Twan Leenders, Senior Director of Science and Conservation
716-665-2473 ext. 225
tleenders AT rtpi.org
Twan is a biologist from The Netherlands interested in animal ecology and conservation management. For more than twenty years his work with birds, mammals, plants and especially tropical amphibians and reptiles has taken him to various places on the planet. As a former researcher at Yale University’s Peabody Museum and other institutions he participated in many international expeditions that helped gather data to better understand and protect biologically important areas and their unique species and habitats. Before coming to western NY, Twan taught biology at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT, and went back into the ‘trenches’ of hands-on conservation research and education while leading the Science and Conservation Office of the Connecticut Audubon Society. As President of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History, he now applies his experience to our region and develops new conservation research and education initiatives that aim to spark increased interest in the area’s exceptional natural assets while providing economic incentives to promote good environmental stewardship.
