BEC Staff
Meet our small but mighty team of environmental educators and advocates!Consider becoming a member of BEC to help sustain the momentum of our grassroots organization.
Patrizia Hironimus
Executive Director
Patrizia (she/they) was born in Peru, and raised in occupied Kojomk’awi (Konkow) land in Northern California, so-called Oroville. She culminated her studies at UC Berkeley – their thesis combined Clinical Psychology, Medical Anthropology, and Political Science, as well as a minor in the Practice of Art. Previously, they managed the office of Butte County Supervisor Debra Lucero, working with Butte County department heads, local non-profits, constituents, and stakeholders on policy for food sovereignty. She’s also served on the Camp Fire Restoration Project Board of Directors, and is active with Butte County Local Food Network. Her areas of social activism include BIPOC equity, racial justice, agrovoltaics, trauma informed therapy, carbon-smart commodities, and seed banking. Patrizia and her pup Sassafras can be found surveying local aquifers this summer or at the farmers markets connecting with certified producers about key issues like drought & wildfire relief. Their passion is food, mutual aid and connecting innovative makers.
Miranda Kokoszka
Assistant Director
Miranda was born and raised in San Diego, CA. When not at work or in school, she was found somewhere along the beach, climbing trees or out on an adventure somewhere. In 2019, she decided to leave the beach scene and move to Northern California. Miranda got a B.S in Recreation, Hospitality and Parks Management with an emphasis in Natural Resource Management from Chico State in 2021. Congruently, she began her career in urban forestry while working at BEC as an undergrad, as the Urban Forest Coordinator Intern, coordinating residential tree planting events. This job position sparked her passion for trees and speaking for the voiceless. Currently, Miranda is the new Assistant Director and working towards her goal of becoming a professional Urban Forester.
California Climate Action Corps Fellows
Donna Garrison
Bookkeeper
Growing and cooking organic food has always been one of Donna’s greatest passions, and being able to purchase and eat local has been a privilege wherever she’s lived. Having an abundance of farms in close proximity makes Butte County such an enriched community! Donna loves supporting farmers markets and developing beautiful relationships with many of the farmers in Butte and nearby counties. She works with Butte County Local Food Network, helping to manage the Marketmobile, which brings fresh organic and clean local “groceries” to our nearby communities. Beyond food, Donna supports her community as Treasurer for multiple organizations, and has organized over 30 fundraisers over the decades, many featuring local ingredients.
Morgan Collings
Morgan (she/her) was born and raised in Victoria, Australia and moved to Chico in 2022. Before coming to BEC, she was a forestry corps-member with the California Conservation Corps in Chico where she learned how to use a chainsaw, responded to emergencies such as floods and fires, and removed invasive species including star thistle at BCCER. She is a certified California Naturalist and completed the Utility Line Arborist Training program with Butte College. She joined BEC in 2023 hoping to find new ways to educate her community, especially young people, about food waste management. Morgan's dream is to become a Montessori teacher with a focus on outdoor education. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with children and be part of BEC's RARE program. In her free time, Morgan enjoys creating mixed media art using watercolors and colored pencils to create colorful, surreal pieces. And if you're wondering, she doesn't have an Australian accent unless she's very angry!
Katie Hawley
Katie (she/her) was born and raised in San Diego. Often found camping with her adventurous family of 5 in the Anza Borrego desert or Carlsbad Beach, Katie spent most of her childhood swimming in the ocean and catching lizards. She moved to Chico to pursue her Bachelor's in Criminal Justice, Masters in Political Science (in-progress), and to run on the cross country and track team at Chico State University. She worked as an aide for the Department of Parks and Recreation maintaining Bidwell Mansion, then moved into Operations Management for a local start-up vacation rental business. Her free time is filled with reading books on topics about community-focused city planning, international history, and environmental justice which motivated her to pursue a career in climate action.
Noah Herbst
Noah (he/him) was born and raised in Modesto. Tired of Modesto but not of the Central Valley’s beauty, he landed in Chico to further his education, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in Journalism. He is currently serving with the California Climate Action Corps at BEC. Since he can remember, he has always been passionate about humanity’s relationship with their surrounding ecosystems, and fell in love with telling the stories of those with connections to it. He looks forward to bringing his communication skills, both written and oral, as well as research abilities to BEC while seeking to make a meaningful and measurable impact. When not working to provide a better future, he’s either hiking and enjoying the natural beauty Chico has to offer, burying his nose in a book, or attempting to write one of his own.
Olivia Henderson
Olivia (she/her) was born and raised in Red Buff, and considers the North State home. She comes to Butte Environmental Council as a California Climate Actions Corps Fellow after finishing a term of service with AmeriCorps’ National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC). Olivia served as a NCCC Team Leader out of the Southwest Region, where she traveled to Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri. While serving, she quickly gained a passion for Environmental Stewardship. She hopes to bring her skills in Urban Forestry and Community Development to her year as a Fellow with BEC. When Olivia isn’t serving you can find her exploring Chico with her partner, Emily and their dog Eliza. Olivia is also an avid angler, enjoys hiking, good craft beer, and recently developed a fascination with pickleball.