The Indian Peaks Group (IPG) is named after the mountain range consisting of Shoshoni Peak, North and South Arapaho Peaks, Navajo Peak, and other summits on the Continental Divide in western Boulder County. The IPG works to protect the environment in Boulder County. All of the Sierra Club-Indian Peaks Group activists working to protect the environment are volunteers who give their free time to help protect what we all love.

The Sierra Club-Indian Peaks Group

Executive Committee:

SarahDawn Haynes, Chair (indian.peaks.group@gmail.com)

RJ Boyle

Rebecca Dickson, Vice Chair

Daniel Howard

Rachel Rose Isaacson

Michael Schnatzmeyer

Rachel Whitfield

More info on each Executive Committee member below

SarahDawn Haynes 

SarahDawn is the chair of the IPG. She is a 20-year resident of Boulder and is originally from South Park County. Since 2005 she has worked for the CU Environmental Center. She has volunteered with Wildlands Restoration Volunteers and is a Futures and Foresight practitioner. She is a media studies graduate student and currently researches edutainment; she also does outreach and engagement through creating provocative climate justice communication tools. 

See more on SarahDawn's experience here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahdawn-haynes-0b14334/

RJ Boyle

Rebecca “RJ” Boyle is an attorney and an environmental compliance planner in the energy field. She has been volunteering with the Sierra Club since 2021. She is an avid trail runner, rock climber, fly fisher, gravel cyclist, and reader/writer of poetry. She co-led the Bedrooms Are for People campaign and is the co-chair of the city of Boulder's Tenant Advisory Committee. In her work, she consults various federal agencies on public lands projects, from transmission and infrastructure planning to Tribal outreach and consultation. She is dedicated to helping develop equitable, climate-resilient policies in the place where she lives, works and plays.

Rebecca Dickson

Rebecca has been an environmental activist for over 20 years. She was the chair of the Indian Peaks Group for eight years; now she is the vice chair. Along with many other activists, Rebecca has helped Boulder County and the state of Colorado rein in oil and gas activity and works to address climate change. She also works to reduce light pollution and pesticide use. She believes that what we do in our own backyards matters immensely. She supports and promotes the Sierra Club's policies on urban density and infill.

Daniel Howard 

 

Daniel is a computational scientist and environmentalist. Professionally, he tackles weather and climate model development with strong interest in energy-efficient computing. Outside of work, Daniel has volunteered with the Sunrise Movement against the Keystone Pipeline and for 350 Colorado anti-fracking initiatives; he’s also held leadership roles for Fossil Free Notre Dame and the Science Policy Initiative.  Most recently, Daniel has supported IPG's Urban Sustainability Committee and intends to revitalize this and other priority Sierra Club work while working toward an energy-efficient buildings policy and sustainable urban planning.

 

Rachel Rose Isaacson

Rachel is a public policy professional, ecological advocate, and recent Boulder City Council candidate with a Master’s in Public Administration and Leadership. Her work bridges civic engagement, environmental regeneration, and community resilience, grounded in the belief that ecological health and social equity must advance together. She has dedicated much of her career to advancing ecological regeneration and community well-being. At the Agraria Center for Regenerative Practice, she supported bio-regional regeneration efforts and taught practices that heal ecosystems while strengthening local resilience. She is also a certified Soil Advocate with Kiss the Ground and a certified Pollinator Ambassador with Cool Boulder, where she actively stewards native gardens and advocates for pollinator protection across Boulder and Boulder County.

Michael Schnatzmeyer

With a degree in Environmental Design (from CU Boulder), Michael has co-founded five nonprofits including Sustainability, Maker, and Start-Up groups. Mike worked with the Center for New Urbanism and the CU Graduate School of Planning to catalyze a re-envisioning of the St. Vrain River corridor, currently reflected in Longmont's $140 million Resilient St. Vrain flood-mitigation project. He continues to promote a "climate-smart-city" vision via community outreach and education initiatives embodying biophilic, smart-growth principles. Mike also brings a knowledge of Longmont area issues to the IPG.

 

Rachel Whitfield

Rachel recently graduated from CU Boulder’s Environmental Design program, focusing on urban planning. She is now a Transportation Planning Analyst, working on pedestrian-oriented projects that improve safety, connectivity, and community access.

As president of the American Planning Association for Students, CU Boulder Chapter, Rachel coordinated events, managed funding, and led outreach to connect students with local planners and policymakers, advancing more livable, resilient cities. She hopes to bring a planner’s perspective to the Indian Peaks Group of the Sierra Club, with an eye to environmental protection, housing justice, and sustainable urban growth.