BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Stuart McLaughlin
Stuart McLaughlin is a business executive in BC's tourism industry and Chair of the BC Pavilion Corporation. Mr. McLaughlin has served on many public, private and charitable boards. He is known for his ability to combine innovation in business with sustainability measures, including via sustainable energy demonstration projects.
Michael Audain
Michael Audain, OC OBC is Chairman of Polygon Homes Ltd., one of BC's leading home builders. He is a governor of the Business Council of BC. An active supporter of the visual arts, Mr. Audain is Chair of the Audain Foundation, and a director of the Audain Art Museum.
Suzanne Veit
Suzanne Veit is a retired BC Government deputy minister, formerly of Women’s Equality, and of Municipal Affairs. Ms Veit ran a consulting firm that focused on social policy in Canada and abroad. She has chaired the BC Medical Services Commission and the Homeowner Protection Office, and has been a director of Katimavik.
Ken Macquisten
Dr. Ken Macquisten is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, specializing in wildlife, who has been involved in various conservation efforts. He is the Director of the Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife and was the founder of Kicking Horse Grizzly Bear Refuge. Dr. Macquisten was a Director of the Fraser Valley SPCA, and has worked with various wildlife rehabilitation centres.
Douglas Neasloss
Douglas Neasloss is Chief Councillor and Resource Stewardship Director for the Kitasoo/Xai'xais Nation. He has been integral to many grizzly bear initiatives, including Coastal First Nations' ban on trophy hunting in their traditional territories. He is chair of Spirit Bear Research Foundation, and a former guide with Spirit Bear Adventures.
John McKercher
John McKercher, QC is a retired corporate lawyer. He brings skills and oversight in business, compliance and corporate operations to the Foundation. Mr. McKercher is a past Director and Chair of the BC Children’s Hospital, past Director of BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, past Chair of BC Borstal Association and director of the Audain Foundation.
Ellie Lamb
Ellie Lamb has spent many years as a bear viewing guide in the Great Bear Rainforest and the interior of BC. She has spearheaded initiatives such as bear cub rehab and attractant management education, and is recognized for helping to educate people on bear behaviour. Ms Lamb has worked tirelessly in the past to stop the grizzly bear hunt in Alberta. She is also an artist, specializing in bronze sculpture of bears.
Doria Moodie
Doria Moodie is a full time artist based in Whistler. She is a strong advocate for BC bears and has spent many days observing them in the wild in order to paint large portraits of them. Previously, Mrs Moodie taught in the Vancouver French Immersion program, and was on the board of the Vancouver Chapter of Room to Read, which promotes literacy and gender equality in the developing world.
Ralf Schmidtke
Ralf Schmidtke, CPA, is a retired CFO of a leading BC home builder. He serves on several private and charitable boards that focus on child poverty, housing for the homeless, and the arts.
Timothy Young
Timothy Young has been in the mineral exploration business for over 25 years, primarily working as a prospector in the field. He has spent many hours in the wilds of British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon and Northwest Territories and Nunavut. He brings knowledge of resource issues as well as the Pacific Northwest and the Arctic to the board.
RESEARCH ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Our Research Advisory Committee advises on current data gaps and research needs. The Board of Directors then uses this information to establish our research priorities. To ensure good communication between the two bodies, this Committee is chaired by Director Suzanne Veit.
Dr Bruce McLellan
Bruce McLellan is Wildlife Research Ecologist for the British Columbia Forest Service. For 39 years Bruce has conducted ecological studies of grizzly bears in 6 study areas in BC and for 25 years, mountain caribou across most of their distribution. This research has led him directly into the complex interface between people using the land and conservation of these two challenging species. Bruce was once the president of the International Association for Bear Research and Management, then co-chair of the IUCN Bear Specialist Group, and is now the Redlist Authority for the Bear Specialist Group.
Dr Chris Darimont
Chris Darimont is the Hakai-Raincoast Professor at the University of Victoria and Science Director for the Raincoast Conservation Foundation. Specializing in long-term, community-engaged wildlife research, Chris and his students in his Applied Conservation Science lab partner with several Indigenous governments of the BC coast to monitor coastal grizzly, black and spirit bears. Broader interests include the ecological, evolutionary, and ethical implications of trophy hunting.
Dr Courtney Hughes
Courtney Hughes is a conservation social science, or human dimensions of wildlife, researcher and practitioner in Alberta. Her work focuses on policy and planning, applied research, and educational outreach, with an emphasis on bears in Alberta. She currently works for Alberta Environment and Parks - Peace Region, is a visiting tutor for Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, and is a collaborator with Korup Rainforest Conservation Society's girls conservation scholarship, Southwest Cameroon. Courtney is near completion of her PhD at the University of Alberta, addressing the cultural context of grizzly bear recovery in the province.
Dr David Fraser
David Fraser is Professor in the Animal Welfare Program at the University of British Columbia. His 46 year research career has focused on the behaviour and welfare of farm, wild and companion animals. He has served as a scientific advisor on animal welfare to many organizations including the World Organisation for Animal Health (Paris) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (Rome). His publications include his 2008 book Understanding Animal Welfare: The Science in its Cultural Context. He was appointed Member of the Order of Canada in 2005 for his work as “a pioneer in the field of animal welfare science.”
Dr Michael Proctor
Michael Proctor is a conservation relevant independent research scientist who uses science to understand and inform conservation problems and solutions related to bears & large carnivores. He focuses on small isolated threatened populations requiring higher conservation attention, including population recovery, human-bear conflict reduction, community-based conservation, population management, population fragmentation and connectivity, habitat use, landscape genetics, demographics, bottom-up vs top-down population dynamics, & trend monitoring. He has spent his 20+ year career integrating and implementing conservation solutions to real world conservation problems including managing people as well as bears.
STAFF
Nicholas Scapillati
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Nicholas has over 20 years experience in environmental non-profit management. He studied Biogeography at McMaster University and began his career working at the David Suzuki Foundation.
Passionate about biodiversity conservation, habitat restoration, food sustainability and climate action, Nicholas has lead programs and organizations at the national, provincial and community level. He served on the Vancity enviroFund grant committee for over a decade, ran as a candidate in the 2013 BC provincial election, and worked in the Great Bear Rainforest, and closely with the Musqueam Nation for many years.
Raine Playfair
PROGRAMS & COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER
Raine’s interest in bears stems from a childhood in Whistler, BC, alongside frequent hiking and camping trips throughout BC and the Yukon.
Raine brings a communications, marketing, and project management background to the Foundation. She provides leadership to implement the Foundation’s education and conservation programs, builds awareness of the Foundation and its vision, and assists to secure funding for the organization through grant applications and fundraising activities.
Erin Edwards
VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR
Erin combines her love of educational outreach with a passion for the environment. She brings over 7 years’ experience working in program
development and volunteer management, helping us to recruit and train strong volunteers, and foster effective relationships.
Erin coordinates our volunteer program, identifying new opportunities and ensuring our volunteers are engaged, inspired, and active. Interested volunteering your skills? Email volunteer@grizzlybeardfoundation.com to let Erin know!
Namita Prakash
FUNDRAISING & OPERATIONS ADMINISTRATOR
Namita is passionate about sustainable development, responsible consumption and climate action.
She has previous nonprofit experience and is studying towards a Bachelor’s in Political Science and Philosophy. Namita brings experience in content creation, social media, outreach and fundraiser coordination.
Namita leads outreach events to engage the public in order to foster a collective consciousness about the value of grizzly bears and the threats they face.