Doug Niemela
Doug is the Executive Director - H2O for Life. Starting in 2008 with his work to pass the Clean Water Land and Legacy Amendment in Minnesota, Doug has over a decade of leadership with environmental nonprofits. For the last 6 years, Doug has served as an executive director taking on issues from climate change to renewable energy to playing a lead role in the fight to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from sulfide ore copper mining. Through this work he gained valuable insight in communications, marketing, and narrative-based motivation from partnerships with for-profit enterprises like Patagonia, Columbia, and many others in the Outdoor Industry. He is excited to bring cutting edge exploratory leadership and design thinking skills to H2O for Life. Fun Fact: After having to scrap his initial honeymoon plans due to COVID-19, Doug and his partner Melissa went on a four day, five night dog sledding expedition in the Boundary Waters to celebrate their union!
