Student Test

Important Person

This is my bio.

Alexa Whipple

Project Director, Methow Beaver Project

Alexa is a restoration ecologist, a collaborator, and the project director for the Methow Beaver Project, a program of Methow Salmon Recovery Foundation. She works for sustainability in all practices, and for effective, process-based solutions to challenging environmental conditions. She has called the Methow and Okanogan River watersheds of Washington state home for the last 22 years but has worked across the western United States studying songbirds, carnivores, plant communities, agricultural practices that sustain habitat and wildlife, and post-wildfire recovery of western riverscapes. Alexa completed her bachelor’s in wildlife biology at Virginia Tech and master’s in restoration ecology at Eastern Washington University, where she focused on beaver ecology and beaver-mediated restoration of legacy-degraded and wildfire-impacted streams across western North America.

Emily Fairfax

Assistant Professor of Environmental Science and Resource Management, CSUCI

Emily Fairfax is an ecohydrologist and assistant professor of environmental science and resource management at California State University Channel Islands. She double majored in chemistry and physics as an undergraduate at Carleton College, then earned her doctorate in geological sciences from the University of Colorado Boulder. Emily uses remote sensing to research how beaver activity can create drought- and fire-resistant patches in the landscape. Her students and colleagues can affirm that when Emily says she can talk about beavers for hours, she’s not kidding. Emily’s work can be followed at Emily Fairfax is an ecohydrologist and assistant professor of environmental science and resource management at California State University Channel Islands. She double majored in chemistry and physics as an undergraduate at Carleton College, then earned her doctorate in geological sciences from the University of Colorado Boulder. Emily uses remote sensing to research how beaver activity can create drought- and fire-resistant patches in the landscape. Her students and colleagues can affirm that when Emily says she can talk about beavers for hours, she’s not kidding. Emily’s work can be followed at https://twitter.com/EmilyFairfax

Michelle Nijhuis

Environmental and science journalist

Michelle Nijhuis is the author of Beloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in an Age of Extinction, a history of the modern conservation movement that was named one of the best books of 2021 by The Chicago Tribune, Smithsonian Magazine, Booklist, and other publications. A project editor at The Atlantic, she is also a longtime contributing editor of High Country News and a regular contributor to The New York Review of Books. After 15 years off the electrical grid in rural Colorado, she and her family now live in White Salmon, Washington.

Lisa Huntington

Engineering Supervisor, Surface Water Design, City of Portland

Lisa Huntington, PE, has more than 20 years of experience in water resources engineering working with the public and private sectors. She spent the first half of her career working to restore watersheds in the Great Lakes Region and is now working to restore Portland, Oregon’s watersheds. She currently manages the Surface Water Restoration design section for the City of Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services. Lisa holds a master of science in civil engineering from Lawrence Technological University and a bachelor of science in civil engineering from Michigan State University. She serves on the Board of Directors for a pretty rad Portland-based non-profit, Depave.

Colden Baxter

Professor of Biological Sciences, Idaho State University

Colden Baxter is a Professor of Biological Sciences at Idaho State University. He grew up on a ranch and spending time in and on rivers, principally in northwest Montana, and received training in biology and geology (BA, Univ. Oregon), ecology (MSc, Univ. Montana), fisheries science and philosophy of science (Ph.D., Oregon State Univ.), and food web studies (postdoctoral fellowship, Colorado State Univ. & Hokkaido Univ., Japan). At ISU he leads the Stream Ecology Center and directs the cross disciplinary and partnership-focused Center for Ecological Research and Education (CERE). With many students, collaborators, and partners, his research focuses on rivers and streams, ecological linkages between water and land, and connections between people and rivers. He and his wife Lenny are parents to two daughters. He enjoys time with his family (including their help with field work!), as well as long trail runs, skiing the backcountry, reading long books in places without internet service, and playing and listening to all sorts of music.

Ian Wilson

Fisheries Biologist, Grande Ronde Model Watershed

Ian Wilson is a project coordinator for the Grande Ronde Model Watershed. This position involves working on public and private lands with agency partners to plan, implement and monitor stream restoration projects in the Grande Ronde basin. Prior to joining the Grande Ronde Model Watershed, Ian worked for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Nez Perce Tribe and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, implementing stream restoration projects and studying Chinook and steelhead populations in northeast Oregon. Ian earned his Bachelors of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife from Oregon State University with a specialization in fisheries and an Associates of Applied science in Forest Resource Technology from Central Oregon Community College. In his free time, he enjoys fly fishing, spending time with family and continuing to learn about the natural world.

Levi Old

NE Oregon Restoration Director, Trout Unlimited

Levi Old grew up mucking around in the  salt-water estuaries of coastal Virginia and is now a resident of Baker City, Oregon. Levi spent the last twenty years working in conservation and field education. He is trained in ‘reading the landscape’ ecological synthesis, restoration ecology, and land based cultures via his B.A. in Environmental Studies and Geography at the University of Montana, his studies in natural history and indigenous cultures at the Wilderness Awareness School, his sustainability studies in permaculture design, and his M.S. in Field Natural History and Ecological Planning from the University of Vermont.   Levi has instructed both wilderness expeditionary leadership and undergraduate field courses in remote places from Alaska to Argentina. He has served as the Project Coordinator for a landscape level science synthesis effort facilitated by the Great Basin Landscape Conservation Cooperative. For the last seven years, Levi has led the development of a new restoration and education program for Trout Unlimited in NE Oregon. Levi designs and implements innovative floodplain and sub-watershed scale restoration projects with a systems-based ecological approach in the Grande Ronde, Imnaha, Umatilla, John Day, and Wallowa River Basins. While working to set ecological systems on a positive trajectory, Levi has a passion for engaging young adults and people from all walks of life in hands-on stewardship work. In his free time, Levi can be found fishing, skiing, whitewater kayaking and gardening.

James Pettett

Hydrologist, Siuslaw National Forest, Central Coast Ranger District

James Pettett is a hydrologist for the Siuslaw National Forest (NF), Central Coast Ranger District. He has a bachelor’s degree from Washington State University in environmental science with a focus on chemistry. James first worked on restoration projects with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before coming to the Siuslaw NF in 2015. The Fivemile and Bell Creek Restoration was in its third year of implementation when James began working on the project. The process-based restoration approach at Fivemile and Bell Creek—applied to the entire valley bottom—completely changed his perception of what is possible with restoration. Time spent working on a variety of projects with the Pacific Northwest Region’s Restoration Assistance Team has developed his professional knowledge. James is now a member of the that team and advocates for the wetland and water quality benefits of Stage 0 restoration. James also works in higher gradient systems, restoring wood to streams and improving fish passage with stream simulation culverts and bridges. He is constantly on the lookout for new opportunities to unlock the potential of valley bottoms by restoring depositional processes and moving stream systems towards a Stage 0 condition.

George Pess

Program Manager - Watershed Program NOAA-NWFSC

George Pess has worked in fisheries since 1989. His primary research interest has been the examination of natural and land-use effects on salmon habitat and salmon production. George is program manager for the watershed program at the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC). He is also an affiliate professor at the University of Washington School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. George has conducted research on historic and current land use impacts on salmon habitat and production, the influence of wood in forested stream channels, and how landscape characteristics and land use affect salmon abundance. George holds a doctorate in aquatic and fishery sciences from the University of Washington; a master of science from Yale University in forest science; and an A.B. in economics and environmental science from Bowdoin College.

Ellen Wohl

Profesor of Geology, Colorado State University

Ellen Wohl is a professor in the Department of Geosciences at Colorado State University. Her research focuses on physical processes and forms in river channels and floodplains, and how these interact with biogeochemistry and ecological and human communities. She has conducted field work on every continent except Antarctica. Ellen received a doctorate in geosciences from the University of Arizona and a bachelor of science in geology from Arizona State University. When not doing science, she enjoys reading, hiking, paddling, snowshoeing, and watching movies.

Colin Thorne

Physical Geographer, University of Nottingham

Colin continues his 32-year run as Chair of Physical Geography at the University of Nottingham, England. Having researched, published, and consulted on river science for more than 50 years, Colin’s expertise lies in river hydrology, hydraulics, sediment dynamics, river restoration, and flood risk management. While primarily an academic performing original research, Colin has always considered the applicability and utility of his research and has advised many local agencies and national governments on water sustainability and flood resilience worldwide. His experience includes every continent except Antarctica. His contributions to applied and policy-related research have won awards from the American Society of Civil Engineers and the British Royal Geographical Society.

Gabriel Rossi

Research Scientist, UC Berkeley

Gabriel is a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), and coastal river ecologist for UC Berkeley–California Trout. He studies the ecology of Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus), focusing his research on the ways that juvenile salmon behavior and life history impact response to river food webs, streamflow, and physical habitat. He also studies applications of food web ecology to salmon population recovery efforts. Gabriel consults with several environmental flow working groups in California; serves on the California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) expert panel for the Eel River; and consults for the SWRCB cannabis instream flow development team. Gabriel completed a doctorate in Mary Power’s lab at UC Berkeley (2020), and a two-year postdoctoral research program in the Grantham Lab at UC Berkeley (June 2020 to February 2023). Before that Gabriel worked as a fisheries hydrologist with McBain Associates, focusing on environmental flow assessments to quantify the timing, duration, magnitude, and frequency of streamflows necessary to recover and sustain anadromous salmonids in projects from the Bay Area to the Klamath River. He has developed hydraulic models, conducted hydrology and food web analysis, performed local and systemic fish passage analyses, and evaluated flow management scenarios using fish bioenergetics and risk assessment tools. Recently he has incorporated 3D videogrammetry, machine learning fish identification, and acoustic telemetry to assess changes in salmonid behavior in response to natural and anthropogenic habitat alteration. Over 14 years as an aquatic ecologist, he has worked with state and federal regulators, municipalities, water districts, native American tribes, agricultural interests, and NGOs to navigate the complex ecological and human factors that influence the recovery of healthy river ecosystems and resilient wild salmon populations.

Joe Wheaton

Professor of Riverscapes, Utah State University

Dr. Wheaton is an associate professor at Utah State University and a fluvial geomorphologist. Dr. Wheaton has helped pioneer the development of new stream restoration approaches using beaver as a restoration agent, building large scale monitoring programs that leverage the latest technologies, and building new analytical software apps and simulation models to help scientists and practitioners alike. Dr. Wheaton’s work straddles the interface between physical and ecological sciences. Follow his work at: http://lowtechpbr.restoration.usu.edu

Janine Castro

Geoscientist, USFWS

Janine Castro is the project leader for the Columbia River Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (CRFWCO) in Vancouver, Washington. It is the mission of the CRFWCO to assist in determining the status of imperiled natural fish stocks, to evaluate management measures for recovery and assist in the recovery of these stocks, and to prevent future Endangered Species Act listings. As the project leader, Janine provides leadership to a highly diverse technical staff that addresses a wide variety of fisheries issues, including: fish passage and aquatic habitat restoration; bull trout recovery and lamprey and mussel conservation; marking and tagging nearly 40 million hatchery fish annually to support tribal, recreational, and commercial mark-selective fisheries; mark-recapture studies of wild fish to determine occupancy, distribution, abundance, trends, and population growth rates, and; providing analytical support to project design, evaluation, and information management. Janine also provides national and international training on stream restoration, river science, geomorphology, and public speaking for scientists. She has worked for the Fish and Wildlife Service for 22 years, and spent the preceding 10 years working for the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Janine is one of the five founding members of River Restoration Northwest and is the technical director for Portland State University’s River Restoration Professional Certificate Program. Janine holds a doctorate in geosciences from Oregon State University; a master of science in interdisciplinary studies and environmental geomorphology from California State University, Chico, where she also earned a bachelor of science in geology and a bachelor of arts in geography.

Mathias Perle

Restoration Program Manager, Upper Deschutes Watershed Council

Mathias has a diverse project management background in habitat restoration and environmental and water resource consulting. As the restoration program manager at the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council, Mathias has spent the last 15 years concentrating on forming strong ties with Deschutes Basin stakeholders and implementing projects in habitat restoration, fish passage, and screening. Mathias has worked on six miles of habitat restoration projects along Whychus Creek, which is the focus of watershed scale restoration efforts to support salmon and steelhead reintroduction in Central Oregon. Mathias holds two master’s degrees from University of California, Davis—one in hydrologic sciences and another in civil and environmental engineering—as well as a bachelor’s in geology from the University of Delaware.

Lauren Mork

Upper Deschutes Watershed Council

Lauren Mork is the monitoring program manager with Upper Deschutes Watershed Council (UDWC). She has worked with UDWC since 2010 on river restoration effectiveness monitoring, with a focus since 2016 on measuring and evaluating outcomes of restoration designed to re-activate and reconnect valley bottoms to achieve a Stage 0 condition. Lauren holds a master’s in environmental sciences and policy from Northern Arizona University and a bachelor’s in French from Earlham College. Outside of work you can find her trail running and exploring western landscapes by bike and boat.

Paul Burns

Fisheries Biologist, USFS

As a fisheries biologist, Paul coordinates a nationally and internationally recognized watershed restoration program which includes upland, riparian, and in-stream projects that focus on watershed processes. He has worked for the USDA Forest Service for 31 years in Utah and Oregon. He has a bachelor’s from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point and a master’s from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Paul Powers

Fisheries Biologist, USFS

Paul is a fisheries biologist and project manager for the U.S. Forest Service’s Enterprise Programs. Paul was exposed to river restoration in 1995 and has been hooked ever since. During Paul’s career, his approach to river restoration has been shaped and changed by the people he works with, and critical evaluation of his earlier projects and their level of effectiveness. This has helped him learn to recognize degraded river-wetland corridors, their legacy impacts, and how they might have functioned prior to incision/channelization. Paul aims to always be learning, evolving, and applying new ideas to his next projects. He is a member of the United States Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region’s Restoration Assistance Team. He works with an incredible team of professionals, expanding the boundaries of process-based restoration, specializing in restoring the processes within depositional valleys to evolve towards the Stage 0 condition.

Johan Hogervorst

Hydrologist, USFS

Johan has worked as a watershed restoration specialist for the U.S. Forest Service in the Pacific Northwest for more than 27 years, planning and implementing large-scale meadow restoration, in-stream wood placement, road decommissioning, stream protection during forest management, and most recently, valley bottom restoration to Stage 0 condition. Johan is currently in his 17th year as the lead hydrologist for the Willamette National Forest, specializing in collaborative restoration and water resource management. As a member of the Region 6 Restoration Assistance Team, Johan consults with other U.S. Forest Service professionals and their partners on restoration projects throughout Oregon and Washington. Johan earned a bachelor’s in natural resources management from Humboldt State University and a master’s in forest hydrology from Oregon State University. In March of 2023 Johan will return to the United Kingdom with Paul Powers to speak about Stage 0 restoration, and to help implement a Stage 0 project in the Somerset region of England. For fun Johan loves hiking and camping with his wife, Cara, and four kids, Ben, Sam, Evy, and Dan, and their dog, Jasper.

Damion Ciotti

Soil Scientist, USFWS

Damion Ciotti is a restoration biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and manages the Coastal Program for the San Francisco Bay and outer coast in California. He works to restore streams, floodplains, and tidal wetlands. Much of Damion’s work is focused on applications of ecological engineering to restoration. He has experience in the implementation of process-based and beaver restoration and working with public and private landowners to apply these techniques. He has a bachelor’s in soil science from Penn State University and a master’s in environmental science from Oregon State University.

Sabra Purdy

Meadow Restoration Ecologist

Sabra is an aquatic restoration ecologist specializing in meadow ecosystems in the Sierra Nevada. She has worked in hundreds of montane meadows throughout California and Nevada and has an extremely high tolerance for mosquitoes and an extremely low tolerance for instant oatmeal. Her fascination with meadow ecosystems began early in life as she tumbled around the mountains around Bridgeport, CA (known in the early days as Big Meadows) where her family has been since the 1860s. Working with renowned fish biologist Peter Moyle at the University of California, Davis Center for Watershed Science as an undergrad and masters student launched her deep dive into meadow research and a career path as an Apprentice Beaver. She splits her time between a slightly derelict, boat-access-only log cabin in the Sierras in the summertime where she first honed her beaver craft, and runs a rock climbing guide service with her husband in Joshua Tree National Park in the winter. She is a dedicated practitioner of process-based restoration techniques and is a connoisseur of woody debris jams and rootwads. She can usually be found in a meadow with her trusty partner, Willie the Jack Russell terrorist, and she invites you to come get muddy with her. She is learning the accordion and has aspirations of becoming a rodeo clown.

Karen Pope

Research Aquatic Ecologist, USFS

Karen is a research aquatic ecologist with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. She focuses on nature-based solutions to recover mountain freshwater systems and the biodiversity they support. Current research includes developing modeling approaches to find “lost meadows” in the mountains of California and conducting restoration experiments to examine meadow recovery processes under different landscape disturbance regimes and geological conditions. She incorporates her background and passion in amphibian conservation with studies to understand how amphibian populations are affected by aquatic restoration, pathogens, and climate change. For fun, Karen explores the beautiful beaches, rivers, and trails of Humboldt County with her wife Sherilyn and their dog, Jaz. She stays out of trouble by maintaining a year-round garden, hosting long distance cyclists through Warm Showers, and working on a forever-fixer-upper property in Willow Creek, CA. Karen holds a doctorate in ecology from University of California, Davis; a master of science in biology from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo; and bachelor of arts in environmental science from Claremont McKenna College.

Chris Jordan

Fisheries Biologist, NOAA

Chris Jordan, Ph.D., is a research fish biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Marine Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Center, and Program Manager for the Mathematical Biology and Systems Monitoring Program. Trained as a quantitative scientist, Dr. Jordan has worked on a wide range of biological topics, all with an emphasis on the development or application of modeling or analytical methods. For the last two decades his work has focused on the design and implementation of large-scale monitoring programs to assess freshwater habitat and population status as well as the watershed-scale effect of management actions for anadromous salmonids. Some current projects include the development of life-cycle simulation models to integrate knowledge on physical and biological processes into a management decision support framework, and the development of methods for stream restoration focusing on beaver and process-based thinking. Dr. Jordan earned his doctorate in biomechanics from the Department of Zoology at the University of Washington.

Ryan Bellmore

Research Fish Biologist, USFS

Ryan grew up floating western Oregon rivers and has been fascinated with running waters ever since. As an aquatic ecologist for Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station in Juneau, Alaska, he conducts collaborative research from Alaska to California to understand the ecological processes that natural riverscapes support and how restoration—from dam removal to floodplain reconnection—can help restore them. Understanding the linkages that sustain healthy salmon populations has been a key focus of this work. Ryan holds a bachelor’s in fisheries from Oregon State University and a doctorate in stream ecology from Idaho State University. He also performed postdoctoral research for the USGS in river restoration and food webs. He and his wife Rebecca are parents to two young daughters, and he enjoys fishing, hunting, harvesting wild foods from the beautiful Tongass National Forest, boating, hiking, and playing music with family.

Nick Bouwes

Owner, Eco Logical Research

Nick Bouwes has been working on salmon and steelhead issues in the Pacific Northwest for the past 20 years. Nick started Eco Logical Research (ELR) in 2000 and has contracted with several agencies to develop and implement large scale monitoring programs, design and implement watershed scale restoration experiments, and provide analytical frameworks to evaluate and provide context to the enormous data sets generated from such projects. He provides oversight on ELR projects and coordinates with state, federal, tribal, NGOs, and other consulting firms on regional salmonid issues. Nick works on biometric and data analyses, modeling, experimental and monitoring design and implementation, stream restoration, fisheries research and aquatic ecology, and has detailed knowledge of the salmon, steelhead, and bull trout issues. Nick cofounded Anabranch Solutions with Joe Wheaton and Steve Bennett to design and implement stream restoration. He is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Watershed Science at Utah State University where he shares the Fluvial Habitat Center with Joe, advises graduate students, and teaches fish habitat, ecology, and ecohydraulic modeling. He holds a doctorate in ecology from Utah State University.

Carson Jeffres

Research Ecologist, UC Davis

Carson Jeffres, Ph.D., is a research ecologist with the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) Center for Watershed Science, specializing in better understanding how physical processes and management actions influence aquatic food webs and fish habitat. He has been studying the physical processes and ecology of floodplains in California’s Central Valley for 20 years. In addition to projects in the Central Valley, Dr. Jeffres has been studying spring-fed systems in the southern Cascades and rivers and estuaries in the Amazon River and Southern Brazil. One of the themes of his research is using rigorous scientific research to help guide management. Dr. Jeffres earned his doctorate from UC Davis.

Kate Meyer

Fisheries Biologist, USFS

As a fisheries biologist for the United States (U.S.) Forest Service on the Willamette National Forest for more than 16 years, Kate Meyer has spent most of that time designing, implementing, and monitoring river restoration projects. During the last 7 years, she has been project co-manager on six valley-scale process-based restoration projects (to Stage 0 and 8) in the Western Cascades of Oregon. Since 2010, she has been a member of the U.S. Forest Service Restoration Assistance Team (RAT) in Oregon and Washington, whose mission is to assist other forests with design and implementation of watershed restoration projects. Kate, along with several other members of the RAT, are part of a cadre of restoration practitioners that are pioneering Stage 0 and 8 approaches, tools, techniques, and monitoring strategies. She has participated in several Stage 0 workshops across the Western U.S., Sweden and the United Kingdom, has co-authored two publications on restoration to Stage 0, and has given numerous presentations and project tours. In 2020, she received the U.S. Forest Service National Rise to the Future Award for Professional Excellence in Fisheries Management for her contribution to the science and practice of valley-scale process-based river restoration. Kate grew up on the banks of the Payette and Salmon Rivers in Idaho but now calls the McKenzie River her home, living in a “can” down by the river (i.e., a shipping container home). She is an avid angler, mountain biker, and snowboarder. She spends a month each year fly fishing in Belize and travels as much as possible in search of bucket list fish. She attributes her surprising luck (certainly not skill) in fly fishing to the good restoration karma she has earned.

Becky Flitcroft

Research Fisheries Biologist, USFS

Rebecca Flitcroft is a research fish biologist with the United States Forest Service at the Pacific Northwest Research Station, Oregon, USA. Rebecca has always loved water and is fascinated by the creatures that live within it. Her family has always lived near water, and she grew up paddling her toes in the Singapore Strait, as well as the North Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. As a fish research biologist, Rebecca seeks to better understand how people interact with forests and fish in the complex riverscapes of the Pacific Northwest. As part of this work, she is interested in facilitating the development and translation of science into information that supports applied conservation, protection, and understanding of freshwater habitats and biota. Rebecca holds a doctorate in fisheries science and a master of science in natural resource geography from Oregon State University, as well as a bachelor of science in both environmental science and economics from Willamette University.

Thomas Williams

Research Biologist, NMFS

Tommy Williams has been a research biologist at the National Marine Fisheries Service’s (NMFS) Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) for the past 24 years, and has been a research associate in the Institute of Marine Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz since June 2001. His experience includes research that informs conservation and management decisions throughout coastal basins of California. He conducts various research throughout the state as well as serving as the Southwest Science Center’s liaison with the NMFS’s West Coast Region and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) for coastal basins of California. Tommy coordinates the SWFSC’s 5-year viability assessments that inform status reviews. He has been working closely with CDFW since 1998 on developing and implementing monitoring programs, starting with the Steelhead Research and Monitoring Program through the current Coastal/California Monitoring Plan. His current activities include serving as a member of Federal Coordination Group and Basin-wide Technical Working Group for the Klamath Basin Integrated Fisheries Restoration and Monitoring Plan, and serving as the lead for the SWFSC on issues related to planning, and science issues related to the removal of four dams on the Klamath River.

Charlotte Ambrose

Recovery Coordinator for Salmon and Steelhead, NOAA

Charlotte Ambrose has been with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) for 23 years. She has served as the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) liaison to the California Board of Forestry, and an NMFS recovery coordinator leading and authoring the central California coast salmon and steelhead recovery plans. She is currently the California programs coordinator and oversees statewide initiatives to include facilitating coordination and collaboration internally (between NOAA divisions such as the NOAA Restoration Center) and externally (with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife). She received her bachelor of science in wildlife management and forestry from the University of Georgia. When not working, you can find Charlotte in her Jeep on a dirt road in remote Nevada looking for a long lost ghost town, or serving as a Nevada Site Steward for archaeology sites.

Steve Bennett

Principle and Cofounder, Anabranch Solutions

STEPHEN BENNETT Stephen is a principal and cofounder of Anabranch Solutions. Stephen has more than 30 years of experience in conservation, wildlife biology and restoration ecology issues across western North America. Stephen started working with Nick Bouwes in 2007 when he joined Eco Logical Research, and they started the Asotin Creek Intensively Monitored Watershed. Stephen started working with Joe Wheaton in 2009 on developing more effective ways of building instream wood structures (HDLWD) in the Asotin. Stephen earned a doctorate in fisheries biology from Utah State University (USU) in 2007, where he contributed to conservation planning for Westslope cutthroat populations in British Columbia. Stephen continues to study cutthroat, and is involved with maintaining a long-term research project for Bonneville cutthroat in Logan, Utah. Stephen joined the USU Department of Watershed Sciences as a senior research scientist in 2011, and became an adjunct assistant professor in 2013. Stephen also earned a master’s in resource and environmental management from Simon Fraser University, and a bachelor’s in wildlife biology from the University of Montana. Stephen and his wife road trip to bird hotspots whenever they can and love playing in the snow of northern Utah.

Samantha Bango

Low-Tech Stream Restoration Planner - Anabranch Solutions

Sam is passionate about water resource management and the impacts of low-tech solutions. She currently manages stream restoration field crews for Anabranch Solutions all over the American West. Prior to joining Anabranch, Sam conducted undergraduate research on low-tech structures, managed pollinator programs in Central Oregon, and spent a few years living in South America. These days, you can find Sam climbing up river banks, falling down dams, and trying her best to imitate nature's best engineers—North American beavers. When she’s not conducting fieldwork, Sam spends her free time mountain biking, backcountry skiing, backpacking, and finding vistas to watch beaver colonies at work.

Greg Addington

Executive Director, Oregon Farm Bureau

Greg has worked in and around the natural resource sector his entire career. He began working in the policy arena more than 20 years ago as a field representative for the Oregon Farm Bureau (OFB), and later transitioned to the organization’s governmental affairs division working as an associate director. In 2005 he served as executive director for the Klamath Water Users Association for a decade, stepping down in 2015 to form his own consulting company, where he assisted clients with public relations, marketing and outreach, program coordination, policy development, and political engagement. Greg also served as program director for REAL Oregon—a resource education and agricultural leadership program developed for current and emerging natural resource industry leaders to grow their skills, knowledge, and network. Never far from policy work, Greg took the position of chief of staff for a state legislator for the 2021 legislative session in Salem. He returned to OFB in November of 2022 where he currently serves as executive director. Greg received a bachelor’s in agricultural economics from the University of Idaho, where he met Monica. They have been married 29 years and have two wonderful adult children—Sarah, and Reese.

Jeremy Maestas

Sagebrush Ecosystem Specialist, NRCS

Jeremy works with NRCS staff and partners to put science into practice through strategic habitat conservation delivery in sagebrush ecosystems across the West. He grew up in Nevada and went on to earn B.S. and M.S. degrees in Wildlife Biology from Colorado State University. Much of his career has focused on sustaining working landscapes in the Great Basin, where contributions have included implementation of large-scale strategic approaches to reducing conifer encroachment, wildfire and invasive species threats to sagebrush ecosystems.

Becky HatfieldHyde

Rancher, ODFW Commissioner

Becky Hatfield-Hyde is a rancher, writer and consultant who splits her time between the southeast and central Oregon communities of Beatty, Paisley and Brothers. She has spent the past 20 years working with Tribes, NGOs, elected officials and the agricultural community on water issues in the Klamath Basin, helping design the first Tribal water settlement in the Upper Basin on her family’s Yamsi Ranch. She has worked to sustain fish and wildlife on her ranch properties, including a current effort to enhance sage-grouse habitat on her family ranch near Brothers. She and her husband, Taylor, have five children.

Jay Wilde

Rancher

Jay Wilde, is a rancher based in Mink Creek, Idaho, who has spent years trying to restore perennial flow to Birch Creek, a seasonal stream on his land. But it wasn't until he hit on beavers that he saw results. In 2015, he invited scientists at USU to build 19 BDAs on the creek and release five beavers nearby; the following summer the stream stayed wet 2 months longer than usual, helping irrigate grazing meadows. He's become a staunch advocate, lecturing at local universities about the project's success.

Julie Rentner

President, River Partners

Julie Rentner is president of the statewide restoration nonprofit River Partners, where she has led the design and construction of hundreds of millions of dollars of river restoration projects across the largest rivers in California. Julie has developed and led stakeholder processes supporting the integration of flood control and ecosystem enhancement at the regional level, resulting in the development of several on-the-ground multi-benefit projects, as well as the creation of the Mid San Joaquin River Regional Flood Management Plan. She joined River Partners in 2008 as a restoration ecologist based in the San Joaquin Valley. She completed the California Agricultural Leadership Program in 2015 and serves as President of Reclamation District 2092. She received her bachelor’s in forestry at the University of California, Berkeley; and a master’s from the University of Hawaii, Manoa, in natural resources and environmental management.

Irma Lagomarsino

Senior Policy Advisor, NOAA

Irma has more than 30 years of experience in natural resource management and policy for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries. Since earning her bachelor’s from the University of California, Berkeley and master’s at the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1990, she has been inspired by the power of partnerships to build comprehensive solutions to resolve wicked natural resource challenges. Early in her career, Irma served on a diverse public-private collaborative team that successfully identified and implemented approaches to reduce whale mortality in a California fishery as required under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. With over a dozen years helping to forge historic agreements with diverse coalitions and regulate water use in the upper Klamath Basin, she received the Bureau of Reclamation's 2014 John W. Keys, III Award for Building Partnerships and Strengthening Relationships. Today, Irma provides strategic advice and support to advance recovery of listed salmon in western Oregon using her deep experience with the Endangered Species Act and expertise in working with communities to craft innovative solutions to help fish and people. Currently, she is particularly focused on collaborating with partners on the recovery of threatened Oregon Coast Coho salmon. Irma enthusiastically supports the 2023 Restoring Riverscapes Workshop because of the urgency to pick up the pace and scale of process-based habitat restoration to conserve salmon in the face of a changing climate. Now based in Portland, Oregon, when not working, Irma enjoys hiking, camping, cross-country skiing and yoga—she also cultivates kindness and connection by growing and giving away flowers as a Growing Kindness Ambassador.

Laura VanRiper

Social Scientist, National Riparian Service Team

Laura Van Riper, BLM social scientist, has over 30 years of academic and on-the-ground experience in collaborative and community-based natural resource management and conflict resolution both within the United States and abroad. For the past 20 years, Laura has served as the social scientist on the National Riparian Service Team – a national level, field-based, interagency, and interdisciplinary team located in Prineville, OR. The team was focused on increasing the capacity of local, diverse groups to effectively confront and manage technically complex and socially contentious riparian issues throughout the western U.S. Laura also works closely with the BLM and DOI Collaborative Action and Dispute Resolution (CADR) programs and is a senior level facilitator on both in-house facilitation rosters. And, she frequently serves as a link between agency headquarters and the field regarding the development and implementation of collaboration and partnership policies, strategies, and workforce development initiatives. Laura has additional experience with program evaluation, strategic planning, organizational development, team building, and managing peer-to-peer learning networks (communities of practice).

Brian Cluer

Fluvial Geomorphologist

Idaho native Brian Cluer, Ph.D., grew up farming with his family on the Camas Prairie, between Boise and Sun Valley. Following a drought his family sold the farm and Brian pivoted to college where he discovered geology, then hydrology, and finally geomorphology, which has been his path ever since. Dr. Cluer is a senior scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)–West Coast Region. He is a fluvial geomorphologist with 32 years of federal service in river resource management. Before joining the NMFS in 2000, his focus areas with the United States National Park Service included reregulating major dams in the Colorado River Basin to improve ecosystem functions, and planning the removal of the Elwha River dams. Since joining the NMFS his focus has been in planning and implementing several dam removal projects, and improving river restoration science and practice to support the recovery of threatened and endangered salmonids, notably advancing the scientific support for floodplain restoration. Dr. Cluer holds a doctorate in earth resources from Colorado State University, a master’s degree in geophysics and groundwater from Northern Arizona University, and a bachelor’s degree in geology from Idaho State University.

Jacob Katz

Watershed Ecologist

Jacob Katz, Ph.D., was born with gills. Fascinated with what happened below the water line, he grew up fishing every creek, puddle, river, and pond he could find. After guiding in remote Alaska, where he was inspired by the abundance produced in functioning river ecosystems, he was eventually hooked by school, earning a doctorate in ecology at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) Center for Watershed Sciences. He is lead scientist at the conservation non-profit California Trout, where his work focuses on developing ways to “pivot towards process,” enhance fish and wildlife benefits from working landscapes, and finding win-win solutions for people and the environment to ensure that California will always be home to wild salmon. As lead scientist at California Trout, Dr. Katz oversees science, planning, and implementation of a portfolio of landscape-scale projects focused on the reintegration of river ecosystems into the operations of California’s flood and water infrastructure. Dr. Katz is co-founder of the Central Valley Salmon Habitat Partnership and the Floodplains Forward Coalition.

Jeremy Svehla

Civil Engineer

Jeremy is a registered civil engineer with more than 20 years of experience in the planning, permitting, design, and construction management of landscape-scale estuarine and riverine restoration projects. At GHD Jeremy leads multi-disciplinary teams of scientists, planners, and engineers to deliver multi-benefit projects related to flood management, habitat restoration, coastal resiliency, and public access. Jeremy enjoys working with diverse stakeholders to deliver multi-objective solutions at the landscape scale. As a testament to the quality of his service, Jeremy was named the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) San Francisco Section North Coast Branch Engineer of the Year in 2015.

Katrina Harrison

Engineer

Katrina Harrison, PE, is an engineer and project manager with McBain Associates, Applied River Sciences. She has more than 13 years of experience in habitat restoration in California, and balancing our competing demands for water between humans and the environment. She currently is working on restoration and fish passage projects on the Tuolumne, Carmel, and Eel Rivers, and formerly worked to re-wet the San Joaquin River. She loves problem solving and conducting stakeholder engagement for large, complex, controversial, and time-sensitive projects. Katrina has performed hydraulic modeling, channel and floodplain restoration design, operations modeling, and has built water operations analysis tools. She holds a master’s and a bachelor’s in civil and environmental engineering from U.C. Davis and U.C. Berkeley, respectively.

Dorothy Merrits

Professor of Geomorphology

Dorothy Merritts is the Harry W. and Mary B. Huffnagle Professor of Geosciences at Franklin and Marshall College, where she has been employed since 1987. She worked at the U.S. Geological Survey from 1982 until 1987 while completing an master’s in engineering geology at Stanford University and a doctorate in Geosciences at the University of Arizona. Her work focuses on the history of landscapes and the processes that shape them. She is known particularly for her research on landscapes perturbed by geologic events and climate change during the past ~130,000 years, and by human activities during the past ~400 years. In the western United States and international locations around the Pacific Rim, she has studied the effects of recent tectonic activity on coastal regions. She was president of the American Geophysical Union Earth and Planetary Surface Processes Section from 2018 to 2020; is a fellow of the Geological Society of America (GSA); was a co-recipient of the GSA Kirk Bryan award for outstanding scholarship in 2011; received the Distinguished Career award from the GSA Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division in 2022; and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2022. She has served on five NRC committees which were related to the impacts of human activities and/or climate change at the Earth’s surface. Dorothy loves most any activity that involves water and soil. Kayaking, rafting, canoeing, and swimming are her favorite activities, but skiing ranks high as well (snow is water). She is also an avid gardener.

Damon Holzer

Cartographer

Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Damon is a cartographer with NOAA specializing in lidar mapping. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and his master’s from Texas A&M, where he spent most of his time in the spatial sciences laboratory focusing on GIS, remote sensing, and GPS—both as a teacher and researcher. He returned home to the Northwest to work with NOAA Fisheries on recovery science for Interior Columbia-listed salmon and steelhead. In his free time you can usually find him having seasonally appropriate fun in the mountains.

Sean Baumgarden

Environmental Scientist

Sean Baumgarten is an environmental scientist in the Resilient Landscapes Program at the San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI). His research focuses on the historical ecology of California ecosystems, using archival data to reconstruct the form and function of past landscapes and understand how they have changed over time. Sean has conducted research on coastal, riverine, and terrestrial ecosystems throughout the Bay Area as well as in southern California and the Central Valley. Sean earned a master of environmental science and management degree with a specialization in conservation planning from the Bren School at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a bachelor of science in wildlife, fish, and conservation biology from the University of California, Davis. Sean lives with his family in Berkeley, CA, and in his free time enjoys running, hiking, cooking, and playing music.

Harv Forsgren

Executive Advisor, Natural Resource Policy and Management

Currently serving as executive advisor for Natural Resource Policy and Management, Harv served in the U.S. Forest Service for more than 30 years. He began his career as a volunteer on the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming, working there two additional summers as a temporary employee before being hired permanently. Harv worked as a botanist and fisheries biologist on the Chugach National Forest in Alaska before accepting a position on the Sawtooth National Recreation Area and eventually as the Sawtooth National Forest fisheries program leader, pioneering what would decades later become known as “low-tech, process-based restoration” (LTPBR). Harv’s next assignment was to the Mt. Hood National Forest in Oregon, where he led the forest’s aquatic habitat improvement monitoring program. Subsequently he served as the Intermountain Region’s fisheries program leader (which included national forest lands in Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Nevada, and California), and as the forest Service national fisheries program leader in Washington, DC. After being inducted into the U.S. Senior Executive Service, Harv completed his career in four senior leadership positions: national director of the Forest Service Wildlife, Fish, and Rare Plants program; regional forester for the Pacific Northwest Region, regional forester for the Southwestern Region, and regional forester for the Intermountain Region. In these positions he was honored to contribute to shifts in the agency’s culture and practices, including large scale efforts such as: PACFISH (an anadromous fish conservation strategy); a strategy for restoration of fire-adapted ecosystems across the Southwest; and conservation of grizzly bears and their landscapes (serving as a member and then chair of the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee). He also played a key role in shifting agency culture to improve safety and health outcomes (Safety Journey). Since retirement, Harv has continued to work with federal and state agencies and a variety of non-governmental organizations to foster resilient landscapes and vibrant communities.

Mark Beardsley

Ecological Scientist

As an ecological scientist and restoration practitioner, Mark has been working to restore and protect Rocky Mountain riverscapes since the mid-1990s. In Mark's view, restoration is not about controlling nature or manipulating it for specific human purposes, goals, or objectives—it’s about preserving ecological health, biotic integrity, and natural processes. If we can do that, we enjoy the full suite of ecosystem services that support human society and the rest of the natural world. This view aligns with the modern concepts of “process-based” and “biomic” restoration which have become the focus of his small company, EcoMetrics, which embraces low-tech approaches and thoughtful site selection. The restoration benefit is one thing that motivates Mark to go to work every day, but he also finds inspiration in his love for being in the mountains, exercising, and splashing around in creeks with friends. Mark spends a lot of time climbing mountains, skiing, wandering around the backcountry, reading, pondering, and listening to heavy metal music.

Lenya Quinn-Davidson

Fire Advisor

Lenya Quinn-Davidson is a fire advisor with the University of California Cooperative Extension in the North Coast of California. Lenya’s primary focus is on the human connection with fire, and increasing the use of prescribed fire for habitat restoration, invasive species control, and ecosystem and community resiliency. Lenya works on prescribed fire issues at various scales, including locally in Humboldt County, where she works with private landowners to bring fire back as a land management tool; at the state level, where she collaborates on policy and research related to prescribed fire, and helps inspire and support prescribed burn associations; and nationally, through her work and leadership on prescribed fire training exchanges (TREX). Lenya is passionate about using prescribed fire to inspire and empower people, from rural ranchers to agency leaders to young women pursuing careers in fire management, and everyone in between.

Gordie Reeves

Research Fish Biologist Emeritus

Gordie Reeves is an emeritus research fish biologist at the Pacific Northwest (PNW) Research Station in Corvallis, OR, having retired in 2018 after 35 years in that position. His expertise is in the freshwater ecology of anadromous salmon and trout, conservation biology of those fish, and aquatic aspects of landscape ecology. He has studied the ecology of anadromous salmon and trout in the PNW, northern California, Idaho, and Alaska and fish ecology in New Zealand and New York. He has published more than 100 papers on the freshwater ecology of Pacific salmon and trout, effects of land management activities on the freshwater habitats of these fish, conservation plans, and dynamics of aquatic ecosystems in the PNW. He has led committees that developed and evaluated options for managing federal lands in the PNW and Alaska. He was also a member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fisheries technical recovery and biological review teams for Endangered Species Act-listed coho salmon in coastal Oregon and Environmental Protection Agency panel on Pebble Mine. His current work focuses on potential effects of climate change on Pacific salmon in Alaska and the PNW, and development of the Elliott State Research Forest in Oregon. Gordie holds a doctorate in fisheries science from Oregon State University; a master of science in fisheries science from Humboldt State University; and a bachelor of arts in biology from State University of New York, Oswego.

Dr. Paul Hessburg

Research Landscape Ecologist

Paul Hessburg is a senior research ecologist with USDA Forest Service Research and Development, and affiliate full professor at four western United States and Canadian universities, where he mentors rising stars in doctorate and post-doctoral programs. He is the 2022-2024 president of the International Association for Fire Ecology (AFE) and Deputy, International Union of Forestry Research Organizations, Division 4: Forest Assessment, Modeling, and Management. His research explores wildfire and climate change effects on landscape dynamics, and the structure and organization of historical, current, and future landscape resilience. Paul is keenly interested in partnering with managers to advance the work of forest restoration and climate change adaptation, and stronger science and management partnerships. In his off time, Paul enjoys canoeing and rafting western U.S. and arctic rivers, horse packing, fly fishing, snowshoeing, and backpacking. He and his wife Mary also enjoy time with their adult children and seven nearly perfect grandchildren.

Amy McNamara

Northern Rockies Director, NRDC

Amy McNamara’s experience lies in advancing community-driven conservation outcomes, private land conservation, and durable solutions for wildlife and public lands management. Throughout her career, she has promoted large-landscape connectivity across the intermountain west, the northeast, and in western Canada. Prior to joining NRDC, McNamara ran her own consulting practice which focused on strategic planning, program evaluation, and organizational development for foundations and nonprofits. She has also worked for The Trust for Public Land, Wilburforce Foundation, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, and the Appalachian Mountain Club. McNamara holds degrees in biology from Colgate University and the University of Louisville. She is based in NRDC’s Bozeman, Montana office.

Brett Roper

Aquatic Ecologist, USFS

Brett Roper has been serving as an Aquatic Ecologist for the Forest Service’s National Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center for over 20 years. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor for the Watershed Sciences Department at Utah State University. He received his PhD in fisheries from the University of Idaho and a masters in forestry from Utah State University. Brett has been lucky enough to work at all levels of the Forest Service in multiple regions across the west. Much of Brett’s past and current research efforts have focused on understanding the relationships among land management actions, stream processes, riparian conditions and fish populations. He has published more than 50 peer reviewed papers focused on better understanding disturbance, aquatic restoration and improved management of streams and riparian areas.

Alden Shallcross

Aquatic Resources Program Lead, BLM

Hydrologist Alden Shallcross is the state lead for the Aquatic Resources Program at the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Montana/Dakotas state office. He has worked for 10 years throughout the western United States at various levels of the organization—district hydrologist, assistant field manager, field manager—managing social, scientific, and legal challenges associated with the bureau's multiple use, sustained yield mandate. Currently Alden oversees the management of water resources, fish, riparian-wetland areas, and aquatic ecosystems across millions of acres of public land administered by twelve field offices in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. While his responsibilities are diverse, he has a passion for riverscapes and for the restoration of keystone processes, which drive his work to bolster the BLM’s capacity for process-based restoration, streamline administrative procedures for project implementation, and develop policies and practices that balance objectives for administered uses with the need to maintain or improve ecosystem services. On weekends, you will most frequently find him floating a river or exploring the snowpack.

Shelby Weigand

Senior Coordinator, Riparian Connectivity, National Wildlife Federation

Experienced Conservationist and Biologist with a demonstrated history of working in outcome-based project management. Skilled in collaborative conservation, meeting facilitation, data collection and analysis, scientific writing, and Arcgis products. Strong research professional with a Bachelor's of Science focused in Wildlife Biology and Geographic Information Systems from University of Montana.

Meta Loftsgaarden

Forest Supervisor, Mt. Hood National Forest

Meta Loftsgaarden has been forest supervisor for the Mt. Hood National Forest since October, 2021. Her career experience includes numerous leadership positions supporting local economies, communities, and science-based restoration and conservation. Before joining the Forest Service, Loftsgaarden was executive director for the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB). This unique agency invested $150 million per biennium in native fish and wildlife habitat and water quality projects throughout Oregon. Meta was also Governor Brown's lead for the state's 100-Year Water Vision. Loftsgaarden previously worked for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service on partnership and policy issues including farmland protection, working forestland easements, and strategic conservation. In Montana, she promoted economic and natural resource policies as the head of the state’s agriculture Marketing and Business Development Bureau and as the Governor’s deputy communications director. Loftsgaarden has a master’s of public administration from Portland State University and a bachelor’s from Montana State University. She, her husband, and their ‘adventure cat’ enjoy boating, hiking, camping, and all things outdoors.

Randi Shaw

WA Stewardship Director, The Nature Conservancy

As Washington’s Stewardship Manager, Randi supports a committed team of stewardship staff working to make our preserves incredible resilient places for nature and people. Working in shrub steppe, prairies, forests, and estuaries, the stewardship program’s fundamental goals are to make TNC’s lands focal points for exemplary management, conservation-related research, and wide-ranging community engagement. Prior to completing a Masters at Oregon State University in the Forest Ecosystems and Society program, Randi worked on the land with a range of organizations in Washington and beyond, including EarthCorps, the US Forest Service, and the Student Conservation Association. Her curiosity about nature and people extends worldwide; she has traveled, learned, and worked in a number of places in Europe, Asia and South America. She believes strongly that all kinds of people should be able to be live in and contribute to a healthy natural world, and she works to promote inclusivity and opportunity throughout the conservation field.

Courtney Shaff

Monitoring and Reporting Program Manager, OWEB

Courtney Shaff is the monitoring and reporting program manager for the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB). Over the last 17 years, Courtney has worked in every section of OWEB and is thrilled to be back in monitoring and reporting, where she started as OWEB’s first effectiveness monitoring coordinator. Included in her portfolio is the management of OWEB’s operating capacity grant programs, which support the capacity of local organizations around the state and the development of strategic action plans to facilitate landscape scale restoration. Courtney leads OWEB’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, and is passionate about engaging with local communities to achieve restoration and conservation outcomes. Courtney has a master’s in environmental science from Oregon State University, and a bachelor’s in biology from Wittenberg University. When not working, Courtney enjoys supporting her two girls in their various athletic pursuits and—when time allows—camping, backpacking, and hiking the endless trails of the Pacific Northwest with them and her husband.

Marc Duboiski

Salmon Grants Team Manager, RCO

Marc Duboiski joined the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) in 1999 as an outdoor grants manager for the salmon section, and became manager of the section in 2021. His team—whom he characterizes as passionate, energetic, and hilarious—manages grants for the Salmon Recovery Funding Board, Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration program, Brian Abbott Fish Barrier Removal Board, Chehalis Basin Strategy, Estuary and Salmon Restoration Program, Family Forest Fish Passage Program, and the Washington Coast Restoration and Resiliency Initiative. Before coming to RCO, he was the shorelines and watershed planner for Lewis County and a transportation planner for the Washington Department of Transportation. He earned a bachelor of arts degree in geography from Western Washington University (Go Vikings!). Marc was born and raised in the Puget Sound region and will probably never leave our great state. He is blessed with a wife who hails from Port Angeles, four adult children, and one granddaughter. Marc is happiest outside, especially in the mountains…where he is free.

Abbie Gongloff

Grant Program Manager, Idaho’s Governor's Office of Species Conservation

Abbie Gongloff has served as a grant program manager, administering Idaho’s Governor's Office of Species Conservation (OSC) Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund and its many subawards since 2020. Additionally, she works with project sponsors to submit and administer other federal grants. Previously, she worked for OSC as a project planner in the Upper Salmon Basin Watershed Program since 2010, lending her a comprehensive perspective on habitat restoration and fish passage projects, and an understanding approach in working with project sponsors. Abbie wants project applicants to have the best chance for success in acquiring funds, and hopes they glean some valuable tips from this panel. Her favorite pastimes are all things outdoors and providing unsolicited advice, and her popularity is due to a well stocked snack supply.

Tim Chorey

CDFW's Fisheries Restoration Grant Program Coordinator

Tim Chorey currently coordinates the Fisheries Restoration Grant Program for California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Tim has been practicing ecological restoration for more than 15 years. Following his passion for restoration, Tim has seen all sides of restoration. Tim has permitted and designed wetland restorations, been a construction superintendent for an ecological restoration contractor, developed a culvert replacement technical assistance program, and managed a salmon restoration grant program. He tries to avoid species specific restoration and focuses on restoring ecosystems processes when possible. In his free time, Tim enjoys trail running, being on a river, coaching lacrosse, or exploring the West with his family in his VW EuroVan.

Brian and Pam Robertson

Landowners

As a retired couple, Pam’s scientific background and Brian’s mechanical skills guided them toward their so-called “senior project,” which they found right in their own backyard in north Idaho. They enjoy traveling in their camper around the western United States and seeing nature’s wonders, from the mountains to the sea. Upon returning home from these trips, they came to realize that the 12-foot-deep ditch running through their property was not normal, and so our research began. After looking at many process-based solutions they decided that the best approach was to try and return it to a “stage 0” which, for our property, was a historic wetland. That meant finding a solution that will help raise the ground water level and hold water on the land instead of having it flush across the property boundary. They needed to slow and spread the water that was previously in a ditch for the last 90+ years. As they learned from a revegetation specialist, “If you don’t have water on your land, you have nothing.” Brian and Pam are sharing their story in hopes that others with broken watersheds will be encouraged to explore this journey for themselves.

Michael Tehan

Assistant Regional Administrator, NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region

Coming Soon

Zane Hadzick

Coordinator, National Endangered Species Act, FEMA

Zane Hadzick serves as the national Endangered Species Act (ESA) coordinator at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) headquarters. He is responsible for overall coordination and support of FEMA’s ESA compliance initiatives, so that: actions are coordinated appropriately; knowledge and visibility are shared between affected offices; and related projects are aligned. He also coordinates an interdisciplinary project team of subject matter experts representing the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and program and advisory offices of Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (FIMA) to ensure appropriate processes are followed as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and ESA. Previously, Zane served as the senior planning specialist in the Floodplain Management and Insurance (FMI) branch of FEMA’s Region 3 office, responsible for helping communities protect people and property. He also helped develop and implement the FEMA Region 3 Substantial Damage Administrative Procedures to help communities become more resilient and better prepared for disaster events. During times of disaster, he served as liaison officer (LNO) supporting the Region 3 State Partners. He also deployed as an external affairs specialist to support the first-in-nation Mobile Vaccination Units (MVUs) for COVID-19 response efforts to support historically underserved communities. Previously, Zane was an environmental planner for the City of Baltimore, Maryland where he worked as a floodplain manager and community rating system (CRS) coordinator. Zane holds a bachelor’s in environmental science and policy with a focus in soil, water, and land resources from the University of Maryland, and master’s in natural resources and the environment from the University of Michigan. Zane enjoys hiking, traveling, cooking, and spending time with his family.

Jared Bottcher

USFWS Regional Program Manager for Consultation and Conservation Planning

Jared is currently serving as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Regional Manager for Consultation and Conservation Planning, in Portland Oregon—a position he has held since December 2021. In this role he provides technical and policy support to Pacific Region field offices in the implementation of the Endangered Species Act Section 7 Consultation, and Section 10 Conservation Planning activities. Prior to joining the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Jared worked for multiple agencies within the Klamath Basin in southern Oregon and Northern California, including the U.S. Geological Survey; a nonprofit working to restore fish passage and instream habitat and flow; and most recently, the Bureau of Reclamation. In these stops, Jared enjoyed working with diverse groups of stakeholders on collaborative and innovative approaches to species conservation and natural resources management. Jared is a graduate of Drake University and Utah State University, with a bachelor’s in environmental sciences/biology, and a master’s in watershed sciences. Outside of work, when he’s not transporting his two teenage children to and from extracurricular activities, he can be found chasing native fish throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Scott Rumsey

Acting Regional Administrator, NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region

Scott Rumsey is the acting regional administrator for NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region. Scott has served as the deputy regional administrator since 2017. Scott has previously served as the Portland (Oregon) branch chief for the Protected Resources Division, overseeing regional salmon recovery efforts. For the last ten years he has also served as the program manager for the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund. Prior to joining NOAA Fisheries in 2001, Scott was a lecturer at the University of San Diego, and a postdoctoral researcher at Oregon State University. Scott earned his doctorate in biological oceanography from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1999, and his bachelor’s degree in marine biology from UCLA in 1993.

Erika Lovejoy

Director, Accelerating Restoration - Sustainable Conservation

Erika Lovejoy is the director of Sustainable Conservation’s Accelerating Restoration Program, where she develops innovative policy and regulatory incentives to increase the pace and scale of habitat restoration in California. Major projects include collaborating with landowners, NGOs, and government agencies on statewide policies and programmatic permits to promote aquatic habitat restoration and related multi-benefit projects. As an established expert in creating regulatory and process efficiencies within government to advance environmental goals, Erika has implemented several environmental programs and been an active contributor to California’s Cutting the Green Tape Initiative. Before joining Sustainable Conservation, Erika served in lead and technical roles as an environmental scientist/planner for California's Water Boards, Coastal Commission, and Department of Water Resources; and San Francisco County. She has also managed a major watershed planning effort for the South San Francisco Bay, helping to mediate stakeholder conflicts and develop lasting water quality protection solutions.

Amy Cordalis

Co-founder, Ridges to Riffles

Amy Bowers-Cordalis is a mother of three boys, a fisherwoman, an attorney, and a member of the Yurok Tribe. She is the co-founder/vice principal of Ridges to Riffles Indigenous Conservation. She was formerly general counsel of the Yurok Tribe, and a staff attorney at the Native American Rights Fund. Amy’s family is from the village of Rek-Woi at the mouth of the Klamath River in Northern California. Since colonization, every generation of Amy’s family has fought for Yurok Rights. Her family’s Supreme Court case, Mattz v. Arnett, reaffirmed the status of the Yurok Reservation as Indian country, laying the foundation for the exercise of the Tribe’s sovereignty and the enjoyment of its federally reserved water and fishing rights. Amy continues her family legacy by focusing her work on Klamath River restoration, including dam removal, water rights, and fisheries issues.

Jeff Mitchell

Opening Speaker

coming soon

Sammy Matsaw

Opening Speaker

Sammy is a father, husband, grandfather, and extended family member with the Shoshone-Bannocks and Oglala Lakota Tribes. He is a pipe-carrier and Sundancer with both his mother and father’s tribes. Currently, as a Research Scientist he brings ten+ years of science and management involved in Indigenous sovereignty and treaties with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes’ Fish and Wildlife department. Sammy along with, his wife, Jessica oversee operations of River Newe an Indigenous-owned nonprofit (rivernewe.org); planning, coordination, website development, social media communications, and grant writing. He also brings ten years of military experience and leadership as a combat veteran. Lastly, he holds a Ph.D. in Water Resources—Science & Management from the University of Idaho, a Master’s of Science—Conservation Genetics and Bachelor of Science in Ecology from Idaho State University.

Hannah Gosnell

Professor of Geography

Hannah Gosnell is a professor of geography in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences at Oregon State University who studies biodiversity conservation, water resource management, climate change, and environmental governance in the context of rural working landscapes in the U.S. West. Her research addresses the human dimensions of natural resource management from a social-ecological systems perspective. She is particularly interested in innovative approaches to Endangered Species Act implementation and strategies for engaging agricultural landowners in riparian/aquatic ecosystem restoration, including beaver-related restoration. Her work reflects a belief that collaborative and interdisciplinary solutions to conservation challenges involving all affected stakeholders are likely to be more durable and equitable than ones that are top-down or purely technical. Hannah earned a bachelor’s from Brown University, and both a master’s and doctorate in geography from the University of Colorado.