Staff Spotlight: Dylan Kruse
Dylan is the president of Sustainable Northwest. He joined the organization as an intern 14 years ago, and never looked back. As he moved his way into different positions in the organization, he bolstered and grew our impact in government relations, fundraising, forestry, and wood markets impacts.
“What I’ve always appreciated about this organization and the positions I’ve held here is that it is a space to create. We encourage and empower people to be innovative, to be entrepreneurial, and to take things on. ... That’s really unique.”
How did your childhood influence your decision to work in sustainability?
I grew up in the mountains on the outskirts of Denver, Colorado, in a town called Conifer. It’s between Pine and Evergreen and next door to Aspen Park. (We’re very creative with our names in Colorado). It has become more developed over time, but there is a lot of public land surrounding the community, and it gets very rural very fast, with ranches, forests, and ski resorts all very close. So, I was surrounded by nature and wildlife, and those day-to-day interactions were formative. I became fascinated with the natural world. I did not fully appreciate until I went to college that not everyone grew up surrounded by nature or public lands.
I also read a lot as a kid. Some of the things I read really scared me. I read about deforestation in the Amazon, and then somehow, I got involved in fundraisers to stop deforestation. For one of them, I sold t-shirts to family members with pictures of orangutans and tree frogs on them.
I visited family members in the Midwest who lived on and managed farms, and we talked about how consolidation in the farming industry was changing communities and landscapes. The country had totally changed its approach to the environment and resources in a generation. My grandparents watched it in real-time, and their stories had an impact on me.
How did your educational and career path lead you to Sustainable Northwest?
I went to Lewis and Clark College in Portland to study international affairs. I got really into environmental policy and law, especially related to global resource conflict issues, but I also studied natural resource management, biology, and economics. I saw a flyer on campus for an internship at Sustainable Northwest and decided to check it out. I quickly learned that all of the global, political, and socioeconomic drivers I had studied in school were happening not only in other parts of the country or world but also right here in the Pacific Northwest. I was hooked, and I’ve been here ever since.
What do you like most about your position at Sustainable Northwest?
What I’ve always appreciated about this organization and the positions I’ve held here is that it is a space to create. We encourage and empower people to be innovative, to be entrepreneurial, and to take things on. I look at other organizations, and in other places, people wake up daily with expectations, rules, and structures on how to do things. And rules and structure are helpful, yes – but the idea that we can see a problem and say, how can we do something here? What can I do? Sustainable Northwest creates the space for that and we challenge people to chase that, learn about the problem, come up with ideas, and connect to resources. That’s really unique, powerful, and meaningful. If not for the people I’ve worked with who have embodied these values, I would not be here. That’s important to our identity, and it’s something we need more of in the conservation field.
Passions outside of work: Karaoke, movies, fantasy football, sports, and in the summer we’re always hiking and traveling
Something you think is overrated: Espresso martinis. Vile stuff.
Favorite thing to do on a day off: Go to the gym, take the dog for a walk, and watch a movie or hang out at a beer garden or food carts
Favorite place in the PNW: Wallowa County
Book recommendation: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Cats or dogs?: I see value in both, but for cats, you gotta get a good cat, ideally a Bengal. They’re kind of like dogs.
