Kate Mizenka
Board Chair | Farm, Gardens & Apiary Director

Meet Kate, Elk Root Conservation’s visionary leader, founder, and Director of Farm, Orchard, and Apiary. In the midst of a successful career as a lawyer, business entrepreneur and educator, Kate suffered an unexpected brain injury that forced her to retire early. But Kate will tell you that is not her story, she sees her reality as an opportunity for personal growth that has opened her mind and heart to what is important.

Through this transformative journey, Kate has experienced first hand the ways in which vulnerable individuals can be overlooked and fall through the cracks. She wanted to create a safe, supportive place for all people in her community. Through Kate’s vision, the magic of Elk Root Conservation was formed.

Kate is the creator of the Sustainable Apiary Model and designer of ERC’s Pollinator Demonstration Gardens and Native Plant Educational Demonstration Gardens. She is an avid advocate of organic regenerative agriculture, pollinator wellness, and environmental education, conservation and restoration. Her passion for growing community and protecting our planet is woven into the fabric of all we do here at ERC. She is the creative mind behind ERC’s organic regenerative agriculture research and innovation striving towards a world where agricultural practices go hand-in-hand with environmental conservation. In 2023, Kate was awarded the Suzy Hamilton Legacy Fund Award in recognition of her contributions as a female-identified environmental activist in the West Kootenay region who embodies the environmental and social activism for which Hamilton was known.

Kate is not only an expert educator, beekeeper, and ‘beyond’ organic regenerative grower but also a sought-after speaker. She has shared her knowledge and insights across the country on topics such as native plant propagation and garden design, the responsibility of apiarists to protect wild bees, planting for pollinators, and ERC’s agri-tech research and innovation projects.

Today, Kate volunteers her time to Elk Root Conservation while she continues to live with traumatic brain injury, spinal degeneration and chronic pain. Her ability to lead through adversity, her empathy towards vulnerable community members, and her ‘outside-the-box’ approaches to making ERC accessible and welcoming to all our diverse community members, is truly an inspiration to all who experience the Elk Root magic.

Bronwyn Krause
Systems & Operations Director

Say hello to Bronwyn, Elk Root Conservation’s fabulous Systems & Operations Director. Born and raised in the beautiful Kootenays, Bronwyn’s love for nature runs deep. As a third-generation beekeeper, she knows the buzz when it comes to protecting our pollinator friends and our environment!

With a background in Library Sciences and Information Technology, Bronwyn keeps everything organized at ERC. You may not realize it, but ERC has a lot of moving parts and programs, and Bronwyn ensures that everything runs smoothly together.

When she’s not buzZzy at work, you can find Bronwyn happily spinning, weaving, and exploring the world of fiber arts. Bronwyn wants to say a big thanks to Kate for inviting her onboard the incredible ERC team, and we are thrilled to have her as part of our family!

Juliette Desvaux
Administration & Project Coordination Manager

Juliette was instantly drawn to ERC’s magic the moment she read about them. She is now the Administration & Project Coordination Manager and the happy face behind the Elk Root Conservation email.

Once a young beekeeper, gardener, and a 4-H enthusiast, Juliette feels so strongly about protecting our pollinators and the planet. Juliette is currently pursuing both a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s in Management at the University of British Columbia, where she hopes to develop her skills and knowledge to better serve the ERC’s mission of protecting pollinators and the planet.

When not at work or studying, you can find Juliette hiking up a mountain, skiing, or exploring the beautiful wonders that Mother Earth has to offer. She is an integral part of our ERC team, full of sunshine and kindness that she shares with our community virtually from her Vancouver home office.

Olivia Belaney
Education & Culture Ambassador

Olivia is ERC’s Education & Culture Ambassador, and an Indigenous woman who has a strong connection to the Earth and all beings. Despite being disconnected from the land of her people growing up, she was drawn to working to help the Earth in some way as we face major challenges such as climate change and food insecurity.

Olivia is very passionate about moving towards sustainable practices, helping vulnerable community members and providing educational opportunities for our community. She also looks forward to connecting with the Indigenous Peoples in our community and collaborating on projects and learning opportunities.

Laena Brown
Instructor

Laena (aka LBee) has been a beekeeper in the West Kootenays for eight years. She is the owner of Honey House Beekeeping Supplies, Vice President of the West Kootenay Beekeepers (local branch of the BCHPA), the education facilitator for the Bee Awareness Society, and the Director of Bee Education at Elk Root Conservation. Prior to getting involved in children’s education, Laena worked as a performance artist in theatre and film for ten years which has been helpful in giving her pollinator presentations some extra razzle dazzle!

She lives with her little family on their farm in West Glade. She has two kiddos who she raises with a nature-based, home-learning, outdoor education.

She’s passionate about teaching kids about pollinators. She strongly believes that we never stop learning from our pollinator buddies. They have so much to teach us about the world. Her teaching philosophy is rooted in fun, play, and kindness.

Mya Heibert
Community Relations & Outreach Assistant

Mya is a passionate and energetic part of the Elk Root Conservation Farm Society team who is committed to increasing food security in rural Canadian communities, one of which she is delighted to call home. She has spent the last 5 years working on both sustainable agriculture and beekeeping projects in Canada and Mozambique, and is currently most passionate about turning her theoretical knowledge into practical applications in the field.

As a Geography and Environmental Studies Graduate from the University of Victoria, Mya has developed a unique perspective when it comes to the ties between Sustainable Agriculture and Social Justice. Influenced by her time living in a rural subsistence farming community in Africa, working on organic farms in Canada, and her volunteer work with the University of Victoria’s Community Cabbage food redistribution initiative, she aspires to be a part of the climate and food security solution in the next stage of her career.

Isabella Kroker Kimber
Digital Designer & Administrative Assistant

Meet Isabella, ERC’s visionary artist. Her creativity and attention to detail is showcased in her beautiful illustrations for the Native Plant Guide, which will be an amazing educational resource accompanying ERC’s Native Plant Demonstration Gardens. Beyond her artistic talent, Isabella also helps manage ERC’s social media page, website, and organizes outreach activities such as the Spring Dahlia Fundraiser.

Raised in beautiful Nelson, BC, Isabella grew up with the natural world right outside her front door. From a young age, she has loved being out in nature through camping, exploring different hiking paths in the West Kootenays or simply being in the garden! In 2021, Isabella joined the ERC team and has supported its vision by assisting with administration tasks before turning her focus to more design-related projects in 2022 as the team grew.

Currently, Isabella is finishing an Honours Degree in Biochemistry at the University of Victoria with the hopes of pursuing a career in medicine. We know she will be a great success!