Please join us in welcoming the latest additions to our Advisory Board.  The role of the SGT Advisory Board is simple, to give advice to the Board of Trustees. We are proud that these community leaders have agreed to help us grow and prosper and to expand our programs and services.

Amber Whitlatch, a Tulsa native, joined Smart Growth Tulsa in July 2014, shortly after its inception. She was looking for a new outlet for her number-one passion, public activism, and an association with Smart Growth Tulsa seemed like a good fit for both parties.  In the beginning, Amber preferred to remain in the background, utilizing her talents and experience to help SGT develop a strong social media presence, behind the scenes.

Only recently has she graciously agreed to let us list her name as a valued member of our Advisory Board.  By her steady hand, our Facebook page serves as a platform to share our vision, mission, and message with thousands of Tulsans every day of the week.

Steady public policy victories drive Amber’s passion, and direct her to read, learn, and share best practices from around the country, and the world, relating to the Smart Growth principles of sustainable development, expanded transportation employment and housing options;  social equity, preservation of our natural and cultural resources, and the promotion of public health.

Chris Wright, Ph.D  Chris is the founder, President and CEO of Reliant (www.reliantlive.com). Chris led the development of Reliant’s end-to-end Talent Management solutions and assessments. Over 1000 companies globally utilize one of Reliant’s talent management solutions.

Chris works with many Fortune 1000 companies, government agencies, non-profit organizations and academic institutions. His work with these organizations includes working with key C-Level and HR executives to align talent and business strategies, helping define and measure employee engagement, developing effective hiring strategies and integrating talent management technology and processes.

Dr. Wright received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in industrial/organizational psychology from the University of Tulsa. He has been a frequent presenter, speaker and panelist at conferences such as the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Academy of Management, and Society for Human Resource Management.

He has co-authored research articles in the Journal of Business and Psychology and the Journal of Applied Psychology. He has served on the Board and as President of the Tulsa Area Human Resources Association (TAHRA) a SHRM Chapter Affiliate. Chris has been an adjunct faculty member at the University of Tulsa and is currently an adjunct faculty member in the MBA program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

Doug Duke, PE, CFM is a planner, engineer, developer, and budding social entrepreneur (plangineervelopernuer?) with a keen interest in enabling mixed-use, car-optional sustainable communities with a vibrant, urban flair.

Doug has spent most of his life in Memphis, where he received a Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering (Transportation Focus) from the University of Memphis. Doug has sojourned in the Bay Area and served a stint in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, where he completed his first adaptive reuse project, converting a dilapidated downtown warehouse into loft apartments.

After moving to Tulsa in 2007, Doug served a key role in local progressive transportation projects such as the Downtown Roundabout (Elgin at 10^th) and Pearl District Streetscaping, the Citywide Bike Rack Pilot Project, Fast Forward Transit System Plan, and road diets for 4^th Street, Archer Street, and Automobile Alley in downtown OKC.

In recent years, Doug served in the Traffic Operations and Development Services sections with the City of Tulsa. In the latter role, he managed the City’s development review and permitting staff and served as staff liaison to INCOG, TMAPC, and the Infrastructure Development and Stormwater Drainage and Hazard Mitigation Advisory Boards.

Doug now engages smart growth initiatives through Public reWorks Department, a consulting practice focused on adaptive reuse of transportation infrastructure to support healthy and thriving surrounding land uses. He is also excitedly pursuing opportunities to bring transit oriented development to the Peoria BRT corridor. Appreciating Tulsa’s potential, he looks forward to growing roots here along with his fiancée Mey, with whom he enjoys frequent trips to California to visit family.

Jim Beach works as a land development consultant, performing due diligence and land use entitlements on commercial and institutional projects for Wallace Engineering.

A graduate of OSU, he was a licensed landscape architect in private practice for nine years before joining BSW in 1988. In 1995, Jim moved to INCOG, staffing the Board of Adjustment and TMAPC before returning to private consulting in 2004.

Jim served on the PlaniTulsa Citizens Advisory Committee; advocates for Tulsa’s new Zoning Code and Subdivision Regulations; is a member of Tulsa’s Bike Share Advisory Committee; maintains memberships in the American Planning Association and Urban Land Institute.

At INCOG, Jim found his passion for public service and empathy with citizens attempting to navigate land use planning processes. In 2002 he began exploring a concept he called Landrules, to improve citizen access through web-based tools. He shared his ideas with community leaders, advocacy groups, and Mayor Kathy Taylor’s Land Use Education & Communication Task Force. Though not implemented, the idea still percolates and he enjoys watching the tech community in Tulsa making progress the past few years.

Jim has promoted bicycle events since 1992. In 2005, he helped create Saint Francis Tulsa Tough where he served as Gran Fondo Director and Operations Director for 10 years. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors for Oklahoma Freewheel.

Click here to see profiles of all Smart Growth Tulsa Trustees and Advisory Board Members.