Session 3 - Advancing Biodiversity: The State's Commitment to Pollinator Conservation in Colorado

2024 Colorado Pollinator Summit - Advancing Biodiversity: The State's Commitment to Pollinator Conservation Efforts and Future Strategies in Colorado
This panel discussion with David Klute, Kacie Miller, and Haley Schroder of Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW) and David Anderson of Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP) will provide an in-depth look at the latest initiatives in biodiversity conservation in Colorado. Experts from CO Parks and Wildlife and the CO Natural Heritage Program will discuss ongoing programs and emerging priorities aimed at protecting the state's biodiverse ecosystems. This session will also explore new roles and partnerships shaping the future of pollinator protection in Colorado.
David Klute is the Deputy Assistant Director for Species Conservation with Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Dave has been with CPW for 22 years, first as the Bird Conservation Coordinator and then leading statewide species conservation programs. Prior to CPW, Dave was a migratory bird biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. With CPW increasing focus on a broader array of species, Dave is enjoying learning about pollinator conservation and developing new relationships. Dave holds degrees in Wildlife Biology from the University of Missouri (BS), Kansas State University (MS), and Penn State University (Ph.D.).
Kacie is the State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) Coordinator for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. She enjoys bringing people together via conservation planning to facilitate ideas coming to fruition. Outside of work, Kacie can be found out on a trail or volunteering at the women's prison.
Hayley Schroeder has recently joined Colorado Parks and Wildlife as the Invertebrate and Rare Plant Program Supervisor. She earned her PhD in Entomology from Cornell University and has spent her career investigating the complex routes by which anthropogenic stressors influence insect communities. The threats facing insects are diverse and interdependent, and therefore require solutions that are collaborative and inclusive. Hayley also loves to use art as an accessible tool to help demystify and educate about invertebrates. Please connect with Hayley at the Pollinator Summit to continue building these collaborations as she begins in this new role.
David Anderson is the director for the Colorado Natural Heritage Program. In that role he spends most of his efforts on program coordination and outreach, developing new projects and initiatives for the program, and now working as principal investigator on the Statewide Natural Heritage Survey. His background is in botany and he has worked throughout Colorado studying rare plants and plant communities. Prior to his work at CNHP he worked in the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic on botany field projects, and he was a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific in 1997-1999.