Established in 1976

Our endeavors in bioregional education started in 1976 with the publishing of Okanogan Natural News. In 1986 we became the Columbia River Bioregional Education Project (aka Columbiana) changing from a full-run-of-the-press newspaper to a magazine format. Our publishing vehicle became Columbiana Magazine which we published for 12 years. Then we developed our Web publishing as Columbiana Online.​

Our Mission

The mission of Columbiana is to promote a context of economic and social development which sustains the health, beauty and structure of the Indigenous ecosystems and culture of the Intermountain West Bioregion.

Our Team

McKenna McShane
Board Chair

McKenna is passionate about enacting change on the community level to create long lasting and sustainable 
​environmental restoration and conservation efforts within the Pacific Northwest. 
​She would like to see Columbiana begin to foster educational programs to educate the next generation in land stewardship, environmental sciences, and the history of the region.
​Being involved with and witnessing so many successful organizations work within our community inspires me to bring those ideas to our board and create a collaborative network bridging the geographical gap between South Eastern Washington and the Okanogan Highlands. 

Kari Jeroue
Board Treasurer

Bob Clark
Board Vice-Chair

Bob has largely lived and worked in the Intermountain West his entire adult life—maintaining my connections with the natural world and the ways people interact with it while preserving and conserving the native environment upon which they depend for their livelihoods.
He has decided to apply his values and at least some of the knowledge he's obtained in his previous work experiences to help formulate policies that help the Okanogan County community conserve and preserve the wonderful place in which we live.

Stephanie Clark
​Board Member

Jack Burchard
Board Secretary

Jack was introduced to environmental litigation in 1984 when he worked as a private attorney. As a Judge, he oversaw many cases related to the environment, zoning, property ownership and use. He retired from the Bench in 2012 and has pursued his interest in the environment ever since.
He's particularly proud of Columbiana’s work to encourage the remove the Enloe Dam to restore fish and riverine habitat.
His favorite activity so far was helping at Similkameen Sunday in 2023. The event contributed to his long-time interest in learning from and working with Indigenous People and Tribal Groups.

Rick Gillespie
​Board Member

Kari grew up in Snohomish, WA. As a graduate of Snohomish High school she went on to earn a Bachelor's degree in Accounting in 2008 from Western Washington University. While in Bellingham she gained work experience performing small business accounting for 3 years. After graduation, she moved closer to home and began working at Kaas Tailored, an aerospace and furniture manufacturing company in Mukilteo, WA where she gained experience accounting for a $24 million dollar/year company for 7 years.
​Currently, she is helping her partner, James, run a small tree care company called North Cascade Tree Care LLC based in Snohomish and also serving Okanogan County since 2018. She joined Columbiana Board of Directors in 2020 and quickly became the Treasurer. I enjoy rock climbing, hiking and traveling. I recently started coaching youth rock climbing in 2021 at Vertical World in Lynnwood, WA. Kari and James welcomed their son, Rowan, in 2022 and daughter Azlynn in 2024. We continued to reside in Snohomish while raising our family and running the family tree business.

Stephanie has lived in the Okanogan Valley for 34 years.  She and her husband of 36 years have raised children here and enjoyed the natural beauty of this unique region. She became a board member of Columbiana in the mid-1990’s, and was attracted to Columbiana because of its mission to educate and foster interconnect-edness of the natural world and its inhabitants by working locally with folks who live here, and whose ancestors lived here, bringing to mind and heart all our relations. Stephanie enjoys helping the group with graphics and writing in our website and printed material. She also enjoy planning community events and bringing people together.  She sees Columbiana as a hub of information, education and community gathering that celebrates and enlarges our awareness of our unique region and its people. She is retired from teaching at Wenatchee Valley College and Omak High School, from being the Okanogan  Valley Farmers Market manager, and from my childcare business. Stephanie spends a lot of time painting and doing art projects.

Rick retired as an instructor teaching at Wenatchee Valley College in Omak and Colville Tribal College in Nespelem. He now lives in Chesaw, WA where he and his wife, Jeré Gillespie, started Columbiana in the mid 1980s after publishing Okanogan Natural News which Jeré started in the late 1970s. My inspiration for the last 40 years has been to insure that Columbiana maintains for the inhabitants (both human, fauna and flora populations) of the Intermountain West the care of its resources by reading the needs of its Indigenous habitats. Remembering the satisfaction of learning and working on issues of land manage-ment, forest and water issues from an Indigenous-led perspective has propelled his actions and inspires his passion to help others appreciate the healing nature of our bioregion. He ardently believes Jeré has been his inspiration and mentor over the 35 years they spent together raising our blended families and sharing our environmental, social justice and peace work together with others in our bioregion. 

​We're Here for You 24/7

Our projects are diverse and impactful, ranging from publishing educational content on our website to hosting forums and workshops with leading economists and indigenous resource experts. We serve as a vital clearinghouse and development center, equipping citizens with the tools to conserve regional resources and culture.