Theresa Culley

Theresa Culley is a biologist and plant enthusiast who works as a Professor of Plant Biology at the University of Cincinnati, where she has led a research lab and taught for 22 years. A former Californian, she moved to the Midwest for graduate school at The Ohio State University, and found herself at home among the deciduous forests. Theresa has served as President of the Ohio Invasive Species Council (OIPC), is a board member of the Midwest Invasive Plant Network (MIPN), and serves as chair of the OIPC Invasive Plant Assessment Team which lists invasive plant species for Ohio. She also serves on the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Invasive Plant Advisory Committee tasked with commercial regulation of invasive plants in the state. Theresa also enjoys conservation work with rare and endangered Hawaiian plants, working with Hawaiian botanists, and also with researchers at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden.

Theresa Culley will be presenting Woody Invaders in our Landscape: The Sentinel Role of Public Gardens in North America.

Michael Judd

Michael Judd is a permaculture designer, author, and founder of Ecologia Edible & Ecological Landscape Design With over three decades of experience in agro-ecology, he has led projects that enhance local food security and community health. He co-founded SilvoCulture, aiming to plant one million nut trees in the Mid-Atlantic, and founded Project Bona Fide, supporting agro-ecology research. Author of Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist and For the Love of PawPaws, his work has been featured in The New York Times, The Guardian, and the BBC. Michael lives with his family near Frederick, Maryland.

Micheal Judd will be presenting  Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Berries.

Beth Brantley

Beth Brantley is the northeast research scientist with the Bartlett Tree Research Laboratories, providing support to regional offices, conducting research in arboriculture, and sharing knowledge through teaching and presentations. She taught forestry, plant biology, and related courses at Penn State Mont Alto for 22 years prior to joining Bartlett. Beth holds a Ph.D. in plant pathology from Penn State University and is an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist, SAF Certified Forester, and an ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualification instructor. Her interests include beech leaf disease, unique conifers, veteran trees, and wood decay.

Beth Brantley will be presenting The Future of Beech Trees: Beech Leaf Disease and Beyond.

Nicole DeLizzo

Nicole DeLizzio is an ISA certified arborist at the Mt. Cuba Center, a public garden focused on native plants. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware and found her passion for trees after completing a yearlong internship at Longwood Gardens in the Woody Plant Nursery.

Nicole has also worked for the Kendal Arboretum, where she organized reforestation projects and managed several tree collections. Nicole has instructed several courses including Ecological Arboriculture, and she can be found sharing her combined passion for trees and art in pyrography, or the art of woodburning. She also owns and operates her own business Sustain ND LLC, which focuses on native gardening and invasive species removal.

Nicole DeLizzio and George Coombs will be presenting Tree Species Selection Based on Climate change Model for the Mid Atlantic Region.

Andrew Hipp

Andrew Hipp is the director of the herbarium and senior scientist in Plant Systematics at The Morton Arboretum and a lecturer at University of Chicago. His research group investigates the evolution of plant biodiversity, aiming to understand how the plant Tree of Life evolves and affects our world. He has received awards for his teaching and research from the U.S. Fulbright Program, National Science Teachers Association, and International Oak Society. Andrew is the author of a recent popular book on oaks, Oak Origins: From Acorns to Species and the Tree of Life; field guides to spring wildflowers and sedges; natural history and popular science articles in Arnoldia, Places Journal, Scientific American, and other publications; sixteen children’s books on a variety of natural history topics; and more than 130 academic articles and book chapters.

Andrew Hipp will be presenting as part of Oak Origins: From Acorns to Species and the Tree of Life.

Abdallah Tabet

 Abdallah is a multicultural landscape architect and architect with over 20 years of international experience across the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East. His projects include work in France on historic estates, river restorations, and cultural grounds such as Chantilly and Vaux-Le-Vicomte. Additionally, his portfolio includes major projects in Geneva, Beirut, Morocco, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. Abdallah is also a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, teaching design and public school improvements. He volunteers with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and has planted over 300 trees. Recently, he was selected for Oprah’s SuperSoul100 program, recognizing his contributions to the profession.

Abdallah Tabet will be presenting as part of Transatlantic Gardens: an American Landscape Architect in France.