Liz Wiley is the Program Manager for Round the Bend Farm, a program of the Marion Institute, where she is developing infrastructure for a Learning Center that will accommodate workshops in food and farming, sustainability, health and wellness. Trained as a biologist, she helped pioneer methods to rescue mass stranded whales and dolphins, investigated the impact of noise on killer whales in the San Juan Islands and flew thousands of miles mapping the location of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.
While passionate about environmental protection, her experience as a woman in science led to a greater commitment in improving the lives of underserved women and the need to form healthy communities that combine environmental and social needs. In 2007, she began working for Bristol Community College (BCC) where she developed the highly successful WISE Women program, implemented multiple grant initiatives focused on workforce development, developed the Master Gardener program. and helped launch eHealth, an innovative private/public partnership that brought online health oriented programs to the college. During this time, Liz received her MS in Organizational Management and Leadership from Antioch University-New England, where her thesis focused on the ‘Role of Women in Creating and Maintaining Sustainable Communities’.
After spending much of 2011 living in New Zealand, Liz returned to BCC as the Director of the Green Center, a program focused on workforce training in support of the green economy. Under Liz’s direction, the Center grew into a major force for developing the green economy in the Southcoast region. She has taught courses at Boston University and BCC and is a certified yoga teacher. Liz and her family – Dave, Luke, Nathan, and Kaia – live in Wareham.