Meet the Starry Skies North team
Dedicated to protecting our night skies in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Michigan, parts of Canada, and beyond!
Todd Burlet - PResident
Our fearless leader, Todd is an active member of the Starry Skies North team serving at events around the state, leading talks, making relationships and leading projects to further our efforts to protect the night sky. Bridging efforts from local legislators to our team and the general public, Todd has mastered the art of balancing public safety and dark sky preservation - and understands how to gather strong public awareness and support of our mission to protect the dark skies. Delegate for DarkSky International, Todd also established the Mid-Continent chapter of DarkSky International, which covers six states and two Canadian provinces, and is a member of the American Astronomical Society and the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Hailing from Maple Grove, MN - Todd is a lifelong amateur astronomer and photographer, and when he’s not advocating for dark skies, enjoys landscape and nightscape photography, canoeing, scuba diving, and traveling to see total solar eclipses. Todd is always willing to grab a beverage, and invites anyone to connect to talk about the starry skies!
Bob Foucault -
Vice President
Serving as Vice President, Bob F coordinates special projects, works with committee leads, and provides critical media and creative feedback to our teams to enhance ongoing projects.
In addition to service for Starry Skies North, Bob has an extensive background in visually stunning projects and partnerships with universities and organizations around the world. Director of the documentary Northern Nights, Starry Skies, and instrumental in developing interactive tabletop displays that are placed along the north shore.
Residing in Duluth and Arizona, Bob takes our message to heart and is constantly on the lookout for new connections and opportunities.
Bob Groethe - Treasurer
We appreciate everything Bob G does to balance the books and ensure we meet local, state, and partnering organizations requirements when it comes to our finances and budget. As Treasurer Bob goes above and beyond to help our organization be best-in-class and extends his knowledge and ideas across all teams and committees.
Growing up in South Dakota, Bob has had a passion for the dark skies as early as he can remember. Often reading science or astro- related journals or articles, he is first to share about upcoming astro- related events, and is often outdoors enjoying our region’s skies peering through his dark sky binoculars.
When not behind a computer - you can find Bob on the golf course, or traveling with his wife to eclipses or meteor showers as far as their car will take them.
Chris Peterson - Board Chair
A passion for the world we live in and protecting our earth for future generations - Chris works to connect and introduce opportunities for our organization by being involved in many various efforts. Marketer by day, much of Chris’ knowledge supports Starry Skies North by enabling our infrastructure and practices to ensure we are lean and flexible when approaching new ventures.
Proud parent to two, Chris’ involvement with Starry Skies North was inspired after taking vacation to one of the darkest spots in Minnesota - and realizing what a waste it is that his neighbors in the Minneapolis metro will likely never get to see a truly starry sky. When not working on his many projects and activities, Chris enjoys golf, nature walks, cooking with spice and is always on the hunt for fun new restaurants or foods to try.
Caroline Torkildson - Board Member & outreach committee lead
With a background in public service, publishing and geography, Caroline has been an amateur astronomer from an early age growing up in Forest Lake, MN where she could then see the Milky Way. Having moved around a lot, Caroline brings a worldly message to Starry Skies North - bridging our organization with many contacts and organizations she has worked with over the years. Living near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, designated a dark sky sanctuary in 2020, for the past few years, and noticing the skies getting brighter and brighter around the world, inspired Caroline to become involved in preserving the dark for future generations.
Caroline, an environmental writer-editor by day, loves finding galaxies she hasn’t seen before with her telescope; living on Lake Superior; hiking; snowshoeing; water sports; her husband’s cooking; writing; and traveling, especially to remote corners of the world chasing eclipses, or following historical routes.
Dr. Caitlin Johnson - Board MEmber & Science Committee Lead
Passionate for dark skies, preserving biodiversity, and all things environmental justice - Caitlin is a Minnesota Master Naturalist and holds a PhD in physics from the University of California, Santa Cruz. As Science Committee Lead, Caitlin has been instrumental at developing Minnesota’s first dark sky quality meter network, and works closely with partnering organizations and parks to further extend this program, always reminding folks they can take their own dark sky measurements by participating in a Globe at Night campaign (learn more here!).
Proud of her family, Caitlin enjoys gardening and local day-trips with family members and friends, and participates in a number of like-minded organizations in preservation and ecological focuses.
Paul Bogard - Board Member
Author, speaker, tenured professor at Hamline University, and often referred to as “the one who wrote the book about light pollution”. Paul has been featured in various documentaries and regularly sits on panels for Dark Sky International (our parent organization), as well as providing his own commentary and opinion in published articles in the Washington Post, New York Times, and more.
When he is not grading papers or writing the next masterpiece, Paul enjoys play time with his daughter and cooking family meals. An active member of the Nokomis neighborhood organization, Paul seeks to bring the darkest of skies to his own backyard in Minneapolis, and enjoys sharing his passion with neighbors and friends.
Founding Members - Cynthia & Randy Larson
Cynthia and Randy founded Starry Skies Lake Superior and later Starry Skies North with one goal in mind - starrier skies for all! Their work is preserved and apparent along the North Shore of Minnesota, having been instrumental in local policy and decisions about lighting in the expanded region.
With Randy’s extensive contact list of friends and allies, and Cynthia’s focus on the health and well-being of all worldly creatures - the work they have accomplished and legs they have given our organization to stand on are most impressive, valuable, and appreciated! Still hard at work to preserve the night sky, Cynthia and Randy are life-long learners, and can be found out and about enjoying the wonders of their region, or sitting back with friends over a freshly baked pie.