Staci McLennan

For Staci McLennan, wildlife trafficking isn’t just an animal welfare problem—it’s a global problem.

Trafficking impacts economies. It threatens global security. And ending it is a reason why Staci goes to work every day.

Advocating for wildlife has been a central theme in Staci’s career. Having worked in Brussels for more than a decade, and in the US before that, she has driven the development of effective policy at the state, regional,  federal and international level.

Staci started at IFAW as a political officer engaging EU Institutions on wildlife crime and the implementation of the EU Seal Ban. She was promoted to Senior Project Lead and coordinated the EU-North Africa Wildlife Trafficking project disrupting wildlife crime and supporting animal rescue.

Today, Staci continues much of that work on an even larger scale. First as Director of the European office in Brussels, and as Director of Policy for Europe, she leads the team to help shape policy across the region and around the world, and pushes for leadership in International agreements where the powerful voting block of the EU can spell success or failure for the protection of wildlife..

Like so many of her colleagues, Staci sees how far the negative impacts of poor policy can extend. So she keeps pushing—for better legislation, better partnerships, and more innovative ways to protect animals and habitats in Europe and around the world.