BECOME A CVP ADVISOR
CVP Advisors
Isabelle Finney
Nonprofit Strategic Partnerships
Isabelle Finney is an independent consultant and former Director of Strategic Partnerships at International Justice Mission (IJM). IJM is a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local governments to ensure victim rescue, to prosecute perpetrators and to strengthen the community and civic factors that promote functioning public justice systems.
Prior to joining IJM, Ms. Finney worked as an independent strategy consultant for a wide range of different industries over a period of eight years in the U.S. and U.K. Ms. Finney began her career with Unilever in South Africa and spent eight years working for DHL International in Belgium and the U.S., where she served as VP of Sales and Marketing for North and South America. Ms. Finney has a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Marketing, and a Postgraduate Degree in Management Accounting from the University of Natal, South Africa.
John Flavin
Real Estate Development and Project Finance
John Flavin has had decades of experience and success in real estate development, acquisitions and asset and investment management. Mr. Flavin has served as a senior executive for the Oliver Carr Company (predecessor to CarrAmerica), the Grosvenor Group, Gates Capital and the Opus South Corporation, among others. In part due to his early years as a litigator, he has the unique ability to look at proposals from both sides and arrive at win/win resolutions.
John holds degrees from the USAF Academy in engineering with honors, a juris doctorate from Duke Law School and an MBA in Business from Harvard Business School with honors. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in public finance and operations of public/private partnerships.
Victor Grey
Internet Application Technology
Victor Grey has wide ranging experience with Internet and web based application design and development, information architecture, CSS, database design (MySQL, MongoDB, and others) and Unix system administration, and is proficient in numerous programming languages, including Perl, PHP, Ruby, Lua and Javascript. His experience also includes web usability and graphics optimization strategies.
Mr. Grey has been project manager on numerous web development projects including acting as manager of the doGoodr search/match technology platform for the doGoodr Fund from 2006 through 2009. In 1997 Mr. Grey published "Web Without A Weaver: How the Internet Is Shaping Our Future," a book about the impacts of the Internet. Evolution Biologist, Elisabeth Sahtouris said, "It's the book I had hoped someone would write about the Internet." Economist Thomas Greco, in his book "Money", lauds Victor Grey as a "veteran Internet strategist."
Victor was a National Merit Scholar, attended the University of Pennsylvania on full scholarship, and was a professional pilot for fifteen years, prior to his career in computer programing.
Rick Harris
Institutional Investment Banking and Municipal Finance
Rick Harris has had a distinguished career in institutional and public finance for almost four decades. Mr. Harris has served as principal, manager and/or corporate officer for a variety of major financial firms including: Vice President of the Transportation Group at First Boston, Principle in charge of transportation finance at Morgan Stanley & Co., NYC, Managing Director of Public Finance for Dean Witter Reynolds in San Francisco, Managing Director of Global Institutional Management of Putnam Investments, and Senior Vice President and Director of Institutional Sales at D.E. Shaw & Co., in San Francisco, CA. He recently retired as the Director of Sales and Marketing for Passport Capital in San Francisco, CA,
Mr. Harris holds a BS in Finance from New York University and an MBA in Finance from the Bernard Baruch Graduate School of Business. Prior to entering the business world, he acted as the Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator Robert P. Griffin, and Assistant to Vice President Nelson A. Rockefeller. Rick brings a wealth of experience in public and private finance and a significant network of financial industry relationships with financial institutions, major foundations, hedge funds and private wealth management firms.
Edward Harvey
Economics and Environmental Analysis
Edward Harvey is the founder and president of Harvey Economics, an economic and feasibility advisory firm that provides market, economic and financial services to a variety of public and private sector clients.
Services at Harvey Economics include economic and demographic forecasting, socio-economic and environmental impact analyses, economic and financial feasibility analysis, financing plans, market research, water demand projections, water resource market assessments, resource valuation, economic benefit-cost studies, public involvement and expert testimony.
Susan Kirsch
Community Organizing, Education and Fundraising
Susan Kirsch has had a distinguished career in nonprofit leadership and education. As an independent consultant, she has raised funding for micro-enterprise, affordable housing, mental health services and recovery programs. Kirsch was Executive Director of the American Sports Institute for 12 years, professor at Golden Gate University for 10 years, and facilitator / trainer at the Northwest Regional Education Lab.
In 2016, after more than a decade of local community activism, Kirsch incumbent Kate Sears for a seat on the Marin County Board of Supervisors, running on a platform that stressed increased citizen engagement, government transparency, cost-effectiveness, and local control. She is co-founder of CO$T (Citizens for Sensible Taxes), Citizen Marin, and Friends of Mill Valley, and she has served as chair of the Marin Coalition and was elected to two terms on the Marin Democratic Central Committee.
Ms. Kirsch earned a Master’s degree in Communication from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. She brings access to a wide network of community relationships and seasoned organizing and facilitating skills.
Burton Miller, FAIA
Sustainable Design & Architecture
A graduate of Cornell University’s College of Architecture, Art and Planning, Burton Miller has over twenty-eight years of experience in the master planning, urban design, and architectural design of complex, mixed-use developments involving a broad spectrum of building types. He is a partner at Hornberger + Worstell in San Francisco, California.
During his tenure at Skidmore Owings and Merrill, LLP, he was responsible for buildings and projects in the United States, Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore, The Philippines, and Japan. His US and Asia Pacific experience expanded as Vice President and Director of Architecture for ROMA Design Group, leading architectural master planning and design projects throughout California and in Malaysia, Vietnam, The Philippines, New Zealand, Korea, Singapore, China and Taiwan.
Mr. Miller has served on the Site Plan and Architectural Review (SPAR) Committee for the City of Mountain View, California, and the City of Mill Valley Planning Commission and Miller Avenue Precise Plan Citizens Advisory Committee. He has taught architectural design, urban design, drawing, and visual communication at Cornell University, Drexel University and Philadelphia College of Art.
Don Ruggles, AIA
Historic Preservation and Green Building
Don Ruggles is the founder and president of Ruggles Mabe Studio in Denver, Colorado. He has spent the past 40 years committed to environmentally sensitive building and the design of humanistic and livable spaces. He is the President of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art Rocky Mountain Chapter.
Mr. Ruggles is also a member of the Design Leadership Network, an exclusive network of leading architecture and interior design firm principals in the U.S. DHRuggles Architects is currently working on a design for the first zero carbon footprint office high-rise building in the United States. Don graduated with honors from the University of Oklahoma in 1973. He graduated in the Architecture Honor Fraternity, Tau Sigma Delta.
Edward Yates
Attorney - Land Use and CEQA Specialist
Edward Yates, a Marin County native, is an environmental, municipal and land use lawyer with over 25 years of experience in law, policy, program management and business. He began his career working in federal and international environmental law, including negotiating international treaties as an Assistant General Counsel with the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Ed then worked on National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act issues for the U.S. EPA and was a Senior Environmental Attorney with Tetra Tech, Inc.
For the last 20 years Mr. Yates has been advising homeowners, citizen groups, cities, counties, and special districts. He has acted as a Deputy County Counsel for Santa Barbara County and Senior Assistant District Counsel for the Santa Clara Valley Water District. Ed has over 20 years of experience under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), zoning and planning, affordable housing law, real property issues, flood protection, and municipal law compliance and litigation. He has appeared and represented clients in Federal and California trial courts and before the State Water Resources Control Board, Regional Water Quality Boards, US Fish and Wildlife Service and cities and counties across California.
Mr. Yates is a member of the California State Bar and a member of the Marin County Bar Association, and the County Bar’ Association’s Real Property Group. He received a degree in Political Science with an emphasis on environmental planning and policy from University of California, Davis. He received a Juris Doctorate from the University of San Diego, School of Law.