Who are We?

For the past 7 years, the Malibu Foundation has stood beside our community, building resilience in the face of fires, droughts, and extreme heat. Through every challenge, it is your trust that has guided our success. We are profoundly grateful for your unwavering support. Together, we continue to make Los Angeles County communities stronger.

With gratitude and love,
The Malibu Foundation.

RELIEF. REBUILD. RESILIENCE

Mission

Malibu Foundation is committed to the long-term rebuilding of areas affected by climate driven disasters including the January 2025 Los Angeles County Wildfires and the Woolsey Fire. Our goal is to ensure climate resilient communities that are sustainable. To achieve this, we coordinate with organizations in the public sector that provide economic development, emotional support, and advocacy to help us leverage our impact.

PHASE I: RELIEF

Provide immediate financial support to those most desperately in need.

PHASE II: REBUILD

Work toward strategically integrating fire prevention and building towards a greener, more resilient community.

PHASE III: RESILIENCE

We work in conjunction with communities and governments to ensure the continued resilience of our regions.

Team

Featured

Executive Director

Joe Flanigan

Executive Director

Joe Flanigan is a longtime resident of Malibu and the proud father of three boys he’s raised in this extraordinary coastal community. For Joe, Malibu is more than just a place—it’s home, a source of inspiration, and a way of life worth protecting.

In 2018, Joe lost his house in the devastating Woolsey Fire. That experience deeply transformed his perspective and drove him to co-found the Malibu Foundation, dedicating himself to helping the community recover and to building long-term resilience in the face of future disasters.

Joe’s journey to this role has been anything but conventional. He began working in politics at the age of 16, eventually serving at the White House. He later transitioned into the entertainment industry, where he built a successful career as an actor, with more than 200 hours of network television to his name.

After the 2016 election, Joe returned to public service as a volunteer political consultant and currently serves as an advisor to Democracy First, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to protecting democratic institutions.

Now, in the wake of the Palisades Fire, Joe continues to lead the Malibu Foundation with urgency and compassion—supporting fire survivors, advocating for sustainable recovery, and working to preserve Malibu’s natural beauty and tight-knit community for generations to come.

Executive Director

Denise DeGarmo

Denise DeGarmo is the Community Outreach Coordinator for the Malibu Foundation, where she leads local engagement and project implementation efforts. Drawing on her extensive connections in the Malibu area and a deep foundation in biodynamic farming, she leads initiatives that connect local communities with sustainable land stewardship practices. Her work bridges ecological resilience with grassroots action, informed by her experience founding Malibu Compost, a pioneer in regenerative soil health.

Featured

Ariel Wilson

Ariel grew up in Austin, Texas and moved to Malibu to attend Pepperdine University in 2020. She studied sustainability and did work with the non-profit organization, SAMO Fund, where she worked on projects to restore native milkweed and monarch populations across the LA and Ventura regions. She loves rock climbing, running, hiking, going to farmers markets and gardening.

Jonah Hoj

Jonah serves as a GIS and imagery specialist with the Malibu Foundation. He helps chart out the location of potential sites by analyzing environmental data, makes both internal and external maps to communicate with the team and the public, and films aerial footage for social media. He graduated from UCLA in 2024, and holds a GIST certification and Part 107 remote pilot license.

Talisa Andrade

As part of the Malibu Foundation's GIS team, Talisa also manages the Foundation's social media presence, leveraging her background in GIS and cartography to create engaging content. Along with a Master's in Geographic Information Science from CSULB, Talisa graduated from Mount Saint Mary's University with a B.S. in Sociology. She adores everything vintage and collects records, cameras, mid-century glass, and books.

Taylor Morales

As a member of our Field Team, Taylor uses her multidisciplinary background in biology, ecology and environmental geography to oversee microforest implementation, monitoring and maintenance efforts. Whether conducting field surveys or simply pulling weeds, she applies her passion for California’s native flora and fauna to every part of the process. She graduated from UCLA in 2023 and is a certified UC Climate Steward.

Board of Directors

Featured

Treasurer, Board

Drew Hayden

Treasurer, Board

Drew Hayden is a graduate of Stanford University and Boston College Law School. He has worked as a mergers and acquisitions attorney for national and international law firms in New York and Boston, an investment banker, and co-founded two technology companies. He currently serves on the Board of Top Box Foods and is active in volunteer leadership roles in his local communities. He and his wife Shannon have three adult children.

Treasurer, Board

Board

Shannon Hayden

Board

Shannon Shay Hayden is a graduate of Smith College and Boston College Law School. She has held positions at the National Hockey League and as a tax attorney at a global law firm. She raised three children outside of Boston, Massachusetts, who are pursuing diverse careers in filmmaking, cloud computing and neurobiology. For the last 30 years, she has been active in philanthropy in human rights, education and breast cancer research while volunteering at numerous and varied community based programs.

Board

Douglas Burdge

Board

Douglas W. Burdge, AIA is a leading Malibu architect dedicated to sustainable, fire-resistant design. As the founder of Burdge Architects, he has shaped the region’s landscape with over 300 custom homes. After the 2018 Woolsey Fire, he launched REBU (Rebuilding Better for Malibu & The Pacific Palisades) to help homeowners rebuild with resilient, fire-safe materials. His work includes the Sunset BUD LivingHome series, offering sustainable housing solutions. Doug’s commitment to community resilience and innovative rebuilding aligns with The Malibu Foundation’s mission, making him a valuable asset towards building a better Malibu.

Board