Carlotta James, Co-founder & Project Director
The dream of runners and monarch butterflies on a journey together came to Carlotta while running along forest trails in Peterborough, Ontario in 2016. Since then, Carlotta has been working tirelessly with the Monarch Ultra team to create running events as a call to action towards environmental protection and monarch conservation. She is passionate about running, exploring wild spaces around the world, and connecting with the natural world. Carlotta is a pollinator advocate and eco-landscaper, and co-founder of Peterborough Pollinators and Three Sisters Natural Landscapes, organizations devoted to re-wilding urban spaces. Carlotta lives in Peterborough with her husband and son, who also love running and spending time in nature. |
Rodney Fuentes, Co-founder
In January 2018, Carlotta told Rodney about her idea of running with monarchs from Peterborough to Mexico and asked him to record the journey as a documentary film. This project was a love at first sight for Rodney! As a filmmaker based in Peterborough, Rodney started the production of a documentary that covers the runners, the migration, and the communities involve in monarch’s conservation. Following his background in eco-tourism and environmental conservation, Rodney became involved with The Monarch Ultra as a co-founder, content creation, and event’s organization. You can find out more about Rodney’s work and the documentary at www.rodneyfuentes.com. |
Emma Scott, Graphic Designer
Emma grew up drawing birds and butterflies from the gardens and windows of her childhood home. After graduating George Brown College's School of Design program, where she built her final thesis around the concept of a community green movement involving planting more trees, she continued to seek sustainability in her day-to-day life and in her design work. Volunteering with the Monarch Festival each year allows her to flex that same creativity, while fuelling her passion for nature and eco-movements all at once. Our logo was crafted by Emma during the inaugural year of the Monarch Festival. The design captures the spirit and essence of the festival, incorporating vibrant colours and dynamic elements that symbolize both the festival's energy and its connection to nature. You can find more of Emma's work here: www.emmascottdesign.co. |
Günther Schubert, Co-director
Günther was raised in rural Bavaria and learned to appreciate nature in his early years. After taking an apprenticeship in cooking in Germany, Günther later came to Canada in 1974 to continue his career as a chef and culinary instructor at Toronto’s George Brown College. In 2019, Günther joined the Monarch Ultra group and travel with the team to Mexico during the first relay run. He was the team’s chef, driver, and support crew. Since then he become an integral part of the team to continue raising awareness about the critical decline of the monarch butterflies and other Pollinators. Günther is a member of the Peterborough Kawartha Rotary Club and he is building strong connections with Rotary Clubs in Canada, the US and Mexico. |
Ana Maria Zapata, Art Coordinator & Zumba Instructor
Ana Maria is a happiness ambassador, she strives to help people find healing through movement, art, nature and community. She teaches fitness classes in order to inspire people to move through fun, engaging music. She creates events and art that inspire people to get to know each other, to learn from each other and to use nature in a responsible manner. She felt inclined to help this project, because like the monarch butterflies, she wishes to go back to Mexico (her native country) every winter. She believes that all life needs to be protected and respected, and is excited to keep learning ways to protect and respect the earth we live in from the Monarch Ultra team. |
Megan Boyles, Education Coordinator
Megan loves spending time outdoors and helping people (re-)connect with nature. She is the proud co-founder of eco landscaping social enterprise, Three Sisters Natural Landscapes and citizen-led group Peterborough Pollinators. She is inspired by the Monarch Ultra and is excited to support their efforts in educating the wider community about conservation and the importance of pollinators in our lives. |
Carl Wright, Writer & Social Media Whiz
Carl Wright grew up on a traditional family farm in Southern Ontario. Learning from his father, Carl learned about the importance of sustainable farming. This was reflected by his dad’s deep loving care and stewardship of the land. When Carl was 15, his father died of a heart attack. The only place he could find strength and comfort was immersing himself in nature. This has resulted in a lifelong love for our natural areas. Carl took up running at 55 after a dire ultimatum from his doctor to get his blood pressure and cholesterol down. At 60, Carl has run many distances including 10 ultras. As a writer, Carl maintains the blog Old Fellow Goes Running, where he covers topics such as running, the environment and the Monarch Ultra. Carl became involved with the Monarch Ultra in 2019 both as a runner and an ambassador. He has a love for nature and a deep concern for our warming planet and loss of biodiversity. |
Ben Stark, Social Media Whiz & Volunteer Coordinator
Ben Stark joined the team in 2022 while studying Ecosystem Management at Fleming College. He loves spending time outdoors, hiking, learning about plants and animals, and staying active. Volunteering with the Monarch Ultra gives him a chance to support those activities around Peterborough, by helping to put on trail runs and by speaking to people about pollinators and native plants. |
Cole McLean, Carpenter & Musician
Cole was born and raised in Peterborough, Ontario. He is a Carpentry and Construction Technologist at Fleming College and started his construction and contracting business in 2022. Cole has made it his mission to find suitable ways to up-cycle construction waste to extend the lifecycles of these materials. Most recently, he reclaimed materials to construct pantry shelves entirely from scrap lumber. Cole's music project King Fawn, is an experiment to discover innovative sounds while expressing concerns about social injustices including climate change. Cole & his partner planted their first pollinator garden in 2024 and enjoy growing veggies in their vegetable garden every year. This wouldn't be possible without pollinators, so monarchs and all pollinators are species they want to protect dearly. |
Christine Szabados, Chair of Bee City Kawartha Lakes
Christine graduated from the University of Toronto with a degree in Environmental Biology. A retired beekeeper and avid naturalist, Christine enjoys supporting various community initiatives by way of volunteering and providing consultations. She has a keen interest in the impacts of pesticides, herbicides and insecticides on the natural environment, particularly on native pollinating species, as well as in native habitat conservation and restoration. Christine is the current Chair of Bee City Kawartha Lakes. Passionate about the plight of the Monarch butterfly and Monarch conservation, Christine is thrilled to be a member of the Monarch Ultra Team. |
Deanna Hergert, Volunteer Coordinator
Deanna is a dedicated ecologist and gardener committed to enhancing ecosystem health and making this world a more beautiful place. With a deep passion for biodiversity and education, she specializes in creating gardens that promote ecological balance and connect her clients with nature in their own yards. As an advocate for sustainable land stewardship, Deanna integrates scientific research with hands-on conservation strategies to restore natural ecosystems in the human-built landscape. She collaborates with landowners, communities and local organizations to implement nature-based solutions that foster resilience in both urban and rural landscapes. With expertise in ecology, native plant communities, habitat design, and environmental education, Deanna actively works to bridge the gap between ecological science and practical application in the human-built landscape. Through thoughtful gardening, advocacy, and education, she works with her clients at For Nature to meet their needs and aesthetic preferences for their yards while inspiring them and the broader community to take action in shifting the way we live on the land, preserving biodiversity for future generations. |
