Ariana Scipioni

Ariana brings a deep passion for habitat conservation and a diverse background in research, restoration, and mitigation to her role as Urban Conservationist. Her career has spanned continents and ecosystems—she has reintroduced Kiwi in New Zealand, radio tracked Swift Fox on the Great Plains, and studied Northwestern Pond Turtles in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

Before joining West Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District in August 2024, she served as a Regional Habitat Biologist with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, where she advanced conservation for Oregon’s Strategy species through landowner engagement, technical consultation, and broad partnership-building. She collaborated with agencies, sovereign nations, non-profits, and watershed councils across seven counties, managed two habitat tax incentive programs, and reviewed land development activities across diverse landscapes and recommended mitigation.

In her current role, she supports conservation planning for private lands, helping landowners restore habitat, improve landscape connectivityConnectivity the degree to which patches of landscape are connected, either helping or impeding animal movement and other ecological processes like the flow of water or dispersal of seeds, and prepare for the growing challenges of stormwater, climate change, and wildfire. She integrates climate resilience into projects ranging from community gardens and the District’s small grant program to habitat connectivity. She enjoys weaving together science, environmental justice, and Indigenous knowledge to support communities and ecosystems alike.

Her greatest joy is encouraging and empowering people from all walks of life to connect with and care for the land. Outside of work, she finds inspiration in nature—whether catching bullfrogs with her three children or backpacking with her girlfriend in alpine lake country.