Staff & Committees
Staff
Amy Gambrill – Executive Director
Amy Gambrill brings more than 25 years of experience advancing conservation initiatives in the United States and worldwide to Road to Recovery. Most recently, she managed a portfolio of U.S. Government–funded natural resource management, resilience, water, and climate programs across Africa, Latin America, and Asia. She has also developed strategies for the BirdReturns program to build awareness for the protection of migratory bird habitat in California’s Central Valley. Amy’s earlier work includes elephant reintroductions in Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique and community engagement efforts in Eastern High Atlas National Park in Morocco.
Email: amy.gambrill@georgetown.edu
Katie Krafte Holland, PhD – Lead Social Scientist
Katie is a conservation social scientist and Associate Research Professor in the Earth Commons Institute for the Environment and Sustainability at Georgetown University. Her research focuses on the human dimensions of conservation, including protected area management, community engagement, human-wildlife interactions, private lands conservation, and strategic conservation planning. Katie’s work has taken her to six continents, where she has explored the diverse opportunities and challenges of conservation management and the need for integrated approaches to solve complex environmental issues.
Katie has served as the Lead Social Scientist for the R2R initiative since 2022. She brings a deep passion for both people and wildlife to this work, emphasizing that humans are a vital part of conservation success. Through R2R, Katie applies human dimensions strategies to support the recovery of Tipping Point Species and advance collaborative, people-centered conservation.
Esmeralda Bravo Hernández – International Fellow
Esmeralda is a Mexican biologist specialized in environmental management, with a master’s degree in Marine Science. In Mexico, she coordinated multi-sector collaborations to restore seabird colonies and co-developed Action Plans for endemic species on Mexican islands. She has also contributed to conservation projects in the Channel Islands, the Gulf of Maine, and along the coasts of California and Oregon.
At R2R, Esmeralda fosters cross-cultural partnerships and helps strengthen the initiative’s connections across Latin America and the Caribbean. Her work supports international collaboration, inclusive engagement, and knowledge exchange across regions. She welcomes opportunities to support international collaboration and to strengthen conservation partnerships in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Email: bio.bravohe@gmail.com
Kat Temple- Graduate Fellow
As the current Graduate Fellow, Kat supports coordination of monthly webinars, facilitates the Future Leaders in Conservation initiative, and contributes to website content and updates. She also assists with organizing engagement sessions and collaborative efforts across working groups and committees. Her role helps ensure that communication and coordination remain central to Road to Recovery’s work.
Before beginning graduate studies at Auburn University, Kat worked in a variety of roles with bird observatories and conservation organizations across the United States, including the Intermountain Bird Observatory, Klamath Bird Observatory, and Point Blue Conservation Science. Her time working with endangered species on the island of Kaua‘i in Hawai‘i sparked a lasting interest in identifying which conservation strategies are most effective. Her graduate research focuses on evaluating recovery efforts for at-risk species to further improve conservation outcomes, a goal that aligns closely with the mission and collaborative spirit of Road to Recovery.
Email: kat0084@auburn.edu
Contact Road to Recovery staff with your questions and to be added to our email list: r2rbirds@gmail.com
Collaboration is Critical to Our Success
photo: Tim Romano
Road to Recovery Partnerships
Collaborations with diverse conservation initiatives like Partners in Flight (PIF) and the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) are critical to our success. R2R will work closely with established PIF working groups to assess species vulnerability and urgency, understand science gaps, increase social science capacity, and advance the efforts of species working groups. Likewise, R2R will collaborate with NABCI’s sub-committees to strategically meet conservation targets across the full annual cycle, advance human dimensions and address environmental justice issues as they relate to bird conservation.
Advisory Team
The Advisory Team brings together experts from across the conservation community. Members meet monthly with staff to share updates, help guide R2R’s direction, and communicate Road to Recovery priorities back to their organizations and networks. They also provide expertise as needed to Action Committees.
Humberto Berlanga – Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad
Susan Bonfield – Environment for the Americas
Esmeralda Bravo – Road to Recovery
Katie Christie – Alaska Department of Fish and Game
Miyoko Chu – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Ashley Dayer – Virginia Tech
Todd Fearer -Appalachian Mountains Joint Venture
Marcel Gahbauer – Environment and Climate Change Canada
Amy Gambrill – Road to Recovery; Georgetown Univeristy
Katie Holland – Road to Recovery
Edwin Juarez – Arizona Game and Fish Department
Anna Lello-Smith – Wildlife Conservation Society, Mesoamerica & Western Caribbean
Peter Marra – Georgetown University
Ken Rosenberg – Cornell Lab of Ornithology (retired)
Kristen Ruegg – Colorado State University
Brandt Ryder – Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Paul Schmidt – Road to Recovery; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, Inc (retired)
Becky Stewart– Environment and Climate Change Canada
Kat Temple – Road to Recovery; Auburn University
Bradley Wilkinson – U.S. North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI)
Tom Will – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (retired)
E.J. Williams – American Bird Conservancy
Chad Wilsey – National Audubon Society
Mark Wimer – U.S. Geological Survey
Core Team
The Core Team is a smaller, more active group within the Advisory Team that meets more frequently to provide strategic guidance. This team supports major decision-making, helps shape organizational direction, and works closely with staff on advancing high-level initiatives.
Esmeralda Bravo – Road to Recovery
Katie Christie – Alaska Department of Fish and Game
Amy Gambrill – Road to Recovery; Georgetown University
Katie Holland – Road to Recovery; Georgetown University
Peter Marra – Georgetown University
Ken Rosenberg – Cornell Lab of Ornithology (retired)
Brandt Ryder – Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Paul Schmidt – Road to Recovery; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, Inc (retired)
Kat Temple – Road to Recovery; Auburn University
Jeff Walters – Virginia Tech
Tom Will – U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (retired)
Subcommittees
Road to Recovery has sustained its momentum since 2021 by forming a Species Working Group Subcommittee, an International Subcommittee, and State Agency Subcommittee, holding three informal interactive engagement sessions to provide a forum for discussion and feedback on the recovery process. In the future, R2R’s goal is to make measurable progress in reversing declines of bird populations through activating research and conservation communities.
International Subcommittee
The International Committee of Road to Recovery (R2R) fosters collaboration with partners across Latin America and the Caribbean to support the full life-cycle conservation of migratory and resident bird species. The committee brings together professionals from across the hemisphere to share knowledge, identify priorities, and promote inclusive, science-based recovery efforts.
Since 2024, the committee has held joint meetings with the International Committee of NABCI, strengthening coordination and advancing shared goals for bird conservation across the Americas and the Caribbean..
Adrianne Tossas – BirdsCaribbean
Amy Gambrill – Road to Recovery; Georgetown University
Ancilleno Davis – University of The Bahamas; Science and Perspective
Anna Lello-Smith – Wildlife Conservation Society, Mesoamerica & Western Caribbean
Esmeralda Bravo – Road to Recovery
Humberto Berlanga – Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad
Isadora Angarita-Martínez – Manomet
Jajean Rose-Burney – Jocotoco Conservation Fundation
Juliana Bosi de Almeida – Manomet
Katie Holland – Road to Recovery; Georgetown University
Lisa Sorenson – BirdsCaribbean
Natalia Martinez Curci – Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas)
Mary Whitfield – Southern Sierra Research Station
Paul Schmidt – Road to Recovery; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, Inc (retired)
Rosabel Miró Rodríguez – Panama Audubon Society
Sarahy Contreras Martinez – University of Guadalajara
Steve Albert – Institute for Bird Populations
Yenifer Díaz – Panama Audubon Society