Board of Directors

Melinda Skeels (President) is an associate with a North Shore law firm where her practice is focused on aboriginal law and environmental legal issues. As an avid sea kayaker, Melinda spends much of her summer in and around the waters of Georgia Strait. She grew up on Bowen Island, spent her university years in Victoria and now lives in Vancouver. 

Dave Macdonald (Vice President, Treasurer) is a Certified Management Accountant and Principal Consultant of Yupana Consulting, which he founded in 2010 to help small businesses and entrepreneurs build sustainable practices inside their organizations. He has administered a forward-thinking CSR Program that included sustainability and volunteer initiatives and has been a founding partner of a local electric bicycle company. He is on the Board of the Passion Foundation, working with young women ages 11-24 to foster education, self-worth and inner beauty. When not at work, Dave can be found at cafes in Gastown or on Commercial Drive, cycling around the seawall or any of Vancouver's awesome bike routes, or getting his hands dirty on his friend's Vancouver Island goat farm.

Frank Tester (Secretary) is a UBC Professor with degrees in environmental design, social work and geography. He works on social and environmental issues in Nunavut and has co-authored several books on Inuit social history and written about BC environmental issues. He lives in Vancouver and has a small farm on Denman Island.

Don Bulmer is a Portfolio Manager and Senior Wealth Advisor with ScotiaMcLeod Inc having joined the Scotiabank Group in 1991. Don is a Certified Financial Planner and has extensive experience in estate and charitable gift planning and believes strongly in giving back to his community. He is involved in many charitable organizations and recently climbed Mt Kilimanjaro raising funds and awareness for Alzheimer's. In his personal time, Don enjoys skiing, marathon running, and spending time with his family at their boat access cabin on Indian Arm.

Lesli Boldt is President of Boldt Communications Inc., a Vancouver-based marketing communications firm. She’s a seasoned marketing communications and public affairs professional with over 17 years of experience in the industry and a decade of experience in consulting with clients in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Lesli was born and raised in North Vancouver, B.C. After eight years in Victoria, B.C., Lesli returned to Vancouver in 2000 and lives in South Granville. 

Kathy Fletcher founded and was for 20 years executive director of People For Puget Sound, a citizens’ organization formed to protect and restore the southern portion of our Salish Sea—a role that saw her working closely with GSA over many years. She retired in 2011. Kathy lives in Seattle and has a second home in Vancouver. She has a long-standing connection with BC and passion for our marine waters: for decades she has spent much of her time at her family’s cabin in Desolation Sound and sailed the waters of Georgia Strait and beyond.  Prior to People for Puget Sound Kathy chaired Washington State’s Puget Sound Water Quality Authority, served on the White House Staff, handling environmental and natural resource issues, has taught environmental policy and non-profit management at the University of Washington, worked for the Environmental Defense Fund and other environmental organizations, and headed up environmental, energy conservation and other programs at Seattle City Light, along with serving on many non-profit organization boards.  Among her many honours, Kathy has been named a “Hero of the Seas” by the Blue Frontier Campaign, and has received a lifetime achievement award from Restore America’s Estuaries.