Island Ecological Services was founded by a team that has spent the last decade doing the work — in the field, in the literature, and in Hawaiʻi's conservation community. This is who we are and why we exist.
Our Story
OUR TEAM
Meet the people behind the work
Our founders bring complementary expertise across Hawaiʻi's full range of native environments, with published research and established relationships with state, federal, and private partners.
Kristen Harmon (Ph.D.)
Research Ecologist
Project Manager
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Kristen holds a Ph.D. in Natural Resources and Environmental Management from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where her love for Hawaiʻi’s wetlands and the species that depend on them took root.
She has spent her career working alongside state, federal, and private partners to produce research and assessments that inform real conservation and restoration decisions across the state, including developing management plans for numerous at-risk species. Her work is regularly cited by the agencies and managers who are doing that work on the ground, which is exactly the kind of impact she’s after.
For Kristen, conservation has always been about people as much as it is about place, as she is deeply invested in mentoring the next generation of practitioners and building the kind of lasting capacity that keeps Hawaiʻi’s natural resources thriving for generations to come.
Derek Risch (M.S.)
Geospatial Analyst
Project Manager
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Derek is an ecologist with a background spanning invasive species, threatened and endangered wildlife, and land restoration. He holds a Master's degree in Natural Resources and Wildlife Management from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and has had the opportunity to work across a wide range of Hawai'i's landscapes, from nearshore estuaries and wetlands supporting threatened and endangered species, to remote mountainous areas across the islands for invasive species work.
Having grown up enjoying and appreciating these spaces, his professional work has only deepened his connection to them and furthered his appreciation for the people who dedicate themselves to caring for them.
In his work, Derek draws on a mix of tools including spatial analysis and GIS, quantitative methods, and hands-on field work. He values working closely with the people doing the work on the ground and believes that the best outcomes come from building things together.
Jessica Idle (M.S.)
Wildlife Ecologist
Project Manager
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Jessica is a systems thinker with a deep-rooted passion for wildlife and their habitats: an interest that first took shape while pursuing her B.S. and M.S. degrees in Natural Resource and Environmental Management at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Her academic work focused on Hawaiian waterbird reproductive ecology and management, grounding her in both the science and the complexity of conservation in island ecosystems. That foundation grew while conducting two seasons of remote fieldwork in Papahānaumokuākea. These experiences reinforced her commitment to conservation and her appreciation for the interconnected systems (ecological, social, and operational) that shape outcomes in the field.
Now, with a decade of experience living and working across Hawaiʻi, she specializes in project management, wildlife ecology, and adaptive management. Her work spans collaborations with state, federal, nonprofit, and private partners, giving her a broad perspective on their operations.
Her interests lie in bridging disciplines, organizations, and perspectives to achieve meaningful outcomes for both communities and the species that depend on them.
WHY WE STARTED THIS COMPANY
Through years of research and hands-on work with managers across the state, we keep encountering the same critical challenge: the people doing Hawaiʻi's most important conservation work are stretched thin and are under-resourced.
We started Island Ecological Services to directly address that need.
We partner with managers on both day-to-day fieldwork and longer-term planning: forming lasting relationships that grow alongside the work.
The majority of our early clients came to us through personal trust built over a decade of fieldwork, published research, and professional relationships. Island Ecological Services is the formalization of those relationships — a shared platform to do more together than we could individually.
HIGHLIGHTED WORK
Current work in the field
Managing a National Fish & Wildlife Foundation grant
This project works to restore the wetlands on Molokaʻi. IES has been involved from the initial planning stages through to the restoration phase.
Spatial analysis and wetland management for Pacific Birds Habitat Joint Venture
IES assisted in spatial analyses and wetland manager interviews to rank wetlands for restoration across Hawai‘i.
Managing the Molokaʻi Wetland Partnership
IES’ expertise and continued mission to create, restore, and preserve Hawai‘i’s coastal wetlands, has made us a natural fit for partnership project works, such as this initiative to restore the wetlands on Molokaʻi.
