In the spring of 2007, an innovative execution plan for the Ecology Global Network was developed that entailed the delivery of ecology-driven content platforms across all media worldwide with the Internet at the center of the service. The ECOLOGY Global Network team put the plans into action in the first quarter of 2008. Many people wore a lot of different hats in order to accomplish this launch, and everyone’s commitment to excellence and creating such a uniquely powerful new media vehicle ran and continues to run white hot. This is ecology.com!
The Ecology Global Network launch team and their roles:
Eric McLamb
Executive Network Director and President
Linda Rankin
Executive Project Director and Chief Operating Officer
Bob Engelsiepen
Online Global Network Chief Architect and Creative Director
Jane Engelsiepen
Executive Director Original Content, and Executive Online Editor
Bob Petz
Web Master, Senior Programmer and Strategic Site Development
Ed Fitzgerald
Executive News and Features Editor
David Nostbakken
Executive Director, International Partnerships & Affiliates
Justine Schmidt
Executive Director, Ecology Television
Whole Media Group
Ecology Radio Development
Mary Lou Davidson, Executive in Charge of Production
Dr. Jack Hall
Executive Director of Science & Educational Advancement
Christopher Palmer
Executive Director, Environmental Films and Student Productions
Team Bios
Eric McLamb
CEO, President & Founder
Mr. McLamb is a veteran of communications, marketing and strategic relationship development for television programming and programming services, having worked over 20 years in executive capacities with such companies as Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (now part of AOL Time Warner) and Discovery Communications, Inc. (Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel). Mr. McLamb’s career has focused on creating strategic alliances and business models for television and related content for major national and international distribution, with a particular emphasis on ecology and the environment. Such efforts have resulted in major alliances with a number of strategic organizations such as The Cousteau Society, National Geographic Society, World Wildlife Fund, National Wildlife Federation, Audubon Society, Environmental Media Association, and educational institutions such as University of North Carolina at Wilmington (Center for Marine Science), UCLA (School of Public Health), Texas A&M University, among many others.
Linda Rankin
Chief Operating Officer, President & CEO of WETV Canada – Corporation
Ms. Rankin has over 25 years of experience in the telecommunications and broadcasting industry. She was the founder and first CEO of the very successful first-in-the-world, Women’s Television Network. Prior to that, Ms. Rankin held senior executive positions in Telesat Canada, including Vice President of Business Development. As President of Telesat Canada Enterprises Ltd., she founded four successful start-up enterprises including the Teleport de Montreal. Through her career, she has held executive positions in several portfolios, including sales and marketing, strategic planning, network services, product development, and human resources development. Ms. Rankin has served on a number of Boards, including Communications Research Canada, The Canadian College of Naturopathy, Canadian Blood Services, chaired Mediawatch and was a partner in Cresset Investments. Ms Rankin is a founding partner in WETV Canada Corporation. She was awarded the Canadian Satellite Users Association first Outstanding Achievement Award for her role in developing satellite communications in Canada for the past ten years. She holds a Gemini for Outstanding Technical Achievement in the first Canadian broadcast of HDTV.
Bob Engelsiepen
Executive Creative Director, Production Operations
Bob Engelsiepen, President, Co-founder and Creative Director of View Studio Inc., is a 27-year entertainment industry veteran who has contributed to a broad range of film, television, technology, interactive, music, corporate, home entertainment, and Internet projects in conjunction with virtually every major motion picture studio and television network in the entertainment industry. View Studio Inc. was created as an early boutique provider of superior digital design with the focus of an artist’s sensibility. The result is a rare balance of creativity and technical acuity that has successfully guided View Studio through the complex evolution of digital entertainment. Bob is renown in Hollywood for designing and producing innovative special effects, digital animation, interactive media, music videos and broadcast graphics, and for being an early adapter of emerging digital technologies. Bob is a highly respected Discrete Logic Inferno, Quantel Henry and Mac Artist, who has also consulted extensively with companies such as Quantel and Discreet Logic on their product development. Bob was the first digital artist in the world to purchase high end, Quantel Paintbox, Harry & Henry systems. Among his extensive personal credits is Designer of the Cindy Award winning Greek Vases interactive display for the Getty Museum, and production of 4 seasons of digital effects for the ground breaking Disney-Henson production of Dinosaurs. Bob received two BDA awards for digital environments for Francis Coppola’s White Dwarf television movie. Bob has created digital effects for television series such as The X Files, The Outer Limits, Sliders, Star Trek and Smallville. Under his creative direction, View Studio's artistic team provided digital production of the futuristic advertisements in Steven Spielberg’s “Minority Report”, and won an Emmy for visual effects for The X Files.
Jane Engelsiepen Executive Director of Original Content, Production Management.
As View Studio’s Vice President and Co-founder, Jane Engelsiepen has served in a range of positions through the company’s 27 year evolution, including CFO, General Manager, Production Designer, Art Director and Executive Producer. Jane currently has a wide variety of programming concepts for the home video, cable and new media markets actively in development. Prior to the incorporation of View Studio, Jane was a television Production Designer, Art Director and Set Decorator under the View Studio banner. Jane has extensive credits in the family entertainment genre, including serving as Art Director or Set Decorator of 30, one-hour episodes of Shelley Duvall’s award winning series Faerie Tale Theatre & Tall Tales & Legends for Showtime. Jane received the Cable Ace Award for Art Direction for Mother Goose Rock & Rhyme, and served as the Production Designer for the Nightmare Classics anthology series, Dinner At Eight feature for TNT, the PBS Wonderworks film Frogs and the ABC-TV special Aliens for Breakfast. Jane was on the development design team of Disney’s Adventures in Wonderland and has contributed creatively to a wide variety of stage, television and commercial projects throughout her career. It was during Faerie Tale Theatre that together the Engelsiepens began to explore and utilize new digital technologies in the production of television. Their efforts were among the very first in the industry to create digital special effects, graphics and matte paintings, and they continue the tradition of utilizing emerging technologies in their latest venture into original content creation.
Bob Petz
Webmaster, Senior Site Development Manager, Programmer
Bob Petz is a graphic designer with more than 30 year's experience in print media and 10 years in online communications. His expertise spans the range of project development, from conceptualization through production, with special emphasis on strategic planning and campaign visualization. Bob's professional background includes work with a wide range of clients across the public and private sectors. For the past 14 years, Bob has focused in higher education, working with and coordinating efforts in admissions, development, public relations, academics, financial aid and athletics through print and web. Bob's early background in science and mathematics lend a unique character to his work, including the ability to envision, manage and validate complex systems such as large web sites while maintaining navigational and visual clarity. Active in the community, Bob has chaired committees for Long-Range Planning, Development, the Cultural Arts, and Technology, and served on the board of directors at independent schools in the suburbs of Washington, DC. Other community involvement includes working with grass-roots organizations on issues such as public school planning, smart suburban development and youth recreation.
Ed Fitzgerald
Executive Producer, Executive News Director
Ed Fitzgerald is the Executive Producer of Ecology Today. Ed comes to ecology.com after years of producing and reporting throughout the world. He has worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as a Producer for their flagship program THE JOURNAL. Ed was the Senior Field Producer for WORLD MONITOR, a TV news presentation of the Christian Science MONITOR, out of Boston and broadcast on DISCOVERY. While at the MONITOR, Ed covered the collapse of the Soviet Union, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the revolution in Ethiopia and the Gulf War. Ed has been a Special Correspondent for ASIA BUSINESS NEWS (Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal) and CNBC ASIA covering Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos while based in Phnom Penh. Ed has received four gold awards from the NE YORK FILM & TELEVISION FESTIVAL and the prestigious OVERSEAS PRESS CLUB AWARD. "Everyday, the planet gives us incredible news stories that are not often reported by the mainstream media. Ecology.com's approach to news changes that," says Ed.
David Nostbakken
Executive Vice President of International Affairs, Executive Chair - WETV Canada Corporation
David Nostbakken is founder and President and CEO of WETV Network Corporation, a global television service promoting sustainable human development and cultural diversity in more than 50 countries worldwide. He is co-founder of WETV Canada, the first-ever Canadian digital channel dedicated entirely to the environment. Mr. Nostbakken is a lifelong communications and broadcast entrepreneur, developer, and practitioner. He was a founder, CEO and first Chairman of Vision Television. As Director-General of Communications for the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) he developed communications capabilities in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. David has developed communication strategies, specializing in broadcasting for institutions such as WHO, UICC, and CCS and has produced with CBC, TVO, WTN, TVE, BBC and local television. He was also founder of the Canadian Center of Film for Children, now merged with The Alliance For Children's Television. Dr. Nostbakken has a Ph.D. in Communications, University of Toronto where he studied and worked with Marshall McLuhan. He currently sits on a number of boards, including the Canadian College for Naturopathic Medicine and Digital Opportunity Trust.
Justine Schmidt
Executive Director,Network Content Development
Ms. Schmidt comes from MBN, Middle East Broadcasting Networks, out of Springfield, VA, where she serves as Programming and Production Executive. At MBN she joined a six-member executive team and served an instrumental role in the launch of three Arabic-satellite and terrestrial networks broadcasting 24 hours throughout the Middle East and Europe. She also serves as consultant to the Ocean Channel for all areas of programming and deal negotiations for the ocean-related website. She previously served as Supervising Producer, Discovery Networks International, where she developed and supervised major commissions, co-productions, and pre-sales for all Discovery International Networks. Ms. Schmidt has also worked in a myriad of creative and management positions prior to her stint with Discovery Communications with such organizations as TF 1- French Television (Washington, DC, bureau) and American Center for Television Journalism, AUC TV(Cairo, Egypt). Co-founder of Young Filmmakers’ Program, Ms. Schmidt has also served as an immediate past president of Filmmakers for Conservation (2002 – October 2006). She is an Emmy Awarding winning producer who has also won other international awards including the CINE Golden Globe, CINE Eagle and Gold World Medal – New York Film Festivals. Ms. Schmidt holds a B. A. degree from Duke University in Political Science and French Literature, and part-time Masters in Film and Video Production from American University.
Janis Nostbakken
Kids Corner Executive Editor, Television Programming, Vice President of Programming - WETV Canada Corporation
Janis Nostbakken is a communications specialist with expertise in creating, writing and producing multimedia materials for children, educators and families. Ms. Nostbakken has extensive experience as a producer, writer, editor, creative director, consultant, administrator and broadcaster. She has developed interactive museum exhibits, founded a national magazine, co-authored a best-selling book, written and produced a theatrical play, created a dozen television series, penned two weekly syndicated newspaper columns, and collaborated on the construction of websites. In the course of her career she has worked with scientists and historians, dealt with subjects from art history to climate change, conducted formative and evaluative research, and written and produced multi-media materials for a number of different audiences in a variety of settings. Her forté is finding fresh and engaging ways to communicate with audiences of all ages. Ms. Nostbakken has over 25 years experience in managing production teams both at home and abroad, devising budgets and production schedules, and liaising with clients in public and private sectors. In more than 250 scripts for television and interactive exhibitsshe has explored issues ranging from bio-diversity to cultural diversity, from the history of invention to the future of the planet. As book editor, she has over a dozen titles to her credit. As a developer of learning materials, she produces posters, activity books, lesson plans, teachers’ guides and work sheets for students from kindergarten through secondary school. She has worked with dozens of clients from the public and private sectors including the Canadian Museum of Civilization, CBC, CTV, TVO, the National Film Board, UNICEF, the World Health Organization, Heritage Canada, Ontario Parks and WETV.
Brian Olsen
Vice President of Technology , Vice President & COO of WETV Canada Corporation
Brian Olsen is a founding Board member of WETV Canada Corporation and initially held the position of Vice President Engineering & Operations. At WETV Brian was responsible for negotiation and management of all technology contracts including those for signal origination and distribution. He also negotiated and managed all the affiliation agreements with the satellite and cable carriers. Prior to that Brian was President of Olsen Enterprises and has led or been a key team member in dozens of varied consulting assignments in both the Satellite and Broadcast Industries. He has also worked for the Advanced Broadcasting Systems of Canada (ABSOC) and Vistar Telecommunications Inc. At ABSOC Mr. Olsen chaired or represented the association on several committees in Canada. He also represented Canada on committees in the US and Europe working to develop and approve new digital television standards. At Vistar he was responsible a number of marketing functions as well as sales responsibility for consulting services and two of Vistar's L-band satellite terminal products. Prior to forming his own company, Brian worked for Telesat Canada for 18 years. Prior to Telesat Canada he worked for 7 years in a number of positions at Bell Canada. Mr. Olsen has served for many years on several International Industry Associations Boards of Directors including the World Teleport Association and the Society of Satellite Professionals International. He currently is a board member of the Canadian DTV Technology Group.
The Whole Media Group, Ecology Radio
Mary Lou Davidson, Executive in Charge of production
The Whole Media Group is a consortium of broadcast professionals with expertise in content development, production and placement of radio, podcast and multimedia properties. Some of our award winning productions include: Animal Planet Radio, Travel Channel Radio, Dr. Donnica’s Women’s Health Report, The NBA Radio Network and The JFK Conspiracy. From creation of a traditional sixty second radio announcement to development and launch of a 24/7 network, or combining traditional and new media to maximize exposure and reach, we can deliver. We live and breathe radio on and off-line. Our team’s combined experience represents more than two centuries of experience but who’s counting?
Mary Lou Davidson
Managing Director, Programming
The Whole Media Group
In 1986 Mary Lou began her radio career in network affiliate relations. In that capacity she placed dozens of programs on hundreds of stations across the country. Working directly with program directors in major markets she gained an appreciation of both radio programming and sales. Later, Mary Lou made the transition from network affiliate relations to sponsorship and advertising sales. Her success and understanding of programming gave her the ability to create content that would best fill the market needs of both radio stations and advertisers. Some of her many successes include Animal Planet Radio, Travel Channel and The HGTV Design Minute. Mary Lou will, with the team, oversee development of radio properties for terrestrial, satellite, and Internet.
Christopher N. Palmer
Strategic Content Development
Chris Palmer is the Distinguished Film Producer in Residence and Director of the Center for Environmental Filmmaking for the School of Communication, American University. He has spent 25 years producing more than 300 hours of original programming for prime time television and the large format film industry. His films have been broadcast on the Disney Channel, TBS SuperStation, Animal Planet, Home and Garden Television, The Travel Channel, The Outdoor Life Network, the Public Broadcasting System and in the global system of IMAX theaters. He joined American University in August 2004, establishing the Center for Environmental Filmmaking at the School of Communication. In addition to teaching as a full-time faculty member, Chris continues to produce films, give speeches, and conduct workshops across the country. Chris is president of the MacGillivray Freeman Films Educational Foundation, and also serves as chief executive officer of VideoTakes Inc., a film production company in Arlington, Va, where he produces environmental films, videos, DVDs, and new media. In 1983, he founded the nonprofit National Audubon Society Productions, and then in 1994, he founded the nonprofit National Wildlife Productions (part of the National Wildlife Federation) which he managed as president and CEO for 10 years. He and his colleagues are the winners of numerous awards, including two Emmys and an Oscar nomination. In 1994, Chris was honored with the Frank G. Wells Award from the Environmental Media Association. Chris serves on the boards of ten nonprofit organizations including the International Wildlife Film Festival and the Natural Resources Council of America. He has a B.S. with First Class Honors in Mechanical Engineering and an M.S. in Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture from University College London, and a second master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University where he was a Kennedy Scholar.
Jack C. Hall
Executive Director of Science & Education Advancement
Jack Hall is currently Chair of the Department of Environmental Studies at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Jack was a member of the Department of Earth Sciences from 1984 to 2003, director of Summer Ventures in Science and Mathematics, regional director for Science Olympiad, is currently an associate research scientist at the Center for Marine Science Research at UNCW and a research diver for the National Undersea Research Center at UNCW. Jack’s training is in marine micropaleontology, biostratigraphy and paleoenvironmental reconstruction. He has worked on the physical and biological aspects of both modern and ancient marine and coastal environments. He has been involved in earth/environmental education for public school teachers and students for over 20 years. He has received over 40 grants related to teacher/student programs from among other the North Carolina Mining Commission, the Eisenhower Professional Development Program, and the National Science Foundation. Jack has over 40 publications related to educational topics and currently has 2 book chapter and a journal article in review. Jack has received among others the Chancellor’s Outstanding Faculty Award at UNCW and was named Outstanding University Science Educator in North Carolina by the North Carolina Science Teachers Association. Dr. Hall earned his Ph.D. in geology from the Ohio State University.
