STEWARDSHIP

This is Molly’s third monitoring season with the Land Trust. She graduated with a BA in Geology from Colorado College and is interested in the relationships between earth history, hydrology and land use.

Derek joined the Land Trust team as Land Steward & Staff Biologist in February of 2016. Derek grew up in Ohio, but after gaining as B.S. in Botany from Miami University, he traded the flat-lands of the Midwest for the alluring landscapes of the West. After 22 years working in ecology and habitat enhancement for a number of federal, non-profit, and consulting entities, Derek is excited to help uphold the conservation vision of easement donors and landowners. Above all, Derek enjoys sharing the wonders of the Greater Yellowstone Area with his wife, Jen, and two little girls, Lila and Quinn.

Steffan was born and raised on Colorado’s Front Range. He holds a B.A. in Biology and a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota, and a Master’s of Natural Resources Stewardship from Colorado State University. Steffan has previously worked at the Aldo Leopold Foundation and in Minnesota for The Nature Conservancy on grassland conservation and management, as well as for the Institute of Ecosystem Studies and the USGS. He draws inspiration from Aldo Leopold’s Land Ethic.

Erica joined the Jackson Hole Land Trust as a Land Steward and Staff Biologist in the winter of 2017. She holds a B.S. degree in Zoology with Honors from Colorado State University, and an M.S. degree in Wildlife Biology from Utah State University. She has conducted research in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem since 2007, and brings experience working for diverse stakeholders including research institutions, consulting firms, and the National Park Service. Erica specializes in the spatial ecology of wildlife, and has worked with a number of iconic western species including mule deer, pronghorn, elk, bison, and Greater sage-grouse. She is passionate about understanding how animals move across our landscape, and how that might change as more people come to enjoy the beauty of the Jackson area. When she’s not in the field, you can find her backcountry skiing, birding, trail running, and trying not to crash on her mountain bike.

Scott is a Michigan native and spent his younger days playing in the forests, lakes, and cornfields of the Kalamazoo area. He holds a BA in Biology from Hope College in Holland, Michigan and first moved to Pinedale in 2010 and fell in love with the landscape and the community. Scott holds a PhD in Biological Sciences from Louisiana State University where he studied how human disturbances like slash-and-burn agriculture influence forest regeneration in the Amazon Rainforest.

In 2019, Scott moved back to Pinedale and the Wind River Mountains where he now works for the Jackson Hole Land Trust to conserve and protect critical wildlife habitat and working lands from development in Sublette County. Scott also sits on the board of the Pinedale Theatre Company and enjoys exploring the Winds with his dog, mountain biking, landscaping, photography, and carpentry.

Liz Long joined the Land Trust in July of 2012 as Protection Manager. Liz was born and raised Birmingham, Alabama and holds a BA from the University of Georgia in Philosophy. She moved to Wyoming upon graduation and fell in love with the Tetons and the community of Jackson. She then returned to the University of Georgia to earn her law degree where she focused in environmental and land use law and gained experience with governmental agencies and numerous non-profits, hoping to return to Jackson. Outside of work Liz enjoys skiing, biking, hiking, yoga, music and time with her two pups, Murphy and Bella.

Growing up in Alaska and Wyoming, Rachael developed an appreciation for open spaces and healthy ecosystems. The outdoors have oriented her throughout her life and played a huge role in her landing in the Tetons in 2014. Rachael graduated from the University of Montana with a BA in Rural and Environmental Change. She has been working in the restoration ecology field for the past ten years throughout Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. This is Rachael’s second monitoring season with the Land Trust.
During her free time, Rachael enjoys bicycles, backcountry ski tours, trail runs, remote areas, alpine flowers, old growth forests, canines, and donuts.