Here’s the release from DNR (Chris Arend):
Colorado Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Executive Director Dan Gibbs announced today the addition of a new member to his leadership team, Doug Vilsack, as the new Assistant Director for Parks, Wildlife and Lands.
“Doug is an important addition to the leadership team we are building at the Colorado Department of Natural Resources,” said Dan Gibbs, Executive Director, Colorado Department of Natural Resources. “Doug has played an integral role within the Department over the years serving as Legislative Liaison, helping to usher in key legislation such as the SB 181, Colorado’s new oil and gas law, spearheading passage of the Hunting, Fishing, and Parks for Future Generations Act and working to increase funding for the Colorado Water Plan.”
“Doug has demonstrated great leadership in program and policy development and has a true passion for wildlife and protecting Colorado’s public lands,” continued Gibbs. “I am thrilled to have Doug on board as we tackle important priorities for our Department including increasing access to our state lands for more Coloradans and developing new funding opportunities to support Colorado’s wildlife and outdoor recreation opportunities.”
In addition to serving as the Legislative Liaison for the Department for the last three years, Doug has diverse experience as an attorney handling water, energy, mining, and public lands issues. He also worked with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Namibia developing successful community-based conservation programs to conserve elephants in Africa.
Doug is also a founder and leader of several non-profit organizations, including Elephant Energy, which works to establish distribution networks for small-scale solar products in rural Africa, and formerly as Executive Director of the Posner Center for International Development, a network of Colorado-based organizations and businesses dedicated to growing lasting solutions to global poverty.
Doug has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Systems: Natural Resource Management from Colorado College and a J.D. from the University of Colorado School of Law.
The Assistant Director position at the Department acts as a policy advisor to the Executive Director, Deputy Executive Director, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife director regarding issues, legislation, and state and national policy developments in natural resources, parks, wildlife, trails, and outdoor recreation that impact Colorado.