Our Team

Joe is the publisher of the Sierra Nevada Ally. He manages the nonprofit’s fiduciary responsibilities, fundraising- business operations and public-interest partnership development. He edits the Ally’s Community/Culture Page. He served in the US Army from 1968-1971. He’s held supervisory positions in the Nevada state government, as an education program director at the Nevada state prison, the executive director of the Brewery Arts Center, and Carson City’s economic development and redevelopment director. In 2017, he founded and launched KNVC, 95.1 fm, Carson City’s 501c3 nonprofit FCC-licensed Community Radio Station.

Noah Glick is an award-winning journalist, audio and podcast producer, and writer, whose work has been heard nationally on NPR, Marketplace, Here & Now, and more. He is a multiple regional Edward R. Murrow Award winner for his reporting on climate, energy, and housing.

Noah brings his years of experience to the Sierra Nevada Ally, where he will serve as Executive Editor, overseeing the organization’s content strategy, audio production, and editorial oversight. His goal is to create content that helps readers become more informed about the world around them and to inspire everyone to think more critically and see the world with a little more kindness and understanding.

Scott King is an award-winning reporter, multimedia producer, videographer and strategist who leads Sierra Nevada Ally’s outreach efforts with communities and individuals, and oversees operations to ensure the Ally is fulfilling its mission.

Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Scott King earned a Master’s degree in Media Innovation at the University of Nevada, Reno. Scott previously received a Bachelor’s degree in Professional Writing with a minor in Marketing from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. Before enrolling at UNR, Scott served for two years as a literacy instructor with the Peace Corps in the community of Gouyave, Grenada. He has contributed to other local publications in the Northern Nevada region, such as Our Town Reno and The Hitchcock Project for Visualizing Science. Scott has additional experience as a writer and videographer for the Air & Space Forces Magazine.

Richard Bednarski is a freelance multimedia journalist living on the eastern slope of the northern Sierra Nevada. With a master’s degree in journalism, he mainly focuses on local stories centered around the environment, climate change, agriculture, and social justice. He is currently working on a book about conservation and Wilderness in Nevada. Beyond writing and photography, Richard was the cinematographer and editor for the award-winning short documentary film Piconland.

He can be found riding his bike, gardening, and raising two daughters when not creating stories.

Hannah Truby is a reporter, photographer, and managing editor at The Sierra Nevada Ally, specializing in long-form features and explanatory journalism. Her work explores the intersections of civic life, culture, and the environment, with a focus on human-centered, nuanced storytelling. She holds a Master’s in Journalism from the University of Nevada, Reno, and a B.A. in English and German linguistics, bringing a deep reverence for language, culture, and place to every story she tells.

Alex Couraud is a passionate multimedia journalist who gained an interest in storytelling during her time serving abroad in Peace Corps Guatemala. She has earned a master’s degree in media innovation and journalism from the University of Nevada, Reno, and has produced bilingual coverage for award winning news outlets including The Nevada Independent, KUNR, Noticiero Móvil, and The Purple Principle Podcast. She has a keen interest in reporting on underserved communities and covering cross-cultural stories– highlighting unheard voices within communities.

Vanesa de la Cruz Pavas is a Colombian science communicator and environmental journalist with an MA in Media Innovation from the University of Nevada, Reno. She uses multimedia storytelling to spotlight issues in science, the environment, health, and climate justice, and is committed to bridging science and society by amplifying underrepresented voices in the United States. When she’s not working, you can find her biking, reading, or dancing to Latin music.

Alejandra is a visual artist who works with photography and mix-media, and often embeds herself into different cultures and subcultures. A member of the Yavapai-Apache Nation, Alejandra grew up in Camp Verde, a rural river valley in northern Arizona, where she learned the value of the interdependent relationships between land, culture, and community.

Her photography has covered a diverse set of topics, including brothels, motel living, drugs, protests, biker gangs, and Native American ceremonies. She works to provide an analytical, compassionate, and uniquely Native American lens from which to view, engage, learn and share the full range of human emotion and experience across cultures and subcultures — off the reservation and on.

Matt Johanson enjoys hiking, climbing, skiing and writing about the outdoors. His books include “Yosemite Epics,” and “Yosemite Adventures” and “California Summits.” You can find more of his writing at mattjohanson.com.

Susan served as the executive director of the Nevada Arts Council for 24 years, from 1993 to 2017. During her tenure, she professionalized every aspect of the Arts Council’s responsibilities, its grants programs in particular. She worked tirelessly every day to elevate awareness and boost nationwide recognition of Nevada’s artists in dance, theater, music, visual and literary arts.

During her stint at the Nevada Arts Council, she added her expertise in board development to numerous regional and national boards including the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies and the Western States Arts Federation, and sat on the state partnership grants panel for the National Endowment for the Arts. She currently serves on the boards of the Utah Repertory Dance Company, Truckee Meadows Tomorrow, PBS Reno’s Community Advisory Board, and Noteable Music Therapy Services.

She has a bachelor’s degree from Wisconsin-Madison in communication, film, radio, and television.

Sondra Cosgrove is a history professor at the College of Southern Nevada, where she teaches U.S., Native American, and Latin American history. She is also the Executive Director of Vote Nevada, a community-oriented civic education nonprofit. Direct democracy is something Sondra promotes as an important tool for strengthening our governing systems. As an educator, Sondra empowers every civic engager to participate actively in our democracy.

Colin Loretz is a technology advocate, software developer, and community builder with a deep commitment to civic tech and local innovation. As the founder of Reno Collective, he has been building a collaborative workspace for over a decade, supporting Northern Nevada’s creative and tech communities. Colin has co-hosted civic tech events in Reno with Code for America to foster public-minded tech solutions. Colin brings his expertise in technology and community building to help advance the Sierra Nevada Ally’s mission to further elevate environmental awareness and civic engagement in the Sierra Nevada region.

John Marshall has a successful legal career working with governmental regulation and the protection of natural resources. His skills range from strategic negotiations, operations and governance, environmental impacts, and long-range local and regional community planning.

Since 1998, John has been general counsel for the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. Marshall graduated from Oberlin College and received his law degree from the University of California Davis.

He lives with his wife Jeanette in Reno. They both love the area with its access to the outdoors: hiking, biking, camping, skiing, and the full range of activities the Sierra offers.

Vanessa Vancour is a strategic consultant, DEIAB speaker, and status-quo skeptic who lives to tell inclusive stories. She is the founder of Vancourage, a bilingual strategic storytelling firm for brands, organizations, and people who are deeply committed to amplifying diverse voices and doing things differently. Vanessa has dedicated her 18+-year career to bringing diverse narratives—and meaningful conversations—to every newsroom, classroom, and ad-agency boardroom she’s been a part of.