Position Filled!
BikeWalk North Carolina (BWNC) is most pleased to announce the selection of its first full-time Executive Director, Lisa Diaz Riegel, a graduate of Duke University and resident of the Town of Cary. Ms. Riegel competed against stiff competition in a national search, but her track record in North Carolina was the decisive factor in her unanimous selection by the BWNC Board of Directors.
For nine years, Ms. Riegel served as Executive Director of the Natural Heritage Trust Fund, a grant program housed in the Secretary’s Office of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR). In that role she interfaced with four state agencies and numerous non-profit organizations as they worked to identify and conserve the state’s most important natural and cultural assets. As DENR’s Interagency Sustainability Coordinator, she served on many collaborative efforts such as the steering committee for NC Department of Transportation’s statewide pedestrian and bicycle plan. As an appointed member of NC’s Climate Action Plan Advisory Group (2006-2008) she led the Transportation and Land-Use Work Group’s transit-oriented development mitigation option. In 2011 she chaired the work group looking at how the built environment impacts health as part of the Research Triangle Environmental Health Collaborative with participation from the private sector, academia, non-profit organizations and government. Relationships built as DENR’s representative on regional planning and economic development efforts such as Piedmont Together, will continue to be important in her new role as we work to make sure that infrastructure in North Carolina is built to meet the needs of today and in the future.
Ms. Riegel is a proven collaborator and fundraiser; she is expected to raise the visibility of BikeWalk North Carolina and its message that bicycling and walking are essential to the future prosperity and quality of life in the Tar Heel state.
In Ms. Riegel’s own words: “Young and old alike want the option to walk and bike to work, school, and many other destinations. A growing number cannot afford car ownership. I’m excited to work with BikeWalk NC to help communities provide for safe, low-cost, healthy travel options and put less stress on our already over-burdened roads.”
Media Contact: Roger Henderson, President of BikeWalk North Carolina, president@bikewalknc.org
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REMINDER ! The 4th annual NC Bike Summit takes place in Charlotte NC, Oct.15-17 at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte – Center City campus. BikeWalk NC is a major sponsor for this event. Registration and other information will be available via the BikeWalk NC website (www.bikewalknc.org) very soon!
