Board of Directors
Gerald “J.J.” Frost
President
J.J. first moved to Alaska in 1995. He earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 1999. Gerald then worked on a variety of avian and vegetation studies in Alaska’s interior, arctic, and the western Aleutians for ABR, Inc. and the National Park Service. In 2007, he began a Ph.D. in Ecology at the University of Virginia, studying recent changes in the forest-tundra boundary across Siberia. He is now a Senior Scientist at ABR, Inc. and works on a range of ecosystem and avian studies, including songbird surveys and habitat assessment. JJ also serves on the board of the U.S. Permafrost Association.
Rebecca Young
Vice President and Secretary
Rebecca recently earned her doctorate from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Her research focused on biological age, telomeres, physiology, and behavior of long-lived seabirds. Her major interests are how hormones and other physiological measures interact with behavior to affect individual fitness in organisms of varying life histories. Current projects include: how telomere length relates to foraging behavior and environmental conditions in thick-billed murres; how telomere length and oxidative stress differ in black-legged kittiwake chicks in the nest in Atlantic and Pacific populations; and a comparison of telomere lengths and chronological ages in a wide variety of alcid species.
Amy Turner
Treasurer
Amy has a diverse background in food systems, nutrition, large and small scale wildlife and vegetation studies. She has served on several non-profit boards including Arctic Audubon and Calypso Farm & Ecology Center. Amy has been involved with birds and education in Fairbanks since 1999. Amy formerly worked at ABR, Inc. as a project management and proposal coordinator. She currently is a freelance writer and novelist living in Salida, CO.
Dan Rizzolo
Board Member
Dan is a Fish and Wildlife Biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species Recovery Program in Fairbanks where he works with listed Steller’s and Spectacled eiders. His background is in avian energetics and population biology. Dan has worked in Alaska for over 20 years, from Southeast to the Arctic Coastal Plain. He earned a BA from St. Anselm College in New Hampshire, MS from Oregon State University, and PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Teresa Thompson
Board Member
Teresa has lived and worked in the Fairbanks community for over 34 years. She currently serves UAF eCampus in Corporate Enrollment, partnering with employers in Alaska and across the country to provide world-class online educational opportunities to their employees. She has held a variety of positions in Fairbanks, including Executive Assistant to the UA President, Development Officer for the UAF College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, Director of Recruitment and Partnership Development for Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Community Development Manager for United Way. She currently serves on the board of United Way of the Tanana Valley. Teresa earned an Associate’s degree in Administration in 1983 from the State University of New York and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2004. She has been married to her husband Todd for 30 years. Teresa is an avid outdoors adventurer, recreational birder, hiker and camper, loves to cook, and she loves living in the Great State of Alaska.
Katja Diekgers
Board Member
Katja Diekgers grew up in California and moved to Fairbanks in 2019 after graduating from Miami University of Ohio with a B.S. in Zoology and Environmental Science. She has worked with small mammals, caribou, birds, and plants and is currently a field technician with ABR Inc. She also works as a yoga teacher and baker in Fairbanks. Katja has spent one season as a banding intern with ASI, one season as a field trip guide, and multiple as a volunteer, and is now excited to support ASI as a board member.