Shaara Ainsley joined Long Live the Kings in late 2021. She previously served as Scientific Collaborations Director at FISHBIO in California before returning to Seattle to continue working toward recovering salmon and steelhead at home in the Pacific Northwest.
For over 15 years, she has managed fisheries research and conservation projects on river systems throughout Washington, California, and Southeast Asia. She seeks to build successful collaborations and facilitate innovative approaches to addressing complex conservation problems.
At Long Live the Kings, she manages the Hood Canal Bridge Assessment, an urban estuary restoration project, and the development of a Salmon and Climate Initiative. Her previous work included expanding and supporting a research and conservation program in the Mekong River basin, serving as technical lead for a long-term steelhead life-cycle monitoring program, and participating in collaborative science working groups in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Shaara holds an M.S. in Marine Science from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories and the California State University, Monterey Bay, and a B.A. in Creative Studies (Biology Emphasis) from the University of California, Santa Barbara.