NTBG Staff List
Chipper Wichman is NTBG's Chief Executive Officer and serves as Director of the organization, effective January 2005. Prior to serving as the organization's Acting Director for nearly 1-1/2 years, Mr. Wichman served as Director of NTBG's Limahuli Garden on Kaua`i since 1994 and also as Director of NTBG's Kahanu Garden on Maui from 1997 through early 2002.
Mr. Wichman joined the organization in 1976, graduating from its Horticultural Internship program. He spent his early career developing Limahuli Garden. During this time, he obtained a Special Subzone designation in the Conservation District for the entire Limahuli Valley, restored ancient taro terraces, developed a collection of rare and endangered native Hawaiian plants, opened the garden to educational tours, and added the 989-acre Limahuli Preserve. Subsequently Limahuli was named the Best Natural Botanical Garden in the United States by the American Horticultural Society.
Through numerous grants, Mr. Wichman was able to fund extensive native habitat restoration work in the Limahuli Preserve, which continues today. In addition to his work in conservation and education, he has lead efforts to perpetuate and preserve native Hawaiian culture. He spearheaded a four-year Indigenous Communities Mapping Initiative Project at Limahuli. This collaborative project focused on researching and documenting traditional cultural knowledge and land use relationships and perpetuating traditional practices within the native community.
Mr. Wichman brought renewed focus to NTBG's conservation and horticulture efforts, a greater appreciation of the native Hawaiian culture, and undertook a major capital campaign. Under his leadership, NTBG built its fourth building at the headquarters campus, a major research facility which has received wide attention for its "green architecture."
Mr. Wichman joined the organization in 1976, graduating from its Horticultural Internship program. He spent his early career developing Limahuli Garden. During this time, he obtained a Special Subzone designation in the Conservation District for the entire Limahuli Valley, restored ancient taro terraces, developed a collection of rare and endangered native Hawaiian plants, opened the garden to educational tours, and added the 989-acre Limahuli Preserve. Subsequently Limahuli was named the Best Natural Botanical Garden in the United States by the American Horticultural Society.
Through numerous grants, Mr. Wichman was able to fund extensive native habitat restoration work in the Limahuli Preserve, which continues today. In addition to his work in conservation and education, he has lead efforts to perpetuate and preserve native Hawaiian culture. He spearheaded a four-year Indigenous Communities Mapping Initiative Project at Limahuli. This collaborative project focused on researching and documenting traditional cultural knowledge and land use relationships and perpetuating traditional practices within the native community.
Mr. Wichman brought renewed focus to NTBG's conservation and horticulture efforts, a greater appreciation of the native Hawaiian culture, and undertook a major capital campaign. Under his leadership, NTBG built its fourth building at the headquarters campus, a major research facility which has received wide attention for its "green architecture."
Janet Mayfield is Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for the NTBG organization. She assumed dual responsibilities in 2004, having served as CFO since 2003. Mrs. Mayfield had previously worked as NTBG Controller from 1997 through 1999.
In addition to overseeing all the financial aspects of the institution, Mrs. Mayfield oversees human resources and volunteer services, information technology, the communications office, and office services for the headquarters facility, as well as visitors services for the southshore gardens.
Mrs. Mayfield has B.S. in Accounting and has been a CPA for over twenty years. She has extensive experience in management and finances of non-profit organizations and continues to serve on the boards and advisory committees of other non-profit organizations in the community. Mrs. Mayfield has also been an instructor and lecturer at the local campus of the University of Hawai‘i.
In addition to overseeing all the financial aspects of the institution, Mrs. Mayfield oversees human resources and volunteer services, information technology, the communications office, and office services for the headquarters facility, as well as visitors services for the southshore gardens.
Mrs. Mayfield has B.S. in Accounting and has been a CPA for over twenty years. She has extensive experience in management and finances of non-profit organizations and continues to serve on the boards and advisory committees of other non-profit organizations in the community. Mrs. Mayfield has also been an instructor and lecturer at the local campus of the University of Hawai‘i.
Dr. David Lorence occupies the B. Evans Chair of Botany and came to the National Tropical Botanical Garden in 1987. He is the Senior Research Botanist for the organization. Research specialties are systematic studies of tropical plants, floristics, and invasive plant species. His systematic research focuses on Pacific and neotropical members of the large and diverse Rubiaceae family, which includes coffee, quinine, and gardenias. He also studies the Monimiaceae family of the Malagasy region and tropical America.
Dr. Lorence's floristic research includes a multi-institutional collaboration on a "Vascular Flora of the Marquesas Islands," contributing partial treatment of the Rubiaceae for "Flora Mesoamericana," and participating in a project to develop an annotated checklist of the plants of Pohnpei and Kosrae. His research on invasive species includes restoration efforts targeting Hawaiian dryland forest and exotic species invasion in Mauritius wet forest communities. He has carried out extensive fieldwork in Hawaii, Samoa, the Marquesas, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Mexico, and the Malagasy region.
Dr. Lorence directs the research library and herbarium at headquarters, curates NTBG's collections of Rubiaceae and of Zingiberales, and serves on the board of the Heliconia Society International.
He is editor of Allertonia, NTBG's series of occasional papers.
Dr. Lorence's floristic research includes a multi-institutional collaboration on a "Vascular Flora of the Marquesas Islands," contributing partial treatment of the Rubiaceae for "Flora Mesoamericana," and participating in a project to develop an annotated checklist of the plants of Pohnpei and Kosrae. His research on invasive species includes restoration efforts targeting Hawaiian dryland forest and exotic species invasion in Mauritius wet forest communities. He has carried out extensive fieldwork in Hawaii, Samoa, the Marquesas, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Mexico, and the Malagasy region.
Dr. Lorence directs the research library and herbarium at headquarters, curates NTBG's collections of Rubiaceae and of Zingiberales, and serves on the board of the Heliconia Society International.
He is editor of Allertonia, NTBG's series of occasional papers.
Dr. David A. Burney joined the NTBG as Director of Conservation in 2004.
Dr. Burney's past research has focused on endangered species, paleoenvironmental studies, and causes of extinction. He has over 30 years of practical experience in conservation, including serving as a technical consultant for Wildlife Conservation Society, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, BBC Natural History Unit, National Museums of Kenya, United Nations Development Program, USDA, US Fish & Wildlife Service, and other organizations.
Dr. Burney is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Hawai`i-Mānoa and the Université d'Antananarivo (Madagascar). Prior to moving to Kaua`i he was a Professor at Fordham University in New York. He received an M.Sc. in conservation biology from the University of Nairobi (Kenya) and a Ph.D. in Zoology with a minor in Botany from Duke University. He is author of over 100 scientific articles and monographs, many concerning the processes of extinction and environmental change. In 2006 he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to write a book on his work at Makauwahi Cave on Kaua`i. His research has been featured on National Geographic Television, Discovery Channel, Hawai`i Public Television, NOVA, and National Public Radio.
Dr. Burney's past research has focused on endangered species, paleoenvironmental studies, and causes of extinction. He has over 30 years of practical experience in conservation, including serving as a technical consultant for Wildlife Conservation Society, Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, BBC Natural History Unit, National Museums of Kenya, United Nations Development Program, USDA, US Fish & Wildlife Service, and other organizations.
Dr. Burney is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Hawai`i-Mānoa and the Université d'Antananarivo (Madagascar). Prior to moving to Kaua`i he was a Professor at Fordham University in New York. He received an M.Sc. in conservation biology from the University of Nairobi (Kenya) and a Ph.D. in Zoology with a minor in Botany from Duke University. He is author of over 100 scientific articles and monographs, many concerning the processes of extinction and environmental change. In 2006 he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship to write a book on his work at Makauwahi Cave on Kaua`i. His research has been featured on National Geographic Television, Discovery Channel, Hawai`i Public Television, NOVA, and National Public Radio.
Dr. Ragone was appointed Director of the Breadfruit Institute in 2003 and has worked at the National Tropical Botanical Garden since 1989. She is an authority on the conservation and use of breadfruit, conducting horticultural and ethnobotanical studies on this important Pacific staple crop for 25 years. Her extensive fieldwork on over 50 islands in Micronesia, Polynesia, and Melanesia enabled the NTBG to establish the world's largest collection of breadfruit at its Kahanu Garden in Hāna, Maui. The Breadfruit Institute was created to promote the conservation and use of breadfruit for food and reforestation.
Current research involves collaborative projects to develop in vitro methods to conserve and distribute breadfruit cultivars; nutritional and salinity studies; molecular and morphological studies to understand taxonomic relationships, origin, and distribution of breadfruit in the Pacific; and ethnobotanical studies on traditional uses of breadfruit in Polynesia and Micronesia.
Dr. Ragone is an Affiliate Professor at the University of Hawai`i in the Department of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences and the Botany Department. She is the author of more than 70 publications on breadfruit, ethnobotany, horticulture, and native plant conservation. Dr. Ragone holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Horticulture from the University of Hawai`i and a B.Sc. from Virginia Tech.
Current research involves collaborative projects to develop in vitro methods to conserve and distribute breadfruit cultivars; nutritional and salinity studies; molecular and morphological studies to understand taxonomic relationships, origin, and distribution of breadfruit in the Pacific; and ethnobotanical studies on traditional uses of breadfruit in Polynesia and Micronesia.
Dr. Ragone is an Affiliate Professor at the University of Hawai`i in the Department of Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences and the Botany Department. She is the author of more than 70 publications on breadfruit, ethnobotany, horticulture, and native plant conservation. Dr. Ragone holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Horticulture from the University of Hawai`i and a B.Sc. from Virginia Tech.
Michael (Mike) DeMotta has served as Assistant Director of Living Collections and Horticulture for the NTBG organization since the latter part of 2006. He previously served as Horticulturist and then Manager of Living Collections at NTBG’s Limahuli Garden and Preserve.
Mr. DeMotta was born and raised in Honolulu and attended the University of Hawai`i. His interest in horticulture was inherited from his family, and he began growing orchids and ferns at the age of 12. His exposure in school to Hawaiian studies and the art of hula led to a keen interest in native Hawaiian plants, which he began growing in earnest in 1997. During this time he developed many of his own techniques to germinate plants from seeds and cuttings which were otherwise difficult to grow.
He oversees the living collections and horticultural practices of the organization’s gardens, with a particular focus on the collections at NTBG’s southshore gardens and adjacent Headquarters.
Mr. DeMotta was born and raised in Honolulu and attended the University of Hawai`i. His interest in horticulture was inherited from his family, and he began growing orchids and ferns at the age of 12. His exposure in school to Hawaiian studies and the art of hula led to a keen interest in native Hawaiian plants, which he began growing in earnest in 1997. During this time he developed many of his own techniques to germinate plants from seeds and cuttings which were otherwise difficult to grow.
He oversees the living collections and horticultural practices of the organization’s gardens, with a particular focus on the collections at NTBG’s southshore gardens and adjacent Headquarters.
Scott Sloan oversees the care and maintenance of infrastructure, and building projects, at NTBG's properties on the south shore of Kaua`i, including its headquarters campus and research facilities, McBryde Garden, and Allerton Garden, as well as properties outside the gardens proper, such as the Southshore Visitors Center Garden.
While pursuing his horticultural degree in the University of California system in the late 1980s, he graduated from NTBG’s Horticultural Internship Program. This experience led to the institution forming a special internship at its Kahanu Garden in 1989 and requesting that Mr. Sloan stay on in that capacity. Subsequently, he held various horticultural positions in the McBryde Garden, with increased levels of responsibility, and headed both the gardening and physical facilities departments for 12 years.
In addition to caring for the existing physical facilities (including buildings, irrigation, roads, stream crossings, and paths), projects include seeking an alternative water supply by restoring a tunnel system that once existed in the plantation era. He is also working on the expansion of housing facilities for students and visiting scientists.
His professional affiliations include the Landscape Industry Council of Hawai‘i and the Steering Committee of the Kaua‘i Landscape Industry Council.
While pursuing his horticultural degree in the University of California system in the late 1980s, he graduated from NTBG’s Horticultural Internship Program. This experience led to the institution forming a special internship at its Kahanu Garden in 1989 and requesting that Mr. Sloan stay on in that capacity. Subsequently, he held various horticultural positions in the McBryde Garden, with increased levels of responsibility, and headed both the gardening and physical facilities departments for 12 years.
In addition to caring for the existing physical facilities (including buildings, irrigation, roads, stream crossings, and paths), projects include seeking an alternative water supply by restoring a tunnel system that once existed in the plantation era. He is also working on the expansion of housing facilities for students and visiting scientists.
His professional affiliations include the Landscape Industry Council of Hawai‘i and the Steering Committee of the Kaua‘i Landscape Industry Council.
Kamaui Aiona joined the NTBG as Director of Kahanu Garden in January 2002.
A trained ethnobotanist and a native Hawaiian, Mr. Aiona is fluent in the Hawaiian language. He graduated with honors from the University of Hawai`i, receiving two Bachelor's degrees, one in Natural Sciences and one in Hawaiian Studies, a minor in Biology, and a Master's in Hawaiian ethnobotany. His studies include the Hawaiian cultural uses of limu (marine algae) and land plants.
A trained ethnobotanist and a native Hawaiian, Mr. Aiona is fluent in the Hawaiian language. He graduated with honors from the University of Hawai`i, receiving two Bachelor's degrees, one in Natural Sciences and one in Hawaiian Studies, a minor in Biology, and a Master's in Hawaiian ethnobotany. His studies include the Hawaiian cultural uses of limu (marine algae) and land plants.
Ann B. Parsons joined NTBG as Director of The Kampong in February 2009. Ms. Parsons has over 20 years of experience in botanical garden education programming and administration. Her background as director of education at two major botanical gardens includes development of accredited teacher education programs, garden interpretation, exhibits, publications, and communications.
Her work in children’s education received recognition from the American Public Gardens Association. Ms. Parsons holds a Masters in Horticulture and has authored a number of articles, including "Partnerships with Schools: Reaching the Teachers."
Her work in children’s education received recognition from the American Public Gardens Association. Ms. Parsons holds a Masters in Horticulture and has authored a number of articles, including "Partnerships with Schools: Reaching the Teachers."
Kāwika Winter joined the NTBG in 2005 as the Director of Limahuli Garden and Preserve. Born and raised in the ahupua‘a of Wai‘alae, Kona, O‘ahu, Kāwika grew up in the islands with the mountains and the ocean as his playground. He went to the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (UHM) where he received a B.A. and an M.S. in botany. He is currently working on the completion of his Ph.D. from UHM which focuses on the reciprocal influences that cultures and plants have on each other’s evolutionary trajectories.
