Paul Souza has been selected to be the Assistant Director for Science Applications for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In this role, Paul will provide leadership to further strengthen our science partnerships, work collaboratively to set conservation priorities, and then leverage the resources to achieve them. Paul will help oversee the network of Landscape Conservation Cooperatives across the country, implement our strategic habitat conservation approach to adaptive management, and address key science needs that enable resource managers to find common sense solutions to real world problems.
“I am very pleased to have Paul serve in this important role for our agency,” said Service Director Dan Ashe. “Paul brings a clear track record of working closely with partners to set shared goals and solve challenging problems. These skills will help us address the effects of a changing climate and the other transformational conservation questions that we face today.”
Prior to his current role, Paul served as the Deputy Assistant Director for the Service’s Ecological Services program in Headquarters. In this capacity, he provided national leadership for the Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, Clean Water Act and many other statutes. Paul worked closely with partners to leverage resources that benefit wildlife conservation and other important needs, such as farming and ranching, military readiness, and energy and infrastructure development.
Before coming to Headquarters, Paul was the Field Supervisor for the South Florida Ecological Services Office. In this capacity, Paul oversaw actions to recover 67 listed species and protect a host of important habitats for migratory birds, fish and other wildlife. Paul also helped lead the effort to restore America’s Everglades with many partners, implementing projects to improve the health of the environment for species such as the Florida panther, wood stork and snail kite.
“I am so honored to take on this important challenge with the dedicated conservation professionals in our agency,” Souza said. “I am a big believer in the power of conservation partnerships with states and organizations of all stripes. Together we can meet today’s challenges head on and continue our country’s rich legacy of wildlife conservation.”
Paul joined the Service in 1997 as a Presidential Management Fellow. He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from the University of California at Santa Barbara, and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from Florida State University. Paul and his wife Dana have a nine-year-old son named Garret and seven-year-old daughter named Maddie.
