About PAUL
Paul Souza is the Regional Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) California-Great Basin Interior Region (IR). The IR includes portions of California and Nevada as well as the Klamath Basin (Oregon).
Prior to his current role, Paul served as the Assistant Director for Science Applications at USFWS headquarters. Paul provided leadership on science policy and scientific applications in resource management. This included leading agency efforts to shape a science-driven landscape conservation business model; expanding USFWS capacities to acquire, apply and communicate scientific information; promoting active involvement of USFWS and its employees in the larger scientific community; strengthening and expanding partnerships between USFWS and other scientific organizations; and cultivating the next generation of USFWS scientists.
Paul also previously served as the Deputy Assistant Director for the USFWS Ecological Services Program at USFWS headquarters. In this capacity, he provided national leadership for the Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act, Clean Water Act, and many other statutes. Paul worked closely with agencies and other partners to leverage resources that benefit wildlife conservation and other important needs such as farming and ranching, military readiness, and energy and infrastructure development.
Before coming to USFWS headquarters, Paul was the Field Supervisor for the South Florida Ecological Services Office in Vero Beach, Florida. In this capacity, Paul oversaw actions to conserve and recover 67 species listed under the Endangered Species Act and protect a host of important habitats for migratory birds, fish, and other wildlife. Paul also helped oversee USFWS efforts to restore America’s Everglades with many partners, planning and implementing projects to improve the health of the environment and conditions for imperiled species such as the Florida panther, wood stork, and snail kite.
Paul joined USFWS in 1997 as a Presidential Management Fellow. He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies with an emphasis in ecology from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a master’s degree in urban and regional planning with an emphasis in environmental planning and natural resources management from Florida State University. Paul and his wife Dana have a son named Garret and daughter named Maddie.
