Our Team

Meet the Team

Meet the Plastic Pollution Coalition team—a small but mighty group of change-makers working toward a world free from plastic pollution.

Dianna Cohen

Co-Founder & CEO
of Plastic Pollution Coalition and a passionate advocate against plastic pollution… Read More

Julia Cohen

Co-Founder & Managing Director
of Plastic Pollution Coalition, based in Washington, D.C… Read More

Jen Fela

Vice President, Programs & Communications
for Plastic Pollution Coalition, based in Alexandria, Virginia… Read More

Founder of The Last Plastic Straw and Advocacy & Engagement Manager
created the No Plastic Straws movement when she founded The Last Plastic Straw in 2011 as a volunteer project for Save Our Shores… Read More

Amelia Hanson

Project Manager
at PPC…Read More

Erica Cirino

Communications Manager
at PPC…Read More

Aidan Maguire

Coalition Program Manager
at PPC…Read More

Madison Dennis

Project Manager
at PPC…Read More

Kristin Getz

Operations & Finance Manager
at PPC…Read More

Alex Patton

Development Manager
at PPC…Read More

Dianna Cohen

Co-Founder & CEO
of Plastic Pollution Coalition and a passionate advocate against plastic pollution… Read More

Dianna Cohen (she/her) is Co-Founder and CEO of Plastic Pollution Coalition (PPC) and a passionate advocate for a world free from plastic pollution. A Los Angeles based visual artist, Dianna has shown her work internationally at galleries, foundations, and museums. She uses plastic in her artwork to make a visual and social impact. With plastic bags as her primary material for more than 30 years, Dianna is interested in exploring its materiality through modifications and the material’s relationship to culture, media, toxicity, and the world at large and shared this in her 2010 TED talk “Tough Truths About Plastic Pollution.”

Dianna is a frequent speaker and guest and has spoken at the UN and international conferences and symposia, and has been interviewed by Al Jazeera, NBC Nightly News, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, USA Today, Martha Stewart Living, and many others. She is the recipient of the Global Green Environment Award, the Snow Angel Award, and Environmentalist of the Year by SIMA, among others. Dianna studied Biology, Art, and Film at the University of California, Los Angeles and holds a BA in Fine Arts.

Julia Cohen

Co-Founder & Managing Director
of Plastic Pollution Coalition, based in Washington, D.C… Read More

Julia Cohen (she/her) is Co-Founder and Managing Director of Plastic Pollution Coalition, based in Washington, D.C. Julia has nearly three decades of experience in leading executive, strategic, communications, fundraising, and outreach efforts for a wide range of government, entertainment, and non-profit groups.

She has served in leadership positions with numerous organizations, including Environmental Working Group (EWG), Woman’s National Democratic Club (WNDC), MADE SAFE, National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), Save The Children’s YouthNoise, Youth Vote Coalition, Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), Rock The Vote, and as a Program Officer, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, US State Department.

Julia has spoken at corporate headquarters, political conventions, and international conferences and symposia. She serves on the U.S. Movement Support Team of the Break Free From Plastic movement. She is the recipient of the Leadership Award from Four Generation of Leaders in Clean Energy & Sustainable Solutions.

She holds a BA in Modern Society and Social Thought from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a Masters in Public Health from the University of California, Berkeley.

Jen Fela

Vice President, Programs & Communications
for Plastic Pollution Coalition, based in Alexandria, Virginia… Read More

Jen Fela (she/her) is the Vice President, Programs & Communications for Plastic Pollution Coalition. She has more than two decades of experience communicating about environmental issues for various national and international organizations, including Ecological Society of America, the International Council on Clean Transportation, and Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. She also has extensive experience in strategic planning and managing teams to create and achieve shared goals.

Jen has been focused on the plastic pollution crisis for many years—first as a journalist, then at Plastic Soup Foundation (Amsterdam, Netherlands), and more recently on the Greenpeace global plastics team. She has engaged with a variety of audiences about the plastic pollution crisis and solutions, including companies, investors, and the general public, and has a broad network of friends and colleagues in the global Break Free From Plastic movement.

Jen has dual Bachelor’s degrees in Environmental Science and English/Writing from Wilkes University, and certificates in (Corporate) Sustainable Management (Duke University) and Leadership and Supervisory Management (American Society of Association Executives).

Jackie Nuñez

Jackie Nuñez (she/her) is the daughter of Cuban immigrants who has spent most of her life living in various locations in the United States and Puerto Rico. She has a BS in Health and a AS in Horticulture with permaculture training and spent many years in California, where she worked as a landscape designer/gardener, sea kayak and river guide.

Jackie’s passion for travel, ocean sports, the environment, and community service inspired her to create The Last Plastic Straw, with a mission to educate the public about the absurdity of single-use plastic, and its impacts on our health, environment, and oceans. With The Last Plastic Straw and as Advocacy & Engagement Manager for Plastic Pollution Coalition, Jackie has been a force to help shift policy away from single-use plastic at the local, state, federal, and international levels. Recently relocated from Santa Cruz, California, she now makes her home in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, where she continues to teach people of all ages how to “speak truth to plastic” and be an agent for change in their communities.

Amelia Hanson

Project Manager
at PPC…Read More

Amelia Hanson (she/they) is the Project Manager at Plastic Pollution Coalition, focusing on the Flip the Script on Plastics initiative. Amelia comes from the social media and entertainment world, where she worked in People and Operations for over 5 years. With a background in theater, production and customer service, Amelia believes that people and their stories are the best foundations for powerful work.

Amelia has a degree in Television Scriptwriting from Ithaca College, where she also studied Theater Arts and Religious Studies. She has studied and volunteered in Oxford, London, Cuba and El Salvador. In her spare time, Amelia has a passion for houseplants, television, and embroidery. Raised as a Quaker in Minnesota, Amelia has an ingrained reverence for nature and our planet, and is thrilled to be a part of this team working to rid the world of plastic pollution.

Erica Cirino

Communications Manager
at PPC…Read More

Erica Cirino (she/her) is the Communications Manager of Plastic Pollution Coalition. She has spent the last decade working as a writer, artist, and author who explores the intersection of the human and more-than-human worlds. Erica is best known for her widely published photojournalistic works that cut through plastic industry misinformation to deliver the often shocking and difficult truths about plastic—the most ubiquitous and insidious manmade material on Earth. This includes her award-winning book, Thicker Than Water: The Quest for Solutions to the Plastic Crisis (Island Press, 2021), in which she documents plastic across ecosystems and elements; shares stories from the primarily Black, Brown, Indigenous, poor, and rural communities that are disproportionately harmed by industrial pollution and injustice globally; and uncovers strategies that work to prevent plastic from causing further devastation to our planet and its inhabitants. Erica holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies with a Minor in Environmental Humanities and a Master of Science in Journalism degree from Stony Brook University.

Aidan Maguire

Coalition Program Manager
at PPC…Read More

Aidan Maguire (he/him) is the Coalition Program Manager for Plastic Pollution Coalition. Guided by systems, he believes in the power of cross-sector collaboration to address our global plastic waste crisis. Aidan brings over 5 years of experience in business management, which recently has included consulting projects and reporting focused on scaling innovative alternatives to plastics. He is completing two Master’s degrees in business and public administration with an emphasis on sustainability and social justice from Presidio Graduate School.

He is driven to protect our natural world by eliminating plastic dependency in business and beyond. When not working on this issue, he is most likely trekking through a Northern California wilderness, playing soccer with friends, or making refillable candles.

Madison Dennis

Project Manager
at PPC…Read More

Madison Dennis (she/her) is a Project Manager for Plastic Pollution Coalition. Madison has over three years of experience in environmental advocacy and communications. She has led campaigns across local, federal, and international communities to protect marine wildlife, bolster clean energy, and expand digital equity. In her work, Madison prioritizes systems based, collaborative solutions that center the impacted communities and environment.

Madison has a BS in Global Resource Systems from the University of British Columbia, focusing on marine biology and conservation. While earning her degree, she witnessed the devastating impacts of plastic pollution on our oceans, but also the communities who rely on ocean systems for food, income, and way of life. She is excited to minimize our reliance on plastics and advocate for a sustainable future with PPC. When not advocating, you can find Madison backpacking, mountain biking, or poking around the tide pools.

Kristin Getz

Operations & Finance Manager
at PPC…Read More

Kristin (she/her) is the Operations & Finance Manager at Plastic Pollution Coalition. Kristin brings almost a decade of nonprofit, administrative, and operations experience to the team, most recently having worked within the organic agriculture industry where she provided both internal operations support and customer service to producers seeking organic certification. Kristin has an “all hands on deck” approach when it comes to supporting organizations. She has supported Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work, participated in brand refresh initiatives, researched industry standards and performed crop input reviews, and volunteered on sustainable farms.

Kristin received her Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Lock Haven University. During a college ecotourism course in the Yucatan Peninsula, she participated in a beach cleanup where she saw first-hand plastic pollution’s devastation on natural areas and wildlife, which reaffirmed her commitment to stopping plastic pollution, sustainability, and climate justice. In her spare time, Kristin enjoys kayaking in nearby rivers and creeks, reading, and dabbling in various arts and crafts.

Alex Patton

Development Manager
at PPC…Read More

Alex Patton (he/him) is the Development Manager at Plastic Pollution Coalition. Alex has over a decade of environmental nonprofit experience from serving in various roles on the fundraising and communications teams at Food & Water Watch. More recently, he worked as an analyst for the U.S. federal government, where he gained valuable experience writing and editing evaluations of government programs. After deciding that he wanted to return to working for a cause that he felt more passionate about, he enthusiastically joined Plastic Pollution Coalition. As a father of two young children, Alex wants to help free the world of plastic pollution for future generations. He has a BA in sociology from the University of Illinois. In addition to spending time with his kids, Alex is an avid reader and runner.

Executive Advisory Board
Andrea Arria-Devoe
Jackson Browne
Michael Dorsey
Elyssa Elbaz
Michelle Esrick
Annie Farman
Peter Gilmer
John Gorman
Asher Jay
Ann Luskey
Charlotte Weir
Heather White
Alexa Woodward

Our Team

Meet the Team

To Stop Plastic Pollution