Brittany Christenson plans to continue to serve on state road salt reduction task force
By Zachary Matson
Brittany Christenson, the first full-time executive director of AdkAction, on Wednesday announced she would be leaving the leadership post at the advocacy organization Jan. 31.
Christenson, who started in the executive director position in 2016, has led the organization as it expanded its work on an array of issues in the Adirondacks – reducing food insecurity, expanding broadband access, protecting pollinator habitats, promoting local arts and battling road salt pollution.
“We are now a well-known force for good around the Adirondacks, and our projects truly touch the lives of people who live here,” Christenson said in a Thursday interview.
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She said the organization has grown to fill a critical position as it organizes projects with direct effects on local communities and bridges both environmental and economic development concerns.
She highlighted a program at the start of the pandemic that connected local farmers with residents, delivering emergency food packages full of farm-fresh produce. She said she was also proud of a memorial scholarship established in honor of AdkAction board chair Tom Boothe who died while hiking last fall. The summer scholarship supports a college student to complete a community-based project and is now open to applicants.
Christenson will continue living in Keeseville with her family and said she planned to remain a member of the recently-appointed state road salt reduction task force and an internal committee on the issue at AdkAction.
During her tenure, the organization played a central role in advocating legislation to establish the task force and promoting the growing research on the risks of salt pollution in the park.
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“I think we are finally poised to make real change on this issue,” Christenson said.
AdkAction on Wednesday posted a search for an executive director, listing a salary range of $85,000 to $105,000. Interested candidates should apply by Feb. 7.
The most recent tax documents for the non-partisan organization showed it paid Christenson $70,603 in 2020. The group’s mission is to “address unmet needs, promote vibrant communities, and preserve the natural beauty of the Adirondacks.”
I was on the search committee that found Brittany Christiansen, the first Executive Director of AdkAction. She wowed us then and her Wow factor only grew greater over these past 6 years. She is tireless in her pursuit of ways to make the North Country better. AdkAction has more than twice the number of members it had in 2015 and there are twice as many serious projects that they are initiating and managing than there were then too. Brittany leaves with not only our thanks but our admiration for all she has accomplished at AdkAction. Plus, she and Lucas had 2 children during the same time. That long ago search committee did a great job !