Jenny Fitzgerald

Executive Director

Jenny first came to Jackson in 2011 to work as a Bear Management Ranger in Grand Teton National Park. Raised in Ithaca, New York, she had never been west, but quickly fell in love with Jackson Hole’s wild landscapes, wildlife, and community.

After earning degrees in Natural Resources and Animal Science from Cornell University, Jenny enjoyed a career in wildlife field research, working mainly with mountain lions through Panthera and the National Park Service. Her work studying urban wildlife in the Santa Monica Mountains outside Los Angeles gave her valuable insight into the challenges—and possibilities—of coexistence between people and wildlife.

No matter where her work took her, Jackson remained home. Over the years, Jenny held a variety of local jobs to make living here possible, giving her firsthand perspective on the pressures facing a rapidly changing community.

Jenny’s heart is in wildlife conservation. She believes protecting wildlife and wild places requires engaging people, building understanding, and finding solutions — not just problems.

“I’m just a redneck treehugger who likes wild things in wild places.”