Mark Van Putten

Mark Van Putten recently concluded seven years of service as President and CEO of the Wege Foundation, Previously, Mark spent 13 years as President of ConservationStrategy® llc, a philanthropic advisory firm specializing in environmental and natural resources issues, during which time he also served on the Board and as Chair of the Environmental Grantmakers Association. Earlier, Mark served for 21 years on the staff of the Washington D.C.-based National Wildlife Federation – America’s largest membership-based conservation organization – including nearly eight years as President & CEO and 13 years as founding director of NWF’s Great Lakes office in Ann Arbor.

Mark served as a member of the Obama-Biden transition on the Department of Interior Agency Review Team and, during President Clinton’s Administration, he served on the Trade & Environment Policy Advisory Committee. Previously, he served on U.S. EPA advisory committees appointed by Administrators Ruckelshaus and Reilly. He is a graduate magna cum laude of and has served as a Public Service/Public Interest Law Fellow at the University of Michigan Law School. On the 30th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, he was named one of 30 nationwide “Clean Water Heroes.” Mark and his wife, Colleen, reside in Grand Haven.