Too much pesticide, fertilizer and water; one giant grass monoculture. Environmentalists often complain that golf courses are anything but “green”. So, when Jennifer and Francis O'Donnell purchased the Stone Dock Golf Course in High Falls, NY, in February of 2021, they dedicated themselves to not just restoring the course but doing it through sustainable practices.
Jennifer O'Donnell is an urban and regional planner with expertise in conservation, environment, climate adaptation, and sustainability issues from both a global and local perspective. She has served as Principal of Hone Strategic LLC, a planning a preservation practice, as Deputy Director of Planning for Ulster County, and as a World Bank consultant for extensive, multi-country studies of community-driven development and cultural heritage. She earned masters' degrees in urban planning and real estate development at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, was a US Delegate to UNESCO's Integrated Territorial and Urban Conservation program in Rome, and continues to study and teach sustainable development as a life-long learner and educator
Francis O'Donnell studied agriculture at the University of Delaware before embarking upon a 25-year career as a farmer on Maryland's Eastern Shore, where he oversaw a 1,000-acre farm, a diversified operation growing grains and produce, operating orchards, forestry, tidal wetlands, and game preserve. His work was recognized in the 1980s as a model for best management practices by the 3-state Chesapeake Bay Commission. Returning to his native Hudson Valley home, Mr. O'Donnell has served as a superintendent at the Stone Dock and Rondout golf courses for 15 years before becoming the co-owner at Stone Dock.
Third Thursday Series is a program of free, online events, organized by environmentalists from the Towns of Rochester, Marbletown, Rosendale, Gardiner, and Olive--all located in Ulster County, NY. Each month-every third Thursday-the series will present a free, online program on an environmental topic of general interest. To receive notification of future talks, send an email to thirdthursdayseries@gmail.com
25 июн 2024
