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Stefan Ekernas
WASHINGTON, D.C.

Defenders of Wildlife Welcomes Stefan Ekernas as New Vice President of Species Conservation & Coexistence

Defenders of Wildlife is proud to announce Stephan Ekernas as its new Vice President of Species Conservation and Coexistence, where he will oversee Defenders’ field conservation programs.
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brown bear
ANCHORAGE, ALASKA

Trump Administration Opens Door to Bear Baiting, Den Hunting in Alaska Preserves

The National Park Service finalized a regulation that abdicates the agency's responsibility to manage wildlife in Alaska's national preserves, deferring instead to state regulations. Defenders of Wildlife condemns the rule, which mirrors a 2020 regulation promulgated by the first Trump administration that was later withdrawn and replaced in 2024.
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Washington, DC

BLM Prepares Illegal Move to Open Ouray National Wildlife Refuge to Oil & Gas, a Dangerous Precedent for Wildlife

Defenders of Wildlife is calling on BLM to withdrawal an unprecedented proposal to open Ouray National Wildlife Refuge in Utah to new oil and gas leasing.

Press Releases

Conservation Groups Join Reward to Catch Oregon Wolf Killer

Conservation organizations are bolstering a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services (FWS) reward for information on the illegal killing of OR-33, a federally protected gray wolf

Arctic Refuge Drilling Advances Despite Strong Opposition

WASHINGTON – Today the Senate voted down a vigorously debated amendment to prevent Congress from advancing destructive drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as

U.S. Senators, Conservationists Stand Together Against Arctic Drilling

WASHINGTON ­– Defenders of Wildlife joined a media event today with Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) and other Senate champions in advance of an expected vote

Governor Brown Approves Parks and Water Bond, Includes Funding for Salton Sea

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Oct. 16, 2017) – Late last night Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 5, California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate Coastal Protection and
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Fall Tundra Izembek NWR

Documents Reveal Interior Department’s Secret Plan to Build Road through Wilderness Refuge

Public records obtained by Defenders of Wildlife pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act request reveal that the Department of the Interior is planning a potentially illegal land exchange to remove wilderness wetlands in Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska from federal public ownership for the construction of a controversial, damaging and unnecessary road.
Senior Vice President, External Affairs
lsheehan@defenders.org
(202) 772-3244
Communications Director
mdewane@defenders.org
(202) 772-0217
Communications Specialist
jcovey@defenders.org
Communications Specialist
kirby@defenders.org
(202) 772-3268
Communications Specialist
estern@defenders.org
202-772-0243