The end of 2025 marked the end of an era for the Center for Large Landscape Conservation. On December 31, CLLC’s visionary founder Gary Tabor retired as CEO. He established the organization based on the unwavering conviction that climate change and biodiversity loss were inextricably linked and must be addressed by not only conserving but also connecting habitat at the large-landscape scale.
Gary guided CLLC for 18 years with a vision grounded in science, drawing upon more than 25 years of experience working on large-scale conservation efforts in Africa, Australia, Canada, and South America, and more than 12 years within the U.S. environmental philanthropic community.
“Gary is a founding father of connectivity conservation, and he has made an enormously significant, irreplaceable contribution to its theory and practice.”
Bob Debus
Chair, The Great Eastern Ranges Initiative
(Australia)
He grew CLLC from an organization of two employees to an interdisciplinary team of nearly 30 scientists, policy experts, and changemakers. CLLC started out as an organization focused on the western US, but now we have projects and impacts that span the globe.
But our gratitude to Gary runs even deeper than our own organization—in the years since CLLC’s founding, Gary has become renowned as a global leader in large landscape conservation and ecological connectivity. He supported Australian conservationist Graeme Worboys to establish the foundations of the Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG) under the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) and was appointed its first official chair in 2016. For nine years he led coordination of its membership that has grown to more than 1,300 experts in over 135 countries. In this pivotal role he had a remarkable impact mainstreaming connectivity conservation science, policy, and practice, such as securing its inclusion in numerous international guidelines, goals, and agreements.
“Gary Tabor has made major contributions to the WCPA, particularly through his leadership of the Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group, where he elevated the importance of connectivity and mobilized the global conservation community. He has built a strong conservation legacy and will continue to influence connectivity conservation in important ways.”
~ Dr. Madhu Rao
Chair, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas
A dynamic and engaging presenter, Gary has generously shared his expertise and passion for connectivity conservation with professionals worldwide, accepting invitations to speak to countless groups and gatherings on almost every continent. In his roles as professor, conservation fellow, and advisor at several universities, Gary has mentored many early-career conservationists and educated graduate students on the emerging field of connectivity conservation. And somehow in his “spare time” he co-authored more than 100 scientific papers and reports.
Through all of these endeavors he has profoundly inspired and prepared the next generation of conservationists to think holistically by preserving those critical places in between protected areas, understanding that people only thrive when we have healthy wildlife and ecosystems.
“As Chair, Gary truly shaped the direction of the IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group, bringing a remarkable perspective supported by great effort, dedication, and hard work. He opened pathways for new careers and consistently encouraged and supported younger colleagues. Together with the CCSG team and under the Center for Large Landscape Conservation’s umbrella, he set a strong foundation for future opportunities in this field.”
Dr. Ancuta Fedorca
National Institute for Research and Development in Forestry Marin Dracea, Head of Wildlife Molecular Genetics Laboratory and Action Chair GENOA
(Romania)
While we think of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation as Gary’s crowning achievement, he has also left his mark on many other organizations and places. His conservation achievements include the establishment of Kibale National Park in Uganda; establishment of the World Bank’s Mgahinga/Bwindi/Impenetrable Mountain Gorilla Conservation Trust; co-founding the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative; pioneering the field of Conservation Medicine; co-founding Patagonia Company’s Freedom to Roam wildlife corridor campaign; and co-founding the Network for Landscape Conservation.
“Gary has helped reshape how connectivity conservation is understood across the world. What was once a niche topic has now become mainstream — not only in academic circles, but also in conservation policy and practice.”
Dr. Marcelo Gonçalves de Lima
Director, Biodiversity Without Borders
Conservation Research Fellow, CLLC
(United Kingdom)
While we bid a fond farewell to Gary, we know our work to reconnect our fragmented natural world will continue to be informed, inspired, and propelled forward by his lasting legacy.
