Paul Burns, Executive Director
Colleen Thomas, Associate Director
James Moore, Clean Energy Advocate
Stefanie Sidortsova, Health Care Advocate
Charity Carbine, Environmental Health Advocate
Susan Baker, Advocate/Organizer
Emily Maxwell, Field Director
Claire Howard, Field Associate
Andrea Stander, Development Associate
Natalia Fajardo, Membership Coordinator
Stephanie Swartzendruber, Office Manager/Bookkeeper

All staff emails are <firstname (at) vpirg.org>

Paul Burns, Executive Director
(802) 223-8421 ext. 4095

Paul Burns is VPIRG’s Executive Director. He has been working as an organizer, advocate and attorney for PIRGs in New York, Massachusetts and now Vermont since 1986.  As Toxics Program Director for MassPIRG, Paul was instrumental in the passage of major environmental legislation aimed at rivers protection, brownfields cleanup, beach water testing and pesticide use reduction and disclosure. He earned his undergraduate degree from the State University of New York College at Oswego, and his law degree from the Syracuse University College of Law. At VPIRG, Paul serves as the senior advocate for all programs and lead advocate for our democracy program, represents the organization with the media and state leaders, heads our fundraising efforts and provides overall vision, direction and leadership for the organization.

Colleen Thomas, Associate Director
(802) 223-8421 ext. 2138

Colleen Thomas is VPIRG’s Associate Director. Colleen has worked as a senior non-profit manager for over a decade in Vermont and overseas.For the past ten years she served as the Director of Development for Project Harmony where she designed and supported international community-based development projects. Colleen has extensive experience in local grassroots organizing and issue-based advocacy from her 20 years of volunteer leadership with Amnesty International USA, first as a local group coordinator and regional organizer and more recently as country specialist. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Writing and History from Loyola College and a Master of Arts in International Studies/Russian Area Studies from the University of Washington. At VPIRG Colleen manages day-to-day operations, handles staff recruitment, training and management, facilitates annual and strategic planning, and assists with development and fundraising activities.

James Moore, Clean Energy Advocate
(802) 223-8421 ext. 4077

James Moore is the Clean Energy Advocate for VPIRG.  James brings to this work an extensive background of field organizing and environmental advocacy, including two years experience as a campaigner with Greenpeace USA focusing on global warming and clean energy issues. As part of this work he spearheaded a project to highlight clean energy solutions to climate change at the 2002 Winter Olympics. James also worked as a field organizer for the Dean for America Campaign in New Hampshire and Maine, and later became the State Director for the New Mexico New Voters Project working through the 2004 election to register 40,000 voters in that state. He graduated from Tufts University in 2000 and from Green Corps in 2001. With VPIRG, James leads our energy-related advocacy efforts in the State House and represents VPIRG on a number of state and regional leadership committees, where he crafts and advances policy solutions to the energy and climate change crisis facing Vermont.

Stefanie Sidortsova, Health Care Advocate
(802) 223-8421 ext. 4097

Stefanie Sidortsova is VPIRG’s health care advocate. Prior to joining VPIRG, Stefanie spent two years in the corporate law field, working as an associate attorney for firms in Phoenix, Arizona and Montpelier. While in Arizona, she volunteered for a successful candidate’s campaign for state office, gaining experience in get out the vote efforts, campaign finance issues, and media relations. Stefanie currently serves as president for the Jirani Project, a non-profit organization that provides funding to AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya for their education, health care, and general well-being. She also serves on the board of New Earth, a foundation that designs and implements creative expression programs for at-risk youth. Stefanie received her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and her law degree from the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. At VPIRG, Stefanie heads up our health care advocacy efforts at the State House and represents VPIRG on the Vermont Campaign for Health Care Security, which seeks to ensure the successful implementation of Catamount Health.

Charity Carbine, Environmental Health Advocate
(802) 223-8421

Charity Carbine is VPIRG’s Environmental Health Advocate. Before joining the VPIRG team, Charity spent four years as an organizer for the New York Public Interest Research Group. As a Project Coordinator at Hunter College, she recruited and trained students. Charity then went on to join NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign – a mass transit advocacy group that represents and protects the interests of New York’s riding public. As a Field Organizer for the Straphangers Campaign, Charity worked on a variety of successful campaigns including the Transportation Bond Act and the Campaign for New York’s Future. Before joining the world of PIRG, Charity graduated with a degree in International Relations from Eckerd College and was actively involved in social just issues both in Florida and her home state of Maryland. At VPIRG, Charity leads our efforts to reduce toxins in the environment and promote the precautionary approach to chemical exposure. She also coordinates field organizing efforts to close down the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.

Susan Baker, Advocate/Organizer
(802) 223-8421 ext. 8420

Susan Baker is an Advocate and Organizer for VPIRG, focusing in particular on health care and democracy issues. Susan joined the staff after completing a successful summer internship with VPIRG. Susan brings to VPIRG valuable experience in legislative work, having served as a legal intern with Vermont Legislative Council where she provided assistance to the House and Senate Government Operations Committees. While at VLS, Susan served as the President of the Student Bar Association and Co-Chair of Law Students for Reproductive Justice. At VPIRG, Susan will coordinte advocacy and organizing efforts of our health care program, while also supporting efforts in other program areas. Susan earned a BA from Michigan State University and graduated from Vermont Law School in 2008 with a J.D. and Master's of Science in Environmental Law.

Emily Maxwell, Field Director
(802) 223-8421 ext. 4787

Emily Maxwell is the Field Director for VPIRG. Emily is a community organizer with over ten years of experience coordinating outreach, education and mobilization efforts in New York City and Philadelphia. She comes to VPIRG after a highly successful tenure as coordinator and more recently director of the Catalyst Program of Partnerships for Parks, an NYC government-NGO partnership. At VPIRG, Emily leads our grassroots organizing and field program efforts, strategically leveraging our membership and the voice of the general public to advance policy initiatives statewide.Emily earned a Bachelors of Arts in Urban Studies from the New School of Social Research and a Masters of Science in Natural Resources and Environment with a specialization in Environmental Justice from the University of Michigan.

Claire Howard, Field Associate
(802) 223-8421 ext. 6383

Claire Howard is the Field Associate for VPIRG. Claire brings to VPIRG a background in applied ecology, environmental justice, and community organizing. Before coming to VPIRG, Claire ran her own ecosystem restoration business in Vermont, served for two years as a community organizer and coordinator for The League Of Young Voters in Portland, ME and the ReVison Urban Agriculture Project in Massachusetts, and spent three years with the BioDiversity Research Institute in Maine as a Field Toxicologist. Her environmental and social justice work has taken her to “Cancer Alley” in Louisiana as well as South Africa. At VPIRG, Claire is responsible for implementing grassroots field organizing strategies and membership outreach.. Claire holds a BS in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Biology from the University of Maine, and an MS in Earth Systems Science and Environmental Advocacy & Organizing from Antioch University New England.

Andrea Stander, Development Associate
(802) 223-8421 ext. 8418

Andrea Stander is the Development Associate for VPIRG.  Andrea comes to VPIRG after serving as a Regional Field Coordinator for Bernie Sanders’ successful campaign for the US Senate in 2006 and six years as the Communications Director for the Vermont Arts Council. Andrea came to Vermont in 1997 to work as the Media Coordinator with the Northern Forest Alliance after spending five years in Montana as a community organizer for the Northern Plains Resource Council. At VPIRG, Andrea uses her extensive experience in communications, media relations and event production to inform her work in coordinating the organization’s fundraising and development efforts. She received a BA in Liberal Arts from Hampshire College and was a 2004 graduate of the Vermont Leadership Institute of the Snelling Center for Government at UVM.

Natalia Fajardo, Membership Coordinator
(802) 223-8421 ext. 4098

Natalia Fajardo is the Membership Coordinator for VPIRG.  Natalia received her BS in Environmental Science from the University of Vermont in May of 2006. While there, Natalia organized the student community around social justice issues, such as corporate ethics, livable wages, and fair trade. As part of her work she actively lobbied around U.S. policy towards Latin America. She also worked with the school’s administration to enact a policy on the purchase of recycled paper, and investigated composting techniques in her native Colombia. At VPIRG, Natalia handles membership services and supports fundraising and development activities.

Stephanie Swartzendruber, Office Manager / Bookkeeper
(802) 223-8421 ext. 5221

Stephanie Swartendruber is the Office Manager and Boopkkeeper for VPIRG.  Stephanie comes to VPIRG after several years working in both the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds. Stephanie volunteered with the Michigan Land Use Institute where she helped farmers in Michigan to promote their local foods and sustainable agriculture and worked as a project manager for the management consulting firm Dewar Sloan. Her career path ranged far and near, from Guatemala she worked on a project to promote solar ovens as a replacement for cooking fires, to Alaska where she managed an office for a remote air travel and backpacking company, and on to Moscow where she taught English. After many years of travel, she has settled in Vermont working for VPIRG, where she is responsible for general office administration and bookkeeping, and serves as a core member of the development team. Stephanie received a BA in Global Studies with a focus in Sustainable Development from the University of Minnesota in 2004.