Speakers

Owen is the Species Management Section Leader in the Wisconsin DNR Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation where he has the privilege of leading a group of 25 professional conservation biologists with vast expertise in monitoring and management of a wide diversity of rare and declining plant and animal species and their habitats throughout Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin DNR Climate Executive Oversight Team, the WICCI Science Advisory Board and the MW CASC External Advisory Committee.

Rob Croll is a policy analyst in the Division of Intergovernmental Affairs at the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) where he coordinates the Climate Change Program. The GLIFWC Climate Change Program was created with the goal of integrating Scientific and Traditional Ecological Knowledges to provide a holistic and culturally appropriate approach to climate adaptation in the Ojibwe Ceded Territories in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. As Program Coordinator Rob oversees the activities of CCP staff, serves as liaison to tribal, state, federal, academic and NGO partners and works directly with counterparts at the eleven GLIFWC member tribes. Rob is a member of the Tribal Climate Adaptation Menu author team and the Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center Consortium Leadership Team.

Prior to GLIFWC Rob spent 18 years as a Conservation Officer with the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission, Bureau of Law Enforcement. His educational background includes a BS in Environmental Studies from Northland College and a Master of Environmental Law and Policy from Vermont Law School.

Rob is originally from Southeastern Pennsylvania and now resides in the 1842 Ojibwe Ceded Territory in Northern Wisconsin.

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As a limnologist, Hilary studies how terrestrial and atmospheric changes, such as warming air temperatures or land use patterns, alter biogeochemical fluxes and aquatic processes in lakes.

Her research sites span from Wisconsin to Antarctica.

Holly Embke is a Research Fish Biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey’s Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center. Holly’s research aims to understand conditions to support self-sustaining inland fish communities in a changing climate across a range of scales. Her work is collaborative and seeks to inform the conservation of inland fishes by working directly with partners to address areas of management concern and develop adaptation strategies.

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Zach Feiner (he/his) is a fisheries research scientist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Limnology. His research focuses on inland freshwater ecosystems, including the impacts of climate change on freshwater fish and fisheries, angler behavior and the effects of fishing on ecological and evolutionary processes in fish populations, and the importance of changing phenology to the functioning of aquatic ecosystems.

Zach co-chairs the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts (WICCI) Fisheries Working Group, tasked with identifying and developing adaptation strategies for climate risks to Wisconsin fisheries. He also serves on the Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Science and Data Team, contributing to a regional network of scientists to better understand the relative importance of habitat, climate change, and other environmental factors on fish communities. Zach earned his BS from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, MS from North Carolina State University, and PhD from Purdue University.

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David Fulton is a Research Ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, the Assistant Unit Leader for Wildlife at the Minnesota Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, and adjunct professor in the Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology Department at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. David completed his B.S. at Texas A&M, MS at Washington State University, and PhD at Colorado State University. He was a regional wildlife planner for Alaska Department of Fish & Game prior to arriving in Minnesota in 1998.

His research focuses on the human dimensions of wildlife and fisheries and conservation social science. Recent research has focused on applying methods and theory from the social and behavioral sciences to better understand the values, attitudes, norms and behaviors of stakeholders concerning the use and conservation of wildlife and fisheries resources. This information has been used by management agencies to help guide planning and management decision processes concerning these resources. He works closely with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the National Flyway Council, the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and other wildlife management agencies.

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Sue Galatowitsch is a professor in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota, where she teaches ecological restoration and wetland ecology. Questions at the interface of ecological restoration decision-making and climate change adaptation is a research interest of hers. In addition to many research publications, she's authored/co-authored three books, including the newly released revision of Minnesota's Natural Heritage.

Jonathan Gilbert (MS Fish and Wildlife, Michigan State University, Ph.D. Wildlife Ecology, UW-Madison), began with the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission in 1984. Currently, he is the Commission’s Wildlife Section Leader acting as a technical advisor to tribes with off-reservation treaty rights. Jonathan participated in the early negotiations with the WDNR as part of the Voigt Intertribal Task Force and acted as an expert witness for tribes during the species trials in Voigt. Jonathan has managed harvests of waawaashkeshiwag (deer), makwag (bears) and furbearers by tribes during the past 25 years; with interests in forest carnivores and their role in northern forest ecosystems, particularly gidagaa-biziwag (bobcats), ojiigwag (fishers) and more recently waabizheshiwag (martens).

In my position as part of the North America Science team at The Nature Conservancy (TNC), I co-develop science and synthesis projects with TNC staff and external partners that support integration of climate change risks within conservation planning and actions. Recent projects include contributing to TNC's Resilient and Connected Landscape (https://maps.tnc.org/resilientland/) modeling, developing and demonstrating a holistic approach to evaluating drought risks to ecosystems and people, and work to sustain and apply the connectivity modeling tools Circuitscape and Omniscape (https://github.com/Circuitscape) to identify land protection and restoration priorities. I received my MS and PhD from the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources & Environment (now SEAS) for work on songbird distributions in northern Michigan forests, and hold an adjunct position at Michigan State University's Department of Forestry. I am based in Haslett, Michigan.

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Dr. Hansen has been at the University of Minnesota's department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation biology since 2018. Her research group focuses on aquatic communities and ecosystem responses to local, regional, and global change. Prior to joining the U of MN, Dr. Hansen was a research scientist at the Wisconsin and Minnesota Departments of Natural Resources.

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Dr. Christopher Hoving has led the climate adaptation program for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Division since 2012. As an ecologist and systems thinker, he seeks to connect and reconnect social and ecological networks through plans, presentations, papers, and decision support tools that foster learning in a rapidly changing world. His passion is restoring health and harmony between people and nature, and he enjoys quixotic challenges like solving the dual crises of biodiversity and climate change to create a future in which society and ecosystems thrive together. He has an MS in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Maine, and a PhD in Fisheries and Wildlife from Michigan State University. Dr. Hoving serves on numerous regional and national climate initiatives including past chair of The Wildlife Society’s Climate Change and Wildlife Working Group and current chair of the Michigan Climate Coalition. Dr. Hoving enjoys hiking and camping, and he hopes someday to visit every state park in Michigan and every national park in the United States. When at home, you can usually find him in his garden tending an ever-growing collection of native plants, tea herbs, and historic irises.

Scott is the Director of the Office of Applied Science which is the fish and wildlife research branch of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Scott has been with the WI DNR since 2006 in a variety of policy, management and science roles. He started his career as a wildlife research scientist for the Ohio DNR in 1998 focusing on grassland and agricultural systems. Scott earned his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 2002

Daniel currently serves as unit leader for the U. S. Geological Survey’s Wisconsin Cooperative Fishery Research Unit located within the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He conducts research on questions immediately relevant to fisheries management in the Midwest with a particular focus on Wisconsin. He is currently engaged in several CASC funded projects focused on walleye and bluegill populations in the Midwest as well as several additional projects involving various fish species in northern Wisconsin, Green Bay, and Lake Winnebago. He also serves as editor for the North American Journal of Fisheries Management.

Maria Janowiak has more than 15 years of experience in helping natural resource professionals understand and adapt to climate change, with an emphasis on northern forest ecosystems. She has led multiple ecoregional vulnerability assessments, created decision-support tools, taught courses, and provided direct outreach to thousands of people

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Mary is a Freshwater Ecologist with the Center for Resilient Conservation Science, part of the Conservancy’s North America Region science program. She is also a conservation planner with significant experience with project management and facilitation. Her current areas of work include freshwater resilience science and strategy development for the Midwest Division’s Conserving Resilient Lands and Waters strategy.

Mary joined the The Nature Conservancy in 1995 just after completing a masters in stream ecology at the School of Natural Resources and Environment at University of Michigan. She is a graduate of Yale University where she majored in History and Studies in the Environment.

Mary hails from Missouri and spent much of her childhood playing in and around the Meramec River in the Ozarks. She currently work from her home in Chicago where she lives with her husband Rob Khoury and their two teenage children, William and Eloise.

Ann Kipper is the Deputy Administrator in the External Services Division at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Co-Director of the Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts. Ann has 30 years of varied experience in the environmental and natural resources fields. Ann’s previous DNR roles were in the Waste and Materials Management program where she served as a field supervisor and then as the program director. Ann worked for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for six years as an environmental coordinator. She also spent nine years in the private sector as a hydrogeologist working on remediation, water, waste and mining projects for private industry and business. Ann started her career in simpler roles, sampling lakes in northern Wisconsin (for the UW) and transferring soil classification data from air photos to planimetrically correct base maps (for the USDA NRCS). Ann attended UW—Stevens Point and holds a degree in Geography/Geology. Ann’s career was inspired by the Oneida County forest park her family lived on while she was growing up — the Buck Lake shoreline, unique wetlands and 40 acres of forest donated to the county by naturalist Dr. Lois Almon. Ann lives in the Northwoods with her family. She has an affinity for Lake Superior and mentoring youth in her community and emerging leaders in state government.

Jenn is currently the Acting Regional Director for the Midcontinent Region. In this capacity, she oversees the science activities, including safety and quality management system activities in the region. Jenn leads the science activities being conducted at six USGS Water Science Centers and five Ecosystems Science Centers across eleven states, spanning from the northern Rocky Mountains to the Great Lakes. Jenn has participated in several activities to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility including the USGS Diversity Council, the USGS Mentoring Program, and WISDom (Women in Science Dialogue), and well as leading the Region’s Diversity and Inclusion activities. Jenn lives in Sioux Falls, SD.

Jenn has a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Mathematics from the University of South Dakota and has worked toward her Doctorate in Geospatial Science and Engineering at South Dakota State University.

Dan Larkin is an Associate Professor and Extension Specialist in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology at the University of Minnesota. He and his research team address applied problems in restoration ecology, invasion biology, and vegetation management in wetlands, lakes, prairies, and woodlands. Through his extension program, he trains volunteers and professionals to support ecological restoration and surveillance and management of invasive species.

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Owen is a Research Ecologist at Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown, ND and a Visiting Scientist with MW CASC. Owen’s research is focused on applying a mechanistic understanding of how wetland ecosystems respond to changes in climate and land use in support of both migratory-bird habitat management and water quality and water quantity issues in agricultural and grassland landscapes of the Northern Great Plains, Midwestern United States, and Southcentral Canada.

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Jeff Mears is a member of the Oneida Nation and the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Tribal Conservation Advisory Council. Jeff has a Bachelor of Science in Biological Science degree from Northern Illinois University, a Master of Public Administration degree from UW-Oshkosh, and is currently enrolled in the First Nations Education Doctorate program at UW-Green Bay.

For nearly 26 years Jeff worked for the Oneida Nation overseeing the Environmental Health & Safety Area and worked on the development of the Oneida Nation Climate Change resolution. He has presented on climate change at various workshops, meetings, and symposia including the National EPA-Tribal Science Council Traditional Ecological Knowledge Training Workshop, the National Climate Assessment Workshop on Sustaining Assessments of Oceans and Coasts, and the First Stewards: Coastal Peoples Address Climate Change Symposium at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC.

Matthew Mitro is a fisheries research scientist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Based in Madison, Matt has been working with the DNR on statewide fisheries issues since 2003. Matt’s current research is focused on trout in Wisconsin’s inland streams, on issues including stream habitat restoration, propagation and stocking, trout population response to environmental change, age and growth, trout-parasite dynamics, and beaver effects on coldwater steam habitat and trout populations. Matt has also worked for the EPA’s Atlantic Ecology Division, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and he earned his PhD in fisheries at Montana State University studying rainbow trout recruitment in the Henry’s Fork.

Heidi is a lake/landscape ecologist at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources in the Fisheries Research Unit. She is interested in the effects of multi-scale impacts to the structure and productivity of freshwater ecosystems. Her current work focuses on fisheries habitat, changing freshwater systems, and food web dynamics. Heidi is working on project studying the distribution, impacts, and genetics of the nuisance alga Didymosphenia geminata in nearshore habitat in Lake Superior and its Minnesota tributaries. She is also working with partners to understand the impacts of changing habitat to walleye production and the introduction of invasive species to native zooplankton production. She is currently collaborating with many partners, including the Science Museum of Minnesota, University of Minnesota, UM-Duluth, UW-Stout, WI DNR, University of Wisconsin, Michigan State, and Miami University. Heidi earned her Ph.D. at the University of Alabama in Biological Sciences and has worked in lakes and streams from Arctic Alaska to the cloud forests of Panama.

Sara Smith is a direct descendant of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin and is the Midwest Tribal Resilience Liaison with the College of Menominee Nation – Sustainable Development Institute, in association with the Northeast (NE) and Midwest (MW) Climate Adaptation Science Centers.

As the liaison for the Midwest, she works on facilitating stronger relationships between Tribes, climate researchers, organizations, and the NE/MW CASCs. In addition, she works with Tribes to build capacity and provides support by helping identify gaps and assisting with climate resilience efforts.

Sara holds a Master of Science in Ecology from the State University of New York-College of Environmental Science and Forestry and undergraduate degrees in Biology and First Nation Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Matt Vitello has been a Policy Coordinator with the Missouri Department of Conservation for six years. Matt has a Masters in Geological Engineering and is a Professional Engineer. As a Policy Coordinator, Matt works on a variety of topics with a focus on large river policy, representing MDC on multiple Mississippi River committees. He is currently chair of MDC’s Climate Adaptation Team and is leading development of a Climate Adaptation Plan for MDC operations. Matt began his career at the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in the Water Resources Center, modeling dam failures, conducting water planning studies, and working on Missouri River policy. When not at work Matt enjoys the outdoors with his wife and six-year-old son, playing disc golf, canoeing, hiking and camping.

Dr. Zuckerberg is a professor in the Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology. He received his doctorate from the State University of New York and served as a research associate at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. His research focuses on how modern climate change and habitat loss influence wildlife behavior, abundance, and distribution. Members of his lab often work closely with natural resource managers to provide guidance on aspects of climate change adaptation.

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