H. Bradley Shaffer
UCLA La Kretz Center Director and Distinguished Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science
La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science
Meet Our Team
At the La Kretz Center, our team works together to organize our activities and bring our results to the broadest possible user group. We receive input and guidance from our Advisory Board, a select group of individuals representing both UCLA and our partner organizations. Our Affiliates are a broader group of conservationists who help us recruit the best possible postdoctoral scholars, advise graduate student grants, and constitute the core interests and strengths in conservation science that define the Center.
Leadership
Senior Staff
Gary Bucciarelli
Assistant Adjunct Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyPostdoctoral Scholars
Joscha Beninde
Postdoctoral Fellow
UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science
Rachel Blakey
Postdoctoral Fellow
La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science
Erin Toffelmier
Postdoc
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Shaffer LabPast Postdoctoral Scholars
Eric Abelson
Research Wildlife Biologist
U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Research Station
John Benson
Assistant Professor of Vertebrate Ecology
University of Nebraska School of Natural Resources
Luke Browne
Postdoctoral Associate
Yale University
Adam Clause
Postdoctoral Researcher
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Jesse Grismer
Assistant Professor
La Sierra University
Elizabeth Long
Director of Conservation Science
Mohonk Preserve, New York
Alexandria Pivovaroff
Postdoctoral Research Associate
Pacific Northwest National Lab
Justin Valliere
Research Fellow
University of Western Australia, ARC Centre for Mine Site RestorationAffiliates
Patricia Gowaty
Professor Emeritus
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Richard Ambrose
Professor Emeritus
Department of Environmental Health Sciences
Paul Barber
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Daniel Blumstein
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Christy Brigham
Chief - Resources Management & Science, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
Luis Chiappe
VP of Research & Collections
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
J.R. DeShazo
Professor and Director
Department of Public Policy, Luskin Center for Innovation
Paul Edelman
Chief of Natural Resources and Planning for the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA), and Deputy Director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (SMMC)
Robert Espinoza
Professor of Biology, Curator of Amphibians and Reptiles, and Associate Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics
California State University, Northridge
Robert Fisher
Supervisory Research Biologist
U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center
Peggy Fong
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Thomas Gillespie
Professor
Department of Geography
Suzanne Goode
Natural Resource Program Manager
California Department of Parks and Recreation – Angeles District
Greg Grether
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Alex Hall
Professor
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
David Jacobs
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Peter Kareiva
Adjunct Professor; CEO and President
Institute of the Environment and Sustainability; Aquarium of the Pacific
Jon Keeley
Adjunct Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Nathan Kraft
Associate Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Jamie Lloyd-Smith
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Robert Lovich
Senior Natural Resource Specialist
Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) SW
Glen MacDonald
WMRC Director, WRG Faculty Director, John Muir Memorial Chair in Geography, and Distinguished Professor
Department of Geography, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
James McWilliams
Professor
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
Sergey Nuzhdin
Professor
USC
Sophie Parker
Senior Scientist
The Nature Conservancy
Greg Pauly
Assistant Curator
LA County Museum of Natural History
Stephanie Pincetl, PhD
Chair, Environmental Science and Engineering; Founding Director and Professor-in-Residence
California Center for Sustainable Communities at UCLA
Seth Riley
Wildlife Branch Chief; Adjunct Associate Professor
U.S. National Parks Service; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Philip Rundel
Professor Emeritus
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Lawren Sack
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Yongwei Sheng
Professor
Department of Geography
Thomas Smith
Founding Director, Center for Tropical Research, Co-Executive Director, Congo Basin Institute
Distinguished Professor, Center for Tropical Research and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Victoria Sork
Life Sciences Division Dean and Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Craig Stanford
Professor
University of Southern California
Blaire Van Valkenburgh
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Thomas Wake
Senior Museum Scientist and Director, Zooarchaeology Lab
UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology
Larry Wan
Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority
Robert Wayne
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Pamela Yeh
Assistant Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Felipe Zapata
Assistant Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyAdvisors
Daniel Blumstein
Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Peter Kareiva
Adjunct Professor; CEO and President
Institute of the Environment and Sustainability; Aquarium of the Pacific Nathan Kraft
Associate Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Danielle LeFer
Natural Resource Program Manager
California Department of Parks and Recreation - Angeles District Sophie Parker
Senior Scientist
The Nature Conservancy Seth Riley
Wildlife Branch Chief; Adjunct Associate Professor
U.S. National Parks Service; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Karen Sears
Professor and Department Chair
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Victoria Sork
Life Sciences Division Dean and Professor
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Jann Vendetti
Assistant Curator of Malacology
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Jerald Weaver
Division Chief of Planning, Science and Resource Management
U.S. National Park Service