Justina Ray

President & Senior Scientist

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Dr. Justina Ray has been President and Senior Scientist of WCS Canada since its incorporation in 2004. In addition to overseeing the operations of WCS Canada, Justina is involved in research and policy activities associated with conservation-based planning, impact assessment and biodiversity conservation, with a particular focus on wildlife in northern boreal landscapes. Having worked for years in African and Asian tropical forests, North America has been her predominant geographic focus over the past two decades.

Justina has been appointed to numerous government advisory panels related to policy development for species at risk and land use planning in Ontario and Canada. She served as the co-chair of the Terrestrial Mammals Subcommittee of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) from 2009-2017 and a member of the IUCN Taskforce on Biodiversity and Protected Areas in its work to develop the global Key Biodiversity Area Standard (2012-2016). She has been editor or author of 3 books and numerous peer-reviewed articles. She also serves on the scientific advisory boards of the Liber Ero Post-doctoral Fellowship program and the Leibniz Institute for Zoo & Wildlife Research (Germany). She is Adjunct Professor at the University of Toronto (Department of Ecology and Evolution; Graduate Department of Forestry) and Trent University (Environmental & Life Sciences Graduate Program).