MEET THE 2% TEAM

Jess Johnson - Board Chair

Wyoming, USA

Jess Johnson is the Advocacy and Legislative Liaison for the Wyoming Wildlife Federation a statewide hunting and angling conservation organization based out of Lander Wyoming. She is also a founding member and sits on the advisory council board of NWF’s Sportswomen’s Coalition, Artemis, a women’s group focused on changing the dialogue and stereotypes placed on the hunting and angling community and encouraging women to take leadership roles in conservation and wildlife-related positions.

Jess grew up ranching in Montana, Northern California, and Wyoming. She has a deep appreciation for wildlife and since moving back to Wyoming 10 years ago, she has spent most of her free time exploring its vast expanse of public lands. She is an avid archery hunter, a mule deer lover, and owner of a coyote dog, a horse named Deitz, 2 mini dachshunds, one really strange cat, 13 chickens and a guinea fowl.

When she is not outside an in the mountains, Jess spends her time volunteering for wildlife and outdoor equity causes. She also brings her dedication to educating on advocacy in the conservation arena, and the dialogue around hunting into the hunting industry.

Lyle Hebel - Board Treasurer

Montana, USA

Lyle was born in Bozeman, Montana but grew up on a cattle ranch northeast of Sheridan, WY. At an early age, Lyle demonstrated exceptionally artistic ability winning many awards and accolades. It was this creative talent that took him to Montana State University where he received a BFA in Graphic Design.

Upon graduation, Lyle spent 15 years working for Massive Studios and directed creative marketing campaigns for brands like SITKA Gear, Leica, Adventure Medical Kits, Dogtra, Barnard Construction, Black Gold Bowsights and the Wild Sheep Foundation. Lyle has also lent his expertise as an Adjunct Professor at Montana State University, instructing courses in Advanced Web Development.

When not busy leading the marketing initiatives at Stone Glacier, Lyle is happily occupied with his beautiful family, scouting for big game animals, raising chickens, or lending his time to local conservation organizations.

Jesse Bone

British Columbia, Canada

Jesse is a film producer and co-owner of the first 2% Certified Canadian business, Filter Studios Inc. He works with outdoor brands and non-profits to raise awareness about conservation issues with the mountains, oceans and rivers.

Jesse grew up in northern British Columbia, Canada. Being from north BC, it’s hard not to be immersed in the outdoors. Growing up in such a rich natural area of the planet instilled. A deep connection to the land. His family raised Jesse with a farm-to-table connection and an avid love of the outdoors. He now lives in a small village on Vancouver Island.

Jesse believes that the connection to food and the land is essential to our existence as a species. Therefore, working in conservation space is necessary as most organizations need help with communication and awareness. 

Kalvyn Ferronato

Idaho, USA

Previously the Brand Coordinator for 2%, Kalvyn Ferronato is a Public Relations Manager at Gunpowder Inc. She holds a bachelor’s degree in public relations and an associate's degree in psychology from Boise State University. Through her experiences, Kalvyn has seen the importance of conserving our wild animals and places for future generations.  

After graduating college, Kalvyn settled in Montana and took on the opportunity to hone her PR skills by working for the Governor’s Office of Outdoor Recreation, 2% for Conservation, and others. Her experience over the past years has helped garner an appreciation and understanding of the need for active participation in the outdoors and conservation programs. This also sparked a new desire for her to have a personal impact for conservation, wild places and so much more, which is what she is striving for in this position. 

She can be found adventuring around her new home region in Idaho when not hard at work. She is particularly fond of honing her hunting and fishing skills in southwest Montana where she fly fishes the pristine trout rivers of the area, bird hunts with her German Wirehaired Pointers, or chases bugling elk with bow in-hand.

Aaron Blair

Colorado, USA

Aaron is an Environmental Scientist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) working on Clean Water Act policy and aquatic resource conservation. He has helped develop stream and wetland restoration projects across the country and assists in the development and implementation of policy to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Nation’s waters. 

At a young age, Aaron was taught - not through verbal lessons or lectures, but through first hand experiences in the outdoors - the importance of natural landscapes and the provisions they can provide when managed appropriately. This has manifested itself in both his career and current hobbies such as western big game hunting, mushroom foraging, upland bird hunting, plant identification, small stream angling and a variety of other outdoor pursuits. He currently resides at 9,500ft in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with his wife and daughter.

Neil Keown

Alberta, Canada

Neil has been involved in conservation since helping co-found, and serving as inaugural Chair, the Alberta chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (BHA) in 2017. Upon the admission of the chapter as a Member Group for the Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) in 2021, he became BHA’s board representative, and is the chair of the ACA recruitment and governance committees.

Neil is the owner of Sawback Technologies, the first brand to earn our certification in Alberta. He holds a Professional Engineering Technologist designation, certification for Innovation Governance, and volunteers on boards and committees for several non-profit and profit organizations, including the Alberta Wildlife Federation. His primary interest is ensuring that public lands and wild places are conserved for the next generation of hunters, anglers, and trappers.

Mike Schmillen

Minnesota, USA

Mike is a 2% Certified business owner of River City Tile & Stone, and a conservationist from Minnesota.  In his business, he has made conserving wild places, and wild creatures part of their core values.  His company does clean-ups, migration corridor projects, supports local youth projects, and donates time and money to various conservation organizations.  Mike has served as a Vice President for the Midwest Chapter of Wild Sheep Foundation as well as participating in multiple committees for varies conservation organizations.

Mike has deep roots in Minnesota, but thoroughly enjoys travel and adventure.  Mike has spent time all over North America actively supporting, pursuing, and completing conservation projects.  He enjoys fishing, hunting, hiking, and spending as much time with his daughter outdoors as possible.

Nate Myers

Pennsylvania, USA

Nate grew up and currently resides in South Central Pennsylvania. Growing up in PA he has always been immersed in PA’s vast tradition of hunting and fishing with his father. His father taught him from a young age the importance of conservation and preserving wildlife and public places for the future.

He currently sits on the board for the PA Chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers and is very active in local clean ups and conservation events throughout the state. He is an original member of our Regional Committee’s program that helped grow grassroots efforts locally, even traveling to Montana in 2021 to help the Montana FWP on their fence removal project to improve Pronghorn habitats.

In his free time, Nate enjoys spending time at his cabin hunting, hiking, kayaking and spending time around the campfire with friends and family.

Mark Haslam

Georgia, USA

Mark is the Commercial President at Seabolt Real Estate focusing on timber tracts and investment properties. He also works with land owners across the Southeast as a land and wildlife consultant. Mark was the recipient of the National Deer Association - Al Brothers Deer Manager of the Year Award in 2020.

In 2020, Mark founded Southeast Whitetail; an article based website, podcast and media platform for Southern hunters, conservationists and land stewards. The focal points are habitat, conservation, and venison. His writing has also been published by MeatEater and Wired to Hunt.

Mark hosted the National Deer Association - Deer Steward 2 Course at his South Carolina farm working directly with the NDA team and Dr. Craig Harper. Sharing his farm has always been a priority for Mark. Since 2006, 28 different hunters have harvested their first deer at his property. He has also been a guest speaker for the South Carolina BHA Chapter, National Deer Association and the University of Georgia Agriculture Extension Facility.  

Jared Frasier - Executive Director

Montana, USA

Born and raised in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, Jared’s first outdoor experience came at a couple months old when his parents sat him in a half-drilled ice fishing hole so they could chase tip-ups while ice fishing. When in elementary school, he helped his parents build a trout hatchery to help with rewilding efforts with the WI DNR, following the footsteps of his grandfather and great grandfather, who built the state’s first successful muskie hatchery, several decades earlier. Wild game and an intimate connection to habitat stewardship were pillars of his upbringing.

From his late teens and well into his twenties, Jared taught outdoor education and habitat conservation classes to public, private, and collegiate students from around the Midwest - ultimately relocating to Montana in 2007. Over the following decade, he pivoted careers into web/app design and development. But, as many hours as he put into his business, he volunteered nearly as much for wildlife. He has volunteered on the boards and committees of several regional, national, and international conservation and environtmental groups, but most enjoys his time working in the field to help wildlife. In late 2017, shortly after our founding, he was brought on as 2% for Conservation’s Executive Director. Currently, he volunteers with multiple local conservation and humanitarian causes and serves on the Montana Outdoor Hall of Fame inductee review committee.

When not working with our business members to help wildlife, Jared can be found with his family, their griffon, and chickens, likely working the land or preparing food and beverages harvested from it.