Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation's Blog

December 2011

Give a gift for JH wildlife this season!

Season’s Greetings from the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation,

I am so honored to have been selected as the Executive Director of the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation. As I settle into my new position, I want to share some information about the work we are doing and also about my background.

The Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation (JHWF) has been making a tangible difference for wildlife throughout Jackson Hole for almost twenty years. With your support, we have worked to promote ways for our community to live compatibly with wildlife through partnerships, education and on the ground projects. Our work has become increasingly critical during the last two decades as both our human populations and our wildlife populations have expanded their ranges. Wildlife and human interactions have in turn increased in frequency and intensity. It is no longer uncommon to see grizzly bears in Grand Teton National Park and adjacent private lands. Unfortunately, it is also not uncommon to see mule deer killed on Broadway, right in the heart of Jackson Hole. In the past year, your support helped make our priority projects strong and successful. Some highlights from 2011 include the following:

1. In partnership with the Wyoming Game & Fish Department, JHWF has helped to minimize human-bear interactions through our Bear Wise Jackson Hole Program, keeping bears wild and people safe.
2. To date, JHWF has removed over 150 miles of wildlife unfriendly fence. Your support will help ensure that our volunteers are able to continue to remove or modify many more miles of fence to help wildlife move safely through our beautiful valley.
3. In partnership with the Meg and Bert Raynes Wildlife Fund, the highly successful Nature Mapping Jackson Hole program worked to collect and disseminate meaningful wildlife data. These data are collected entirely by citizen scientist volunteers and aid a multitude of agencies and homeowners to make scientifically based wildlife management decisions.

4. With a primary goal of reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions in Jackson Hole, JHWF funds a diverse wildlife education program. Through our signature program, “Give Wildlife a Brake”, we have partnered with the Wyoming Department of Transportation on the moveable flashing signs you see on our roadways to reduce wildlife deaths.


While I am new to the JHWF, I have a long history of living and working in this valley. For four summers as a college student, I worked in Yellowstone National Park; as a graduate student at the Yale School of Forestry, I studied the ecology of the region;  as a biologist for Biota Research and Consulting Inc., I worked to enhance many of the private lands in this valley; and as a wildlife researcher for both the Wildlife Conservation Society and the Conservation Research Center of Teton Science Schools, I tracked and studied pronghorn and mule deer from here to the Upper Green River Valley. This background allows me to understand this land from a biological perspective.

I also have deep personal ties. Many of my closest friendships were forged in the Tetons more than a decade ago; I met my husband here and we were married at the base of the Grand; my children were born in the Jackson hospital and are growing up too quickly in the shadow of these mountains. The key reason I chose to join this organization is the incredible effectiveness that the JHWF has had in protecting our valley’s wildlife. Our success is a direct result of the volunteer and financial support many friends and neighbors, like yourself, offer to the foundation. My passion is wildlife conservation and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation is the organization that “gets it done” in the valley.

I hope we can count on your continued support for our work. Your investment truly makes a difference for our valley’s wildlife. Thank you for your energy, ideas, personal dedication and generous financial support. I look forward to meeting and working with you in the coming year. Happy Holidays!
Sincerely,

Leigh Work
Executive Director
Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation