These individuals have special skills and extensive experience in various aspects of our project. This includes topics like botanical gardens, nonprofits, finance, government relations, and other areas of expertise. They assist in various capacities and on committees, teams, and departments as needed. They’re helping PBG become the premier botanical garden we’re on course to be. Not all of our advisors wish to be recognized on our website.
If you’d like to volunteer as an advisor, please email our Executive Director, Kate Bodin.
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Pronouns: he/him
Sean’s objective is to popularize the unlimited joys of the plant world through education, outreach, example, and contagious enthusiasm. Currently, his focus has been on the introduction of new and appropriate plants to Western North America, and specifically, the popularization of under-used and unknown plants for summer-dry climates.
Sean served as the Director of Collections at the Hoyt Arboretum and a Horticulturist at the University of California Berkeley Botanical Garden strengthening existing collections, designing new collections, and drawing larger audiences to the gardens.
Sean is the owner of
Cistus Design Nursery, a small firm specializing in public and private garden design, planning, public space planting design, nursery consultation, and the collection and introduction of new and appropriate plants. With over ten thousand taxa on site, Cistus furthers a nearly two-decade-long commitment to testing plant performance in the Portland area and providing interesting and unusual, climate-appropriate plants for the Pacific Northwest, the West, and beyond. Through extensive speaking and plant-collecting throughout the world, Sean continues to exchange his knowledge with diverse communities.
shogan@portlandbg.org
Karl Rapfogel
Land Acquisition
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Karl Rapfogel
Land Acquisition
Pronouns: he/him
At his core, Karl has always been a creator and a doer. He began his lifelong passion for creativity in St. Louis, home of MOBOT, one of the most exceptional botanical gardens in the world. He then moved to New York where he honed his artistic skills at New York University, while studying studio art. After his studies, Karl journeyed out west to Portland, where he is now Principal and Co-Owner at Green Gables Design & Restoration.
As a natural builder and problem solver, Karl brings a practical and unique attention to detail to PBG. He believes that curiosity and wonder are the spices of life, and that living in the moment should always be within an arm’s reach.
