A native of St. Louis, Rachel grew up exploring Missouri’s creeks, rivers, and the wild spaces in between. She returned to her hometown in 2016 after spending a decade surfing, sailing, and advocating for clean water in San Diego. While in California, Rachel served as the Finance Director for Nature and Culture International, a global conservation organization, and as the Chief Financial Officer for San Diego Coastkeeper where she discovered the power of citizen-based advocacy and the strength of the Waterkeeper movement.

With a background in finance and tech and a passion for water, Rachel has dedicated her life to water issues. In San Diego she volunteered with the International Rescue Committee educating refugees about water use and conservation during droughts, and volunteered with Outdoor Outreach teaching at-risk youth to surf and be stewards of the oceans. As a Missouri Master Gardener, she focuses her efforts on water conservation, rainscaping, urban runoff, and blue green infrastructure. Rachel also leads data science projects related to predictive modeling of water quality and flooding, and volunteers teaching middle and high school girls to code.

Bob is an environmental attorney with a passion for protecting waterways and imperiled species that depend on clean water, such as freshwater mussels and amphibians.  In 2009 he graduated with honors from Southern Illinois University School of Law. In 2010, he received a Masters of Law (LLM) in Environmental and Natural Resources Law with honors from Lewis and Clark College Northwestern School of Law in Portland, Oregon.

He works in private practice and as a Staff Attorney with Great Rivers Environmental Law Center, where he works to enforce clean water laws and advocate for clean water policies.  Before joining Great Rivers, he served as Assistant Attorney General in the Missouri Attorney General’s Agriculture and Environment Division.

Bob and his family spend many hours on Missouri's creeks and streams, where they swim, wade, and explore.  Bob's favorite local waterway is Labarque Creek, a tributary to the Meramec.  On the weekends in the summer, you will likely find him there with his family finding crayfish and butterflies.

Emily’s commitment to clean water grew out of her time as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Philippines.  As a Coastal Resource Management Director, she worked with subsistence farmers and fishermen to rehabilitate inland waterways and coastal ecosystems and with regional governments to establish effective environmental policy.  Fishable waters took on new meaning as she experienced firsthand how agriculture impacts our waterways. 

Since returning to her home state of Missouri, Emily has worked on a small-scale diversified farm, managed a small farm business incubator for resettled refugees, and spent endless hours kayaking the state's rivers.  One of her favorite pastimes includes fossil hunting along the banks of western Missouri's streams.  Emily has an MBA in Finance from the University of Missouri Kansas City and a B.A. in Sociology and Anthropology from Truman State University. She is the managing director at Equity2, a mission-driven impact investment firm, and serves on the Boards of the Kansas City Food Policy Coalition and Cultivate Kansas City. 

Scott Mansker is a retired teacher and the founder and race director for the MR340, an endurance kayak and canoe race across the state of Missouri. It is the longest, continuous river race in the world. Scott also started the nonprofit organization Big Muddy Advocacy Partners to raise awareness of issues and opportunities to advocate for a healthier Missouri River watershed.

A graduate of Kansas State University, he also cofounded Rivermiles, a show about issues and people connected to the Missouri River that aired on PBS stations in Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri.