Board of Directors
WCN has a seven-member Board of Directors. All directors are independent voting members of the governing body.
David Berger
DirectorDirector
David Berger
David is a senior partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. David is a member of the firm’s board of directors and chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee. David’s practice specializes in corporate governance and related litigation matters, has had a leading role in many of the most prominent corporate control and governance disputes in Silicon Valley and Delaware and has taught corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, and related classes at institutions such as Harvard Law School, Stanford Law School, UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law, and Duke Law School. David is an avid conservationist who feels privileged to be part of the WCN family.
Christine Hemrick
DirectorDirector
Christine Hemrick
Christine retired as an executive of Cisco Systems after 30 years in the high technology industry. She is an avid conservationist and a Trustee of the African Wildlife Foundation. She is also a leading supporter of the Andean Cat Alliance, a multinational group of researchers and conservationists dedicated to conserving the Andean mountain cat.
Charles Knowles
President, Co-FounderPresident, Co-Founder
Charles Knowles
Charlie is the President and Co-Founder of the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN), which has advanced a powerful new model of wildlife conservation. Charlie retired early as a successful Stanford-educated entrepreneur in Silicon Valley. He founded software company Rubicon Technology in 1989 and sold it in 1994. His retirement lasted six days, until he launched full-time into applying his business acumen and experience to wildlife conservation. In the 1990s, Charlie helped the Cheetah Conservation Fund and the Snow Leopard Conservancy grow into world-class conservation programs, which led to the formation of the Wildlife Conservation Network in 2002. The synthesis of creativity and practicality in Charlie’s’ approach has inspired thousands of passionate donors, as well as a rising generation of conservation pioneers.
John Lukas
Director, Co-FounderDirector, Co-Founder
John Lukas
John, who is currently Director of Conservation for the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens and President of the Okapi Conservation Project and the International Rhino Foundation, has over 35 years of international conservation experience. From his work with okapi in the DR Congo to saving rhinos in Indonesia, John has seen first-hand the importance of integrating the needs of local people into effective conservation strategies. He is a co-founder of WCN.
Rebecca Patton
WCN Director / Vice President and Board DirectorWCN Director / Vice President and Board Director
Rebecca Patton
After 20 years in the private sector in Silicon Valley, Rebecca joined The Nature Conservancy in 2001 to pursue her life-long interest in conservation. As a Regional Director she oversaw conservation programs in many parts of the world, from China to Peru to the western United States, and developed a deep appreciation for the importance of community-based conservation. Then as the Chief Conservation Strategies Officer she led TNC’s global policy and science initiatives. She joined WCN in 2010 to contribute her experience to WCN’s innovative and effective model for wildlife conservation. She is on the boards of several other conservation organizations, and in her free time, she also enjoys hiking adventures.
Bill Unger
DirectorDirector
Bill Unger
After graduating from the University of Illinois at Chicago, Bill began his career as a Special Education teacher and worked in Community Mental Health programs before becoming an Executive Recruiter and co-founding his own firm. He joined the Venture Capital industry with Mayfield Fund in 1983 and served in leadership positions on many corporate and not-for profit boards, and continues to advise early stage technology companies. Bill is currently Vice Chair of CARE Enterprises LLC, Board Chair of D-Rev and board member of Microvest. He also serves on the Deans’ Advisory Board of the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Bill loves WCN’s entrepreneurial culture and focus on impact and collaboration.
Akiko Yamazaki
Director, Co-FounderDirector, Co-Founder
Akiko Yamazaki
Akiko is a co-founder of WCN who developed her passion for wildlife and wilderness areas during her childhood in Costa Rica. She believes that the goals of conservation are best served by a combination of entrepreneurial energy and commitment to local involvement and development. Akiko and her husband, Jerry Yang, founder of Yahoo, are active supporters of a number of philanthropic organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. Akiko is the board chair of the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. An avid horsewoman, she also serves on the National Advisory Committee of the United States Equestrian Team Foundation. Additionally, she and her husband are ardent supporters of their alma matter, Stanford University, having co-chaired the $1 billion Campaign for Undergraduate Education and provided the naming gift for the Environment and Energy Building.
