Board of Directors
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Professor Ron Ydenberg
President & Secretary Treasurer
Dr. Ydenberg is a retired Professor and Director of the Centre for Wildlife Ecology at Simon Fraser University. Ron served as Vice President from 2003 until 2021 when he was elected President.
Rachel Sullivan-Lord
Vice-President
Rachel Sullivan-Lord is a marine ecologist and graduate student at Simon Fraser University in the Centre for Wildlife Ecology. Working with Dr. Ron Ydenberg and Fisheries and Oceans Canada, her research explores predator–prey dynamics between Bigg’s killer whales and pinnipeds in the Salish Sea. She also works as a small-boat captain and expedition leader across the Arctic and Antarctic.
Jim Darling, Ph.D.
Founding Director
Dr. Darling is a pioneer field researcher on cetaceans specializing on gray and humpback whales and founder of our parent organization – the West Coast Whale Research Foundation- established in 1981. His research has appeared on numerous scientific journals, television programs and in magazines including National Geographic.
Ruth Foster
Director
Ruth Foster is a recognized as one of Canada’s foremost environmental education specialists. She serves on the executive of several societies and is a field instructor with Simon Fraser University’s Faculty of Education International Studies program.
Rod MacVicar
Director
Rod MacVicar is a retired high school teacher with three decades of experience teaching environmental education to students. He has worked alongside many researchers, television documentary filmmakers and marine educators. Rod has received several national and regional awards and is a Master Mariner. He has served as a Director and Vice President.
Mike McKinlay
Director
Mike McKinlay is the owner of Mike McKinlay Productions, a film production company in Vancouver. He has numerous awards to his credit including a Leo Award, and Wildspace Festival and Nature without Borders International Film Festival awards. His films have aired on television and at many festivals. He brings to the Board two decades of experience in video production for television, and social media.
Fellows
Professor Isabelle Côté
Dr. Côté is a marine biologist and professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University where her research is linked to marine conservation such as marine protected areas, coral reefs and invasive species.
Professor Larry Dill
Dr. Dill is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. His research interests concern the role of predation in marine ecosystems.
Professor Richard Rawlins PhD, HCLD (ABB)
Dr. Rawlins is a Professor Emeritus of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Professor of Anatomy & Cell Biology at Rush Medical College, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago. He is also an adjunct Professor of Comparative Medicine at the University of Puerto Rico. He specializes in preimplantation embryology, primate reproductive physiology and population biology.
Professor John Reynolds
Dr. Reynolds is the Tom Buell BC Leadership Chair in Salmon Conservation and a Professor of Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University. His interests are in the conservation and ecology of Pacific salmon and their ecosystems.
Professor Andrew Trites
Dr. Trites is a Professor and Director of the Marine Mammal Research Unit at the University of British Columbia. His interests are in the research of marine mammals and public outreach of science.
Associates
Liron Gertsman
Liron Gertsman is a naturalist and award-winning photographer. His eye-catching images have been widely recognized and awarded, sweeping the youth category of the 2018 Audubon Photography Awards and earning a highly commended designation in the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. He holds a BSc from the University of British Columbia. Liron is working with Director Mike McKinlay to tell our science story through photography.
Ruth Joy, Ph.D.
Ruth Joy is a Statistical Ecologist in the School of Environmental Science and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Statistics at Simon Fraser University. Her research focuses on computational and statistical tools that help to manage and minimize anthropogenic stress in both marine and terrestrial species.
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Geneviève Raîche-Savoie, Ph.D.
Geneviève is a practitioner-researcher whose work sits at the intersection of Education, Design, and Entrepreneurship. Her teaching and design practice share a common commitment to environmental awareness and positive social change. Her research focuses on cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset in designers, one that is reflective, socially engaged, and attuned to environmental responsibility.
Douglas Swanston
Doug Swanston is a marine biologist who has recovered and relocated threatened and endangered animals under scrutiny of Species at Risk legislation. He also shares his passion with students and groups exploring the seashore.
Wendy Szaniszlo
Wendy Szaniszlo is a marine mammalogist who has worked on sea lion, gray whale and humpback whale research projects in collaboration with government, academic and not-for-profit organizations. She holds two degrees from the University of Victoria. Wendy has worked on species-at-risk and as a marine naturalist with Parks Canada, BC Parks, Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans and local eco-tour companies. She currently works with Department of Fisheries Cetacean Research Program and has a keen interest in grey whale ecology, as well as human-marine mammal interactions.
Honorary Directors
Robert W. Butler, PhD, FRCGS, AFC
Past Chair of the Board, President and co-founder
Rob Butler led the restructuring of the West Coast Whale Research Foundation to become the Pacific Wildlife Foundation in 2003 and served as its first President until 2021. He brings more than 50 years of experience as a scientist and a wealth of experience with public programs and administration. Rob was an Adjunct Professor in Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University, a Fellow of the American Ornithologists Society, The Explorer’s Club, and the Royal Canadian Geographic Society, and a Signature Member of the Artists for Conservation. He has received several awards for conservation and community outreach and is an Outstanding Alumnus of two universities. Rob’s interests also include art, films, and he is a popular public speaker.
Rudi Kovanic
Past Director
The late Rudi Kovanic was a founding Director of Pacific Wildlife Foundation. After emigrating to Canada in 1959 he took up cinematography and soon joined the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation where for 33 years he travelled the globe bringing stories about nature, medicine and anthropology to living rooms through The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. In 1989 Rudi was the cinematographer for the film Island of Whales by the West Coast Whale Research Foundation and precursor to Pacific Wildlife Foundation directed by former Director Gillian Darling and Jack Silberman.
Ian Semple
Past Director & Secretary/Treasurer
Ian Semple provided nearly 40 years of service and support to the West Coast Whale Research Foundation and the Pacific Wildlife Foundation. Ian became interested in marine conservation while working for a wealth management company in Vancouver in 1985 when he participated in a weekend with whale researchers at Telegraph Cove on Vancouver Island. He remained dedicated to the idea of objective science for conservation as a key way to resolve many conservation issues of our time. Ian’s career was as a mineral geologist and mining investment analyst.