Leadership Team

  • Dr. Shapley-Quinn is a family physician and a graduate of UNC’s medical school and family medicine residency. She has worked in primary care for a number of years and served as Medical Director of Alamance County Health Department for many years. Kathleen has been active in advocacy around food security for decades and served as board member for an agency providing advocacy and education for children of incarcerated parents. Her commitment to climate work grows out of both a sense of justice (cultivated early in her Detroit upbringing) as well as a passion for the beauty of our planet and the people who inhabit it. She currently serves as Executive Director for CACHE.

  • Dr. Jennifer Runkle is an Environmental Epidemiologist at the North Carolina Institute for Climate Studies. She has wide-ranging experience translating population-based science into action-based solutions. Her research interests include weather-related disasters, coastal community resilience, occupational health and safety, reproductive health, and mental health and well-being, with particular interest in localized impacts on vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and outdoor workers.

    She was an editor and author for the U.S. Global Change Research Program’s 2016 report “The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States”, and for the NOAA State Climate Summaries.

    Dr. Runkle holds an MSPH and PhD in environmental epidemiology from the University of South Carolina and completed postdoctoral training at Emory University.

  • Dr. Whiteis is a pediatric hospitalist at Moses Cone. She received her medical degree from Texas A&M College of Medicine and her pediatric residency at UNC Health. While in residency, she served as an executive board member of UNC’s Climate Leadership and Environmental Action Network (CLEAN), a medical student organization that advocates for health system sustainability and educates on the health impacts of climate change. Dr. Whiteis is passionate about educating clinicians and the public on the effects of climate change and advocating for health equity and climate action. Dr. Whiteis leads the CACHE Pediatric Resident Climate and Health education program.

  • Dr. Johannes is a pediatrician, current Allergy and Immunology fellow, and founder of CACHE (formerly NCCCA). She completed medical school at the University of California, San Francisco, and residency in Pediatrics at Duke University. She has a master’s degree in molecular genetics and previously worked in translational research developing immune-based therapies for Type 1 Diabetes. She has a long-standing interest in the intersection between health equity and sustainability. She is a graduate of the Yale Climate Change and Health Certificate Program and previously served as a Climate Advocate for the NC Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  • Mike brings extensive experience as an environmental non-profit leader. A graduate of the General Management Program at Harvard Business School, he retired in 2022 from a 38-year career at The Nature Conservancy (TNC), the world’s largest conservation organization. At TNC, Mike led programs at state and regional levels, founded the Conservancy’s Canada program, and served as Managing Director for Global Conservation and Chief Operating Officer. Before his leadership at TNC, Mike held positions in social work, and helped establish the Covington (KY) Family Health Center (now HealthPoint Family Care) and was its founding Executive Director from 1979 to 1983. He has served on the boards of the Kentucky Primary Care Association and St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center (Vice Chair). Mike was a founding director of Orange County (NC) Living Wage and currently serves as a director of the North Carolina Botanical Garden Foundation.

  • Suzie S. Wolf, DHSc, MPH, PA-C is an Associate Professor, and the founding director of the Department of Public Health at Wingate University, with more than 13 years of experience across the healthcare and education industries. Her prior clinical experiences include practicing as a physician assistant in the field of sports medicine and orthopedic surgery. She is an active champion of community health and advocacy efforts concentrating on the intersection between public policy and health outcomes. She is delighted to have the opportunity to serve with CACHE in its mission to advance climate solutions for a healthier future.

  • Karen works to advance public health in the Sandhills and eastern NC as continuing medical education director at Southern Regional Area Health Education Center. She co-leads the CACHE Education Committee. She is an ordained chaplain and serves in hospital and community settings. Karen earned her BA in Philosophy and Religion from Appalachian State University and Master of Arts in Health Education and Promotion from East Carolina University. Karen’s research and professional interests focus on contemplative practice and resilience. She is a certified Integrative Health Coach through Duke Integrative Medicine and a Cognitively Based Compassion Training (CBCT) teacher through the Emory University Center for Contemplative Science and Compassion-Based Ethics. Karen lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina and enjoys hiking with her dogs and time in her garden.

  • Kelly is a public health professional who is passionate about advancing climate justice and health equity using community-based strategies. She has nearly a decade of work experience in sustainable infrastructure initiatives across both government and academic sectors and recently earned her Master's in Public Health (MPH) with a concentration in Health Equity, Social Justice, and Human Rights from the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. In addition to serving as Grants Manager and Policy and Advocacy Co-Chair, she also works as a Research Assistant for the North Carolina Institute for Climate Studies. Kelly lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and loves to spend her free time outdoors going on hikes and bike rides, cooking new recipes, and hanging out with her fiancé and their dog, Rigby.

  • Dr. Jennifer Lawson is a general pediatrician at Duke Children’s and Faculty Associate of the Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities and History of Medicine. She is also a Climate Change Faculty Fellow at Duke, and Climate Advocate with the NC Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She co-leads of the Education committee for CACHE. She appreciates and loves to learn from ways of thinking outside of her professional discipline. Her interests focus on climate change and health, medical humanities, diversity, equity and belonging, and physician well-being.  She teaches and mentors learners of many levels from undergraduate students to pediatric residents and fellows, and is currently involved in several collaborative climate and health related initiatives, particularly focused on education. 

  • John Lohnes, PA-C, MHS, MEM (he/him) is a graduate of the Duke PA Program and holds a master's in environmental management from the Duke Nicholas School and a Certificate in Public Health from UNC-CH. Now retired from clinical practice in orthopedic surgery, he continues to serve at Duke as a part-time instructor in the PA program and on an advisory committee working to develop a decarbonization plan for the Duke Health System. He also coordinates the Duke REMEDY program, which recovers usable surplus medical supplies from the hospital for repurposing to global health projects. He is an active member of Carolina Advocates for Climate, Health & Equity (CACHE) and the Eno River Association and volunteers with the Duke State Medical Assistance Team to provide medical support for weather related and other disasters in NC.