Preston grew up in Ventura, California and studied Environmental Studies and Biology at UC Santa Cruz, where he became enamored with the natural world and the small (and big) wonders that one might notice one slows down to observe. Since undergrad, he has been working as a field ecologist and ornithologist, mainly working with Point Blue Conservation Science during the past six years in Bay Area ecosystems from Mount Tamalpais to the Farallon Islands, banding birds, nest-searching, spotted owl monitoring, and conducting point counts, among many other things. He is currently working on his Master’s thesis in the Geographic Information Science department at San Francisco State University studying spotted owl biogeography in Marin County. Particularly, his thesis is investigating the relationship between territory selection and reproductive success in the Marin County population. Preston has a strong interest in how we manage our relationships with landscapes and wildlife in a post-industrial world, and how we can best preserve our resources in a sustainable and equitable way. Most recently, he has become interested in learning more about the uses and benefits of prescribed fire on our landscapes, and he has obtained his firefighter type II certification to be able to participate in burns across the north bay area. He is excited to join the team and many partners working with the Marin RCD to manage the GIS and monitoring, as well as support in the planning and implementation of projects on Marin’s working lands.