Jane Maloney Joins SVT

In late November, SVT welcomed Jane Maloney to our staff. As our new Land Steward, Jane will help both to control invasive plants on our properties and to maintain hiking trails for public use. 

A native of New Jersey who now lives in Watertown, Jane holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont. She has previously worked for the Appalachian Mountain Club in Boston, where her responsibilities included managing volunteers who maintain hiking trails, and for the Umpqua Watersheds in Roseburg, Oregon, where she worked on conservation-themed educational programs for children and families.

“We are delighted to welcome Jane to the SVT staff,” said Laura Mattei, SVT Director of Stewardship. “Her extensive experience in trail work and managing volunteers along with her knowledge of biology and natural history make her a valuable addition to our team.” 

Jane commented, “I’m excited to join the dedicated team of staff and volunteers at SVT. I’m very much looking forward to working with everyone to protect all the beautiful and ecologically significant properties that SVT manages.”

Jane will work with the dozens of volunteers who help us care for our properties. To improve the ecological conditions of local conservation lands, she will recruit and train groups of volunteers to remove non-native invasive plants such as glossy buckthorn. In addition, she will work with volunteer preserve stewards to maintain our 65 miles of hiking trails.

Lisa Vernegaard, SVT Executive Director, explained, “In the past five years alone, SVT has conserved more than 1,100 acres on 27 properties, bringing the number of properties under our care to 187. We are thrilled with this success, but it has greatly increased the workload for our Stewardship staff, who are responsible for the care of these important lands. Thanks to the generous financial support of our members, we were able to hire Jane so we can continue to take first-class care of our properties.”

You may already have noticed Jane working on SVT properties. If you see her, say hello!