Vanessa Pierce, Executive Director
After three years of working with HEAL Utah as the organization’s Program Director, Vanessa assumed the role of Executive Director in August of 2006. Vanessa initiated HEAL Utah's Downwinders Opposed to Nuclear Testing (DONT) campaign to prevent renewed nuclear weapons testing, stop the development of the Bunker Buster, and to expand compensation for the downwind victims of radiation exposure. In addition to her interest in nuclear weapons issues, Vanessa has also worked to protect public health from the dangers of nuclear waste. In 2004 and 2005 she helped pass legislation to prevent hotter nuclear waste from being dumped in Utah, and most recently, she helped block legislation that would have weakened Utah’s environmental laws pertaining to nuclear waste disposal. Prior to joining HEAL Utah, Vanessa worked as a community organizer with the Toxics Action Center in Connecticut helping local citizens plan and execute campaigns to fight toxic pollution in their backyards. Vanessa is a graduate of Green Corps, an environmental advocacy-training program, and is an alumna of Grinnell College.
John Urgo, Outreach Director
John oversees HEAL Utah’s efforts to involve community members in our campaign work. He works both on attracting new volunteers to HEAL Utah, and on deepening the organization’s relationships with existing members to involve them more actively in our work. John holds regularly scheduled volunteer workshops that offer trainings on skill sets which enable attendees to more effectively participate in the democratic process. Examples include how to plan a campaign, how to lobby, and how to hold a district meeting. John is a graduate of Green Corps, the field school for environmental organizing, and an alum of Pomona College.
Jessica Kendrick, Field Organizer
Jessica joined HEAL Utah’s staff in September 2006. She loves working for an organization that seeks to engage citizens in the political process. She helps achieve this goal through coordinating citizen advocacy, voter education trainings and in-home meetings. Jessica believes in giving Utahns a voice in these important issues that affect our state; she helps mobilize Utahns to contact their policy-makers on relevant issues, whether it's meeting with a legislator in person or attending a committee hearing. In addition, Jessica seeks to expand HEAL Utah’s volunteer and membership base outside of Salt Lake. Jessica graduated from Brigham Young University with Honors and as Valedictorian in Political Science.
Christopher Thomas, Policy Director
Christopher Thomas joined the HEAL Utah staff in September, 2006. As Policy Director, he focuses his efforts on three key groups: regulators, political leaders, and the media. In each arena he works to inform, influence, and advocate for citizens concerned about nuclear and toxic waste in Utah. Currently, he is watchdogging a proposed nuclear dump expansion in Utah’s west desert and developing a proposal for better regulatory oversight of “alternate feed” uranium mill programs. Christopher graduated from Grinnell College in Iowa with degrees in English and Biology and received the English department’s top honor, the Beulah Bennett-Loring Prize for Excellence in English.
SOPHIA NICHOLAS, DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
Sophia works to increase the organizational resources of HEAL Utah through cultivating alliances with foundations and individuals, writing grants, and planning events. Her job involves building funding networks and interest in HEAL’s efforts to protect the public health from nuclear and toxic waste, and she is particularly excited to help create the base from which HEAL can implement its Carbon-Free, Nuclear-Free energy plan for Utah. Sophia graduated with Latin and departmental honors in Political Science from Wellesley College in 2006. She spent a semester traveling around the world studying indigenous cultures and the environment; worked with the Utah Chapter of the Sierra Club on several campaigns; and lived in Bristol, England where she was employed at the UK government’s Office for Standards in Education. Making connections between issues, ideas, and activism fuels her passion, and she is enthusiastic about returning to her home state and expanding HEAL Utah’s resources with such a dynamic and engaged team.
