Staff

Board

Facts

Q&A

Brad Barber, Chair

Brad serves as the president of the Utah Open Lands Board of Directors, and also sits on the Budget and Finance subcommittee.  Brad is currently a Planning Consultant working on Quality Growth Planning efforts throughout the State of Utah. Brad was formerly Senior Fellow of Environmental Management for the Oquirrh Institute, a Utah Non-Profit Corporation. Brad also served as the Deputy Director and State Planning Coordinator for the Utah Governors Office of Planning and Budget from 1989-2000, serving three governors. Brad was also a Member of the Quality growth Commission from 2000-2007.  Brad currently serves as Commissioner, for the Utah Reclamation Mitigation & Conservation Commission and a member of Envision Utah's Quality Growth Cabinet.

Jeff Appel, Vice Chair

Jeff currently serves on the executive committee, the conservation subcommittee and also in the capacity of Vice/Chairman. Jeff is an attorney with Ray, Quinney and Nebeker, is a member of their Litigation Section and heads the Natural Resources, Land, Water and Environmental Law practice group. He has extensive experience in the environmental law area, especially with the complex issues relating to the National Environmental Policy Act and the Clean Water Act. He also has significant experience in the area of water rights law, in both an administrative and judicial context and in real estate and municipal law. Finally, in addition to his overall lands practice, he has represented individual landowners in the emerging area of conservation easement law for many years. Jeff has been voted by his peers throughout the state as one of Utah's "Legal Elite" in the categories of Energy/Natural Resources Law, Environmental/Land Use Law, Government Law, and Pro Bono Work (as published in Utah Business Magazine).  He is also listed in Best Lawyers of America in the area of land use and zoning law and in Mountain States Super Lawyers in the field of environmental law.

Matt Steward, Secretary

Matt currently serves on the board of directors of Utah Open Lands as the secretary on the Executive Committee, and the chair of the conservation subcommittee. He is a shareholder of Clyde Snow Sessions & Swenson. Matt has extensive trial experience and practice experience in the areas of trade secret litigation, shareholder litigation, and complex business disputes. He is a former Clinical Instructor for the University of Utah in Family Law Practice (1996-1998), as well as a current Utah Bar Examiner (since 2000).

Robert Jeppsen, Treasurer

Rob currently serves on the Board of Directors as the treasurer for the Executive committee.  Rob serves the Salt Lake County Mayor, Peter Corroon, Government Relations office.  Rob is the representative to federal, state and local agencies, administrations and elected officials.  Prior to his work with the County Mayor's office he worked for R&R Partners, a public strategies group.  He was government and public affairs consultant to a variety of private and public entities including Los Angeles Water and Power, Utah Bankers Association, Gold Cross Ambulance, and the Utah Association of Ophthalmology.  Rob also worked as the State Director for Congressman Merrill Cook, Congressman Howard C. Nielson, Senator Orrin Hatch and Senator Robert Bennett.

Des Barker, Director

Des is currently on the Board of Directors and has served in the past as the organization's past president.  He is president of Des Barker Associates, Inc., a full service public and government affairs consulting company.  2006 marks Des' 16th year actively lobbying on Utah's Capitol Hill.  Des formerly worked at Barker and Jorgensen  (a 30+ year Salt Lake advertising, marketing and public relations firm); the Park City Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau as Park City/Summit County's Economic Development Director; and The Economic Development Corp. of Utah as a  National Business Recruiter attracting high-tech and international businesses to Utah.  Des has also worked in the tourism industry, lived and worked in Japan for three years, and works extensively with state agencies, the legislature and local governments.  Besides working tirelessly for Utah Open Lands as a board member, he also serves on the University of Utah College of Social and Behavioral Science Advisory Board; the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee and Transportation Committee; and the Utah Manufacturing Association Legislative Committee.

Wendy Zeigler, Director

Wendy currently serves on the Board of Directors of Utah Open Lands. She has been a practicing physical therapist for 23 years, and is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association. She is currently a member of the steering committee for Big Cottonwood Regional park. She founded the Friends of the Utah Avalanche Center. She previously served on the Holladay City Parks and Open Space Committee, and on the Cottonwood Elementary Community Council. Besides her deep commitment to the preservation of open space, she is a member of Save Our Canyons, The Nature Conservancy, The Utah Cultural Alliance, The Audubon Society, and The Utah Rivers Council.

Heather Ross,

Director (not pictured)

Is lucky enough to live beside Utah Open Lands’ Perkins Flat parcel. She joined UOL to try and help save the planet; because after recycling and switching a few light bulbs in her house, really, what could she do?  Heather was a journalist for 15 years at KUTV. Now she's trying to publish children's fiction and is growing accustomed to rejection. Wine helps.  Besides being an amateur jock, Heather obedience trains dogs because her 12 year old son, Aidan stopped listening years ago.

Eric Lee, Director

Eric Lee brings over twenty years of legal experience to the Board of Directors. His legal work primarily involves litigation services to a variety of clients in business, construction, and real estate, among other fields. His practice at Jones Waldo also includes zoning, planning, land use, and entitlement work. Eric was born in Chicago and lives in Park City. Eric received his law degree from the University of Utah, is a member of the Salt Lake County and Utah State Bars and serves as the Secretary for the Park City Bar Association.

Jeff McCarthy,

Director

Jeff is Professor of English and Chair of Environmental Studies at Westminster College. His academic specialty is environmental literature, and his recent book Contact: Mountain Climbing and Environmental Thinking traces the connection between extreme sports and North American environmentalism. Educated in New England, Scotland and Oregon, Jeff has had awards from distinguished bodies like the Fulbright Foundation and the National Humanities Center. He is an active climber, and when not at the library you can find him in the mountains.