Our Team
Director
Ava Lipsky
Ava is a junior at The Horace Mann School in New York City. Her interests in community service, environmental science, and public health inspire her extracurricular activities. Ava participates in Green HM (her schools’ environmentalism club), ECO2 Magazine, STEAM Service Learning Team, which puts together STEAM lessons for underprivileged children, the Center for Community Values and Action Committee, which organizes school-wide service learning activities, and is a member of the Project Sunshine Youth Advisory Council, which plans events and activities for hospitalized children.
Ava writes for her school newspaper, The Record, and is a frequent blog contributor for the Student Vaccine Work Group under the National Student Bioethics Association. Articles such as “Healthcare Inequities—Its All About Access” and “Social Stigmatization Through the HIV and COVID-19 Pandemics” were researched and authored by Ava.
Ava participated in a program at the Harvard Chan C-CHANGE Youth Summit on climate change and public health and studied the effects of climate change on infectious diseases and their impact on public health at Brown University.
Ava founded Dress Equity, a non-for-profit that recycles and donates gently used dresses for teens.
Social Media Chair
Henry Terlevich
Henry Terlevich is the founder and CEO of Etcetera Streetwear, an e-commerce upcycling “one of a kind” vintage clothing company. His brand has grown to 28K followers. A passionate advocate for sustainability within the fashion industry, Henry is a dedicated member of the Textiles Working Group of Circular Philadelphia, an organization which promotes the growth of a waste-free local economy. His efforts identifying effective national and international policy initiatives and legislation that could be replicated in Pennsylvania led to him being invited to join the Outreach and Development Subcommittee of Circular Philadelphia’s Board of Directors.
As class of 2023 at The Shipley School, Henry’s love for fashion and the environment manifests in his work as the Costume Chairperson for Shipley Theatrical productions, along with his position as the Co-Head of Service for the school, where he emphasizes the importance of environmental projects school-wide. In his spare time, Henry grows vegetable seedlings for Bethel Church Academy, and creates his own award-winning floral creations as a member of the Shipley Gardening Club, Sprouts. He is overjoyed to be involved in a community such as Teens for Trees, and hopes that his efforts can help create a more sustainable tomorrow.
Advocacy Chair
Robbie Lipsky
Robbie is a junior at The Birch Wathen Lenox School in New York City. He previously attended The Horace Mann School. His interests in business, environmental science, and community service inspire his extracurricular involvement. Robbie serves as head of the Project Sunshine Club and co-head of the BWL Brokers Club. He also volunteers with Grassroots Grocery and the Park Avenue Synagogue Food Pantry, supporting local communities in need.
An avid fisherman and environmental advocate, Robbie founded and manages @fisherkidofficial, a social media platform dedicated to responsible fishing and marine conservation, where he produces educational content and collaborates with sponsors to promote sustainable practices. He has participated in the O’Seas Conservation Foundation, assisting marine biologists with shark tagging and field research, and has completed summer coursework in Personal Finance and Law.
A dedicated student-athlete, Robbie plays varsity soccer, basketball, and tennis, bringing leadership and teamwork both on and off the field. He is proficient in Spanish and conversational in Japanese.
Founder
Clara Rohatyn
Clara Rohatyn is a senior at Spence School in New York City. She has been an Eco Fellow at Spence since her sophomore year, and over the past two years, she researched environmental policy, law, economics, and more. In her junior year, Clara wrote a research paper on the connections between environmental justice, urban ecology, and city planning in NYC, analyzing the success and failure of the city’s Million Trees Initiative. During her senior year, she will form a culminating senior thesis project for presentation in the spring of 2023.
Clara is currently working with Dr. Kevin Griffin at Columbia’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory lab. Her work with Dr.Griffin focuses on the effects of forest fires on tree growth and how changes in soil affect fireweed plants. Clara will continue working with Dr.Griffin during the 2022-2023 school year. In spring of 2022, Clara spent time volunteering with TreesNY.
In other pursuits, Clara is the head of Spence’s Dance company and a member of Spence’s smaller ensemble dance group. Additionally, she is the head of Triple Trio, Spence’s student-led a capella group. Since 2021, she has worked with The National Alliance for Eating Disorders to bring education into schools. In July of 2022, The “Dear Me,” program, of which Clara is a founder and director, became an official affiliate of The National Alliance for Eating Disorders. Over the next year, Clara and her team hope to reach over twenty schools.