The Nature Conservancy Names William Kunze Pennsylvania State Director

Former Division Chief within the Federal Communications Commission to take lead role in conserving Pennsylvania’s natural heritage

CONSHOHOCKEN, PA—May 26, 2005—William Kunze has been named the new state director for The Nature Conservancy in Pennsylvania. A Keystone state native, Kunze is “coming home” after six years with the Federal Communications Commission.

“We are thrilled to welcome Bill to the Conservancy,” said Boyce Budd, chairman of the board for The Nature Conservancy in Pennsylvania. “Bill brings 15 years of leadership experience, which will be critical for the Pennsylvania chapter as it continues its work to protect and restore Pennsylvania’s lands and waters.”

“I have long sought an opportunity to combine the business skills I’ve developed over the years with my passion for conservation,” said Kunze, a life-long birder and avid student of conservation. His love of nature and the outdoors began when he took his first birding trip as a young boy on Hawk Mountain in Berks County. Currently he is a volunteer speaker with the Audubon Naturalist Society.

Kunze was chief of the Spectrum & Competition Policy Division, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Prior to his time at the FCC, Bill was a management consultant with McKinsey & Company. He also held several positions as an attorney after graduating from Yale Law School in 1993.

A Fulbright Scholar, Bill completed a fellowship at the University of Bochum in Germany. He also received a master’s degree from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree from Yale College, both in history.

To date, the Conservancy has protected more than 45,000 acres of irreplaceable forests, wetlands, and other natural communities in Pennsylvania.

###

The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific.