the opportunity to be part of such a positive organization." Betty Jo lives in Eagle River with her family.
Email: bettyjo@akvoice.org
Dwayne joined Alaska Conservation Alliance (ACA) in 2005. Dwayne moved to Alaska from Wisconsin in 2001, he has a Bachelor of Accounting Degree from the University of Minnesota, and passed the CPA examination in 1990. Prior to working for ACA, Dwayne worked full time in a CPA office, taught accounting and business courses and completed a 28-year career in managing retail stores for a national chain. In addition to working for ACA Dwayne continues to work as the Finance Director for the Alaska Center for the Environment and as an adjunct professor of accounting at the University of Alaska. Dwayne, his spouse Gwen, and their daughter Melissa live in Eagle River, AK.
Email: dwayne@akvoice.org
Lou is originally from St. Paul, grew up in Los Angeles, and now calls New York and New Orleans home. In the fall, he will be a junior in the Environmental Studies and Sustainable Design program at The New School in New York. After college, he hopes to return to New Orleans to work in sustainable housing development and wetland protection. He currently writes graphic novels, zine comics, and music journalism, but he has worked as an oyster researcher, a biology lab assistant, and a sound engineer, among other things. In what spare time he has, he enjoys hiking, rowing, BBQ's, and metal. He is interested in traveling to Alaska because the state is a flashpoint for energy debate, and energy policy and behaviors are integral to his true passion - the home and how it works. He is excited to see some moose and get some work done.
Email: lou@akvoice.org
