Renee attributes her deep connection to the natural world from having spent so much of her childhood outdoors. She recalls the sadness she felt when she first learned about the concept of pollution. She had heard on the news that one of the beaches in the area was closed due to unsafe water quality, which was caused by dumping in the ocean. Her initial reaction was denial, “No, that can’t be true. Why would anyone do that?” This experience opened her eyes to the fact that a pristine environment is not a given and that there is much work that needs to be done if we want to have a cleaner, better future. Renee went on to become a member of various environmental groups.
Shortly after receiving her BA in International Language Business from the University of Scranton, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study Environmental Business in Germany. During this formative year, she learned that environmental protection is like a puzzle, with each piece interconnected; from government policies, to environmental programs, to the “greening” of businesses, to the packaging, marketing, and distribution of environmentally friendly products, down to the actions of each individual. It was also during this time that she was introduced to zero-waste stores. She has been fascinated by this concept ever since. Professionally, she has been working for over 20 years for a software company in various roles as a technical writer, editor, and project manager.
In co-founding Lex ZeroWaste, she is hopeful that together our efforts will not only have a positive effect on our waste stream, but will also teach our children that things can be done differently, impacting and inspiring generations to come.
Our Team
We are a group of volunteers who have come together believing that things need to change and that through collaboration, change is possible.
Board of Directors (2024 - 2025)
Laura’s first efforts as an environmentalist was in elementary school when she and her friends had contests to see whose brown lunch bag could last the longest.
She attended Dartmouth College, majoring in Biology and Environmental Studies, and then followed that with a law degree from Cornell University with the specific intent to practice environmental law. She did just that at the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), retiring in 2023. Her work at DEP focused in part on reducing waste first by encouraging municipalities to close their unlined landfills and later by imposing waste bans on paper and cardboard, glass and metal containers, yard waste and most recently mattresses and textiles. She loves to give and receive items through “freecycling.”
She hopes to use her knowledge and experience at Lex Zero Waste Collaborative to inspire residents and businesses to support practices that result in a cleaner world for future generations.
A lifelong environmentalist and organic gardener, Janet co-founded Lexington Community Farm Coalition (LexFarm) and led the community effort to keep Lexington’s Busa Farm in agricultural use upon its sale to the town in 2009. She acted as Executive Director for LexFarm during its first year of operation in 2014 and is thrilled that it continues to grow and has become a vital resource in––and thanks to––the surrounding community.
Janet and her husband Frank live in and steward an 18th century farmhouse that offers constant reminders of simpler, less wasteful times. It has also offered numerous opportunities to restore, re-use and re-purpose as they renovate their home for the 21st century. Through her involvement with Lexington Zero Waste Collaborative, Janet hopes to continue to learn, share, create and encourage community-wide conservation activism and ecological practices for a cleaner world.
Andrea’s earliest conservation project was a presentation in 5th grade to her elementary school demonstrating reusable alternatives for packed lunch to fellow students in Mansfield, MA. Through high school she was known to drag around a recycling barrel for bottle and can redemption to school events (the proceeds of which were donated to animal welfare organizations).
Today she shares her passion for composting, gardening, and reducing waste with her kids and partner and her love of the Great Meadow with her dog. Andrea is active in the Girl Scouting organization in Lexington, where she serves as the Service Unit Coordinator, and in Eastern Massachusetts where she serves as an Outdoor Basics Camping instructor (and the one who brings home bags of food scraps to compost from every event).
By day, Andrea is a software engineering manager at Google and has been working on mobile developer tools for almost 20 years after graduating from Northeastern University with a degree in Computer Science. She is excited to bring her love of connecting people through events and skills with technology to further the mission of LexZeroWaste.
Tina grew up in Lexington and gained an early appreciation of nature, spending many hours of her early years in the 60’s and 70’s as a free range child in the Great Meadow. As the fourth child of five she learned early that food was not a thing to waste but also that it went fast at the dinner table and not everyone always had enough everywhere in the world. Her grandfather was an urban farmer in his Arlington backyard, and the influence of her grandparents and Auntie instilled in her the concept of “waste not, want not.”
After her LHS graduation she became an avid backpacking world traveler, curious of other cultures before finally finishing a BA degree in Anthropology from Columbia University.
She returned to Lexington with her husband Bryant and has raised their three children on the edge of the Landlocked Forest.
A volunteer on many fronts and fields, including locally, LPS Green Teams, LexCAN, Clean Heat, Town Meeting Member-precinct 7, Turning Mill Neighborhood Conservation District, she is happy to contribute, to serve and to advocate for the common good and a healthy livable planet for all of us.
Renee attributes her deep connection to the natural world from having spent so much of her childhood outdoors. She recalls the sadness she felt when she first learned about the concept of pollution. She had heard on the news that one of the beaches in the area was closed due to unsafe water quality, which was caused by dumping in the ocean. Her initial reaction was denial, “No, that can’t be true. Why would anyone do that?” This experience opened her eyes to the fact that a pristine environment is not a given and that there is much work that needs to be done if we want to have a cleaner, better future. Renee went on to become a member of various environmental groups.
Shortly after receiving her BA in International Language Business from the University of Scranton, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study Environmental Business in Germany. During this formative year, she learned that environmental protection is like a puzzle, with each piece interconnected; from government policies, to environmental programs, to the “greening” of businesses, to the packaging, marketing, and distribution of environmentally friendly products, down to the actions of each individual. It was also during this time that she was introduced to zero-waste stores. She has been fascinated by this concept ever since. Professionally, she has been working for over 20 years for a software company in various roles as a technical writer, editor, and project manager.
In co-founding Lex ZeroWaste, she is hopeful that together our efforts will not only have a positive effect on our waste stream, but will also teach our children that things can be done differently, impacting and inspiring generations to come.
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