Although Jeff was not born in Texas, he got there as quickly as he could — and stayed. Now, he works at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), where he serves as the Joint Venture Program Leader. Jeff has a strong belief in tackling landscape conservation challenges through a collaborative process and believes a sustained pursuit of the unifying themes of conservation will result in partner agencies and organizations becoming more interdependent.

TPWD oversees and protects wildlife and their habitats and manages the state’s parks and historical areas. The department relies on their joint venture partners to provide much of the organization’s landscape conservation planning, design and science, embracing the shared objective created by these long-standing, engaged partners. Jeff enjoys the level of engagement each board member brings to the table and the group’s willingness to discuss conservation issues in new and novel ways.

Jeff received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University in wildlife ecology and a master’s degree from the University of Missouri – Columbia with an emphasis on wetlands and waterfowl ecology and management. He worked at Arkansas Game and Fish Commission before transitioning to TPWD, where he began working on statewide wetland conservation issues. Over time, his main job focus developed into a unique position that allows him to represent TPWD in many different conservation partnerships. For well over a decade, Jeff has been directly involved in the five Joint Ventures that cover Texas and oversaw the successful creation and development of the Oaks and Prairie and Rio Grande Joint Ventures. He currently sits on the Management Boards of the Lower Mississippi Valley, Gulf Coast, Oaks and Prairie, and Rio Grande Joint Ventures, as well as PLJV, and is the current Chair of the boards for Rio Grande, Lower Mississippi Valley and Gulf Coast.

Jeff enjoys travel, mountain biking, hiking, fly-fishing, and food and beverage-related activities.