Welcome New Board Members, Nico Larco and Barton Robison

This Spring, OEC is thrilled to add two new members to our Board of Directors, Nico Larco and Barton Robison. Please join us in welcoming them!

Oregon Environmental Council is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors working together to promote Oregonians’ shared environmental values and priorities. Their expertise strengthens our community and informs our work on a wide range of issues including conservation, climate, finance, forestry, health, transportation, and community engagement. 

We are grateful for their leadership and service.

Nico Larco 

Nico Larco is a Professor of Architecture at the University of Oregon, Director of the Urbanism Next Center and Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Sustainable Cities Initiative, a nationally and internationally awarded, multidisciplinary organization that focuses on sustainability issues as they relate to the built environment. Professor Larco’s research focus includes sustainable urban design and the impacts of emerging technology on cities. The Urbanism Next Center, which he leads, is focused on how technological advances such as autonomous vehicles, new mobility, e-commerce and the sharing economy are changing city form and development. Prof. Larco assists cities and projects with future-proofing, has run workshops and charrettes nationally on this topic, and is currently coordinating work in this area with various municipal and state agencies around the country.

Barton Robison

Driven by his own transformative experience in nature during college, Barton’s personal mission is to ensure that everyone has barrier-free and equitable access to the outdoors and its benefits. “I don’t think kids should be limited in their access to nature based on how large their town’s tax base is.” The recent completion of the Chiloquin Green Schoolyard embodies his values. Alongside tribal, national, state, and local partners, Barton has worked hard to help fund, design, and build an inclusive, nature-based, and culturally-specific community park and playground at Chiloquin Elementary School in Klamath County. “It was a reminder of the power of self-determination and the importance of community-driven processes…and, for me, it was a reminder of why I do this work.”

Barton has a master’s degree in Public Administration and a graduate certificate in Tribal Relations and is skilled at cross-sector collaboration and facilitation, strategy development, fundraising, and helping community and government partners connect and work together.

See the full list of OEC’s Board of Directors here.