CERI's Board of Directors



Susan C. Borman
 Susan is the Director of the Cray Research Foundation, based in St. Paul Minnesota.  She is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire working in aquatic botany.  Susan has been a board member since 1977.


Eldie is an attorney in the law firm of Leonard, O’Brien, Wilford, Spencer, and Gale in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota.  He graduated from Harvard Law School (Magna Cum Laude) in 1971.  One of his major areas of interest and expertise is environmental law. Eldie has been a board member since 1977.



Eldon J. Spencer Jr.



Dr. Tim W. Clark
 Tim is the President of the Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative in Jackson Wyoming.  He teaches part-time at Yale University where he has developed a curriculum in Conservation Biology and devotes the rest of his time to conservation efforts.  The focus of his research and policy analysis efforts are the Northern Rockies of the U.S. and endangered mammals in Australia.  Tim has been a Board member since 1988.
Tony is a sustainable farmer and a practicing conservation biologist who operates a family farm in Windom, Minnesota.  He keeps abreast of recent developments in conservation biology and sustainable agriculture and raises corn, soybeans, and a large expanse of native prairie (250 acres) for seed harvest.  He is beginning a practical, farm-based course in sustainable agriculture and works within his community to preserve wildlife habitat and movement corridors.    Tony has been a board member since 1999.



Tony Thompson



Charles Stevens Craighead
Media Director
 Charlie graduated from Utah State University with a B.Sc. In Wildlife Management.  He has worked in a variety of media with wildlife as a primary focus.  He has filmed and assisted on a number of films with Wolfgang Bayer Productions, the BBC, Nature, and others.  Charles recently completed a film about Mardy Murie with co-producer/director Bonnie Krepps which was funded through CERI.  He has authored several books including  “Living with Wildlife on Private Land” published by the Grand Teton National History Association and the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation in cooperation with the National Park Service.  He is currently working on other books and developing film ideas for CERI projects.  Charlie has been a Board member since 1973.
Lance has been a Board member since 1973.  Lance began developing projects with CERI in 1988 in conjunction with his doctoral research on grizzly bear genetics at Montana State University.  After graduation in 1994 he continued to develop the research capabilities of CERI on a part-time, volunteer, basis while gaining experience working with other non-profit organizations.  In late 1997 Lance became the full-time CERI Executive Director which has involved research, fund-raising, publication, and program development.  Since 1994 CERI’s vision has been expanded to include education and scientific involvement in regulatory and advocacy processes.



Dr. Frank Lance Craighead
Director

Dr. Frank C. Craighead, Jr.  

Frank founded CERI and developed it into a world-renowned wildlife research forum until he retired in 1990.  He is most well known for the long series of National Geographic articles written by himself and his brother John, several National Geographic television specials, and his two popular books: ‘Track of the Grizzly’ and ‘For Everything There is a Season’.  At age 84, in November 2001 Frank died with advanced Parkinson’s disease.

 

Strategy Team


CERI has formed a Strategy Team to guide our funding efforts. In addition to the GIS personnel listed on the previous page, the Strategy Team includes Susan Borman who is on the Board of the Cray Research Foundation, Tom Skeele who recently retired from his position as Executive Director of the Predator Conservation Alliance, and Eldon Spencer. 

To develop a diverse funding base which can maintain and support a GIS lab and skilled technicians we plan to focus on three sources:

1) foundations,

2) private donors, and

3) the sale of services.

CERI has established itself as a credible scientific 'brain-trust' or 'think-tank' for analyses and data relevant to conservation.  As we increase our capacity to continue this work and provide a solid foundation for conservation decisions, we will also increase our communication abilities and reach a wider audience.