George has been active in conservation and research for over 35 years and is passionate about protecting threatened species.

George got hooked on birding during high school. After mistaking his interest in birds for a hobby, he received his BA in Anthropology from Dartmouth College. However, following his first job with the US Fish and Wildlife Service working on endangered species in Oregon and Washington, George returned to university at The Evergreen State College for his BSc in Biology. A succession of field jobs ensued including projects on coastal scrub and high Sierra landbirds, Northern Elephant Seals, Great White Sharks, seabirds on Southeast Farallon Island and seabirds of the ice edge zone in Antarctica with Point Reyes Bird Observatory (now Point Blue); migration monitoring in Canada; and guiding salmon fishermen in Alaska. Birds remained his focus though as he settled into the job of leading Bird Studies Canada’s Migration Monitoring Program at Long Point, Ontario and developing a training program for Cuban scientists in partnership with the Canadian Wildlife Service. After taking time out to receive his MSc in Zoology from the University of Guelph on plumage maturation in the Ruby-crowned Kinglet, George returned to Antarctica where he studied South Polar Skuas and Adélie Penguins and met his wife, Beth, then a member of the New Zealand Antarctic Program. On returning to the US, George received his PhD from the University of Missouri on the ecology of migratory birds overwintering in Cuba and went on to work for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, first as a regional biologist and then as State Bird Conservation Coordinator. George joins Rainforest Trust after 14 years as Vice President at American Bird Conservancy where he led their International and Oceans and Islands Programs.