Quiet Parks International is an all-volunteer organization.

Board of Directors

Matt Mikkelsen, Chairperson and Executive Director of Wilderness Quiet Parks

Matthew Mikkelsen is an award-winning sound designer, field recordist, filmmaker, and conservationist whose work captures the beauty of natural soundscapes around the world. Working at the intersection of storytelling, technology, and nature, he has collaborated with Skywalker Sound, Microsoft, Amazon Audible, and others. His sound-driven projects have been featured by National Geographic, The New York Times, NPR, CNN, and CBS Mornings, with immersive libraries distributed globally through BOOM Library. From remote field recording to the mixing console, Matthew believes deep listening is a vital, forgotten skill — one that helps us better understand and protect the world we live in. (Read Full Bio)

Ulf Bohman, Secretary and Executive Director of Urban Quiet Parks

I believe that you can find relative silence in nature close to or in big cities. I have implemented many Urban Quiet Parks in Sweden and would like to do that across the globe. One of my strongest experiences in my work with quiet areas is when someone after a quiet walk tells me how they, by being quiet and listening to nature, have experienced the world in a whole new way. (Read Full Bio)

Samara Kester, Treasurer

Quiet has been shown to reduce stress, to reduce incidence of infection, to permit higher cognitive functioning, and to improve healing in general. It reduces aggression and tension, and improves overall mood. It reduces blood pressure and heart rate. It reduces the elevated cortisol levels found in the "fight or flight" response, and actually may increase life expectancy. To preserve havens of natural silence is preserving our mental and physical health - ours, and for generations to come.

Vikram Chauhan, Co-Founder

Humans are pushing Earth close to tipping point. Being environmentally-conscious is not a choice anymore – it’s imperative to our survival as a species, and future of the children and the planet. When you save quiet, you save everything else. And given the chaotic state of the world - a reflection of our dysfunctional collective mental states - there is no better time to experience quiet than now. Let not anything get in the way of our quiet. Let’s hold quiet sacred. Let’s protect it, preserve it and pass it on to our future generations as a space to heal, rest and discover the Quiet Park within. Quiet is who you are. Noise is who you are not. (Read Full Bio)

Nick McMahan, Director, Quiet Trails

Quiet contrasts noise. Early adult life in a touring rock band contrasted summer hikes in the Cascade Mountains with stark intensity. I found solace in quiet moments when I could feel the natural wind on my face, but also thrilled exuberance with the ear-splitting sound walls of a small smoky venue. Quiet and noise are two sides of the coin of sound I have taken time to know through exploration and experience. (Know More)

Ethan Bourdeau, Executive Director of Standards, Outreach and Built Environment

I am an architectural acoustician, standards writer, researcher, and musician based in New York City. My work in acoustics exists at the intersection of health and well-being in the built environment with a focus on performance verified components of indoor environmental quality. Bridging the gaps between the subjective and objective perception of sound is central to my efforts in advocating for a more acoustically conscious world. (Read more)