Lance Craighead

About Lance Craighead

I am a field ecologist, population geneticist, and GIS technician with several decades of experience in conservation planning. I just finished co-editing a book with Charles Convis to be published in January 2013 by Esri Press:\"Conservation Planning: Shaping the Future\". My current research interests focus on aspects of conservation planning based upon focal or umbrella species: population and metapopulation persistence, gene flow, habitat connectivity, core habitat, and protected areas. I have published numerous scientific papers, completed three book chapters, and published one book:\"Bears of the World\" for Colin Baxter/Voyageur Press. As the Executive Director of the Craighead Institute I coordinate research; helping synthesize results and directing communications, fundraising, and development. I have been the ED of the Institute since 1994. I have a Bachelor\'s degree (B.S.) from Carleton College in 1969. I then worked for 5 years, including 3 years in the Peace Corps in Fiji and Samoa. I received an M.Sc. in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1977 where I studied seabirds in the Pribilof Islands of Alaska. I worked for another 10 years, primarily in Alaska. I completed a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Montana State University in 1994 studying grizzly bear genetics in the Alaskan Arctic. I am currently a Research Affiliate Professor of Ecology at MSU. I am a member of the IUCN World Committee on Protected Areas, the Society for Conservation Biology, and the Society for Conservation GIS.

Experience

1. Executive Director

   Craighead Institute

   Jan 1994 — Present · Bozeman, MT, US

   I was Executive Director from 1996 to 2014. From January 2014 to July 2015 I took a more project-focused position as Conservation Director as we welcomed Robert Inman to be our new ED. After Bob moved on to pursue his research intersts in June 2015 I continuee to focus on development and direction of the Craighead Institute research program involving wildlife and habitat conservation issues. The mission of the Craighead Institute is to maintain healthy populations of native plants and wildlife, along with vibrant, healthy human communities in sustainable, functioning ecosystems. We use a scientific approach to conserve nature for future generations. Our major focus is Conservation Planning using the best available science and applying habitat suitability models, population viability analysis, and connectivity analysis through GIS.

Education

• Carleton College

  B.A., Biology

  1965 — 1969

• University of Wisconsin-Madison

  M.Sc., Wildlife Ecology

  1974 — 1976

• Montana State University-Bozeman

  PhD, Biological Sciences, Genetics

  1988 — 1994

Skills

• Water Quality
• Conservation Planning
• Fish
• Ecological Restoration
• Research
• Wildlife Management
• Habitat Restoration
• Environmental Issues
• Science Communication
• Environmental Education
• Fisheries
• Environmental Policy
• Natural Resource Management
• Wildlife
• Wildlife Conservation
• Solar Energy
• Outdoor Recreation
• Gps
• Ecology
• Arcgis
• Data Collection
• Fundraising
• Wetlands
• Biology
• Field Work
• Biodiversity
• Corridor Planning
• Forestry
• Sustainable Development
• Conservation Issues
• Editing
• Science
• Gis
• Conservation Biology
• Climate Change
• Environmental Awareness
• Wildlife Biology
• Environmental Science
• Grant Writing
• Spatial Analysis