Team Adventure Scientists

Jessica grew up in Crow Agency, MT. There she enjoyed wide open spaces, raising horses, and exploring the Pryor Mountains. After moving to Bozeman, MT, she began developing a love for science, ecology, and conservation.

This led her to the Bay Area in California, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Earth Systems from Stanford University. Missing the mountains, she returned to Bozeman, MT, to complete an M.S. in Ecology at Montana State University. She studied how mycorrhizal fungi can help native forbs, such as yarrow and blue flax, mediate the negative effects of climate change. 

Jessica now lives in Bozeman, where she enjoys taking her dogs to rivers, kayaking, cross-country skiing, and reading. 

Lydia grew up in the mountains of West Virginia, where she spent much of her time running around outdoors. She obtained a B.S. in Finance from West Virginia University and has built a career in business and financial analysis, product management, and consulting. She recently became a Virginia Master Naturalist to facilitate her career transition into conservation.

Outside work, she volunteers extensively by walking and training dogs and cats, building homes with Habitat for Humanity, teaching English, maintaining trails, removing invasive plants and planting native species, and much more. You can find her hiking, biking, kayaking, doing home renovations, or pet-sitting while traveling.

Kascie originally hails from Maryland’s Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay and has lived in Montana since 2011. Kascie brings over 15 years of experience in grassroots conservation work with a blend of science, policy and communications background to Adventure Scientists.

Kascie is hopeful to finish her MFA in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University in the next year, while also heading up all things communications-related at Adventure Scientists. In her spare time, Kascie likes to recreate on nearby rivers with her husband and three dogs.

Ricky grew up in the central valley of California, often venturing up into the Sierra Nevadas where he eventually lived for two years before coming to Bozeman.

He volunteered as a nature docent at the Woodcreek Nature Center, and as an Earth Team Volunteer for the Natural Resource Conservation Service for two years. Ricky obtained a B.S from Montana State University in Soil and Water Sciences. Driven to take everything learned in school and apply it to the real world, Ricky was a volunteer for Adventure Scientists on the Gallatin Microplastic Project and Conserving Biodiversity Project.
​
When not out collecting water samples or looking for butterflies, Ricky can be found climbing around Salt Lake City.

Devynn grew up in Palmer, Alaska, on Dena’ina land. Living between the Chugach and Talkeetna mountain ranges, she spent time playing outdoors, snowboarding, kayaking, and raising farm animals.

After receiving her B.A. in Sustainability Studies from Alaska Pacific University, her investigative research on the impact of leachate from municipal landfills led her to work in the state’s conservation sector. There, she served Alaska’s rural communities as an environmental specialist before becoming a grant writer and coordinator for the state’s agriculture industry.

Now living in Missoula, Devynn is a proud slow hiker and finds joy in exploring Montana’s public lands, making art, and playing with her pets, Hoonah the dog and Louise the cat.

Alison grew up in the Washington, DC area. She has had a variety of work experience over the years – as an environment/parks Peace Corps Volunteer in Sierra Leone, a Fulbright scholar in India researching sacred forests, a journalist with the United Nations reporting on environmental treaties, an educator with the Bronx Zoo/Wildlife Conservation Society, and as an environmental studies college professor for two decades. 

Alison’s research interests include forest conservation, environmental education, ecovillages, park management, biocultural conservation through sacred natural sites, and global sustainability.  She has lived, conducted research in, and/or traveled to over 50 countries.

 Alison lives in Appalachia and enjoys birdwatching, hiking, and SCUBA diving.

Luis is a dedicated conservationist with robust negotiation skills, having conducted several challenging international policy processes from scratch to success. He is experienced in bringing a diversity of global, regional, and local institutions to the negotiation table including government agencies, multilateral and civil society organizations, academia, the private sector, and Indigenous and local communities among others.

Among his main achievements, Luis promoted the declaration of one of the largest Ramsar Sites, which are wetlands designated as areas of international importance. The “Llanos de Moxos” complex encompasses 7 million hectares. Luis personally led the Pantanal Declaration signed by Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay at the World Water Forum in 2018 and coordinated the preparation of the recently approved Pantanal GEF project with the three governments, the Inter-American Development Bank and UNEP.  

Luis works internationally to establish protected areas conservation, economics, management, and policy. As a member of global policy teams, Luis participated in and helped negotiations at United Nations conventions and processes including the Sustainable Development Goals, the Rio +20 conference, the Climate Convention, and IUCN congresses. Luis supported the global policy team at WWF, was part of the private-public partnership team, and a member of the Latin America and Caribbean policy cabinet.

Lindsey Schwartz  is dedicated to building Adventure Scientists’ network of support so that the organization can increase its already significant impact during this critical time for our planet. Lindsey has spent her 30-year career with a variety of innovative and impactful foundations and nonprofits addressing education, public health, social justice issues and more. This includes the Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, DRK Foundation, Share Our Strength, Milagro Foundation and Eastside School. Lindsey loves helping people and institutions connect with meaningful ways to further their passion and interests.

Lindsey attended Colgate University where she was on the crew team and remains an active alum. She enjoys skiing and hiking anywhere/anytime she can and being on the ocean in her home state of Massachusetts. 

Jessica is a native Montanan who spent part of her childhood in Northern California, climbing redwoods and exploring the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Lured by beautiful peaks, big skies, and abundant recreation opportunities, her family later moved back to the Treasure State.

Her initial educational pursuits, along with a desire for travel and a love of art, brought her to Marbella, Spain were she studied interior design and architecture. She later worked as an interior designer for several years before deciding that her true passion is for the outdoors, conservation and environmentally focused work.

Never short on hobbies, Jessica spends her free time hiking and camping, cross-country skiing, sewing, gardening, or attempting to hone her watercolor skills.

Gregg founded Adventure Scientists in 2011 based on his passion for exploration, scientific discovery and galvanizing “the choir” to more directly participate in conservation.

National Geographic named Gregg Treinish “Adventurer of the Year” in 2008 when he and a friend completed a 7,800-mile trek along the spine of the Andes mountain range, and he has participated in multiple ecologically focused expeditions around the world. His field work has included projects focused on wolverine, lynx, bears, owls, sturgeon, and more. Gregg holds a biology degree from Montana State University and a sociology degree from CU-Boulder.

In 2015 he was named a DRK Foundation social entrepreneur and one of Men’s Journal’s “Most Adventurous Men.” In 2017, Gregg was named an Ashoka Fellow, and in 2020, a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. He was named to the Explorer’s Club 50 and the Hatch 100 in 2023.

Lindsay left the Motor City for Big Sky Country to pursue her passion for conservation. She has worked across Montana conducting trail work, studying huckleberries, and collecting data on rivers and streams. She also worked as an educator and crew leader in Idaho, New England, Texas, Alaska, Utah and Mexico. Nothing brings her more joy than helping people develop relationships with the outdoors and become advocates for nature.

She earned her M.S. degree in Environmental Studies, with a certificate in Natural Resource Conflict Resolution, from University of Montana. In 2016, she was recognized as a Wyss Conservation Scholar for her work on community engagement in watershed health. In 2018, she became the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Science and Democracy Fellow for Montana.

Lindsay loves wandering through the woods following tracks, learning about edible plants, and playing in and on rivers. She’ll never pass up an opportunity to go backpacking – she loves seeing how far her feet can take her with all life’s essentials on her back.