Fish, Habitat, and People: A Conversation with Outgoing EBTJV Chairman Jacob Rash
Jake Rash (2nd from right) with some other EBTJV members in 2023. From left to right, Dave Kazyak, Lee Simard, Will Duncan, Hailey Goyette, Ross Shramko, Yoichiro Kanno, Nat Gillespie, Jake Rash, Brad Fink
Jacob Rash, a long-time leader of the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture (EBTJV) as a state agency representative, has recently taken a new position as Southern Appalachian Program Director for Trout Unlimited (TU).
Through his prior role as Coldwater Research Coordinator for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), Jake has represented the NCWC on the EBTJV Steering Committee since 2010. Jake has been a key contributor to EBTJV committees and strategy. His tenure includes six years as EBTJV Vice Chairman and three and a half years as Chairman.
According to Nat Gillespie, Acting National Fish Program Leader for the USDA Forest Service, "Jake's passion for and knowledge about Eastern Brook Trout is unmatched. The fact that he is moving on to a position with TU closer to the project level where he can leverage his experience and the great relationships he has with all the agencies working across the Southern Appalachians is a huge benefit to Brook Trout conservation and the EBTJV."
EBTJV’s coordinator, Lori Maloney, sat down to talk to Jake in late May. Jake reflected on his role at the EBTJV, his new position at TU, and what he thinks is important for Brook Trout conservation.
In his new role with TU, Jake will work across the southern end of the Brook Trout native range, in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee, to strengthen partnerships for Brook Trout recovery. He emphasizes that conservation at the southern edge of the Brook Trout’s native range carries outsized importance because habitat fragmentation, climate pressure, and population loss are often magnified there.
Jake also notes that increasing parcel density and private land ownership means there is a greater need to help individuals, or different land stewards, than ever before.
He frames his approach to conservation around the three pillars of fisheries management: fish, habitat, and people. Effective conservation work starts with the resource, but takes a “real deep understanding of the people.”
Jake has a genuine respect for what nature means to people. He feels lucky to have a career protecting a species that makes people “just light up.” He lights up, too, when talking about it.
“Friends, family. It’s more than fixing a passage issue. You’re making fishing better, you're helping that population be better. You know, you're making more memories. I mean… Who gets to do that? That's pretty cool.”
"Friends, family. It’s more than fixing a passage issue. You’re making fishing better, you're helping that population be better.
You know, you're making more memories. I mean… Who gets to do that? That's pretty cool."
When you consider this motivation, it becomes easy to see how Jake has accomplished so much, though he is humble about it. Jake is a frequently sought public speaker and has co-authored over 30 publications and research products. A handful of these are key papers that have advanced science based management for the species.
For the next generation of conservation leaders, Jake advises: take your training beyond science. Resource management is “about being able to work with broad and diverse groups of partners towards that common goal. The classes outside of biology… will likely end up helping new students, younger professionals, more than they may realize. They're not just electives.”
Jake also advises them to get comfortable with what they don’t know and to seek help from those with different skill sets.
The strength of the EBTJV, Jake reports, is in this collaborative approach with key partners from 17 states, all working together towards the same vision for Brook Trout. “Its among the things I’m most proud of,” he said.
Succeeding Jake as Chariman of the EBTJV Steering Committee is Lee Simard, Fisheries Biologist with the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. Lee had served as Vice Chairman since March 2023. Says Lee, “I am grateful for the EBTJV Steering Committee’s vote of confidence in approving me as the new Steering Committee Chair. Jake’s outstanding leadership has left the organization in a terrific position. I am excited to step into this new role and work closely with Lori and the entire EBTJV membership as we continue to improve our understanding and management of Brook Trout throughout their native eastern range.” Lee will be the 7th EBTJV Chairman since EBTJV's inception in 2004.
About the EBTJV
The EBTJV –– formed in 2004 and a member of the National Fish Habitat Partnership since 2006 –– is a regional collaboration to reverse the decline of wild Brook Trout populations across the eastern United States. The EBTJV maintains a comprehensive data set of Brook Trout occupancy, which is foundational for scientific research and directing on-the-ground management and outreach actions. The EBTJV provides annual funding for on-the-ground projects designed to conserve and restore critical Brook Trout habitat. And, the EBTJV advances science-based Brook Trout management through its network of state and federal management agencies, conservation organizations, scientific societies, and researchers.
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