THIS YEARS SPEAKERS!
We are so honored to be welcoming a diverse and inspiring
group of expert speakers
Dr. Yvette Running Horse Collin
Dr. Yvette Running Horse Collin (Tašunke Iyanke Wiŋ) is the Executive Director and Principal Science Officer for Taku Skan Skan Wasakliyapi: Global Institute for Traditional Sciences (“GIFTS”), established and governed by Oglala Lakota Elder Knowledge Keepers for the purpose of collaborating across scientific systems to sustain and preserve all life. GIFTS is headquartered in the Black Hills of South Dakota, the geographic center of her Lakota Peoples’ scientific systems and the spiritual center of their lifeways. Dr. Running Horse Collin is an enrolled member of the Oglala Lakota Nation (Oglala Sioux Tribe). Dr. Running Horse Collin is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University, New York University, and the University of Fairbanks Alaska. She completed her post-doctoral work in ancient genomics at Paul Sabatier University, Toulouse, France with the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the Centre for Anthropobiology and Genomics of Toulouse (CAGT). Her post-doctoral work was sponsored by the European Union through a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action Fellowship. She received a University Medal from Paul Sabatier University of Toulouse, France for her cross-cultural and collaborative scientific leadership. Her post-doctoral genomics research on the horse has been published and reported in numerous publications and media around the world. Her collaborative team was awarded the 2024 Newcomb Cleveland Prize by The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for their paper entitled, “Early Dispersal of Domestic Horses into the Great Plains and Northern Rockies.” Dr. Running Horse Collin is committed to practicing the science of inter-relationality between life forms, which is the foundation of Lakota science.
Keynote Speaker
Creating a Sustainable Future for the Horse Nation and all Life
Scott Beckstead
MC for the Conference
A lifelong student and admirer of horses and all equines, Scott Beckstead grew up with horses on his family’s farm and spent much of his childhood and youth on horseback in the mountains of Idaho. After receiving his bachelor's degree from Utah State University and his JD from the University of Utah, Beckstead worked as an attorney in private practice for 17 years on the central Oregon coast before going to work full-time in the animal protection sector as a legislative lobbyist, agriculture policy director, and equine welfare specialist. During his time on the coast he also served as the mayor of Waldport, Oregon from 2002 to 2007.
Beckstead became known for his special expertise in the field of animal law, and has taught that subject as well as classes on wildlife, animal agriculture, marine conservation, and polar law at Willamette University College of Law as an adjunct professor of law since 2010. In 2000, he co-authored Animal Law, the first casebook on the subject.
Because of his familiarity with horses, livestock, and farm animals, Beckstead provides training to law enforcement agencies on how to handle and work with those animals, and how to investigate equine and livestock cruelty and neglect. He currently serves as Equine Programs Director for The Wild Animal Sanctuary, overseeing the organization’s work to save and protect equines both wild and domestic.
Beckstead is married to Jackie and has four children, two grandchildren, and an assortment of pets
Laura Leigh
Laura Leigh, Founder and President of Wild Horse Education, identified a pressing need due to her journalism background. Recognizing a lack of accessible information, she founded WHE to confront challenges head-on, focusing on combating abuse within the wild horse management system.
Through fieldwork, research, and litigation, Wild Horse Education has made significant strides in advocating for these animals.
With over 15 years of on-the-ground data collection, her record has been instrumental in court proceedings, securing unprecedented rulings and driving policy changes. Notably, WHE is the only org to directly address inhumane treatment during roundups in the courts
Beyond roundup advocacy, Leigh's work extends to First Amendment cases securing public access and preventing unjustified removals. Through her relentless advocacy and legal victories, Laura Leigh has become a leading voice in the fight for the humane treatment and preservation of America's wild horses.
Ron King
Ron King is a visionary leader, animal welfare advocate, and co-founder & CEO of Oscar’s Place Adoption Center & Sanctuary, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating, and rehoming donkeys in need. After a successful career in media, culminating as a senior vice president at Time Inc., Ron left the corporate world and pursued meaningful impact work.
In 2021, moved by a viral video highlighting the plight of donkeys facing slaughter, Ron opened Oscar’s Place in Hopland, California. Since then, the sanctuary has grown into a hub of compassion and expertise, caring for hundreds of donkeys and placing many into loving homes. Ron’s leadership blends strategic vision with deep empathy, fostering a culture where animals and humans alike find healing and purpose.
Ron’s journey and the daily life at Oscar’s Place are featured in Donkey King, a 17-episode docuseries premiering on ABC, which showcases the sanctuary’s work and the donkeys’ unique personalities. Through storytelling, education, and community engagement, Ron continues to change perceptions about donkeys and inspire others to act with kindness.
Manda Kalimian
Founder and president of Rewilding America Now, which for over a decade has worked to rewild America’s wild horses and land to promote environmental and climate sustainability. Through Rewilding America Now, Manda has not only raised awareness of issues surrounding wild horses and environmental destruction but she’s also worked with lobbyists for years to create sustainable policy initiatives in DC for wild horses. Manda is the author of “Born To Rewild". She helped secure a scientific grant to fund McMaster University’s Poinar lab on "Quaternary ecosystems using environmental DNA drawn from sediment cores with a primary goal of collecting additional evidence regarding last appearance times for horses in North America. Manda is also an active participant at The Native Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and a founding member of The Institute of Politics and Global Affairs at Cornell University. She spearheaded the effectuation of rewilding language for managing America’s wild horses in the FY2020 Interior Appropriations budget bill and presented at the Cambridge Conservation Forum in the UK in 2019.
Erik Molvar
Erik cut his teeth in conservation fighting oil and gas projects in Wyoming during the Bush administration, and his signature accomplishment is defeating the 1,240-well Seminoe Road Coalbed Methane Project during that time. He is a wildlife biologist with published research in the behavior, ecology, and population dynamics of Alaskan moose as well as large-scale conservation planning. He spent 13 years as a conservation advocate and later Executive Director of Wyoming-based Biodiversity Conservation Alliance, and led WildEarth Guardians’ Sagebrush Sea Campaign for three years. Over this period, he became one of the conservation community’s leaders in sage grouse conservation and recovery. He is the author of 16 hiking guidebooks and backpacking techniques manuals for national parks and wilderness areas spanning the West from Alaska to Arizona. Erik is a contributor to The Hill and his blog.
Kerry Ferguson
Kerry Ferguson is the Executive Director of The Cloud Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting America’s wild horses and burros. She joined the organization in 2022, bringing a strong background in education and nonprofit leadership, along with a lifelong passion for animals and advocacy.
Kerry specializes in analyzing federal policy and translating complex Bureau of Land Management directives into clear, actionable information for advocates and the public. Her professional journey spans the classroom,
the arts, and leadership roles in the nonprofit sector, where she has built programs and partnerships that empower communities.
Originally from San Diego, Kerry has called Colorado home since 2012 and often explores its landscapes on horseback—frequently from the back of
her friend Toby, “The Wonder Horse.” A proud self-described horse geek, she blends policy expertise, education, and on-the-ground advocacy to support the long-term protection of wild equids and the public lands they depend on.
Colette Kaluza
Colette Kaluza, welfare team assistant director for Wild Horse Education, has spent hundreds of days observing wild horse and burro roundups from Wyoming to California and deep in research as a volunteer. She is a video journalist dedicated to exposing the needless inhumane treatment during roundup operations and at the facilities where they land by the governmental agency charged with protecting them. Her videos have shown such events as a helicopter that relentlessly drove a colt, causing its leg to break at the Pancake Complex roundup, and the palomino stallion Sunshine Man that suffered a broken leg at Antelope. Pilots fly so dangerously close to horses that one helicopter was shown hitting the ground causing an accident at Triple B. The reckless roping, handling, or kicking of animals seen in her videos at Blue Wing are not unusual.
Her Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program assessment reports detail agency non-compliance with welfare standards at roundup operations and off-range corral facilities. Her reports are based on personal observations and Freedom of Information Act citizen requests.
Through her experiences she has developed suggestions on needed improvements to the current welfare program and how to achieve necessary reforms.
In addition to her work being featured on Wild Horse Education website, her opinions have appeared in Reno Gazette Journal and The Nevada Independent.
Cynthia Smoot
iA veteran of broadcast news with over 40 years as a main anchor and special projects reporter. During 25 years with WTVT, Fox 13 in Tampa Florida she became well known for her outstanding stories on animals and animal issues including invasive species, abandoned pets and horse slaughter in Florida. One of her favorite stories, an interview with internationally renowned horseman and trainer, Monty Roberts, which was titled, “A Real-Life Horse Whisperer,” earned her an Emmy award. Cynthia serves on the advisory board for the Humane Society of Tampa, is a cheetah ambassador for the Cheetah Conservation Fund and is on the Board of The Cloud Foundation which is dedicated to preserving America’s wild horses on the range. Carrying the passion that she feels for Wild Horses she was able to adopt ‘Mustang Dream’ whom she sees as her partner in Wild Horse Advocacy. She has worked with many Wild Horse Organizations including Equine Collaborative International to help advocates deal more effectively with the media. Her goal is to help educate fellow journalists who, much too often, do not tell all the facts about what is happening with our Wild Horses but rely on government generated press releases. Her expertise and direction are always appreciated in this very importantpart of advocacy.
Vickery Eckhoff
Vickery Eckhoff is an investigative journalist and award-winning screenwriter. She has written about U.S. Department of Agriculture, Interior Department and Bureau of Land Management policy for Forbes, AlterNet, Counterpunch, Newsweek, Salon and the Daily Beast.
Vickery’s work on the brutal underground horsemeat trade, wild horse politics, and public lands ranching has also served as source material in two documentaries; New York Times science-writer Stephen Nash’s book “Grand Canyon for Sale”; in Bioscience, Idaho Law Review and Sciendo; and in articles by numerous other journalists.
Linda Greaves
is a lifelong advocate for animals whose deep and enduring love for wild horses has shaped her work and purpose. This passion has driven her to become an unwavering voice for their protection at both the national and grassroots levels.
In 2018, Linda co-founded the Save Our Wild Horses Campaign and Conference with Linda Kemp, creating a national platform for advocacy, education, and action. Now in its fifth consecutive year, the conference—now known as the National Wild Horse and Burro Conference—continues to grow in reach and impact and will move to scenic Park City, Utah, in 2026.
Linda is a Volunteer Documenter with Wild Horse Education, a leading organizations dedicated to wild horse and burro preservation. Based in Washington, D.C., she leads rallies and public awareness efforts supporting America’s wild horses and visiting advocates.
Passionate and persistent, Linda actively lobbies at the federal level. She recently joined the board of the Horse Plus Legislative Coalition, where she serves as a wild horse specialist. In addition, she also serves on the board of TrapFree America, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting wildlife.
Linda Greaves’ tireless work reflects a blend of passion, leadership, and care, quietly shaping a better future for wild horses, wildlife, and the landscapes they depend on.
Mary DeBones
Mary DeBonis is the heart and driving force behind Mustang Valley Sanctuary, a safe haven devoted to the rescue, rehabilitation, rehoming, and lifelong care of the iconic American Mustang. Her deep-rooted passion for these majestic animals and her profound understanding of their unique needs fuel everything she does.
For years, Mary has dedicated her life to building a sanctuary where Mustangs can truly heal—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. From the hands-on, daily care of each horse to navigating the complex logistics of sanctuary operations, she approaches every challenge with tireless commitment and compassion. Her expertise in equine health, behavior, and rehabilitation is reflected in the powerful transformations seen in the horses she cares for.
But Mary’s work extends beyond the fences of the sanctuary. She is a passionate advocate for equine welfare, working to raise awareness about responsible horse ownership, the plight of abandoned and neglected horses, and the vital role sanctuaries play in giving them a second chance. Her collaborative approach has built strong relationships with local veterinarians, farriers, and equine professionals, ensuring the highest standard of care for every horse that comes through Mustang Valley's gates.
Mary’s vision is not just about rescue—it’s about restoration and hope. She strives to create a place where Mustangs are not only saved, but where they can flourish and eventually find
Meet our Panelists
Home for Horses Coalition
Tessa Archibald is a Policy Associate for the Equine program at the Animal Welfare Institute and Manager of the Homes for Horses Coalition, a network of equine rescues and sanctuaries. Tessa is dedicated to advocating for domestic and wild horses, donkeys, and mules through policy and welfare initiatives. Tessa is trained in the remote delivery of PZP immunocontraception and served on the Colorado Wild Horse Working Group. Tessa received her MS in Animals and Public Policy from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University.
Sumee Chang
A long time strategic and results-oriented executive Sumee transitioned from a successful, decades long career at The Walt Disney Company to founding an animal-rights nonprofit for America’s wild horses. With her background in business operations, stakeholder management, and program design, she’s carefully bringing a lifelong dream to reality, savings the lives of horses. Founded in 2024, and bringing their first BLM mustang to sanctuary in spring of 2025, the American Mustang Project team, including volunteers and head trainer Henry Merrill, has now grown the herd to 8 as of January 2026. All gentled and willing ambassadors for their brothers and sisters in holding, and on the range. AMP focuses primarily on bringing community awareness and engagement around wild horses in holding, and endeavors to open people’s hearts and minds to the extraordinary value of the American Mustang.
Operation Remount
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Laurie Ford
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DW???
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