Mike Clifford has dedicated almost 20 years to driving innovation and change for the good of our natural world. He started as a zoo keeper, moved to Africa to work with in-situ conservation efforts, got his Masters degree in Organization Development where he facilitated strategic plans and change initiatives for all sorts of organizations in a variety of sectors.
He then found himself at GLMVZoos, a design firm specializing in zoo habitats where he led master planning, conservation impact planning, and he created and developed ECHO, a future of zoos and aquariums innovation think tank where experts from outside the conservation field share how they are solving big challenges. This collision of ideas, relentless curiosity, and willingness to ask better questions has driven Mike in every position he’s held.
He is now the Strategic Director for Reverse the Red: a global coalition to halt extinction and recover threatened species populations and support national governments in achieving their biodiversity targets. Mike brings the same enthusiasm, curiosity, and willingness to try new and innovative ways to create change to this global role.
Mike is married to his lovely wife Sarah. They have a son finishing high school, two old dogs, some chickens, and they cultivate their small urban ecosystem right in the heart of Wichita, Kansas, USA, where you’ll find more than 100 edible plants growing there, half are edible for humans. The rest are for the more than a dozen avian residents, more than 20 butterfly species, and countless insects!