We are pleased to welcome Bruce Atwood to the Hanover Conservancy’s Board of Directors! Bruce is currently a Pine Park Association Trustee and past President of Hanover Rotary. He retired from teaching mathematics at Beloit College in 2019 and moved to Hanover with his wife Patricia. He is an emeritus board member of the Rockford (Illinois) Park District Foundation and served for 12 years as a Park Commissioner (a non-partisan, non-paid, elected position) with the Rockford Park District. He was also a member of the Winnebago County Forest Preserve District Land Advisory Committee and a long-term board member of the YMCA of Rock River Valley. Bruce enjoys running, biking, hiking, kayaking, and cross-country skiing.

Bruce’s term began in January, 2025, when he replaced out-going board member Aricca Van Citters.

Jesse Casana 

Jesse Casana is an archaeologist and a professor in the Department of Anthropology at Dartmouth. He specializes in reconstructing long-term histories of human settlement, land use, and agricultural practices, and has conducted field investigations around the world. Jesse’s work employs a range of remote sensing technologies, using satellite imagery, drone-based mapping, and subsurface geophysics to discover, document and analyze archaeological remains. In recent years, he has directed numerous research projects in our local region, including excavations of historical house sites on Dartmouth’s campus, a search for remains of ancestral Abenaki settlement in Upper Valley, and remote sensing of Shaker period sites in Enfield. Jesse is a New Hampshire native, originally from Weirs Beach on Lake Winnipesaukee, and now lives in downtown Hanover with his wife, two teenage kids, and several unruly animals.

Silvia Holman

Silvia Holman, is an educator with 22 years of teaching experience spanning from Pre-K to middle school. Currently, she teaches Spanish and English as a Second Language at the Richmond Middle School. Silvia also serves as the Sustainability Chair at the Ray School PTO. Since 2015, she has called the Upper Valley home, enjoying the community alongside her husband, Peter, and their two children. Silvia is originally from Peru, where she earned her B.E. degree at UNIFE. She furthered her knowledge through a graduate program in Bilingual Special Education at George Washington University. With her dedication to education, multicultural background, and love for the environment, Silvia is excited to bring her perspective and enthusiasm to the Hanover Conservancy Board, fostering a stronger connection between our community and the natural world we cherish.

Erich Osterberg

Erich Osterberg is a climate scientist in the Earth Sciences Department at Dartmouth, studying how Earth’s glaciers and weather patterns respond to both natural climate cycles and human-caused climate change. He focuses on understanding changes in glacier melting, storminess, snowfall, and air pollution over thousands of years by analyzing ice cores collected from remote glaciers in Greenland, Antarctica, and Alaska. Erich is the current chair of the Upper Valley Climate Adaptation Workgroup, a group of business, state, municipal, non-profit, and academic leaders working to improve community resilience to climate change. They partner with community organizations to deliver timely public forums, catalyze local climate action through their Climate Change Leadership Academy (2CLA), and incorporate Dartmouth students into service-learning opportunities to support the community. He lives in Etna with his wife, Laura Greer (a pediatrician at Alice Peck Day), their two school-age boys and a houseful of pets.

---

Join us at our Annual Meeting on Tuesday, November 14 to meet the nominees and hear an exciting lecture on wetlands and climate change from Michael Simpson, Professor of Environmental Studies and Leadership and Sustainable Systems Program Director at Antioch University.

2022 Nominations to the Board of Directors

MARTHA BEATTIE

Martha Beattie has worked as a math teacher, a rowing coach, and a volunteer leader and board member for schools and nonprofit organizations.  She was a national team rowing coach and the founding coach for three rowing programs. In 2011 she was named Vice President for Alumni Relations at Dartmouth College.  Since her retirement in 2018 she serves on the regional advisory board for the NH Charitable Foundation, is a trustee of Pine Park, a board member, coach, and program chair for the Upper Valley Rowing Foundation, serves Dartmouth College on a number of alumni committees, and is a volunteer coach with the Dartmouth women’s and men’s rowing teams as well as Cancer Recovery through Rowing. She lives in Hanover with her husband Jim.  They are often joined by one or more of their three adult children on bike rides through the hills of Vermont, hikes in the Whites, and ski trips.  During the warmer months, Martha rows a single scull on the Connecticut River as often as she can.

 

XAVIER GONIN

Xavier Gonin is treasurer for North American operations of Capgemini, a company specializing in IT and strategy consulting, outsourcing, and professional services, operating in more than 30 countries. He holds a Master’s in Business Administration and is a certified public accountant. He lives in Hanover with his wife, Victoria.  Xavier enjoys skiing, fishing, and hiking, and is planning to climb NH’s 48 4,000-footers in the next few years.

 

“The goal of land stewardship is of importance to me.  I think we need to be thoughtful and intentional in the care for our protected lands while making them welcoming to the entire Hanover (and beyond) community. My financial acumen would allow me to prepare the organization for long-term financial responsibilities of the Hanover Conservancy.  My background and experience would allow me to serve effectively on the Board, and move the goals of the strategic plan forward in the coming years.”