Kent Wimmer

Senior Northwest Florida Representative

Department

Species Conservation and Coexistence

Locations

Southeast

Areas of Expertise: Florida conservation issues; land conservation planning and protection, growth management; transportation planning; grassroots organizing; legislative and executive advocacy; non-profit management

As Senior Representative for Defenders of Wildlife, Kent is advocating for protecting landscapes and wildlife habitats in northwestern Florida. His work focuses on protecting habitat for species at-risk such as sea turtles, gopher tortoises, manatees, red-cockaded woodpeckers and looking toward the return of the Florida panther.

He is implementing a comprehensive program of advocacy, public outreach and education in cooperation with agencies, landowners, conservation groups and concerned individuals focusing on conserving a wildlife habitat network stretching across Florida's panhandle from the Suwannee River to the Perdido River. This coastal and inland habitat network will link federal, state and private conservation lands including the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, Apalachicola National Forest, Econfina Creek Conservation Area, Nokuse Plantation, Eglin Air Force Base, Blackwater River State Forest and Gulf Islands National Seashore. Kent is coordinating a partnership seeking federal designation of Northwest Florida as a Sentinel Landscape to help secure resources to conserve of working lands and habitats and protect the military missions of the U.S. Air Force and Navy installations in the Florida panhandle.

Kent joined Defenders in 2014 and has been involved in planning, advocating and protecting greenways and conservation lands in Florida for over 25 years. Formerly, he was the Outreach Director for the Florida Water and Land Legacy Campaign, and was the Florida Trail Association’s Interim Executive Director and Program and Policy Director of its Florida National Scenic Trail program. Kent has served as a greenways planner for the Florida Office of Greenways and Trails, 1000 Friends of Florida, National Park Service and USDA Forest Service. Kent’s volunteer service includes being President, Vice President and Secretary for the Partnership for the National Trails System, and Chair and Vice Chair of the Florida Greenways and Trails Council.

Kent is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, and he earned a M.S. in Environmental Planning from Florida State University and a B.S. in Natural Resources from Ball State University.