SAN LUIS VALLEY— We are extremely pleased to introduce and welcome Andy Brown as Rio Grande Headwaters Land Trust (RIGHT) as new Eexecutive Director. Andy joined the RiGHT team this May and comes to the San Luis Valley from western North Carolina where he has a home and family in Asheville and a small farm on Roan Mountain that produces Christmas trees, blueberries and heirloom apples. A deep love for the Rio Grande basin and the desert southwest has drawn him to join forces with the board and staff of RiGHT and its many collaborative partners to help protect and enhance the natural and cultural qualities of the San Luis Valley.
Andy holds an undergraduate degree in Cultural Anthropology and a Master of Public Administration degree with a concentration in Environmental Policy and Planning. Previously, he served as Trout Unlimited's Coldwater Conservation Manager for the four-state southern Appalachian region. Prior to his time with Trout Unlimited, he created and directed a for-profit environmental consulting firm for 14 years called Equinox with a mission to facilitate conservation and sustainable development. Throughout his 25-year professional career, he has volunteered on the boards of a land trust and an environmental advocacy group and coached his daughters’ basketball teams. He is also a stonemason and has great appreciation for the construction trades and people who work in them.
When not working on conservation, he can often be found exploring various trails and scenic byways or hanging out with family and friends in the area’s craft breweries and restaurants, sampling the creations of these local entrepreneurs. Andy is also a mindfulness practitioner, and if you share this interest, you might run into him at the region’s various monasteries or other indoor and outdoor contemplative spaces.
If you'd like to reach out to Andy and give him a warm welcome to our RiGHT team, contact him at [email protected].
Andy getting some work done at the farm on Roan Mountain
