TEAM
CEO/ CO-FOUNDER
CO-FOUNDER/ENGINEER
BIOMIMICRY CONSULTANT/ ENGINEER
DESIGN CONSULTANT
CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER
MECHANICAL ENGINEER
AGRICULTURE CONSULTANT
THE EXTRACTION TEAM
Our team members all share a passion for biomimicry which brought us together for our winning entry in the Biomimicry Institute's Global Design Challenge. Our interdisciplinary team brings different experiences and backgrounds to design development which allow us to work collaboratively and bring new and creative ideas to the table.
- Megan Hanck, extrACTION's CEO, co-founder and inventor, earned her Bachelor of Architecture degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) and has a passion for ecological design, marketing and team dynamics.
- Kristin Fauske is our team's design and product development consultant and cofounder, specializing in materials and detailed systems design. Kristin is a graduate from Cal Poly's Bachelor of Architecture degree and was awarded for her undergraduate thesis project, which evolved as a phenomenological exploration of airborne water and carbon dioxide capture.
- Anna Laird is our technology advisor and cofounder. She received her Bachelor of Science in the General Engineering program with a concentration of Sustainable Energy Engineering at Cal Poly, and is now pursuing law school to become an environmental lawyer.
- Karen Schneider Brodine is a nature lover, passionate about sustainable living, healthy ecosystems, collaboration, and continuous learning. With a diverse background in the fields of applied science and education, she is focused on biomimicry for sustainable design and systems. As a consultant, Karen manages environmental enhancement projects and sustainability programs. Her broad career interests include design and structural engineering, computer animation development, film production, school facilities planning, designing and building community playgrounds and trails, teaching STEM, and coaching for creative problem solving teams. Karen is a Biomimicry Professional, a LEED AP BD+C, holds a Master of Science in Biomimicry at Arizona State University, holds a Master of Science in Product Design Engineering from Stanford University, and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Technological University. She is our team's biomimicry design expert and engineer.
- Saul Flores is a designer and modeling technician consultant for extrACTION design LLC. He is a graduate from Cal Poly with a Bachelor's degree in architecture.
- Christian Vian is our team's physical chemist and spectroscopist. Christian received his Bachelors of Science in chemistry, and a minor in physics and philosophy from Cal Poly. His scientific interests include material testing and development, spectroscopic analysis, molecular modeling via computational methods, energy transitions, quantum tunneling, and conductivity. Christian is dedicated to using his physical chemistry background to develop key climate mitigation technologies.
- Long Hoang is our team's mechanical engineer with expertise in 3D modeling/CAD/CAM. He is currently employed as an engineer in a research and development team at a biotechnology company. He graduated from Cal Poly with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and is pursuing his master's degree in Mechanical Engineering at San Jose State University with an emphasis in product design and development.
- Nico Kent is our team's agribusiness officer focusing on business relations and market research. Nico is a graduate from the Wine and Viticulture department at Cal Poly, and has a professional background in research, production, and sales. Nico is attending graduate school for environmental science and management this upcoming fall at the UCSB Bren School to pursue his passion for viticulture, plant and soil sciences, and exploring new ways to implement sustainable systems.