ABOUT AIRIE
Joanna Kidd & Danielle Downing β βPassing Throughβ (2012), Animated Short Film
In 2026, we begin a new era as AIRIE.Foundation (formerly AIRIE)βcelebrating 25 years of supporting artists whose work explores the deep connections between art and the environment.
For more than a quarter century, AIRIE has operated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in partnership with Everglades National Park (ENP) and the Greater Miami Area, funding and fostering creative research and dialogue through residencies and public engagement.
As we transform into the AIRIE.Foundation, our mission remains steadfast: artists are essential problem solvers. Through artistic storytelling, they reveal new narratives and innovative solutions for social and environmental change.
AIRIE.Foundation funding continues in support to champion artists as they investigate the intersection of art, ecology, and communityβcreating space for discovery, reflection, and action in and beyond the Everglades.
AIRIE.Foundation β 25 Years of Art, Environment, and Imagination
MEET OUR TEAM
HISTORY OF AIRIE
AIRIE was founded in 2001 through the efforts of Donna Marxer and the Everglades National Parkβs Chief of Interpretation, Alan Scott (Ret). Believing in the transformative power of the arts, they sought a way for South Florida artists to spend extended time in the Everglades. They hoped to bring attention to the magnificence it had to offer and further a message of the necessity of this landscape and the challenges it faces with changes in climate and surrounding land development.
Alan and Donna worked with the National Parks Service to establish AIRIE as an official partner of the ENP, operating in tandem with the Volunteers-in-Parks program to manage the artist residency. An agreement was made to allow AIRIE artists the use of an apartment originally built for Park staff in the 1950s, now known as the AIRIE Cabin.
In 2021, under the stewardship of Board Co-Chairs Esther Park and T. Robertson Carter, we did a deep dive into the ethos of AIRIE and began the work to explore how to make the outdoors and the National Parks, a space of belonging for all. We engaged a National Advisory and along with the Board, we reimagined AIRIE. For the 2022 residency, we received more than 500+ applications, an increase of 200+% from years prior*.
In our 25th Anniversary Season (2025β2026), under the leadership of Zoe McKenzie (Board President), Cornelius Tulloch (Global Artistic Director), Riyaad Seecharan (Strategic Chair), and T. Robertson Carter (Acting Director & Board Member), AIRIE expanded its narrative and impact to embrace |E|nvironments |E|verywhere. As we celebrate the first 25 years of AIRIE, we step into an exciting new era in 2026βone that engages with diverse voices and stories beyond the Everglades
and into new environments across the globe.
Since its founding, AIRIE has welcomed over 250 artists, writers, curators, choreographers, musicians, and creatives into its residency program, enriching the national and international arts landscape with powerful interpretations and stories rooted in the Evergladesβand now expanding beyond.
*estimated increase
MISSION STATEMENT
For 25 Years, AIRIE.Foundation (formerly known as AIRIE) supported and uplifted the arts and cultural heritage of the Evergladesβ subtropical wildernessβand global environments beyondβby empowering artists to explore and deepen their relationship with the natural world. Through creative and critical engagement, the AIRIE.Foundation will continue to support the artistic practice to illuminate new perspectives and reveal pathways toward a more connected and sustainable future
AIRIE.Foundation
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Executive Committee 2026
BOARD PRESIDENT
ZoΓ« McKenzie
CHAIR
T. Robertson Carter*
SECRETARY
Riyaad Seecharan*
TREASURER
HISTORIAN
(AIRIE Inc.)
Valerie Ricordi*
VICE-CHAIR
Tommy Ralph Pace
FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE
T. Robertson Carter
Gavin McKenzie
ZoΓ« McKenzie
Riyaad Seecharan*
FINANCE + TECHNOLOGY
HUMAN RESOURCES CHAIR
Riyaad Seecharan
LEGAL COUNSEL
Grant S. Smith
Jonathan Truppman*
*Indicates Former Board Chair or Co-Chair
BOARD
T. Robertson Carter*
Alejandro De Onis
Sandy Dorsainvil
Tyler Emerson-Dorsch
Linda Levy Goldberg
Trina Harris
Gavin McKenzie
ZoΓ« McKenzie<
Tommy Ralph Pace
Felecia Hatcher Pearson
Valerie Ricordi*
Karen Rundlet
Riyaad Seecharan*
Grant S. Smith*
Jonathan Truppman*
Members
HONORARY TRUSTEES
(AIRIE Inc.)
Kathleen Morris
CO-FOUNDERS
(AIRIE Inc.)
Donna MarxerΒ°
Alan Scott
EMERITUS
Esther Park*
Lisa Fernandez>>
Donna Fields>>
Helen Toomer
<Indicates Current Board President
*Indicates Former Board Chair or Co-Chair
Β°Indicates Deceased
>> Board Committee Advisor
NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
>> Board Advisor
AIRIE CABIN RESTORATION
Updated Interiors January 2025
Thank you to Steve Levin
In Honour of John Tanayschuk
For the furniture donation to the AIRIE CABIN
Additional Gratitude
The Sacred Space Miami, Kathryn + Dan Mikesell, Elisa Turner + Eric Smith, Coconut Cartel, Rosie Gordon Wallace + Roy Wallace, Wynwood Brewing Company, Howard Herring, Paradise Farms, Ronald Schrager + Wendy Hart - Donna Fields + Steven Brooke - Steve Levin - Christine + Duncan Messado - Nichole Levy + Jason Roberts - T. Robertson Carter + Christopher Carter - Esther Park + Omar Clementson - Mina Hosseini + Riyaad Seecharan - Neil Robertson - Gordon Myers - Julian Marley - Tile Allemann + Jonathan Truppman - Joanie Johnson + Marco Faggi - John Joseph Lin - James Lin - Nasir Dean aka Note Marcato - Blake Anthony Johnson, Deborah Ductant + Grant Smith - Tommy Ralph Pace - Felecia Hatcher Pearson + Derick Pearson - Jessica Sirmans - Cornelius Tulloch - Germane Barnes - Reggie Chapple, Former National Parks Director of Philanthropy
Cover art by 2012 AIRIE Fellows Joanna Kidd and Danielle Downing titled Passing Through