Welcome to the TWS Habitat Restoration Working Group
The Habitat Restoration Working Group (HRWG) provides a forum for TWS members to share experiences, techniques and information relative to restoring wildlife populations and degraded habitats.
We explore methods for implementing ecosystem management principles that enable whole communities to recover, and seek to identify effective monitoring and evaluation programs to determine successes and failures of restoration techniques.
If you are interested in learning more about the working group, please reach out.
< class=" h2 c-title " >Goals
- Facilitate communication and the collegial exchange of information among members of the Society interested in the restoration, management and conservation of wildlife habitat.
- Identify and publicize innovative approaches to research, management and teaching that advance effective wildlife habitat conservation.
- Enhance the knowledge, understanding and technical capabilities of natural resource professionals and land managers working to restore the structure and function of disturbed landscapes for the benefit of native wildlife species.
- Increase public awareness and appreciation of the benefits and potential for restoring and conserving habitat to promote wildlife conservation.
- Promote interdisciplinary collaboration among the many natural resources professions involved in habitat restoration.
- In cooperation with the Council, influence policy makers whose decisions may have far-reaching implications for the sustainability of wildlife populations and their habitats.
- Embrace, foster and promote a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusivity among members of the Working Group and the Society broadly.
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< class=" h2 c-title " >Actions:
To aid in the achievement of these goals, the Working Group proposes to:
- Provide regular communication and professional development opportunities to members of the Society interested in ecological restoration through meetings, webinars, symposia, workshops, technical sessions, position statements, newsletters, publications and other means.
- Promote membership in the Society and Working Group to natural resource professionals interested in the restoration, management and conservation of wildlife habitat.
- Provide journalists, government officials, other conservation organizations, policy makers and members of the general public with clear, concise information about the importance of restoring and conserving habitat for the benefit of native wildlife species.
- Identify ways and means to cooperate with other Society Working Groups concerned with conservation and restoration science (e.g., Biological Diversity, Climate Change and Wildlife, Forestry and Wildlife, Rangeland Wildlife and Conservation Affairs).
- Collaborate in programming with other natural resources and environmental groups working in the areas of conservation and restoration science (e.g., Society for Ecological Restoration, Society for Conservation Biology, IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management, and IUCN SSC Conservation Planning Specialist Group).
- Make recommendations to the Society Council for specific actions to be taken by the Society in the area of wildlife habitat restoration and conservation.
- Prepare draft technical reviews, position statements and other materials in the area of restoration for consideration by the Council.
- Provide financial support in the form of scholarships and travel assistance to support the participation of students in Working Group-sponsored professional development opportunities.
- Provide professional mentoring opportunities for students interested in wildlife habitat restoration and conservation.
- Provide a welcoming environment for members of under-represented groups interested in habitat restoration and conservation.
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Announcements
Donate to support our continued mission of habitat restoration and providing resources to students and professionals.
Become a member
Membership is available to all current TWS members. You may join our working group by logging in to your TWS account.
< class=" h2 c-title " >Officers
Chair: Amber Dabbs Pippin, AWB®
HI! My name is Amber Pippin! I am an Associate Wildlife Biologist®, certified through TWS since 2020. Since graduating from Texas State University in April 2020, I have been working for Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation, holding many titles. I have a passion for birds, bird surveying and banding in particular, but also have a deep passion for Habitat Restoration. My interests have led me to the HRWG, and I now hold the Chair-Elect position for the WG. I am excited to hold this position and hope to impact current habitat conservation and restoration efforts.
Chair-elect: Mason Thomas
Past Chair: Angela Burrow
Angela is an assistant professor at Michigan State University in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. Her research focuses broadly on the interactions between natural dynamic processes (e.g., fire, flooding, succession), human-driven disturbance and natural resource conservation & management (e.g., herpetofauna) within wetlands and the terrestrial environments in which they function. As a wildlife ecologist, she uses a multiple stressor lens to investigate the impact of environmental change and other stressors on wetlands and wetland associated wildlife. A critical part of her work is evaluating the effectiveness of restoration and management actions to support the resilience of herpetofauna and their wetland habitats. Working closely with stakeholders including state and federal agencies, non-profit organizations and local communities to develop, produce and share research findings is important to her.
Secretary-Treasurer:
Derrick Lindsay
Board Members:
Raymond Drueser
Drew White
Drew White-Jacobson is a Desert Tortoise Biologist with the Center for Environmental Management of Military Lands – Las Vegas under Colorado State University. As a child of the Intermountain West Drew’s love of the outdoors manifested into a career with professional experience that has taken her across the US as well as to Costa Rica, Canada, and Africa. Drew earned a B.S. in Conservation and Restoration Ecology at Utah State University, and M.S. at Tarleton State University. Her career has focused on sensitive species conservation and preservation from an ecological management perspective. Drew has been an active member of her national and local TWS chapters for many years and has proudly served as chair of the Scholarship and Awards Committee, and a Board member at large since 2022.
Communications Chair:
Alex Hoxie
Alex received his B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a concentration in conservation and restoration ecology in 2022. While there, he served as the president of the student TWS chapter for 2 years. Currently, he is a master’s student at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, with his thesis research focusing on the abundance of microplastics in nestling house sparrows. After his master’s, he plans on pursuing his PhD, continuing to research avian ecology, where he hopes to incorporate his passions for bird conservation and restoration. Alex believes that effective communication is central to the mission of the HRWG and TWS as a whole. He is looking forward to his role in engaging with the members of the HRWG and developing our community.
Meetings
We encourage all HRWG members to attend the annual business and monthly meetings to stay in touch with the progress of the Working Group as well as to provide feedback to the board on actions that have been or will be conducted. Monthly meetings are held virtually on the first Thursday of every month at 5:30 p.m. MT.