Who We Are

Susan F. Gesner

President

As an avid fly fisher, skier and outdoor enthusiast, Susan brings her professional and personal skill sets to the WHC Board table. Both her work and her play involve spending as much time outdoors as possible, and being a positive influence on her clients, her friends and family and the earth. Though not a hunter herself, she spends many weeks in the fall casting a fly in cold rivers while her best friends – both 2 and 4 legged – are out hunting for their dinner.

Susan is the president of GAEL, an independent consulting firm specializing in environmental facilitation, consultation, and engagement.

Dr. Michael Anderson

Emeritus Scientist

Mike is Emeritus Scientist for Ducks Unlimited Canada after serving 23 years, recently as Senior Conservation Advisor, and earlier as Director (and co-founder) of DUC’s Institute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research. Previously Mike spent 18 years at the Delta Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Station, last serving there as Scientific Director.

Mike grew up in Fort Ransom, ND. He received B.S. and M.S. degrees in wildlife biology from Colorado State University and Utah State University, respectively, and a Ph.D. in ecology, evolution and behavior from the University of Minnesota. He has been involved in waterfowl research, primarily on the Canadian prairies, since 1972. His two largest projects were a long-term study of Canvasback ecology, behavior and demography (1975-1990) and the Prairie Habitat Joint Venture assessment study (1991-2000).

Mike has been deeply involved in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan since 1986, mostly with scientific and strategic matters. He retired from the international Plan Committee in 2018. Mike continues to collaborate on scientific projects, write, and consult on various conservation initiatives.

Dean Smith

President of Wood Water Consulting Inc.

Dean is an ardent conservationist and advocate for engaging people in natural resource management decisions. Working in the areas of wetland and waterfowl conservation, agriculture, and natural resource policy and program development throughout North America has been a privilege and a passion for more than 30 years.

As the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) Director and Wildlife Liaison for Canada at the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (AFWA) in Washington, DC and President of WoodWater Consulting Inc. (Regina, SK), he is a facilitator of partnerships, collaborative initiatives, and communication between governments, conservation organizations, and academia.

He enjoys traveling and has had the pleasure of experiencing the beauty and the natural benefits of all provinces and territories of Canada, all 50 states in the U.S., and a few other countries. Spending time fishing and wildlife and nature watching are favorite pursuits for Dean and his wife Brenda.

Christie-Lee Hazzard

Vice-Chair of the Nominating Committee

Christie-Lee is a waterfowl hunter and conservationist, who is passionate about the preservation of wetland and waterfowl habitats in Canada. She enjoys connecting people with the natural environment through storytelling and believes that stories can inform and inspire people to connect with and act for nature – success in conservation depends on getting the right connection between people and nature.

Throughout her career Christie-Lee has worked for various levels of government, non-government agencies and non-profits as well as running her own consulting business. As a Geographic Information Systems Professional (GISP), she specializes in harnessing the power of spatial information to address complex conservation and environmental challenges, allow for visualization of the landscape for research, monitoring, planning and management activities and create compelling stories. Christie-Lee holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences, a master’s degree in biological sciences and a post-graduate GIS application specialist certificate.

During her downtime, Christie-Lee enjoys time outdoors wandering and exploring with her family, her two Labradors and a cup of coffee.

Ian Barnett

Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee

Ian has been involved in land and water conservation across Canada for 40 years. He has been a member of numerous national and international boards and committees concerned with the conservation and wise stewardship of waterfowl, wetlands and other important natural habitats. He brings to the WHC board over 17 years of experience on the executive management teams of Ducks Unlimited Canada and Nature Conservancy Canada.

After retiring from the Nature Conservancy of Canada in 2017 as Vice President of Regional Operations, Ian has served on NCC’s BC Board of Directors as well as a board member for the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Beef whose goal is to enhance sustainability in the beef industry from the land to the consumer. Ian was also a member of an expert committee for the Canadian Land Trust Alliance to revise standards and practices for use by over 75 conservation organizations across Canada.

He retired from Ducks Unlimited Canada in 2011 after 31 years with his last position as Director of Regional Operations for BC and the Western Boreal Forest and Director of International Partnerships.

Ian presently serves on the board of the Grasslands Conservation Council of British Columbia and sits on the Science Advisory Network for NCC in BC.

Over the years he has pursued many diverse outdoor recreational activities such as skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, biking, birding, canoeing and kayaking as well as bird hunting and fresh and salt water fishing. He and his wife Judy have 4 daughters and 8 grandchildren who are all beginning to enjoy the great outdoors.

Lyle Saigeon

Vice Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee

Lyle has a diverse and rewarding career history dating back to 1978 which has involved working at an executive level within both government and non-government agencies. The highlight of Lyle’s career has been his involvement with the North American Waterfowl Management Plan during his tenures with Ducks Unlimited Canada, Nature Conservancy of Canada, the Province of Saskatchewan and the Province of British Columbia.

Over the years Lyle has served on a number of national and international boards including the NAWMP Plan Committee and the Prairie Habitat Joint Venture. He now enjoys working with First Nations councils and serving on the Board of the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area. Lyle has always held Wildlife
Habitat Canada in high regard and feels privileged to serve on their Board.

Lyle’s passion is the great outdoors and in his free time enjoys many outdoor pursuits, most notably fly fishing. Much of this time is spent roaming the west Kootenay mountains and streams along with his wife Juliet. He is most proud of his three children and his stepdaughter that are scattered about Alberta, Quebec and Montana.

Blair Adams

Director

Blair Adams completed a Doctorate in Biology at Dalhousie University in 2005 focused on life history evolution and molecular ecology.   Returning to Newfoundland and Labrador in 2005 Blair’s post-doctoral work was focused on species-specific natural range of variation across environmental gradients.  In 2008 Blair joined the Government of Newfoundland Labrador with the Wildlife Division working on woodland caribou population models, and regional resource management policy.  After working with the government of Newfoundland in both wildlife and forest ecology for several years Blair took on the role of Director of the Centre for Forest Science and Innovation in 2013.  In 2017 he took on the role of Director of Wildlife where he continues to work on wildlife management and conservation.

Blake Schmirler

Director

Growing up in a hunting family Blake was always surrounded by ducks and duck hunters. This naturally led to a love and passion for waterfowl. Growing up along the shores of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie opportunities were always plentiful for waterfowl hunting and observing.

When it came time to turn his passion into a career, Blake started working in the outfitting industry as a guide in prairie Canada. It was here that relationships were made and foundations were laid for a greater role in the waterfowl world. Years of volunteer experience led to Blake joining Delta Waterfowl as a Regional Director in Ontario. Blake’s ultimate goal through his volunteering and work experience is to grow waterfowl population numbers and share his love of waterfowl with others.

Crystal Robertson

Director

Crystal has always had a love for wetlands and wetland wildlife. As an avid backcountry camper and canoe tripper, appreciating Canada’s natural spaces and realizing their benefits to human wellbeing comes hand in hand.

Crystal spent several years at Toronto Zoo working through their Adopt-A-Pond wetland conservation program to help restore wetland habitats and share messaging that encourages a love and respect for wetlands and all the life that they support.

She has been involved in outreach and education surrounding Canadian wildlife for over 15 years and strongly believes that engaging the public in conservation efforts is the key to long-term success.

Marc Cattet

Director

Marc Cattet is the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Branch with the Government of Yukon and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Saskatchewan. His formal university education includes a BSc in wildlife biology from the University of Guelph, a MSc in zoology from the University of Alberta, a DVM from the University of Guelph, and a PhD in veterinary pathology from the University of Saskatchewan.

Marc has spent much of the past four decades engaged in wildlife research as a biologist and veterinarian with various employers, including government, academia, and environmental non-governmental organizations. His research interests include chemical immobilization, the effects of human activity on wildlife health, and the assessment of wildlife health by non-invasive techniques.

As the newest addition to the Board, Marc looks forward to extending Wildlife Habitat Canada’s reach into the Yukon.