About

Ramesh joined NFLT in 2021 and serves as the Director of Conservation Acquisitions.

Ramesh has been a full-time real estate professional in the Gainesville area since relocating here with his wife and twins in 2001. He has had a 25-year career in real estate, focused almost entirely on the acquisition of environmentally sensitive lands in Florida. He stood up and ran the Alachua County Forever land conservation program for 16 years. Most recently, he was the Real Estate Services Director for the St. Johns River Water Management District. He has completed almost 50,000 acres of property transactions worth over $152 million.

Upon his retirement from the public sector, Ramesh joined NFLT to continue his passion for conservation land deals. His strengths are problem-solving and negotiating deals and enjoys the collaborative approach to transactions. He believes the best solutions are those that make environmental and economic sense.

Ramesh is a Marine Science graduate of the University of Miami, attended Texas A&M for graduate work in Marine Fisheries, was a diver, an open-water yachtsman, and has played a variety of sports before settling on Pickleball. He likes to hike, travel, cook and eat interesting foods, and read spy novels in his spare time. He and his wife currently have two adopted cats, two adopted dogs, and one fish (purchased).

Heather Nagy has joined NFLT in 2020 and serves as the Conservation Acquisitions Coordinator. Nagy works with the director of real estate and community conservation to coordinate land transactions, manage the real estate database and research potential real estate projects.

Nagy comes to NFLT after working for three years at Peninsula Open Space Trust in California where she managed the conservation easement program and helped facilitate acquisition projects. She also worked with Tar River Land Conservancy in North Carolina. There she helped develop a strategic conservation plan for the Upper Tar River Basin.

Nagy earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida, her masters of environmental management from Duke University and has received a graduate certificate in geographic information systems (GIS). For her master’s project, Nagy researched lemur habitat in a national park in Madagascar and developed a GIS-based model of forest loss to help guide future conservation projects in the area.

Kimberly (Kim) Hall joined NFLT in 2021 and serves as the Conservation Transactions Manager. Kim began her journey in real estate in 2001, in residential real estate appraisal. Her experience in the appraisal field led to a 15-year career with the St. Johns River Water Management District. During her tenure there, she participated in or facilitated the acquisition of nearly 132,000 acres, at a cost of just over $464.5 million. While at the District, she managed a close partnership with North Florida Land Trust building valuable lasting relationships. This led to several acquisitions in the Camp Blanding Buffer area and Partnership in the O2O.

During her time at the District, she earned her Bachelor’s in Legal Services bolstering her negotiating, research, and contracting skills. While on a 3-year hiatus from Conservation acquisitions, Kim further sharpened her skills in product development, product launch, and vendor management with FPL Energy Services, managing and launching statewide projects. Eager to return to her first passion and armed with her 20 years of real estate and contracts knowledge, she is no stranger to NFLT’s mission as she makes her return to Conservation Acquisition.

Heather Barnes joined NFLT in 2022, serving currently as a Real Estate Coordinator. She began as a volunteer with a desire to expand her knowledge in conservation and sustainable living. This curiosity quickly led to a part-time Administrative Assistant position, supporting through periods of change. Barnes comes to us with a background of 3 years in Real Estate and Property Management, as well as 7 years in Home Health/Hospice Operations and Implementations. She was a part of a team that assisted agencies countrywide, teaching on the use of electronic medical record software and transitional processes. Although she experienced a variety of landscapes during her travels, it was a paddle on the Santa Fe River that sparked her passion for the environment. The healing powers of water experienced first-hand. Since then, she acquired a bit of knowledge in the field of Conservation, assisting Putnam Land Conservancy with several of their donation transactions. It was during this time she realized how crucial conserving land is to the health of our environment. Over the years, she has come to appreciate growing up a native Floridian, in the Lake Region of Keystone Heights. Present day, she resides in the coastal town of St. Augustine. In her spare time, you can find Barnes exploring outside and enjoying the necessities natural Florida has to offer. She aspires to hone her craft in land acquisition, as well as educate others on the opportunities involved with protecting our natural world.

Rianna joined NFLT in 2021 and serves as the Director of Land Stewardship. Rianna will oversee the stewardship department and will be responsible for the management, restoration and maintenance of NFLT’s preserves and conservation easements. Her duties include a supervisory role of the stewardship department and the direct implementation of certain program areas. She will also serve on the leadership team and contribute to the nonprofit's organizational development and strategic decision-making.

Rianna comes to NFLT with over a decade of experience with the Florida Park Service. As a Park Services Specialist, she focused most of her energy on resource management and prescribed fire. Over time, she achieved her certified prescribed burn manager status as well as other certifications to enable her to better preserve the lands she was charged with restoring and protecting. She has also assisted multiple agencies with prescribed fire through trainings and knowledge exchanges over the years. Prior to her work with Florida Park Service, Rianna spent several years with a non-profit organization working with at-risk youth.

Mark joined NFLT in 2022 and serves as the Land Manager. He joined the Florida Park Service, where he spent 7 years honing his skills in resource management and learning more about the incredible habitats and species that make our home so special. Since 2015 he has had the opportunity to burn most of Florida's pyric ecosystems as well as learning from some of the best prescription burners in the southeast.

Aaryn is a graduate of the University of Tennessee where she earned her degree in wildlife and fisheries management. She most recently worked as an environmental consultant. She has served as a wildlife biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) where she received safe capture training and worked with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources as a wildlife technician. Tarver holds numerous certifications including as a certified prescribed burn manager and a FWC certified gopher tortoise agent.

Lee Anderson Louy joined NFLT in 2021 and serves as the Director of Philanthropic Services. Lee helps individuals and organizations develop and achieve their philanthropic goals. Bringing over a decade of nonprofit leadership and donor experience, Lee is passionate about advancing the NFLT mission for Jacksonville and beyond.

Before working for NFLT, Lee worked as the Director of Development with the University of North Florida, focusing on developing and nurturing long-term relationships on behalf of the University. She was with the University for nearly nine years, and prior, Lee served as the Director of the Bennie Furlong Senior Center with the City of Jacksonville. Lee graduated from the University of North Florida with a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership, holds a master’s degree in Public Administration, and earned her bachelor’s degree in Recreation and Leisure Services Administration from Florida State University.

Lee is a Jacksonville native with a deep admiration for the Northeast Florida region and is invested in creating a lasting impact in our community.

Sarah Hande joined NFLT in 2021 and serves as the Communications and Development Officer. In her role Sarah helps NFLT achieve its mission by engaging constituents and community members across the seven counties NFLT serves. Sarah’s career has spanned continents and cultures, from working as a flight attendant with a South African airline right after apartheid ended, to managing three consumer magazine titles and their portfolio of events in London. She brings with her more than twenty years of experience in project management and community engagement. In 2003, she moved to Jacksonville and worked with the City of Jacksonville before transitioning into a community engagement role at Florida Blue in their Corporate Social Responsibility area. Sarah moved into the nonprofit sector in 2015 and has served as the Associate Director of Development at MOCA Jacksonville (a cultural institute of the University of North Florida) and most recently served as the Director of Development at the Cathedral Arts Project. Sarah is passionate about connecting individuals with the NFLT mission and in turn working to preserve North Florida’s natural resources and environment. Sarah grew up near the water in Virginia Beach and enjoys doing anything outside.

Abby Carden joined NFLT in 2022 and serves as the Membership and Data Coordinator. In her role, Abby provides support to the development team with coordinating our membership program, data analysis and gift entry management.

Before joining the NFLT team, Abby worked at the Make-A-Wish Foundation of East Tennessee for 8 years. She began her journey there as an intern in programs, dabbled in database management, and ultimately developed into the Director of Program Services role. Abby graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Most recently, she taught Kindergarten at a local private school.

Abby moved to Jacksonville from Chattanooga, TN, in 2019. She and her husband have two little humans at home, and the family loves weekend beach trips. They spend lots of time at neighborhood playgrounds and in their backyard looking for frogs and lizards and enjoying the lush FL landscape.