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An Interview with Aubrey: New US Head of Partnerships
Aubrey McCormick is Land Life’s new Head of Partnerships for the North American hub. Aubrey will be responsible for building high-level partnerships with major non-profit organizations, government agencies and coalitions to unlock large, land access opportunities. She has experience in sustainability, building and design, forest-based product supply chain, and partnership development in reforestation projects and carbon impact. She consulted with global companies, NGO’s, professional sports organizations, golf courses, and Indigenous Communities to develop sustainable impact opportunities.
Hi Aubrey, welcome to Land Life. Please tell me a little about yourself and your work background before joining our North American team.
Thank you, I’m excited to join the team!
My background has been established over the last decade or so, working within the sustainability space on developing opportunities and initiatives that serve the global reforestation community, building and design through sustainable timber, and developing public/private partnerships to scale reforestation and carbon impact work globally.
Prior to Land Life I was the Regional Manager, West for the Forest Stewardship Council and Director of Investments & Partnerships at Eden Reforestation. Each role served a different purpose, working locally with Tribal communities, landowners, and corporations to establish multi-beneficial relationships that align with progressive climate goals.
I spent a large portion of my career prior to forest impact, as a professional golfer and sustainability consultant where I earned an MBA in Sustainable Management and developed the first Corporate Social Responsibility Report in the history of golf, for The Olympic Club. I’m an advocate for the green sports movement and always looking for ways to align restoration projects with sports.
Wow, professional golf, tell me a little bit more about that, please.
I played professionally from 2007-2014 on multiple golf tours in the US, including the LPGA. During my time as a pro athlete, I was sponsored by companies like Nike, Oakley, Lululemon, Taylormade and Titleist. I traveled the world playing some of the most beautiful courses and meeting amazing people. In 2013, I was a contestant on the Golf Channel Big Break television series in Atlantis, Bahamas, along with other programs like Golf Channel Morning Drive and Golf Channel Gone with the Win. During this show, I represented as the first “Green Golfer,” playing a recycled golf ball and talking about ways the industry could invest in sustainable initiatives. During my time in golf, I was also an LPGA certified teaching instructor and held numerous positions at public and private golf clubs in the US.
“My experience working with landowners, suppliers, retailers, and end-use customers to support their individual goals and understand the value of the larger mission to protect the world’s forests will be very helpful to the evolving work at Land Life.”
What made you decide to make the switch to nature restoration?
I made the shift to nature restoration with scalability in mind after years of working for organizations focused on forest certification and tree planting. I see the work that Land Life is doing on nature restoration as a more holistic approach rooted in science and technology, and I am eager to grow with the team to scale this work. My experience working with landowners, suppliers, retailers, and end-use customers to support their individual goals and understand the value of the larger mission to protect the world’s forests will be very helpful to the evolving work at Land Life.
What skills from your unique background can you apply to your new role?
As a former professional athlete, I have a highly entrepreneurial mindset and can develop strategies to build partnerships with commercial and individual landowners. I have worked in forest certification, tribal relations, reforestation investments and partnerships, the green building industry, and as a consultant for some of the largest companies in the world. I have experience speaking at global conferences and have written pieces for numerous publications around the sustainable impact that have sparked action and debate that has led to progress.
“I think Land Life is poised to be one of the strongest companies in the restoration and carbon market space, so I’m looking forward to learning from the team and building the company to achieve all of our short and long-term goals.”
What are you most excited about as you start working as Land Life’s Head of Partnerships?
I’m excited to leverage my experience to support growth at Land Life on the landowner and commercial side of the business. I feel proud to join Land Life because of the science and technology that has built the foundation for the restoration work being done. I think Land LIfe is poised to be one of the strongest companies in the restoration and carbon market space, so I’m looking forward to learning from the team and building the company to achieve all of our short and long-term goals.
Tell me one exciting thing about you that people might not expect…
I love to design and develop properties. My love for interior, landscape, and building design stems from my background in undergrad. I love being creative and seeing ideas come to life. Some of my designs have been featured in Oregon Home Magazine, Dwell, Oregon Live, and on the Modern Home Tour. I’ve designed and flipped over 30 properties since 2021.