Board of Directors
The Fisheries Conservation Foundation is governed by a Board of Directors that oversees strategic planning, project selection, foundation finances, and partnership development.
David P. Philipp, Chair
Principal Scientist, Retired, Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois
Dr. David Philipp is the Principal Scientist at the Illinois Natural History Survey, a research department within the Institute of Natural Resources Sustainability at the University of Illinois. His research interests focus on three major areas: conservation genetics, reproductive ecology, and the effects of fishing on natural populations. His findings have helped to document the negative impacts of outbreeding depression that can result from hatchery stocking programs, as well as to illustrate the evolutionary effects that fishing can have on natural populations. Much of his research has targeted centrarchid species, particularly focusing on the factors that impact their parental care activities, reproductive success, and annual recruitment. In recent years, Dr. Philipp has broadened his interest in these research topics to include the marine flats ecosystem, studying bonefish reproductive behaviors and the effects of recreational angling on post-release behavior and survival of flats fishes. Dave was one of the original group of founders spearheading the formation of the Fisheries Conservation Foundation, and he currently serves as the Chair of its Board of Directors.
Bryant Dunn
Director, Himalayan River United
Bryant Dunn is the Director of Himalayan Rivers United, a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote angling-based conservation across the Himalayan range. When not working to promote fisheries conservation, Bryant runs his international angling business, Wanderlust Flyfishing Adventures, and his domestic outfitting business, Sun Valley Outfitters, headquartered in the American Rocky Mountains of Idaho.
As a guide and outfitter, both domestically and internationally, for over 25 years, Bryant has witnessed both successful and failed conservation models across the globe. This experience has been crucial in contributing to Bryant’s passion for riverine conservation and developing solutions to the myriad challenges that face fisheries, and the human populations that depend on them. Bryant’s work is currently focused in the Himalayas, Southeast Asia and the South Pacific among other remote and exotic locales.
Ellen Marsden
University of Vermont
Dr. Ellen Marsden received her doctorate in Fisheries in 1988 from Cornell University. After post-doctoral work at Cornell, she joined the Illinois Natural History Survey as director of the Lake Michigan Biological Station, then moved to the University of Vermont in 1996, where she is a Professor in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology.
Marsden’s research is broadly focused on restoration and ecology of fishes in Lake Champlain and the Great Lakes, and the biology, vectors, effects, and management of aquatic invasive species, particularly dreissenid mussels and sea lamprey. She is currently studying restoration of lake trout populations, lake trout spawning behavior, and effects of lake fragmentation by causeways on population structuring. In collaboration with the Great Lakes Acoustic Telemetry Observation System (GLATOS) and USGS, she has established a telemetry array throughout Lake Champlain to track walleye, lake trout, and lake sturgeon. Marsden also studies design and use of artificial reefs as lake trout spawning sites, and recently finished a project in Thunder Bay, Lake Huron, involving construction of 29 reefs for research and habitat restoration. Her interests in lake trout behavior, fish conservation, and invasive species recently coalesced during research on suppression of invasive lake trout in Yellowstone Lake, WY.
Michael Philipp
CEO, Ambata Capital Management
Michael Philipp is the Managing Partner of Ambata, a global investment and advisory firm specializing in clean energy and sustainability, with a strategic focus on the Middle East and Africa. For the past 25 years, he has held senior management positions across the financial services industry, including Credit Suisse as a member of their Executive Board, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa and Deutsche Bank as a Member of the Board of Managing Directors and Chairman and CEO of Deutsche Asset Management. Michael holds a bachelor of arts, an M.B.A. in finance, and an honorary doctorate from the University of Massachusetts. He is chairman of Reykjavik Energy and a board member of World Wildlife Fund – US.
Aaron Shultz
Fisheries Biologist, Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission
Dr. Aaron Shultz is a Fisheries Biologist at the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC). In this role, he investigates the vulnerability of inland fish to climate change throughout the Ceded Territories in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota and works in collaboration with non-profit organizations, universities, and state and federal agencies to conserve these fisheries for future generations. His previous research focused on the ecology of marine and freshwater fishes, with an emphasis on how anthropogenic disturbance (e.g., development, climate change) and recreational angling may influence fish movement, behavior, physiology, and survival. Recently, his collaborative research projects on marine fish have focused on the reproductive ecology of bonefish, which led to the identification of multiple pre-spawning aggregations sites on several Bahamian islands. In addition to his role at GLIFWC, Aaron is an adjunct professor at Michigan State University, is an associate editor at Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, and serves on the steering committee for the Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership.
Jeffrey Stein
Fisheries Research Scientist, University of Illinois
Dr. Jeffrey Stein works as a fisheries scientist at the University of Illinois where his research focuses on linkages between ecological function and exploitation of fish populations by humans. Using basic and applied research approaches, he explores how human activities can impact the reproductive ecology and behavior of fishes, ultimately translating findings into meaningful and effective conservation actions. A large component of that research investigates the impact of catch-and-release angling on the reproductive life history and recruitment dynamics of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), a popular freshwater sport fish. Additionally, Jeff worked on a study with our partners, the Cape Eleuthera Institute, that focused on a long-term historical shark data, re-creating a study from a dataset detailing the diversity and abundance of shark populations in The Bahamas that took place over 30 years ago. This research project looked at historical variation in the diversity, abundance and demographic population structure of apex predator assemblages to provide insight into the effectiveness of potential conservation strategies. A manuscript is currently in production.
Rick Williams
Conservation Biologist
Dr. Rick Williams is a fisheries ecologist with 30+ years experience working and consulting on native salmon and trout conservation in western North America, with particular expertise in Columbia River salmon recovery. Rick also has years of experience in the fly fishing industry as an outfitter, guide, and retail fly fishing shop owner. He is a Life member of Fly Fishers International (FFI) and Trout Unlimited (TU) and has traveled the world as a certified Master Casting Instructor and a Two-Hand Spey Casting Instructor.