MEET THE STAFF

Mark started his career as a volunteer firefighter in 1986 in Sonoma County. He was hired by the Marin County Fire Department as a Firefighter/Paramedic in 1991 and retired as the Deputy Fire Chief. After serving for nearly 30 years with the Marin County Fire Department, Mark retired in order to assume the position as Executive Officer for the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority. Mark served on a CAL FIRE Incident Management Team for 15 years as a Type I Operations Section Chief and was qualified as a Type II Incident Commander. Chief Brown was a founding member of the North Bay Incident Management Team, a Type III All-Hazards IMT in the San Francisco Bay Area and was the Program Manager and one of the Incident Commanders. His deployments include floods, earthquakes, public health emergencies, hurricanes, oil spills, mud slides, civil unrest, wildland fires and planned events. Mark has a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Studies – Organizational Leadership. He is married and has three adult children.

For the last two decades, Anne has worked in environmental planning, natural resources, water resources, climate adaptation, and fire resilience. While working for a water district in Sonoma County, Anne helped create and lead a collaborative effort to improve fire resilience to improve forest health, watershed health, public safety and protect water resources. A case study describing her work in the Lake Sonoma watershed is featured by the Governor’s Office of Planning & Research as part of the Integrated Climate Adaptation & Resiliency Program’s Adaptation Clearinghouse. After the devastating fires of 2017, Anne trained to become a wildland fire fighter to help conduct prescribed burns across the North Bay and continues to serve on the steering committee of a prescribed burn association. Anne also led Sonoma County’s team for natural resources recovery after the Glass and Walbridge fires of 2020. Anne’s passion for fire resilience and climate adaptation brought her to the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA) in 2021 as the Planning & Program Manager where she has been working with consultants, stakeholders, and Member Agencies to build an environmental compliance program to address wildfire risk reduction projects efficiently while also incorporating ecological stewardship. To date, well over 30 vegetation management projects have gone through environmental compliance and are currently being implemented. Anne holds a Bachelor of Science in Biological Studies and a Master of Science in Environmental Studies.

Steven is a Vegetation Management Specialist (VMS) for MWPA. In his role, Steven coordinates fuel reduction efforts throughout Marin to reduce wildfire risk as well as managing MWPA’s Chipper Day Program. Steven graduated from the University of San Francisco in 2020 with a Master of Science in Environmental Management with an emphasis in environmental health and hazards. During his time at USF, Steven worked to develop a study of the effects wildfires within the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) would have on both surface and ground water sources. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Science from Willamette University. Steven has previously worked for the City of Chico, CA, where he focused on Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) policies to aid the city in absorbing population growth due to the Camp Fire in nearby Paradise, CA. He joined the MWPA in 2022 after previously working for Fire Safe Marin, where he worked closely with many of MWPA’s member agencies and expanded the Chipper Day Program after taking over management at the start of its second season. A Marin County native, Steven has spent much of his life exploring the beauty that Marin has to offer and has a passion for preserving its natural resources for years to come. In his free time, he enjoys hiking, bicycling, backpacking, and playing rugby for a local club.

Martina Wilson is Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority’s Management Analyst. She is responsible for MWPA’s administrative functions which includes clerking for the Board of Directors and providing direct assistance to MWPA’s Executive Officer, Planning and Program Manager, office team, and its member agencies. Martina has served as an office manager, executive assistant, and as advisor to East Bay non-profit organizations dedicated to family and youth empowerment. Martina received her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Human Development from California State University of the East Bay. Her passion for helping others and administrative experience lead her to MWPA following roles in the 0ffice of the General Manager, and the Office of Diversity, Equity and Culture at East Bay MUD. Martina’s interest in vegetation management comes from her love of hiking the Bay Area’s vast network of trails and regional parks. She is committed to MWPA’s fire resilience effort, made possible by Marin County voter support for Measure C and hopes to one day take the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT). In her free time Martina loves to read, hike, and spend time with her fiancé, family, and friends.

After graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in 2021 with a B.S. in Business Administration-Marketing and a minor in Sustainable Environments Josh dove into the world of fire adaptation through a year-long Grizzly Corps fellowship with the MWPA. He has enjoyed contributing to the organizational development of the MWPA, helping to develop programs and processes that further MWPA's mission, as well as engaging with the public to learn about the challenges and motivators of residents in their personal efforts towards fire adaptation. Last year, Josh had the opportunity to further these two pursuits working for Fire Safe Marin as the county's Firewise liaison, while continuing to work directly on MWPA projects and procedures. In September, Josh transitioned to the role of Grants Specialist, continuing the work of his Grizzly Corps co-fellow, Maria Schmitt, in designing and managing a resident grants program that reduces the financial burden of on-parcel fire hazard mitigation for residents. Josh's motivation for working in natural resources is driven by his favorite recreational activities: climbing, hiking & surfing.

Jacob was born and raised in San Diego, California, and developed a passion for environmentalism and fire resilience from a young age. He graduated from UC Berkeley with a degree in environmental policy and forestry, and taught an undergraduate course on California Traditional Ecological Knowledge. Before joining the Marin Wildfire as a Vegetation Management Specialist, he worked with Berkeley Forests measuring fire severity and management tools in the Dixie and North Complex Fires, and worked in Transportation Planning with the City and County of San Francisco. As a Vegetation Management Specialist, he plans and implements landscape scale fuels reduction projects, and helps lead Marin Wildfire's long term monitoring and Geographic Information Systems programs. He volunteers as a prescribed fire practitioner with Prescribed Burn Associations across the state, and serves as a Fire Effects Monitor. He lives in Berkeley with his partner and cat, and loves hiking, backpacking, cooking, and leatherworking.

Ted Briggs is a Vegetation Management Specialist focused on mitigating wildfire risk in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) by planning, coordinating, and executing wildland fuel reduction projects. He started his career as a Volunteer Firefighter in Farmington, CA. He was then hired by Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo as Firefighter/EMT, and finally served as a Reserve Firefighter for the City of Sacramento. After 5 years in the fire service, Ted spent 2 years working as an Environmental Planner for EIP Associates in Sacramento conducting land use, soils, and biotic surveys, and preparing assessments under CEQA and NEPA. He then spent nearly 30 years in supply chain and procurement, working in a number of industries and locations across the globe, including 6 years in the arctic (Prudhoe Bay, Alaska), across Europe and Asia, and in Africa. While in Alaska, he served as the Logistics Section Chief on the North Slope Incident Management Team, with deployments including extreme weather events and a river flood event that threatened the health and welfare of 2,500 oilfield workers. Ted holds a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management, a Bachelor of Science in Computer Studies, and an MBA. Ted lives in Santa Rosa, and after experiencing the North Bay fires, enlisted in the California State Guard where he currently serves as a Wildland Firefighter.

Kathleen Cutter began her career with the US Forest Service, working as an archaeologist and extending her seasonal work by joining a hand crew fighting fires in the Southwest and the Mountain West. Injury and family life temporarily detoured Cutter’s career. However, her passion for fire prevention brought her back to the field, where she began serving Marin County at Fire Safe Marin as a Firewise Liaison and the program administrator for the first free county-wide curbside chipper program. At Fire Safe Marin, her efforts aimed at reducing wildfire risk through community engagement, empowerment, and connecting residents with a convenient means of removing unwanted vegetation. In 2021, Cutter joined the Ross Valley Fire Department as a Wildfire Mitigation Specialist and Lead Inspector for the largest Defensible Space Inspection program in Marin County and the State of California. Under her leadership, her team piloted and helped to advanced Fire Aside Software, the most comprehensive system for evaluating defensible space. Over the next three years, the program expanded to include Southern Marin, and her team completed over 50,000 inspections of residential properties, leading to significant risk reduction and enhanced safety for countless homes, setting a benchmark for fire prevention and mitigation efforts statewide. In the spring of 2024, Marin Wildfire assumed oversight of the Defensible Space program and brought Cutter on board. When Kathleen is not working, she enjoys spending time volunteering as a Marin Master Gardener and for her neighborhood Firewise site. She also enjoys spending time with her husband and adult children, preferably in the great outdoors on a river raft.

David started his career as a volunteer firefighter in 1988 with the Kentfield Fire District. He was hired full-time by Kentfield Fire as a Firefighter in 1991 and retired as a Battalion Chief after serving nearly 36 years. David’s career has been defined by a deep commitment to training and the development of firefighters of all ranks. The last 6 years of David's career was as an Operational Battalion Chief under a shared service agreement with the Kentfield Fire District and the Central Marin Fire Department. David was deployed throughout the state as a Strike Team Leader, Safety Officer, and Public Information Officer. David’s deployments include wildfires, floods, hurricanes, oil spills, and mudslides. David was also involved in the Marin County US&R Team, Water Rescue Team, Investigation Team, Hazardous Material Team and North Bay Incident Management Team. David was hired as a Senior Wildfire Mitigation Specialist for the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority, serving in the Defensible Space Inspection Program. David will be heavily involved in the operations and training side of the program. David has an associate’s degree in Fire Science and has received a Medal of Valor from the Marin County Board of Supervisors. He is married and has two adult children.