Becky Humphries

Chair

Becky Humphries has a long career in Conservation, having worked 32 years for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and as CEO of several national conservation nonprofits. She started her career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, but quickly decided that work with the Michigan DNR was her calling.

As a wildlife biologist she worked in several filed locations in the state, but eventually worked in Lansing as the Wildlife Division Chief and then Director of the Michigan DNR. After leaving state service in 2010, Becky joined Ducks Unlimited as the Conservation Operations Director for the Great Lakes Region. In 2013, the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) lured her to South Carolina, where she served as the Chief of Conservation, Chief Operating Officer, and then CEO. She retired from NWTF in 2023, but was asked to step in as CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership in 2023/2024.

Becky now serves on the Board of Directors for the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, and chairs the Wildlife Health Subcommittee for Boone & Crockett Club. Becky lives north of Lowell, Michigan on property overlooking the Flat River. She grew up hunting and fishing in Michigan.

All Sessions by Becky Humphries

4:20 pm - 5:00 pm
Big Tent

The Power of Public Lands

Few people have sat on every side of the table when it comes to funding our public lands, the agency, the nonprofit, the boardroom, and the field. Becky Humphries has spent over three decades navigating all of them. Becky will sit down with Dan Wanschura, host of the Points North Podcast, to share what she's learned about the value of public lands as engines of economic opportunity and community identity. Drawing on decades in the field and in the boardroom, she'll discuss what's at stake for the outdoor economy and why access to public lands matters. Expect a conversation grounded in experience, offering a look at where access to Michigan's public lands stands and a hopeful vision for what's possible when all sectors of the outdoor economy work together.