Trustee Council Members

Pierson is an avid botanist who began her Forest Service career as a seasonal botanist on the Payette National Forest in 1992. She completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and a Master’s Degree in Botany/Ecology at Utah State University in 1999. Prior to starting her permanent Forest Service career, Pierson successfully managed her own botanical consulting company which was highly utilized by several National Forests to complete survey work, pollination studies, and botanical analysis for Forest Plan Revision efforts. Pierson was the Forest Botanist for the Sawtooth National Forest. She spent nine incredible years in this position working on a variety of botanical issues and restoration efforts. Pierson became the New Meadows District Ranger in 2010, and then served as the Acting Director for Natural Resources for the Intermountain Region in 2015. She leads a highly performing workforce comprised of a dedicated team focusing on increasing the pace of restoration under Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program and a large fire organization. Pierson and her husband Jeff Motychak share a love for camping, canoeing, science, and adventure. Jeff and Kim also have a soft spot for shelter animals and have provided a home for five dogs and two cats, which are the light of their lives. They are all extremely excited to be coming to the Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

Ralph Allan is a member of the Coeur D’ Alene Tribe, and he is currently the Fish & Wildlife program manager in the Tribe’s Natural Resources department. He joined the Tribe’s Natural Resource’s department in 2003 as a wildlife technician, and worked his way through the ranks and school to be where he is currently at in his career. Ralph earned two A.A.S degrees in 2015 from Spokane Community College, and his B.A. from Whitworth University in 2020. Ralph also is a member of the Tribe’s Natural Resource’s Committee, and enjoys doing his part to protect, preserve and enhance the Tribe’s natural resources. Ralph has a deep love and passion for the people, land and waters that make up his aboriginal homelands. Ralph enjoys hunting, fishing, hiking and especially inspiring youth to take an interest in the natural world and all of the beauty it has to offer.

Carson grew up on a family farm and ranch in Emmett, Idaho where he developed his love for Idaho and its resources. He joined the Idaho Fish and Game in 2014 as a Regional Fisheries Biologist where he worked on large lake fisheries issues and wild trout management in the Coeur d’Alene Basin, among many other things. In 2019, Carson moved south to become the Southeast Regional Fisheries Manager where he worked on restoration of wild trout fisheries and was instrumental in the cross-program integration of the region’s ongoing bird-fish conflict resolution. He currently serves the state as the Regional Supervisor for the Panhandle Region and is based in Coeur d’Alene. The challenges of collaboratively working on the “people side” of fisheries and wildlife management issues is what Carson enjoys most about his job. He earned a B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Management from the University of Wyoming and a M.S. in Fishery Science from the University of Idaho. In his spare time, Carson and his wife, Adeline, stay busy trying to keep up with their two young boys—generally fishing, hunting, firewood cutting, and anything else that keeps the family outside.

Christy has served in several roles within the Ecological Services Branch of Environmental Review. She has lead national level efforts, including serving as Acting National Environmental Policy Act Lead, ESA Compensatory Mitigation Lead, and National Energy Coordinator. Christy has over 20 years of experience with the USFWS. Her USFWS career began as a volunteer in the New York Field Office which lead to her first official position as a biologist with the Long Island Field Office. She worked in the Pennsylvania Field Office, Headquarters in the Endangered Species program, West Virginia Field Office, and back to Headquarters to the Ecological Services program. Most of Christy’s career has revolved around team building and problem solving using various authorities, including the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). She worked with federal, state and local organizations to support piping plover conservation on Long Island beaches. In Pennsylvania, she was a transportation liaison and worked closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. In West Virginia, Christy worked with the state and industry to mitigate impacts from wind energy, coal mining, and natural gas infrastructure. In HQ, she worked with the Department of the Interior (DOI) and other DOI bureaus, as well as FWS programs, to implement NEPA and the ESA Compensatory Mitigation Policy. Christy received her B.A. in Biology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and her M.S. in Conservation Biology and Animal Behavior at the University of Missouri-St. Louis