Axel Hunnicutt has been with California Department of Fish & Wildlife for over 4 years and is the State Gray Wolf Coordinator. He has previously worked in Africa with multiple endangers and threatened species, protecting habitats and wildlife while promoting coexistence benefits to the surrounding communities. 

Axel discussed the recolonization of wolves in California, their territories, pack sizes and possible dispersal patterns, the main issues surrounding wolf recolonization, and what the agency is doing to ensure coexistence measures are used when conflict occurs. 

Gray Wolf CDFW (Web Page) 

California Wolf Project

@hyena_man

@thewolfconnectionpod

James Holt has been a tribal member of the Nez Perce for 13 years and has worked in Environmental Sciences & Tribal Community Engagement for nearly three decades. He also specializes in tribal public policy, including natural resources and water policy development; climate change planning; wilderness management; and utilities administration for the Nez Perce. 

James shared insights into his upbringing with the lessons and guidance he was given as a young man, the relationship of the Nez Perce with the land and wildlife surrounding them, the history of the Nez Perce during westward expansion and the wolf reintroduction in 1995, along with their influence in environmental policy in the present day. 

Nez Perce Wildlife Division 

Nez Perce Website

Nez Perce Wolf History

@npt1855

@thewolfconnectionpod

Laurie Cousins is a Trauma-Informed Mindfulness Teacher who has been with Wolf Connection since 2018. Known for her work in healing trauma and addiction recovery, Laurie focuses on treating the cyclical root causes of compulsive behaviors while building self-love and resiliency. 

She spoke about the ways that nature based therapy can help us reconnect with the environment, how those practices intertwine with the programs at Wolf Connection, and how we can listen to our bodies while becoming more in tune with our nervous systems. 

Healing with Mindfulness

@mindfully_laurie

[email protected]

@thewolfconnectionpod

Alma "Rosie" Sanchez is the Carnivore Biologist for the Nez Perce Tribe and is also a PhD student at The University of Colorado Boulder. She combines Indigenous political ecology and carnivore ecology in both fieldwork and research. Rosie has focused on revitalizing management plans, deploying field projects to determine occupancy and migration, and expanding opportunities for community involvement in conservation. 

She spoke about her career journey that led to working with the Nez Perce Tribe, some of the research she's working on at the moment, and the rise of traditional ecological knowledge she's seen in collaboration within agencies. 

Nez Perce Tribe Website

Nez Perce Tribe Wildlife Division

@rorosanchie

Howl Podcast (Wolf Reintroduction Series)

@thewolfconnectionpod

Nita Strauss is a Los Angeles born guitarist who has toured around the globe, playing with musical artists like Demi Lovato and Alice Cooper, while releasing two solo albums Controlled Chaos (2018) and The Call of the Void (2023). She was also the first female to have a signature guitar through Ibanez guitars, the Ibanez JIVA. 

We spoke with Nita about her creative process, both in her instrumental work and collaboration with vocalists, asked about the inspiration for the song The Wolf You Feed feat. Alissa White-Gluz and how the meaning of the song has resonated since its release. 

Nita Strauss Website 

@hurricanenita

@thewolfconnectionpod

Hannah Rheaume has been a professional photographer for 5 years. She has traveled the globe, sharing her stories through the lens of her camera, while aiming to explore the complexities of humans and their impact on the natural world. 

Hannah spoke about her interactions with the pack at Wolf Connection, the photo workshop she hosted in Yellowstone, and her encounter with a yearling wolf inside the park. 

Check out @thewolfconnectionpod on Instagram to see the wolf photos we discussed in this episode!

Hannah Rheaume Website 

@hannahrheaume

Dan Flores is A. B. Hammond Professor Emeritus of the History of the American West at the University of Montana-Missoula. He has authored ten books, including his New York Times Bestseller Coyote America, along with American Serengeti and Wild New World. 

We had a powerful conversation about how coyotes have shaped both Indigenous and early American storytelling, the rise and impact of extirpation campaigns against them and other North American species, the cultural shift toward conservation, and what all of this means for our present-day relationship with wildlife.

**Donate to help take the podcast On The Road! Click the link** https://wolfconnection.org/donations/

Dan Flores Bio (Project Coyote)

Dan Flores Books (Amazon)

@projectcoyoteorg

@thewolfconnectionpod

Nadia Steinzor is a collaborative environmental professional for over 25 years, whose knowledge ranges through environmental issues, policies, and regulations to help produce reports, outreach materials, comments, and testimony. Nadia works with the Rewilding Institute to ensure that wolves and other carnivores thrive and roam in the Northeast and beyond.

We discussed what goes into drafting environmental policy, some of the differences between state and federal issues, and the challenges wild canids are facing in the Northeastern United States. 

**Donate to help take the podcast On The Road! Click the link** https://wolfconnection.org/donations/

Nadia Steinzor Website

Rewilding Institute

Northeast Wolf Recovery Alliance

@thewolfconnectionpod

Carter Niemeyer retired from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in 2006 as the Wolf Recovery Coordinator for the state of Idaho. He was an integral part of the Federal Wolf Reintroduction in both Yellowstone and Idaho. Carter has authored three books, Wolfer, Wolf Land, and The Other Ten Wolves, which can be purchased through multiple book retailers. 

Carter spoke about his latest literary entry The Other Ten Wolves, the story behind the Sawtooth Pack, and his role in their translocation into Yellowstone. 

**Donate to help take the podcast On The Road! Click the link** https://wolfconnection.org/donations/

Carter Niemeyer Website (Buy a signed copy here)

@thewolfconnectionpod

Matt James is the Chief Animal Officer for Colossal Biosciences. Colossal Biosciences is dedicated to genetic engineering and de-extinction projects to advance conservation efforts for current species, like red wolves, ecosystems and biodiversity throughout the globe with cutting-edge biotechnology. 

Matt went into detail about the mission of Colossal, long term goals with the dire wolf and red wolf projects, and promoting conservation efforts within ecosystems and biodiversity around the world. 

Colossal Biosciences 

Dire Wolf Research

Colossal Conservation

Colossal Foundation

@itiscolossal

@thewolfconnectionpod