Adam VanValkenburg is a fourth-generation rancher based in Walden, Colorado, where he raises Simmental-Angus cattle on land his family has stewarded for generations. Deeply rooted in the traditions of North Park ranching, Adam served as president of the North Park Stockgrowers Association from 2019 to 2022, advocating for local producers and sustainable practices. Since 2020, he’s been at the forefront of addressing the region’s evolving wolf management challenges, balancing wildlife conservation with the realities of ranch life.

Rob Edward is a co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project, along with his friend and long-time colleague Mike Phillips of the Turner Endangered Species Fund. For the past three decades, Rob has followed his passion to make the world a better place, particularly for the native wildlife of the West.

From 1994 to 2009, Rob worked professionally to restore native carnivores to the American West—a passion he still pursues in a volunteer capacity. From 2019 through 2020, Rob helped to lead the Rocky Mountain Wolf Action Fund’s successful ballot measure to reintroduce wolves to Colorado. Now, Rob volunteers as the President of the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project’s board.

Rob’s articles and essays about gray wolf conservation are featured in several books and newspapers. When not knee deep in wolf politics, Rob and his wife Anne are out photographing bears and wolves in the wilds of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado - or hanging out with their friends at one of the Front Range’s ubiquitous house concerts.

Eric Odell has been working for Colorado Parks and Wildlife for over 25 years. In that time he has worked in nearly all ecosystems throughout the state, from the eastern shortgrass prairie to the western mountain landscapes. His focus has been on work prioritizing the conservation of rare or imperiled species. This has included black-footed ferrets, river otters, Canada lynx, wolverine, and most recently gray wolves.

He is the Wolf Conservation Program Manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. In this role, he led the development of Colorado's Wolf Restoration and Management Plan. After the Park and Wildlife Commission's unanimous approval of the Plan in May of 2023, Eric led the field implementation of the restoration of wolves to western Colorado. He is the biological and technical lead on wolves for the agency. 

Dr. Rebecca (Becky) Niemiec is co-director of the Animal Human Policy Center and an Associate Professor in the Human Dimensions of Natural Resources Department at Colorado State University. She has served as the manager of the Bureau of Animal Protection for the state of Colorado, where she and her team addressed domestic animal mistreatment throughout the state. She has authored over 30 peer-reviewed scientific publications and has led stakeholder processes and conducted social science research focused on the human dimensions of conservation and animal protection. Dr. Niemiec has a PhD in Environment and Resources from Stanford University and B.A. in Ecology and Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College.