Carole Koch, former chairperson of The Green Earth Institute, has joined the board of The Conservation Foundation, following a merger of the two conservation organizations in January of 2018.

Carole, who lives in Naperville, has been with Green Earth Institute since 2003 and in addition to volunteering, has served on its board of directors as well as producing marketing materials for the Community Supported Agriculture program.

She has worked as director of human resources at the University of Illinois Hospital & Clinics, and as Chief HR Officer/Associate Hospital Director at the U of I Medical Center in Chicago. Carole was a volunteer docent for 10 years at the Robert McCormick Museum, Cantigny Park, in Wheaton, and served on the board of directors for the Naperville Chorus for three years.

Carole received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and is a native Chicagoan who says she moved to the suburbs 38 years ago to escape the concrete.

“The local population was a mere 44,000 then, so I’ve seen first-hand how quickly open land can disappear and just how important it is to protect both our land and our rivers,” she said.

As far as what she hopes to accomplish as a trustee, she says there is much to learn and there are many opportunities in which to be involved.

“I will be focused on supporting the smooth transition of the Green Earth Institute into The Conservation Foundation,” says Carole. “I have been very impressed with what I’ve seen so far, and find the new Nature Rx initiative of particular interest.”