TEAM DNP/BB
Jean Devine
Chief Seed Sower, Devine Native Plantings, LLC
Executive Director, Biodiversity Builders℠
Jean Devine is an environmental educator, native-plant coach, and specialty landscaper. She has a background in native plant garden design and implementation, sustainability, curriculum design and teaching, entrepreneurship, nonprofit management and marketing. As a native plant coach, Jean helps property owners audit existing species, assess site conditions, and define and design spaces to add native plants that will boost food and habitat for at-risk bees, butterflies, birds and wildlife.
Jean created the environmental- entrepreneurship program Biodiversity Builders℠ for college and high school youth to teach biodiversity, the science and art behind native plant-native pollinator relationships, and advocacy. Jean also teaches adult education and gives talks and workshops to garden clubs and sustainability organizations.
Read: Elissa Ely’s profile of Jean in Belmont Citizens Forum.
Listen: Thomas Christopher’s interview of Jean/Biodiversity Builders on his podcast “Growing Greener.”
Skye Schirmer
Senior Designer, Devine Native Plantings, LLC
Program Advisor, Biodiversity Builders℠
Schirmer has a certificate in Sustainable Garden Design from the New York Botanical Garden and acts as Designer, Program Advisor, administrator, and curriculum developer. She has a background in fine-art and graphic design, and has held jobs as a project manager, farm-hand, production designer, educator, child-care specialist, and gallery assistant. Through Jean’s mentorship, Schirmer’s knowledge of native plants and pollinators has grown exponentially. After many years of working active manual labor jobs in different environmental and creative fields, Schirmer has found a home in habitat restoration and native plant landscaping and is eager to continue her educational journey in design, advocacy, and nature-based solutions.
Jean is a member of Miyawaki Forest Action Belmont (MFAB), an intergenerational team of Belmont, MA residents that oversees a 3,000 sf “Mini-forest” installed — with the help of 275 volunteers — in October 2025 at Belmont High School. The densely planted forest contains 1,140 native deciduous trees and shrubs representing 32 species. Intended to boost biodiversity, climate resilience and public health, BHS Mini-Forest also offers a myriad of educational, artistic, and nature-exploration opportunities to the community.
Jean is a co-founder and steering committee member of the Mystic Charles Pollinator Pathway Group (MCPPG). Launched in July 2020, MCPPG promotes native plant pollinator gardening in the greater Boston region to support declining populations of native bees, butterflies and birds, and to boost biodiversity and wildlife habitat. One of MCPPG’s initiatives is a map of native plant gardens that illustrates the strengths and weaknesses in our corridor (native bees and butterflies can’t fly that far).
