SITKA ECOSYSTEMS GRANTS
Explore the projects and organizations we support through Ecosystem Grants
Humans are an integral part of the ecosystem and the decisions we make have upstream and downstream effects. A healthy bull elk is part of a much larger story. His existence reflects an intricate food web supported by everything from soil and water to songbirds and predators.
We believe extraordinary impacts can be made not only by large organizations but also by grassroots efforts led by passionate individuals.
SITKA Ecosystem Grants fund projects that improve the state and function of an ecosystem, allow for the growth of the hunting experience through access and education, and create opportunities for collaborative conservation.
Habitat Restoration, Biodiversity, Conservation, Working Landscapes
Mentorship, Access, Education, Well-Being
Prioritizing Whole Ecosystems Through Collaboration
Lindsey Davis is the Director of Conservation and Advocacy for SITKA Gear. Her background is in strategic development in the for and non-profit sector with a diverse array of constituents including ranchers, farmers, underserved communities, native tribes, education institutions and businesses. Lindsey has worked in the outdoor industry as the CEO of a women’s specific e-commerce retailer and benefit corporation, and as the Senior Vice President of a DC-based recreation policy outfit. In all efforts, she is passionate about connecting people to their surrounding ecosystems and fostering stewardship. Lindsey serves on the board of directors for the Outdoor Alliance, The Conservation Alliance, and the Utah Wildlife Federation, and is a volunteer citizen scientist.
Randy Newberg has spent the last fifteen years hosting his popular hunting TV shows, podcasts, and other digital media platforms, all focused on self-guided public land hunting in the Western United States. Randy currently distributes video content on the YouTube channel Fresh Tracks. He hosts the popular podcast Hunt Talk Radio. Randy has over thirty years of engagement in public land issues and has served as a Board Member and volunteer for national hunting and conservation organizations.
Gaspar Perricone is an avid hunter, angler an outdoorsman with a passion for conservation. He has parleyed these personal passions into his professional pursuits as a Partner at Freestone Strategies, a broad spectrum public affairs firm. Prior to joining Freestone Strategies, Gaspar served as the Legislative Program Director for the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. In this role, he oversaw legislative programs for the Department on issues relating to oil and gas development, mining and reclamation, state parks and wildlife, forestry, water, and state land board lands. Gaspar also served as an agriculture and natural resources policy advisor to U.S. Senator Mark Udall. Throughout his tenure in the Senate, Perricone helped advance Farm Bill conservation programs, energy policies, federal land management plans, and other programs benefiting outdoor recreation and western economies. In 2010, Governor Hickenlooper appointed Gaspar to serve on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) Commission. As a CPW Commissioner, he worked to ensure the unique outdoors opportunities we enjoy today will remain for future generations. He also served as the Parks and Wildlife Commission representative to the Great Outdoors Colorado Board. He also currently sits on the Board of the National Wildlife Federation Action Fund and is also the co-founder and current Chair of the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project, Colorado’s largest alliance of hunting and angling organizations.
Rue Mapp candidly documents her personal experiences while pioneering and shifting a new visual representation of Black people in the outdoors. The outdoorswoman transformed her kitchen table blog into a national nature-inspired enterprise and movement. Today, Mapp is the founder and CEO of where Black people and nature meet: Outdoor Afro. For more than a decade, the not- for-profit organization has continued to celebrate and inspire Black connections and leadership in nature across the United States. Mapp’s work in nature and outdoor-related fields started in her hometown of Oakland, California, and has since grown to inspire international headlines.
Mapp is an awarded and inspirational leader, speaker, public lands champion, outdoor gear designer, and published author. She established for-profit enterprise Outdoor Afro, Inc. in 2021 and subsequently launched a 22-piece hike collection with outdoor retailer REI Co-op. Her first national book titled “Nature Swagger: Stories and Visions of Black Joy in the Outdoors” was recently released with American publisher Chronicle Books on Nov. 1, 2022.
Over the years, Mapp has been recognized with many awards and distinctions. In 2021, she was recognized as an AFAR Travel Vanguard Award recipient, National Geographic 2019 Fellow, Heinz Awards Honoree, and National Wildlife Federation Communication Award recipient (received alongside President Bill Clinton), among many other recognitions. The White House also invited Mapp to participate in the America’s Great Outdoors Conference, which led to her participation in the launch of former First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” initiative.
Mapp’s career and community impact through Outdoor Afro aims to lift up the natural world and those who connect with it. Her advocacy for conservation continues to earn international media attention, including The New York Times, Good Morning America, NPR, NBC’s TODAY, Forbes, Oprah Winfrey, and “MeatEater” with Steven Rinella.
Whit Fosburgh has been a conservation leader for more than 30 years, most recently serving as the president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership from 2010 through 2023.
Prior to coming to the TRCP, Fosburgh spent 15 years at Trout Unlimited, playing a critical role in the organization’s evolution into a conservation powerhouse. Additionally, he served as fisheries’ director for the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, was the chief environment and energy staff member for Sen. Tom Daschle, and was a wildlife specialist for the National Audubon Society. In 2015, he was honored as the Conservation Partner of the Year by Bass Pro Shops, received the 2020 FFI Conservation Leadership Award from Fly Fishers International, and in 2022 was honored with the Minority Outdoor Alliance Inclusion and Unity Award.
Fosburgh grew up hunting and fishing in upstate New York and was a member of Team USA in the 1997 World Fly Fishing Championships. He has a BA in Government from Georgetown University and a Master’s degree from the Yale University School of Forestry. He coached crew at the collegiate level for 15 years.
Dr. Karl V. Miller is an Emeritus Professor of Deer Management in the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at The University of Georgia. He also holds Adjunct Professor status at Clemson University and Texas A&M – Kingsville. Dr. Miller received his BS in Entomology from the Pennsylvania State University, his MS from the Ohio State University, and his PhD in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia. During his 34-year tenure at the University of Georgia, Dr. Miller developed and oversaw the UGA DeerLab and is recognized as a world authority on white-tailed deer behavior and management. Specific research topics include understanding movement ecology of deer, ground-breaking investigations on deer visual and auditory perception, evaluation of techniques to mitigate deer-vehicle collisions, determination of the impact of recent coyote expansion into the Southeast, using molecular genetic techniques to investigate deer social behavior, evaluation of methods to reduce herbivory impacts of overabundant deer, determination of the effects of baiting on deer harvest susceptibility, deer disease investigations (chronic wasting disease, cranial abscess disease, etc.), land management techniques to enhance deer habitat quality, among others. In his spare time, Dr. Miller is an avid deer hunter. He also enjoys trout fishing, gardening, and in particular trail riding on his horse ‘Cow’ with his beautiful bride Renee.
