Founder & Director

director@cougarconservancy.org

(818) 415-0920

(she/her)

Korinna is a wildlife biologist from Los Angeles, California, USA. Before founding the Cougar Conservancy, she worked on a variety of wildlife projects in the field that include species such as Roosevelt elk, black bears, cougars, North American porcupines, and river otters. She received her B.Sc. in Wildlife Management & Conservation from Humboldt State University.

Korinna has worked throughout the western U.S. to enhance human-cougar relationships through education, outreach, conflict management, and science-based policy. 

In 2016, Korinna was part of the team that pushed for Assembly Bill 8, introduced by Assembly Member Richard Bloom, which would authorize, rather than require, the issuance of depredation permits. Out of this came the 2017 amendment to the depredation policy—also known as the “stepwise permit policy” or the “three-strike policy”—that added protections for cougars living in the Santa Ana and Santa Monica Mountains in Southern California. 

Korinna was honored by California Senator Anthony Portantino in 2019 for her “dedication in educating the community about living with mountain lions.” During the same year, she co-led efforts to list Southern and Central Coast mountain lions under the California Endangered Species Act. In 2020, these imperiled populations were granted temporary protected status.

Korinna founded the Cougar Conservancy in April of 2020 after the legal killing of mountain lion P-56 caused a major uproar in the conservation community. She works collaboratively with state and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and private partners to prevent, manage, and reduce human-cougar conflicts. 

kelsey@cougarconservancy.org

360-581-4538

(she/her)

Kelsey is a wildlife biologist and science communicator from Hoquiam, Washington, USA. Kelsey received her B.Sc. in Zoology in 2017 from Washington State University. In 2021, she returned to the Cougar Conservancy from the Great Lakes region where she was a research biologist on the Isle Royale wolf project studying the overall success of the reintroduction of wolves onto the island.

From a very young age Kelsey has lived on a farm caring for animals such as horses, goats, fowl, and her cats and dogs. By the age of 6, she enrolled in 4-H and was an active member for 14 years until she graduated high school. Understanding the need for community support to coexist with carnivores, it has become a career goal to combine her passion for responsible husbandry practices for domestic animals with carnivore conservation.

kenui@cougarconservancy.org

(he/him)

Kenui is a wildlife biologist from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He grew up on a farm in the Atlantic Rainforest and provided animal husbandry practices to a variety of farm animals while coexisting with cougars and jaguars. He received his B.Sc. in Wildlife Management and Conservation from Humboldt State University. During his time in Humboldt, he assisted on the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Roosevelt elk neonatal study. Kenui is passionate about rehabilitation and has spent time in the tropics in Costa Rica tending to young and injured wildlife including sloths, kinkajous, and white faced capuchins. Kenui now serves as the Cougar Conservancy’s Program Associate, with a focus on our Docent Program for the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing.

angela@cougarconservancy.org

(she/her)

Angela is an experienced team leader and manager from Los Angeles, California, USA. She has led numerous teams throughout the past 20 years with focuses on collaboration, training & development, coaching & mentoring, compliance, and DEIA. Angela has always had a passion for all living things. She has worked and participated in animal welfare initiatives, including rescue, adoption, spay & neuter clinics, and fundraising. Combining her experience in people leading and her passion for animals, Angela will manage critical functions at the Cougar Conservancy to ensure we can continue to help support communities in cohabitating with cougars.