Jorge joined the board in 2019. He currently serves as Project Manager for the Greater Northside Management District. Jorge is an urbanist – utilizing his e-bike and public transit to move around town, as well as foundation member of the Houston Department of Transformation.
Our Team
Jordan Macha
Executive Director & Waterkeeper
Jordan Macha is the Executive Director and your Bayou City Waterkeeper. An inside-the-loop Houston native, Jordan advocates for healthy waters throughout the Galveston Bay watershed, working on wetland protection, urban water management, and supporting community efforts to improve water quality.
Prior to joining Bayou City Waterkeeper, Jordan worked for the Gulf Restoration Network and the Sierra Club advancing restoration priorities for the Gulf region. She received her Master’s of Public Administration with an emphasis on Urban Water Management and Policy from Texas State University, and graduated from the University of the South in Sewanee, TN with degrees in Russian and Political Science.
You can reach her at: jordan@bayoucitywaterkeeper.org, 713 309 6683 (direct)
Kristen Schlemmer
Legal Director
Kristen Schlemmer joined Bayou City Waterkeeper in July 2018. As Legal Director, Kristen uses the law to improve local water quality, protect wetlands, and make Houston, Galveston, and everything in between more resilient to flooding. She represents the organization in litigation and administrative proceedings, brings a local perspective to national litigation and rulemaking, and supervises our legal interns.
Before joining Bayou City Waterkeeper, Kristen was a trial lawyer at Susman Godfrey, focused on environmental and wildlife litigation at Irvine & Conner, and clerked for two federal judges in Texas and Louisiana. She received her JD from Tulane Law School with high honors and a concentration in Environmental Law in 2010 and graduated from UT-Austin with Linguistics & History degrees. Kristen grew up in the northernmost pocket of Houston in Kingwood, Texas after spending her early childhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Kristen is a Texas Gulf Coast Master Naturalist and serves on the Executive Committee of the Houston Regional Group of the Sierra Club. Kristen and her family live a short walk from Buffalo Bayou and get out to the beach whenever they can.
You can reach her at kristen@bayoucitywaterkeeper.org,
281 501 9630 (direct)
Board of Directors
Jen Powis
Jen currently serves as Board Chair and general counsel to the organization, having joined the board in 2014. Founder of the Powis Firm, she specializes in environmental advocacy services and provides strategic direction for campaigns and programs for a variety of Gulf Coast nonprofits.
David Popken
David, an avid sailor and fisherman, serves as Board Treasurer. He and his wife, Kris, live on Galveston Bay in Seabrook, where he serves as a member of the Seabrook Open Spaces and Parks Committee, Galveston Bay Cruising Association, Galveston Bay Foundation, and Audubon Society.
Sharron Stewart
Sharron began serving on the Board in 2009. She is a coastal advocate and educator based in Lake Jackson, and has worked with many national, state, and local agencies to preserve and protect the coastal environment, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in its effort to protect the Columbia Bottoms hardwood forests in Texas.
Jorge Bustamante
Joe Liggio
Joe joined the board in 2015. After a career working for state agencies and corporations, he utilizes his educational and professional experience to compile and analyze data to assist in our programmatic goals. Joe is the author of Wild Orchids of Texas.
Rachel Powers
Rachel began serving on the board in 2019. A long-time Houstonian, Rachel currently serves as Executive Director of Citizens Environmental Coalition working to foster dialogue and collaboration on environmental issues.
Advisory Board
Dr. John Jacobs • Martin Hamilton • Vaness Hamilton