RANCHING/LIVESTOCK:
TIMMOTHY KAMINSKI

Mr. Kaminski is a wildlife and conservation biologist who is the principal investigator for the nonprofit Mountain Livestock Cooperative. He is also a research associate with the Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative in Jackson, Wyoming and with the Craighead Environmental Research Institute in Bozeman, Montana.

As a field biologist operating in the Rocky Mountain region, he has long been involved in conservation issues, especially those involving carnivores and endangered species. Timm’s work is based on his belief that conservation will increasingly challenge wildlife and conservation professionals to make science more meaningful to the lives of people with divergent backgrounds and values.

The focus of the Mountain Livestock Cooperative’s on-the-ground work involves managing livestock availability and vulnerability to large carnivores, and merging ranchers’ knowledge about livestock, their land and surroundings with a scientific understanding of carnivore behavior and ecology. Timm works with ranchers involved in this effort in the mountains of southern Alberta, southwest Montana, northwest Wyoming, eastern Oregon and east-central Idaho.

Mr. Kaminski has worked for state, federal, provincial and non-government organizations for more than 30 years, participating in research and management efforts involving mule deer, elk, black-footed ferret, northern spotted owl, gray wolf, bald eagle, Canada lynx and grizzly bear conservation efforts spanning the Yellowstone region, the Rocky Mountains of the U.S. and Canada, the Pacific Northwest and the Great Lakes region.

Timm was principal staff and legislative assistant to Congressman Wayne Owens (D-Utah) in Washington, D.C., responsible for legislation to restore wolves to Yellowstone National Park and central Idaho. Mr. Kaminski also served as a U.S. Forest Service National Wildlife and Fish Program Leader on three national forests in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, and served as Wolf Project Leader for Idaho and Western Montana under contract between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Nez Perce Tribe. Mr. Kaminski holds a M.S. degree in cooperative wildlife research from the University of Montana, Missoula, and a B.S. degree from the University of Wyoming, Laramie.