Noël Johnston | Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer
Noël is a 25 year resident of Venice and co-founder of the Verdant Venice Group. She has served on a variety of Venice Neighborhood Council committees and is currently a member of the Venice Arbor Committee. She is committed to enlarging, maintaining and preserving the urban canopy in Venice and its surroundings.
Isabelle Duvivier | Co-founder and Executive Director
Isabelle is a proud Berkeley grad and principal of Duvivier Architects, a local firm that specializes in Sustainable Design. She is a fellow of the AIA and a native plant enthusiast. Her overarching goal in co-founding VVG was to increase biodiversity in Venice, while building community and inspiring others to learn about the beauty and importance of nature where we live and work. As the master organizer of the group, she is the chief liaison between government agencies, plant nurseries, and local stakeholders responsible for/interested in the care of newly planted public trees and native gardens.
Deborah Bird | Field Team Leader
Bird is a biologist. She likes the way native trees and other native flora jumpstart local biodiversity. She sees that a healthy biodiversity relies heavily on the birds and the bees, so planting native homes for these and other creatures in Venice neighborhoods is very gratifying to her. She also loves the chance to dig and get dirty, so she works with VVG planting, maintaining plants and guiding new volunteers in native plant practices.
Barry Campion | Landscape Designer and Field Tree Specialist
Barry moved to Los Angeles in 1979 to pursue an art career and simultaneously began work for a landscape designer. After installing and maintaining gardens for several years, she went on to create Campion Walker Garden Design, a successful landscape design/build company. Now retired, Barry spends her time painting and has volunteered with VVG since 2020. Her work with the group allows her to share her love and knowledge of native plants and trees, and she is grateful for this opportunity to contribute to the improvement of the Venice community.
Russ Cletta | Landscape Design Consultant and Field Tree Specialist
A landscape architect with more than twenty-five years of experience in original landscape design and construction, Russ creates innovative and dramatic landscapes that reflect an artistic blend of form and function. Russ contributes his expertise, practical skills and muscle to a variety of VVG projects.
Sean Garvey | Youth Team Leader
Sean is an architectural designer who has a drive for integrating the built and natural environment. Sean brings his passion of urban greening and design to VVG, with the goal of creating resilient cities. As a seasoned member of VVG, he assists in field work, graphic design, and organizing volunteer events.
Andreas Kemkes | Field Team Leader
Retired from a career in computers and software, Andreas is now busy hacking the urban environment for a happier and more sustainable future. If you don’t catch him with his hands in the dirt, you might spot him running through the neighborhood or occasionally attending Venice community meetings.
Craig Moore | Field Team Leader
Born to parents who met on the Venice boardwalk in the 60’s, Craig spent his “crazybeautiful” childhood with the ocean and sand as his guiding force. Part of the skate and surf culture, the skills of his youth come in handy as he can often be spotted skateboarding an eight foot potted tree to its new home in the hood. Craig brings his creativity, work ethic and carpentry craft to VVG. He loves the chance to participate in a cause that “brings the emotion of doing an estimable act” while contributing to the beautification of Venice.
Janin Paine | Director of Marketing and Development
A lifelong Venice resident, Janin’s love of the ocean and gardening brought her to VVG. She has been actively involved since a neighbor introduced her to the group. Janin is excited to witness the impact of a robust tree canopy, microforests and native gardens on the community. As a longtime real estate agent, Janin provides her outreach and marketing skills along with nonprofit and grant writing experience.
Peter John Ruiz | Logistics Lead
Peter is a longtime Venice Community activist and has joined in multiple local improvement projects including Heal the Bay cleanups and the Venice Pier restoration. He has played a key logistics role with the VVG team since its inception, and in addition to volunteering his time and labor, he repairs and maintains tools and equipment for the group.
Eric Schiff | Field Team Leader and Marketing Support
A former film and television producer/writer/director, Eric brings his production skills, design/build experience and love of landscape design to VVG. Past chair of the non-profit Venice Homeowners’ Alliance and a lifelong gardener, he divides his time as a VVG volunteer between fieldwork and assisting with special projects, marketing and outreach.
Sarah Wauters | Field Team Leader and Venice Arbor Committee Chair
A graduate of UCLA Law School and Dartmouth College, Sarah has spanned the globe as a lawyer, solar energy developer and photographer/journalist. She has served on non-profit boards focusing on the environment and equity – notably at Grid Alternatives, whose mission is to provide solar energy and job training to underserved communities in Southern California. Sarah currently serves as Chair of the Venice Arbor Committee. She has photographed numerous commercial projects in the design and architecture fields and her work has been extensively published, including in The Washington Post Sunday Magazine, Wired, People and Nat Geo Travel.
