Presenters
2026 Connecticut Land Conservation Conference
Environmental Justice Warrior, Rhodes Scholar & Founder of Black Girl Environmentalist
For Wanjiku "Wawa" Gatheru, caring about the environment started early. While gardening with her mom and grandmother as a child, the conversations would often turn to saving the earth. The first-generation American of Kenyan descent became even more invested when taking an environmental science class in high school when she learned that social justice and climate issues were deeply intertwined. Everything suddenly became personal. “It was in this call I learned that the environment had everything to do with me,” she says. Her passion soon turned into activism.
Today, Wawa is a climate justice storyteller motivated to uplift the voices of those most adversely impacted by climate crisis. She has become a prominent voice of her generation, using the power of social media to share how communities of color and women have been adversely affected by climate change and the racist roots of the environmental movement.
Keynote Presentation
Everyone Can Be an Environmentalist: A Conversation with Wanjiku “Wawa” Gatheru
Join us for a powerful plenary conversation with Wanjiku “Wawa” Gatheru—national climate justice leader, founder of Black Girl Environmentalist, and Connecticut native.
The session will begin with brief remarks from Wawa, reflecting on how growing up in Connecticut’s Quiet Corner and her academic journey at UConn shaped her commitment to environmental and climate justice. She will then be joined by a conservation leader for an informal fireside-style conversation exploring who belongs in the environmental movement, how community and place shape leadership, and why “everyone can be an environmentalist.”
With messages of hope, possibility, and community-driven action, Wawa will highlight the essential role of local organizations—especially land trusts—in connecting people to land and cultivating the next generation of environmental leaders.
This conversation is for anyone invested in the future of Connecticut’s lands and communities. Come be inspired, energized, and reminded that environmental leadership begins close to home—and grows when we build it together.
Keynote Conversation Partner
During his 30-year tenure as The Nature Conservancy’s Director of Government Relations in Connecticut, David worked and negotiated with scores of elected officials, corporations, non-profit organizations, and agencies to craft policies affecting natural habitats, real estate law, water planning, utility rates, tax incentives, and public financing. David was TNC’s lead negotiator for several of the largest land conservation projects in Connecticut history, including the 15,300-acre, $90 million Kelda lands deal. He was the Co-Chair of the Land Conservation Coalition for Connecticut, one of CLCC's two precursors, which successfully lobbied for over $250 million in state funding for open space conservation.
Since 2020, as a Consulting Partner with KJR Consulting, David has designed DEIJ workshops, facilitated trainings, and/or helped integrate DEIJ into organizational planning for various corporate and non-profit clients.
2026 Conference Workshop Presenters
Maggie Cozens
Eric Hammerling
Richard Joyce
Duncan Kelly
Robin Ladouceur
Steven Marien
