Our People

Margaret O’Gorman operates at the intersection of business and nature. As President of the Wildlife Habitat Council, she helps companies find value in natural resources conservation and mainstream biodiversity across operations. She works with multinational corporations to develop integrated strategies to implement conservation projects to meet business needs and, in so doing, enhance ecosystems, connect communities and engage employees. She helps WHC members build conservation into their sustainability efforts and helps sustain conservation efforts through WHC’s signature Conservation Certification recognition, which serves to define the standard for corporate conservation worldwide. Prior to joining WHC, she served as the Executive Director of Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey where she transformed the little-known statewide non-profit into a well-respected and effective organization focused on rare and imperiled wildlife protection and recovery in the Garden State. Margaret’s extensive fundraising and development experience comes from almost a decade in lead development roles at New Jersey Future and the Pinelands Preservation Alliance. She began her career in education publishing, developing an expertise in secondary and university STEM education. Margaret is a compelling writer and speaker on the power of natural resource conservation to restore ecosystems, recover species, connect people and make a positive difference to business, people and planet. She is the author of Strategic Corporate Conservation Planning (Island Press) which lays out a road map for companies of all sizes to mainstream conservation and biodiversity. She holds a BSc in geology and geophysics from University College Ireland, Galway and a Masters in Micropaleontology from the University of Southampton, UK. Read her blog View upcoming speaking engagements Watch Margaret speak at the Smithsonian Earth Optimism Summit: Watch Margaret discuss corporate conservation on CCTV America:

As Chief Marketing Officer, Monica leads WHC’s branding, content and public relations efforts. This includes the development and activation of multi-channel marketing campaigns to promote WHC initiatives, services and products, including membership, WHC Consulting, Conservation Conference and Conservation Certification.

Prior to joining WHC, Monica held senior level marketing positions at multi-national corporations, ACE Group (now Chubb) and AXA, as well as at non-profits including the American Lung Association and the National MS Society.

She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.

As Director, Technical Services at the Wildlife Habitat Council, Rob works closely with an array of member companies to deliver targeted products and services aimed at supporting each company’s pursuit of unique sustainability goals. In his role, Rob serves as liaison to member representatives across industry sectors assuring they are kept appraised of information relative to their company’s initiatives.

While earning a MS in Environmental Studies at the College of Charleston, Rob worked with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources as an environmental educator to develop curriculum for local primary schools and to teach on estuarine topics. As a native Marylander, he has developed a knowledge base on coastal topics and aquatic ecosystems. Complimenting his passion for the natural world, Rob has extensively studied anthropogenic effects on the environment and holds a graduate certificate in Urban and Regional Development, as well as a BA in Economics and Psychology from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

As Manager of Conservation Planning, Joey engages in the technical support and management of corporate conservation projects, programs, and initiatives. This includes developing guidance for companies to achieve various sustainability and biodiversity related goals, as well as working with companies to identify new goals to advance their corporate responsibilities.

Prior to joining WHC, Joey worked as an award-winning multimedia journalist in both Anchorage, Alaska and Bloomington, Indiana. In Alaska, Joey produced environmentally focused news videos, often hopping in small planes to venture into isolated rural villages. In Indiana, Joey headed a local PBS video department, and produced an award-winning documentary about a federal crime.

He received his undergraduate degree in journalism from Boston University, his graduate degree in environmental journalism from Northwestern University, and his graduate degree in environmental sustainability from Indiana University.

As Conservation Specialist, Doreen provides site-level technical advice and support to new corporate conservation programs, as well as assisting with the improvement and maintenance of certified programs. Doreen has previously worked as Conservation Coordinator and Certification Coordinator at WHC.

In 2008, Doreen earned a B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, VA and in 2014 she earned an M.S. in Earth Sciences from the University of North Carolina Charlotte. While in graduate school Doreen worked as a teaching assistant in the Department of Geography and Earth Sciences. The focus of Doreen’s research was on Urban and Landscape Ecology as well as Biogeography.

As Director, Conservation Projects, Daniel works with Wildlife Habitat Council member companies and their communities develops partnerships on habitat restoration and land stewardship bringing about community participation and increasing ecosystem values for natural or degraded areas. He works to advance ecosystem management and restoration in the Chicago Wilderness Region by assembling and managing conservation and education partnerships between industries, environmental agencies, and conservation NGOs.

He is a Restoration Ecologist with 20 years of ecological reuse and restoration experience in urban lands and waters, industrial properties, and low-income communities. Daniel helped found and generates programs for Groundwork Gary and Calumet is My Backyard, a partnership between the Chicago Public Schools, Field Museum and WHC dedicated to school and community environmental stewardship.

Daniel received his BS in Natural Resources Management and Fresh Water Ecology from Cornell University, MS in Forest Ecology from Michigan State University, and MFA in Design and Ecology from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

As Senior Manager, Marketing, Patricia contributes to the development of the WHC marketing strategy and is responsible for executing marketing campaign communications. She also manages the WHC website and is the lead on the annual WHC Engagement Calendar.

She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland, in College Park, with studies focused on journalism and criminal justice.

Melissa began her career at WHC as the Conservation Coordinator for Strategy and Planning, where she helped to develop and implement the CRM, represented WHC at member events, worked closely with member sites on their application and program details, and coordinated meetings the department. In her current position as Sr. Manager, Events, Melissa manages the WHC Webinar programming as well as implements all details of Conservation Conference from program to logistics. In addition, she manages the partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, works on other WHC-led events, and is the “Social Secretary” for internal WHC celebrations.

As Payroll and Benefits Coordinator, LaVerne is responsible for computing, classifying, recording, and verifying numerical data for use in payroll and benefits.

Prior to joining WHC, LaVerne served as Receptionist/Administrative Assistant for a commercial real estate company in Washington, D.C. for 21 years. She also worked as a Facilities Coordinator with Icon Clinical Research in Bethesda, MD. She has completed accounting courses at Southeastern University in Washington, D.C.

As Accounting Coordinator, Kurt is responsible for accounts payable, accounts receivable, cash management, reconciliations, data management, and expense reporting and billing.

Kurt received his BS in Aviation Business Administration from Emby Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida.