Staff/Contact Us

Nelson Villarrubia

Executive Director

Nelson is Trees New York’s Executive Director. Nelson’s innovative and results-oriented non-profit leadership coupled with his passion for environmental and economic development have introduced a host of innovative new projects and programs, including the Young Urban Forester Internship and FruiTrees New York. Over the last few years, Nelson has made several keen personnel choices, while also bringing strong and creative new board leaders to the organization.

In addition to his aptitude in managing people, projects, and fundraising, Nelson’s wide-ranging experience in program management, strategic partnerships, and community engagement brings multiple stakeholders together to drive positive and substantive change. As a strong collaborator, he has forged fruitful partnerships with a diverse range of groups, including civic and government officials, foundations, and business leaders such as New York State RELeaf, Forest For All NYC, and the New York City Housing Authority.

Nelson has an MS in Urban Affairs with a concentration in Environmental Policy.

CONTACT: (e) nelson@treesny.org

Samuel A. Bishop II

Director of Education + Arborist

Sam is Trees New York’s Director of Urban Forestry and Education. Sam has over ten years of experience in urban and community forestry. He oversees all adult environmental education programs, tree plantings and green infrastructure projects.

Sam’s passion for trees is apparent in all that he does. When he isn’t teaching, he is out planting or pruning or huddled over a book researching. If he doesn’t already know the answer to your question, he will soon. As we like to say in the office, “Sam eats, breathes and sleeps trees”. We are lucky to have such a committed expert on our team.

Sam is an ISA Board Certified Master Arborist and Municipal Specialist.

CONTACT: (e) sam@treesny.org

Luis Figueroa

Development & Communications Manager

Luis is Trees New York’s Development & Communications Specialist. His love for New York City’s public spaces drives his professional focus towards fundraising for causes related to environmental stewardship and equitable urban design. His effective communication skills are valuable traits he brings to Trees New York, where he manages our community outreach efforts and recruits diverse stakeholders to fund and participate in the organization’s environmental education and stewardship programs. Luis’s enthusiasm and ability to promote Trees New York’s mission plays an essential role in developing and implementing mixed media strategies that increase the organization’s visibility and strengthen its capacity to sustain its programs designed to plant, preserve, and protect New York City’s urban forest.

Luis has a BS from Pace University.

CONTACT: (e) luis@treesny.org

Sarah Balistreri

Environmental Educator

Sarah Balistreri is a lifelong educator and environmentalist. She spent a decade teaching English in schools in New York City, Mexico, Chile, and China and later transitioned her passion for teaching into curriculum development. One day, Sarah took a tree identification class in North Brooklyn that opened her eyes to the beauty and benefits of the urban forest. Within a few years, Sarah became a Citizen Pruner, co-founded a neighborhood volunteer corps focused on tree stewardship, orchestrated a successful adopt-a-tree program, led community tree walks, and eventually joined Trees New York as an environmental educator. Sarah relishes in delivering engaging, standards-aligned lessons on the urban forest to students across the five boroughs.

CONTACT: (e) sarah@treesny.org

Christina McLaughlin

Environmental Educator

Christina is an Environmental Educator for Trees New York’s urban forestry programs with a passion for public outreach and community engagement. She previously served as a Natural Resource Educator for the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County. She has experience hosting and coordinating informal education programs and workshops spanning such subjects as marine science, urban forestry and other related environmental topics. When Christina is not “speaking for the trees”, she can be found working on her creative writing endeavors or whittling down her endless piles of books – scientific and creative alike. Christina guides her passion as a educator through the lens of the famous quote by Baba Dioum, “In the end, we only conserve what we love; we only love what we understand and we only understand what we are taught.”

CONTACT: (e) christina@treesny.org

Madison “Maddy” Lopez-Molina

Environmental Educator

Maddy is an Environmental Educator for Trees New York’s youth programs. Maddy is a New Yorker, born and raised, and is enthusiastic to bring her passion for urban forestry and environmental justice to NYC youth. She previously served as a Seasonal Environmental Educator at the Hudson River Park Trust and is excited to bring her knowledge on estuarian ecosystems to Trees New York as well. When she’s not teaching, you can find her curled up with a book and listening to new music.

Maddy has a B.A. in Environmental Science with a concentration in Policy from Clark University.

Contact: (e) madison@treesny.org