Allen Baddour
Advisory
Allen is a  Superior Court Judge for the Chatham Orange District.   Allen and has shown a dedication to both service and justice throughout his career. He is a past President of the District 15B Bar Association, and serves as a liaison for the Superior Court Judges to committees with the N.C. Administrative Office of the Court and the N.C. Bar Association. He serves on Boards with the Chatham YMCA and the Elliott Road branch of the State Employees Credit Union, and coaches basketball. He and his wife Holly are often seen chasing their two sons, Henry and Jack, all over.

Rachel Burton
Vice President
Past President
Rachel Burton is a founding board member and has a long term commitment and passion for sustainable agriculture and renewable energy.  Her activism is powered by solar power and biodiesel.  Rachel is a Real Hot 100 Woman of 2006.  As a founder of Piedmont Biofuels, Rachel has experience with many different facets of education, community and local food and renewable energy.

Lyle Estill
Advisory
Lyle is the author of Small is Possible,  Biodiesel Power, and the publisher of Energy Blog. He has been with us from the beginning, and is well known for his fanatical interest in renewable energy, conservation and our local foodshed.  Lyle is loved for his new ideas, his vision and for getting things done.  He helps run Piedmont Biofuels and has a passion for incubating new farms.  He also just harvested his first 10 lbs. of local bananas.

Sami Grover
Secretary
Sami Grover is Co-Creative Director of The Change, a worker owned agency offering brand strategy and design for good-for-the-world businesses and non-profits. He is also a daily contributor to TreeHugger.com. Originally from the UK, he once vowed never to fly again.  Then he fell in love with someone on the other side of the Atlantic.  He believes flexibility is a central tennet of sustainability.

Rebekah Hren
Treasurer
Rebekah Hren is a licensed electrician, designing and installing solar electric (photovoltaic) and solar hot water systems and is also a North Carolina solar installer.  A talented organic gardener, she specializes in native plants and flowers as well as uncommon fruit trees.  Rebekah has taught solar electric design and installation classes for organizations including Solar Energy International, Appalachian State University, and the NC Solar Center, and will be a speaker on zero energy buildings at the upcoming Solar Power  International conference in Anaheim CA.  She and her husband, Stephen are coauthors of a book on renewable energy titled “The Carbon-Free Home – 36 Remodeling Projects to Help Kick the Fossil-Fuel Habit.”

Maria Kingery
Maria is founder and owner of Southern Energy Management, North Carolina’s largest sustainable energy services company. She is dedicated to building a top-notch team of sustainable energy professionals who are passionate about creating solutions to meet the global climate change challenge.

Maria’s professional background is in sales and marketing, primarily in the commercial printing industry. Like her husband, Bob Kingery, she worked with Burt’s Bees in 1995 as retail operations manager and opened their first store in Carrboro, NC.
Maria has a BA in English Literature from NC State. She and Bob are the devoted parents of 5-year-old Zachary.  The Abundance Foundation was thrilled to have her join the board with her enthusiasm, great ideas and her boundless energy.

McCayne Miller
President
McCayne comes to Abundance with a copious amount of energy and expertise in development, renewable energy and farming.  Her background includes traveling in Central America and across the US learning about organic and biodyamic farming techniques.  She has trained with the USDA on grants for farmers who want to begin making value added products and farmers that want to install renewable energy systems.  She is a policy wonk and spends her time as a volunteer researching permits and tax rebates for renewable energy implementation.  McCayne was the Director of Business and Community Relations for the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association and she is currently managing Harland Creek Farms.

Gary Phillips
Gary Phillips is a writer, naturalist and entrepreneur in Silk Hope, North Carolina. He has a special interest in conservation easements and other land-protective strategies. Gary co-founded Weaver Street Realty and Auction Company in Carrboro over a quarter of a century ago and still has an office there. He lives in a rammed earth house with his wife Ilana Dubester. Gary avidly reads anthropological science fiction and many other things, studies amphibian activities on full moon nights and was once chair of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners.

For a very cool article on Gary’s green, rammed earth home:
http://www.re-nest.com/re-nest/green-tours/green-tour-green-with-an-abundance-of-artistic-style-057539

Dr. Kim Tungate
Advisory
Kim, a native of Indiana who served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kenya, came to North Carolina to pursue her education in plant physiological ecology and soil science. After being awarded her Ph.D. from NC State she expanded her knowledge of environmental issues by attaining a masters degree from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in environmental risk assessment. In 2006 she began doing work on a Biofuels research project at NC State involving canola and switch grass. Kim has worked with Engineers Without Borders to raise funds for a rainwater harvest tank at a school in Cambodia. Kim plays music, dances, takes in stray animals and espouses the benefits of renewable energy. Her quote for life: I want to stay as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things you can’t see from the center. Kurt Vonnegut