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Welcome to 'The Wolf Connection' Podcast. Here, we explore the intricate relationship between humans, predators, and the natural world. Topics range from The Future Of Wild Lands, Biodiversity, Biology, Conservation, Co existing with wildlife for the benefit of our ecological future, and Re-discovering the human/wolf connection.
Finding common ground within these conversations may prove to be essential to our development as individuals, the cultivation of productive societies, and a sustainable civilization on this planet.
Immerse yourself in a broad range of subjects with a wide array of guests from Scientists, Authors, Conservationists, Visual Artists, Ranchers, Hunters, Naturalists and even Wolf Connection Staff & Volunteers!
257 Episodes
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Dr. John Vucetich has been working on the Isle Royale Wolf & Moose Project for over 30 years. He is a distinguished Professor at Michigan Technological University where he teaches Wildlife Ecology and Environmental Ethics. We discussed the global biodiversity crisis we are currently in at the moment, the value of species within the context of an environment, his co-authored paper titled Government agencies in the United States are obstructing native species restoration, creating reg...
Leo Miranda was the USFWS Southeast Regional Director from 2018-2022, and is the Founder and CEO of Leo Miranda LLC which creates innovative wildlife conservation policy solutions. He also serves at the Executive Director for Conservation Without Conflict, a proven approach to conservation and a coalition of public and private partners with highly diverse goals who are united in their commitment to conserving wildlife while keeping America’s working lands working. Leo went into detail a...
Adam Bronstein has been with Western Watersheds Project since 2020 and is the Oregon Director for the organization. Adam grew up exploring the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, and received a BS from SUNY ESF in Syracuse, NY in Environmental Studies and Geographic Information Technologies. He discussed the parameters of the Roadless Rule, explained specifics on protections for Inventoried Roadless Areas (IRAs), impacts logging, grazing and outdoor recreation takes on roadless areas, a...
Lizzy Pennock has been the Carnivore Coexistence Attorney for WIldEarth Guardians for 4 years. Earlier in August, a federal district court in Missoula ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) when it determined that gray wolves in the western United States do not warrant federal protections. Lizzy went into great detail describing Senior District Judge Donald Molloy's reasons for ruling in this manner. We went on to discuss at length the de...
Axel Hunnicutt has been with California Department of Fish & Wildlife for over 4 years and is the State Gray Wolf Coordinator. He has previously worked in Africa with multiple endangers and threatened species, protecting habitats and wildlife while promoting coexistence benefits to the surrounding communities. Axel discussed the recolonization of wolves in California, their territories, pack sizes and possible dispersal patterns, the main issues surrounding wolf recolonization, and ...
James Holt has been a tribal member of the Nez Perce for 13 years and has worked in Environmental Sciences & Tribal Community Engagement for nearly three decades. He also specializes in tribal public policy, including natural resources and water policy development; climate change planning; wilderness management; and utilities administration for the Nez Perce. James shared insights into his upbringing with the lessons and guidance he was given as a young man, the relationship of the ...
Laurie Cousins is a Trauma-Informed Mindfulness Teacher who has been with Wolf Connection since 2018. Known for her work in healing trauma and addiction recovery, Laurie focuses on treating the cyclical root causes of compulsive behaviors while building self-love and resiliency. She spoke about the ways that nature based therapy can help us reconnect with the environment, how those practices intertwine with the programs at Wolf Connection, and how we can listen to our bodies while becom...
Alma "Rosie" Sanchez is the Carnivore Biologist for the Nez Perce Tribe and is also a PhD student at The University of Colorado Boulder. She combines Indigenous political ecology and carnivore ecology in both fieldwork and research. Rosie has focused on revitalizing management plans, deploying field projects to determine occupancy and migration, and expanding opportunities for community involvement in conservation. She spoke about her career journey that led to working with the Nez Perc...
Nita Strauss is a Los Angeles born guitarist who has toured around the globe, playing with musical artists like Demi Lovato and Alice Cooper, while releasing two solo albums Controlled Chaos (2018) and The Call of the Void (2023). She was also the first female to have a signature guitar through Ibanez guitars, the Ibanez JIVA. We spoke with Nita about her creative process, both in her instrumental work and collaboration with vocalists, asked about the inspiration for the song The Wolf Y...
Hannah Rheaume has been a professional photographer for 5 years. She has traveled the globe, sharing her stories through the lens of her camera, while aiming to explore the complexities of humans and their impact on the natural world. Hannah spoke about her interactions with the pack at Wolf Connection, the photo workshop she hosted in Yellowstone, and her encounter with a yearling wolf inside the park. Check out @thewolfconnectionpod on Instagram to see the wolf photos we discuss...
Dan Flores is A. B. Hammond Professor Emeritus of the History of the American West at the University of Montana-Missoula. He has authored ten books, including his New York Times Bestseller Coyote America, along with American Serengeti and Wild New World. We had a powerful conversation about how coyotes have shaped both Indigenous and early American storytelling, the rise and impact of extirpation campaigns against them and other North American species, the cultural shift toward conserva...
Nadia Steinzor is a collaborative environmental professional for over 25 years, whose knowledge ranges through environmental issues, policies, and regulations to help produce reports, outreach materials, comments, and testimony. Nadia works with the Rewilding Institute to ensure that wolves and other carnivores thrive and roam in the Northeast and beyond. We discussed what goes into drafting environmental policy, some of the differences between state and federal issues, and the challenges wil...
Carter Niemeyer retired from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in 2006 as the Wolf Recovery Coordinator for the state of Idaho. He was an integral part of the Federal Wolf Reintroduction in both Yellowstone and Idaho. Carter has authored three books, Wolfer, Wolf Land, and The Other Ten Wolves, which can be purchased through multiple book retailers. Carter spoke about his latest literary entry The Other Ten Wolves, the story behind the Sawtooth Pack, and his role in their translocati...
Matt James is the Chief Animal Officer for Colossal Biosciences. Colossal Biosciences is dedicated to genetic engineering and de-extinction projects to advance conservation efforts for current species, like red wolves, ecosystems and biodiversity throughout the globe with cutting-edge biotechnology. Matt went into detail about the mission of Colossal, long term goals with the dire wolf and red wolf projects, and promoting conservation efforts within ecosystems and biodiversity around th...
Jonny Hanson is an Environmental Social Scientist, award-winning social entrepreneur, snow leopard conservationist and former community farmer. He is particularly interested in understanding coexistence between livestock farming and large carnivore conservation. He recently published his first book Living with Lynx, Sharing Landscapes with Big Cats, Wolves and Bears. Jonny spoke about the history of predators in Britain, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, reasons for their extirpation and som...
Tom McPherson has been guiding for 21 years and running Seaforth Expeditions for 6 years. His work with sea wolves has been featured on Netflix with Island of the Sea Wolves, and guiding BBC shoots for the Americas series on NBC. Tom and his family were able to spend some time at Wolf Connection, meet the pack, and sit down for a brief podcast. We spoke about his experiences at the sanctuary, the importance of storytelling when sharing about sea wolves, and some of the similarities he n...
Mich Biesbroek has been tracking wildlife since he was a young boy. He is one of the group leaders and guides for the White Wilderness weeks of Slovak Wildlife Society, where they monitor large carnivores in Slovakia with the help of volunteer citizens scientists. He is also a core member of Werkgroep Wolf Nederland. Mich spoke about his experiences tracking animals, his guiding practices when he's with Slovak Wildlife Society, the state of wolves in the Netherlands and his involvement ...
Luigi Boitani has been studying, researching and propelling the conservation of wolves in Italy for over 50 years. He is currently a Professor Emeritus at the University of Rome, Italy, and Chair of the IUCN Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe. Luigi went into great detail explaining his initial experiences researching wolves, how wolves, other predators and ungulates have had to adapt to a changing landscape in Italy, describing initiatives for coexistence in the region, and his over...
Bridgett VonHoldt and Kristin Brzeski are the Director and Co-Director of the Gulf Coast Canine Project. The GCCP was created to encompass their research and the community-based approach they are developing to understand, monitor, and manage the unique canines persisting across the Gulf Coast. Bridgett and Kristin gave updates on genomics research, community scientific engagement, expansion of non-invasive data collection, and future goals of the project. Gulf Coast Canine Project @thew...
Mollie Cameron is the Wolf Campaigner for Pacific Wild in British Columbia. She has extensive field experience monitoring carnivores, studying their behavior through remote camera traps, investigating wildlife signs, and documenting predation events. She discussed the impact of old-growth forest loss, the history and current status of the wolf cull, habitat destruction, and how these factors are reshaping the landscape. Pacific Wild BC Wolf Campaign @pacificwild @thewolfconnection...
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