EXECUTIVES

liz DeLisle

Liz is the CEO and Owner of NCS, which is a SBA certified woman-owned small business. She takes charge of finance, proposals, grants, government contracting, client communications,  materials/procurement, human resources & is our problem-solver.  She has a Masters in Management from Davenport University. Liz constantly strives to improve our own operational footprint. She a passion for supporting locally significant planning, science/research, social/environmental and education programs connected with Michigan communities. Liz manages a diverse, educated & talented workforce, has grown our staff into a diverse operation of 9 leadership team members, 11 permanent staff, and up to 10 seasonal staff. Liz provides the human resources know-how to provide staff room to grow and share variety of ecological consulting & restoration skills, ensuring they have the means to go to work for you!

john Delisle, CERP

John, Principal Ecologist, has been working in the ecological field for over 25 years.  Using interdisciplinary natural resources experience for a variety of clients, he composes concise, cost effective plans, innovates technical restoration methods on challenging sites, leads diverse teams & champions butterfly host plants.  He knows invertebrates, botany, habitat restoration design, bioretention, soil science, invasive/native species phenology, pathology, ecosystem management, & permitting.  John works with various residential, commercial, agricultural, & government clients. John studies & designs methods to amend disturbed soils, hydrology, wildlife, wetlands, oak savannas & their associated plants.  John has advanced degrees in ecology-related fields from MSU & U-M, & worked for 10 years as a government entomologist before starting NCS. John’s led tree health assessments, invasive & rare flora+fauna species population surveys, erosion control, acreage prairie restorations, bioretention & riparian habitat design/builds. He has over 25 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative experiences and scalable skills in ecological monitoring, grant writing, habitat restoration design, brush management, bioretention, bioengineering design, GIS mapping, and CAD landscape architectural drafting.  John is dedicated to educating clients about biodiversity, vitality, integrity, and beauty of our clients' land and water resources.  John’s creative approach to design native landscapes focuses on ways to make both you & wildlife happy.

HABITAT MANAGERS

NICK LONGBUCCO - SENIOR ECOLOGIST

Nick Longbucco is NCS Senior Restoration Ecologist, carries 20 years’ experience with a wealth of knowledge in planning & restoration ecology. After working in restoration planning in his native Michigan, Nick spent six years working on conservation issues in Iowa and with The Nature Conservancy a working on watershed level water resource issues, which included managing a million dollar plus wetland restoration program and working with watershed and supply-chain partners to secure support for conservation throughout the watershed. Born and raised in Michigan, Nick also worked for the Oakland County SCWD working with local landowners on a variety of BMPs to address water and soil resource concerns. He is a proud MSU Spartan (Go Green) and holds a M.S. in Environmental Resource Management from Southern Illinois University. With a strong appreciation for the soil and water resources that bless the Great Lakes, Mr. Longbucco is passionate about finding solutions that benefit local communities and protects and improves these invaluable resources. Nick coalesces cross-functional teams by streamlining information distribution and analysis. Nick is a certified forester and has interdisciplinary restoration ecology skills.

Project Experience

Mr. Longbucco  is a restoration ecologist with extensive experience in wetlands management, reforestation, organizational planning, project oversight, design and implementation of wetland restoration, stream bioengineering, prairie restoration, agroecology and invasive species control, with 19 years of experience throughout the Midwest. He has given presentations and workshops in Illinois, Iowa, Michigan and Missouri on a variety of topics related to ecological restoration & oxbow wetlands. He has led restoration operations, including scheduling, planning, and field implementation for greater than twenty projects in the Southeast Michigan region. He has in-depth experience with invasive species biological control, forest and floodplain restoration methodology, implementation, and site analysis.

EMILY BRENT - DESIGN DIRECTOR/PROJECT MANAGER

Emily is NCS Design Director, landscape project lead, planner, certified arborist and specializes in design-build contract administration for native landscapes and ecological restoration construction projects. She is an experienced design professional with a passion for native plants (especially trees) and sustainable innovative solutions and also has a long history of managing forestry projects with habitat restoration components that NCS specializes in. Her expertise includes Parks Projects, Multi-disciplinary Multi-agency Projects, Public Engagement, Stakeholder Buy-in, Conflict Resolution, Organizational Efficiency, Wetlands, and Natural Resource Protection.

Education

·    M.L.A.  University of Michigan

·    M.S. in Conservation Ecology, University of Michigan

Relevant Highlights

·        GIS & Map Inventories, Site Survey and Stake Out

·        Habitat & Green Infrastructure design

·        Data management, resource inventory, project oversight

·        Native planting design, Trail Design, Conceptual Continuity. Stormwater, Low Impact Development & Green Infrastructure, Habitat Restoration & Integration, Sustainability, & Tree Preservation

OTHER LEADERSHIP STAFF

DEBBIE ZEITS- OFFICE MANAGER

MIKE MCCLINTOCK - OPERATIONS MANAGER

JAMES BRILLHART- Designer

THAD PLAZA - JR. FIELD ECOLOGIST

SCOTT METZGER - WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST

MONICA SKAMIERA- INVASIVE SPECIES SUPT.

SAMANTHA HASEK - bOTANIST

JOE DELISLE - bOTANIST

JIM KELLER - MATERIALS & EQUIPMENT

DEREK DELISLE - Marketing/ Advertising/ Field SVC