Mountain Lion Foundation

Staff

	Tim Dunbar Executive Director 916-442-2666 ext. 105 tdunbar@ mountainlion.org	Tim started his environmental career in 1990 as a volunteer collecting signatures for California's Proposition 117 - the Mountain Lion Initiative. He spent the next few years working for numerous environmental political campaigns (Big Green, CALPAW, Forests Forever, etc.) before joining the American Farmland Trust as a Field Assistant in 1994. During his tenure with AFT, Tim wrote or co-authored several publications dealing with development issues in California's Central Valley (The Central Valley New Towns: Destiny or Disaster, Ranchettes: The Subtle Sprawl, and Alternatives for Future Urban growth in California's Central Valley). Tim joined the Mountain Lion Foundation in August 2000 as their Development Director, and has subsequently been instrumental in creating many of MLF's ongoing conservation and educational programs. Tim became MLF's Executive Director in November of 2008, and is currently helping to shape the organization's vision of itself for the 21st Century.
	Fred Hull Operations Manager 916-442-2666 ext. 102 fhull@ mountainlion.org	Fred started his environmental career in the mid 80's with Californians Against Waste working on the Bottle Bill. After a few detours, which included writing software for Viacom/Paramount, a law practice and developing business processes and software for a startup company that was acquired by Lexis, Fred returned to environmental work with the Mountain Lion Foundation in 2004.
	Amy Rodrigues Outreach Coordinator 916-442-2666 ext. 107 amy@ mountainlion.org	Amy has always been passionate about wildlife and conservation issues. After a childhood full of camping trips and furry, scaled and feathered pets, she began studying ecology. Amy continued her education at the University of California, Santa Barbara, graduating with honors in Zoology and a minor in Geological Sciences. In 2008 she served a year in AmeriCorps, and with her host site (MLF), Amy worked with residents in the Central Sierra Region to reduce conflicts with mountain lions. In 2009 Amy accepted a full time position with MLF as the Outreach Coordinator and is expanding MLF's efforts by utilizing the latest web-based technologies. She is also pursuing a graduate degree in Environmental Policy from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.
Volunteers
	Bob McCoy Field Volunteer	Bob grew up in a family that shared with cats, turtles, fish, and tortoises. His parents took action on causes of civil rights and environmental issues as a matter of course, usually without pointed discussion: action, not words was their example. Several of Bob's fellow fighter pilots in the US Navy had degrees in Biology, or Ecology, and they recommended reading that furthered his understanding of the environment and need for maintaining the interrelationships of species and for a landscape approach. Aldo Leopold's "A Sand County Almanac" was a seminal recommendation that generated insight into the need for what are now called apex consumers. Bob discovered Mountain Lion Foundation as part of his research to learn about America's lion, and found fellow travelers in his belief that we need to protect these magnificent cats to maintain their biological effectiveness to preserve our own well-being. Bob lives in Sammamish, Washington, close enough to the Wildland-Urban Interface that coyotes, deer, and occasionally, black bears visit. His four cats are indoor only, both for their protection, and also because they are efficient hunters that constitute an invasive species. Bob has a BS degree, an MBA, and a bad attitude toward those who value dollars over environment.
	Robin Parks Field Volunteer	Robin Parks retired from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in 2004 after a 25 year career in federal law enforcement. Robin's work required he work and live in various locations in the U.S., Europe, Mexico, and on U.S. Navy ships at sea. A life long admirer of the great cats, he began doing volunteer work at animal sanctuaries in California and elsewhere in 1999 where he first encountered captive mountain lions. This later led him to the Mountain Lion Foundation (MLF) where he has been a field volunteer on several projects. He now is very much involved in reaching out to law enforcement agencies who are so often the first responders to cougar incidents. Robin's presentations provide basic cougar biology and general safety tips, and address the "myths & misinformation" that surround cougars. He also discusses various "shoot/don't shoot" considerations and scenarios geared toward law enforcement personnel which show that killing a wayward cougar simply because it has wandered into human territory is rarely necessary and is often the wrong decision. Robin lives in San Diego, California.
	Julie West On Air Broadcaster	Julie West is a big cat advocate and digital media artist living in Denton, Texas. She has an MFA in Video-Film from the California Institute of the Arts (CALARTS), where she produced From the Root Up, an International Documentary Association award-winning documentary that examines the relationship of stewardship to agriculture and the food we grow and eat. Julie has worked as a photo editor, writer, and video producer/editor to facilitate personal and professional projects. Her clients include educational, commercial, and environmental organizations such as the Nature Conservancy and the Natural Resources Defense Council. She currently works as a publications specialist for the University of North Texas, where she develops creative content for print, web, broadcast and special events to promote the spectrum of research emerging across the sciences and humanities. Julie joined the Mountain Lion Foundation team in March 2010 as a volunteer broadcaster on MLF's ON AIR podcast program. She created the theme song as well as the introduction and closing clips for ON AIR. In April she conducted the first interview with Florida panther biologist Deborah Jansen to kickoff the broadcast program.
	Lyn Whitcomb Volunteer Coordinator	Lyn has been with MLF since the beginning. She gathered signatures and campaigned for Proposition 117 back in 1990; and today she continues to coordinate volunteer efforts in the Sacramento area. Lyn can often be found setting up her mountain lion education booth at community events and the Folsom Zoo. Every year during the holidays she recruits a team of volunteers to join her for a gift wrapping fundraiser at Barnes & Noble. Lyn has a passion for mountain lions that goes above and beyond the average MLF member. Her warm and spunky personality makes her a favorite among the volunteer crew, as well as the entire MLF staff.


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Copyright 1988-2011 - Material produced by the Mountain Lion Foundation is protected under copyright laws. Permission to rebroadcast or duplicate is granted for non-commercial use when the Mountain Lion Foundation is credited. Masthead Design Courtesy of MLF Volunteer Jenny Swartzbaugh