Nina Waters started as a private boater who grew increasingly tired of getting “skunked” on river permits. So she took a leap from her full-time job and dove headfirst into the world of multi-day guiding on the Yampa and Green Rivers through Dinosaur National Monument. Time spent deep in the canyons of Lodore sparked her passion for conservation, river access, and protecting these places for generations to come.

Wow, what a full circle paddling trip.

My lifelong connection with whitewater goes from being a self-taught paddler in the late 70’s to what will now be a chance to continue giving back through this higher level of involvement at AW as a new Board member. Looking forward to this next chapter. My paddling started in a raft on the lower Youghiogheny (Yough) at the age of 16 in 1977. As I rafted down with a group of excited friends I ended up watching the guys in the kayaks, as they got to repeat the fun which we only had one shot at! My response was to find an old, red fiberglass kayak with a fair amount of duct tape, a secondhand PFD, the marginal paddle that came with the boat and my hockey helmet! Geared up, I found a book in the library on how to kayak and roll! Showing my age here...forgive me as the circle is closing.

Kids and duckies in the Snake River, that’s where paddling restarts as I introduced my 14-year-old daughter, Alex and 11-year-old son, Max, to whitewater. They loved it and that summer they both attended River Sports kids’ camp in Confluence, PA. That went well and I joined them for a paddle on the Yough upon their graduation and was blown away by the outfitting of the new boats! Oh, how boats evolved from the late 1970’s to 2010. After a couple years at River Sports, Alex aged out and asked what she could do to keep learning to paddle. She furthered her education at New River Academy now World Class Academy in WV and we have enjoyed trips together to Otter Bar, Nepal, Chile and other international destinations.

Professionally, I spent my early years in Economic Development running non-profits with great board members who were community leaders that taught me a great deal. After finishing my MBA at PSU in State College, PA, while working in the ED space, I went into investment banking in Charlotte, NC and ended up running the in-house acquisition team, buying banks for a major US institution. Following the 4 years in banking I did my first leverage buyout of a small Construction company in my hometown of Pittsburgh. Since then, I have remained involved in Heavy Civil Construction, Robotics, Real Estate and Aviation related businesses.

I am very excited about continuing to expand my boating circle by assisting the AW team.

For me, conservation efforts, community outreach, and whitewater have always been linked. I began kayaking while traveling through East Africa, exploring the links between environmental conservation and local communities. I first became an AW member at Moose Fest, while living in the Northeast pursuing a Master of Environmental Science and completing my first full year of kayaking. AW provided me my first “real” job, helping to evaluate ecology research around the relicensing of the North Fork Feather River. This opportunity gave me a tremendous amount of insight into the complex management of relationships between stakeholders in a hydropower relicensing process. I respect the way that AW balances recreational needs, ecological considerations, and interactions with other stakeholder groups in relicensing and access projects. I look forward to contributing my knowledge of water quality, natural resource law, government agencies, and community outreach to further AW’s mission.

Lily Durkee started whitewater kayaking when she was 9 years old on the Potomac River near Washington, DC. Since then, her love of rivers, passion for conservation, and desire to share paddling with others have grown and matured. Lily understands the importance of paddling and river access because her experiences on whitewater as a young girl gave her confidence to be bold and strive for excellence both on and off the water. Now, she is the Co-Founder, President, and Events Director of the nonprofit Diversify Whitewater, which works to promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in paddlesports by removing the barriers that exist for Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and Allies in kayaking, canoeing, stand-up paddling, and rafting. She is also a full-time PhD student in Ecology at Colorado State University, where she studies evolutionary ecology and conservation, with a particular interest in aquatic insects. If elected to the AW Board, Lily will bring her unique perspectives, experience, and enthusiasm to the organization. She is excited about this opportunity to serve the paddling community and to protect the rivers that she has always loved and cherished.