Conservation Specialist

Niles works at the intersection of agriculture and environment because he believes landowners and rural communities need better tools, incentives and information to be efficient stewards of land and water. As a Conservation Specialist, Niles develops and implements Streaked Horned Lark habitat conservation programs on working lands in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Using a strong knowledge of local agricultural practices and Lark ecology, Niles helps landowners develop conservation programs –and obtain incentives—for Lark habitat on working farms.
Niles has degrees in Biological Sciences and Natural Resource Management from Clemson University, and in Environmental Science and Management from University of California, Santa Barbara. Hailing from rural South Carolina, Niles feels at home in the hills and streams of Oregon, where he enjoys canoeing, fishing, bowhunting, and mountain biking.