Resume
Christian A. Smith, CWB
5450 Tumbleweed Drive
Helena, MT 59602
406-202-0003; cldsmith@msn.com
Summary of Skills and Experience
Over 34 years' experience in planning, management, research, supervision and administration of
resource conservation programs throughout Alaska and Montana. Extensive involvement with the
Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and
inter-agency teams. Specialized training and experience in wildlife policy and law, public involvement,
conflict resolution, personnel management, and strategic planning. Demonstrated ability to forge
effective working relationships between agencies and public interests. Strong interpersonal and
communication skills. Published in scientific and popular literature.
Education
Undergraduate School:
University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Degree: B.Sc. Wildlife Management and Fisheries Biology, 1973
Graduate School:
University of British Columbia, Vancouver
Degree: M.Sc. Wildlife Biology, 1977
Thesis: The Habitat Use Patterns and Associated Movements of White-tailed Deer
in Southeastern British Columbia
Employment History
Wildlife Management Institute
Western Field Representative: March 2011 - Present
Major Duties and Accomplishments: I provide policy-level advice and program
support to state and federal wildlife agencies across 22 western states and 4 Canadian
provinces/territories and administer over $3 million of grant funding for four Landscape
Conservation Cooperatives, to provide critical scientific information to improve
conservation decision-making from the Gulf of Mexico to the Arctic.
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks
Director of Special Projects - May, 2009 – March, 2011
Major Duties and Accomplishments: Oversee planning for and development of FWP’s
conservation education center in Helena, MT. Completed comprehensive site plan; secured over
$1 million in private, state and federal grant funding to renovate a 120 year old, 20,000 square
foot historic building and surrounding grounds; oversaw and managed renovation project
completed in January, 2011. Developed staffing structure and recruited education center
director.
Deputy Director - March 1998 to May 2009
Major Duties and Accomplishments: Supervised the Fisheries, Wildlife, Parks, Law
Enforcement and Communications and Education Divisions, the Legal Unit and Responsive
Management Unit; oversee development and implementation of agency-wide policies, budgets
and legislative strategy. Established strategic and operational planning systems that linked
program goals and objectives with budget requests, allocation and tracking; successfully
developed and lobbied passage of the only significant resident license fee increase in 20 years;
led efforts to establish and support Tri-state Governors' Roundtable on Yellowstone Grizzly
Bear Conservation Strategy and Governor’s Wolf Advisory Council to overcome gridlock on
grizzly bear and wolf recovery; lobbied on over 400 bills and 5 biennial budgets for FWP.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game - Division of Wildlife Conservation
Assistant Director - August, 1995 to March, 1998
Regional Supervisor - October, 1989 to July, 1995
Regional Management Coordinator - August, 1986 to October, 1989
Wildlife Research Biologist - March, 1981 to August, 1986
Wildlife Management Biologist - May, 1978 to March, 1981
Assistant Area Management Biologist - September, 1977 to May, 1978
Game Biologist - August, 1976 to September, 1977
Fisheries Technician - June - Sept., 1973
Interagency Experience
Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies
1998 – 2009: Represented Montana FWP on the Federal Budget and Legislative Committee and
the Endangered Species Policy Committee; attended meetings each March and September;
oversaw planning for and hosting of the 2001, centennial meeting of AFWA at Big Sky, MT.
Represented state agencies on a working group with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA
Forest Service and NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service that developed guidelines for State
Conservation Agreements, designed to preclude the need for listing species under the
Endangered Species Act.
Represented state agencies through an inter-agency personnel agreement on a U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service task force charged with review and revision of refuge management policies for
the National Wildlife Refuge System that resulted in publication of multiple new policies.
Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies
1998 -2009: Represented Montana FWP on the Threatened and Endangered Species Committee,
Human Dimensions Committee and Resolutions Committee; chaired the Human Dimensions
Committee in 2008-09.
Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee
1998 – 2009: Represented Montana FWP on the IGBC; led efforts to develop a comprehensive
conservation strategy for the Greater Yellowstone area and chaired the committee from 2007 –
2009 during initial delisting of the Yellowstone population.
Professional Recognition
Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Professional of the Year - 2002
Professional Society Certification and Activities
The Wildlife Society
1980 Certified Wildlife Biologist
1979-80 Southcentral Regional Representative, Alaska Chapter
1982-83 Southeastern Regional Representative, Alaska Chapter
1982-83 Alaska Chapter Representative: Governor's Task Force on Deer-Logging Relationships
1984-85 President, Alaska Chapter
1994-96 Chair: Policy & Resolutions Committee, Alaska Chapter
1998-present: Peer reviewer for articles submitted to the Journal of Wildlife Management
Scientific Publications
Smith, C. A. 1976. Deer Sociobiology - Some Second Thoughts. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 4(4):181-182.
_____. 1976. Alaska Wildlife Management Plans. Alaska Cons. Rev. 17(3): 13.
_____. 1976. An evaluation of winter habitat selection based on multiple selection measures. Proc. N.W.
Sec. TWS. Kalispell, Mont. 19 pp.
_____, & G. N. Bos. 1976. Management plans for alternative uses of wildlife. Proc. N.W. Sec. TWS.
Kalispell, Mont. 28 pp.
_____, J. B. Faro & N. C. Steen. 1979. An evaluation of trophy moose management on the Alaska
Peninsula. Proc. of the N. Amer. Moose Conf. 15: 280-302.
_____,& A. Franzmann. 1979. Productivity and physiology of Yakutat Forelands moose. Final Report.
Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Project W-17-10 and W17-11. Job 1.25R. Juneau, Alaska. 18pp.
_____. 1982. Group size and movements of a dispersed, low density goat population with comments on
inbreeding and human impact. Bienn. Symp. North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 3:54-67
_____. 1983. Responses of two groups of mountain goats, Oreamnos americanus, to a wolf, Canis lupus.
Can. Field-Nat. 97(1):110.
_____, K. Kohrt, B. Baker, J. Sturgeon, M. Barton & R. Harris. 1983. Deer and timber management in
southeast Alaska - Issues and Recommendations. Governor's Tech. Comm. Report. 41 pp.
_____. 1984. Evaluation and management implications of long-term trends in coastal mountain goat
populations in Southeast Alaska. Bienn. Symp. North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 4:395-424.
_____, & L. Nichols, Jr. 1984. Mountain goat transplants in Alaska: restocking depleted herds and
mitigating mining impacts. Bienn. Symp. North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 4:467-480.
_____, & K. T. Bovee. 1984. A mark-recapture census and density estimate for a coastal mountain goat
population. Bienn. Symp. North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 4:487-498.
_____, 1984. Potential of Revillagigedo Island for goat transplant. Final Report. Alaska Dept. of Fish
and Game. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Project W-22-2. Job 12.6R. Juneau, Alaska.
29pp.
_____. 1986. Bi-level analysis of habitat selection by mountain goats in coastal Alaska. Bienn. Symp.
North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 5:366-379.
_____. 1986. Habitat use by mountain goats in Southeastern Alaska. Final Report. Alaska Dept. of Fish
and Game. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Project W-22-1, W-22-2, and W-22-3. Job
12.4R. Juneau, Alaska. 63pp.
_____. 1986. Rates and causes of mortality in mountain goat in southeast Alaska. J. Wildl. Manage.
50(4):743-746.
_____. 1987. Predator-induced limitations on deer population growth in Southeast Alaska. Final Report.
Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Project W-22-4, W-22-5,
and W-22-6. Job 14.14R. Juneau, Alaska. 20pp.
_____. 1987. Wolf-deer habitat relationships in Southeast Alaska. Final Report. Alaska Dept. of Fish
and Game. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Project W-22-4, W-22-5, and W-22-6. Job
14.13R. Juneau, Alaska. 20pp.
_____. 1994. Evaluation of a multivariate model of mountain goat winter habitat selection. Bienn.
Symp. North. Wild Sheep and Goat Counc. 9:159-165.
_____. and C. Sime. 2008. Policy issues related to wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains. Trans. N.
Amer. Conf. Vol 72.
_____. 2011. The role of state wildlife agency professionals under the public trust doctrine. To be
submitted to J. Wildl. Manage. 75(7):1539-1543.
_____. M. Lewis, R. Brooks and C. Sperry. In prep. Assessment and integration of diverse public
interests in fish and wildlife decision-making. Invited paper for the 74th N. Amer. Conf. on Nat.
Res., Kansas City, KS. March, 2011
Fox, J. L.& C. A. Smith. 1988. Winter mountain goat diets in southeast Alaska. J. Wildl. Manage.
52(2):362-365.
_____, _____ & J. W. Schoen. 1989. Relationships between mountain goats and their habitat in
Southeast Alaska. USDA For. Serv. Pacific N.W. Res. Stn. Gen. Tech. Report. PNW-GTR-246.
25 pp.
Stephenson, R. O.; W. B. Ballard; C. A. Smith & K. Richardson. 1995. Wolf biology and management
in Alaska 1981 - 92. In. Carbyn, L. N., S. H. Fritts and D. R. Seip, eds. Ecology and
Conservation of Wolves in a Changing World. Canadian Circumpolar Institute, Occasional
Publication No. 35: 43-54.
Popular Publications
Smith, C. A. 1982. "Tundra Dawn". Gray's Sporting Journal 7(1):129; reprinted in "Tales From Gray's Selections from Gray's Sporting Journal 1975- 1985". GSJ Press. S. Hamilton, MA. 1986. p.
138.
_____. 1984 "Rollie's Catch". Gray's Sporting Journal. 7(4):9-10. Reprinted In “The Back Road to
Crazy: Stories from the field.” J. Bove (ed.) Univ. of UT Press. 2005. Pp: 156-158.
_____. 2005. “The Goat in the Galley” pp. 160-167 and “Eating Crow (and other ways to atone for sins
in the wilderness)” pp. 186-188. In “The Back Road to Crazy: Stories from the field.” J. Bove
(ed.) Univ. of UT Press. 2005.