About Us
Our History
Founded in 2020, our primary focus has been to provide professional environmental services using innovative solutions to meet the needs of our clients and the natural world while adhering to regulatory requirements in today’s challenging landscapes.
Founded on a systems thinking approach, we keep in mind the balance between our clients, the community, nature, and regulations. We are very familiar with the logistical considerations necessary for the successful implementation of both large and small-scale projects.
Working and living in the Western United States for nearly 30 years we are a team of local naturalists and passionate stewards. We understand and can anticipate the needs of our clients and formulate solutions using our deep understanding of the flora and fauna of the PNW. We offer a complete package of environmental services, including study design, identification of key concerns, scientific investigation, and analysis.
Our team offers an unwavering passion for the job, with the know-how to back it up with creative and cost effective solutions to complex environmental problems. COHS focus is to provide a productive path forward while bridging the gap between clients, animals, habitat, and the regulatory community in order to achieve project goals.
Our Mission
Our mission is to develop innovative habitat solutions that are accessible and impactful to our local community.
Our Vision
Our vision is to establish COHS as a cooperative leader in environmental services through collaborations with environmental stewards across the United states.
Our Team
COHS truly defines local small business. As a team of two, we are truly dedicated to our work and our clients. We work with our clients one-on-one to develop management plants and have boots on the ground every day, working towards our project goals.
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Julia Katz
Co-owner, biologist, consultant
Julia has always been passionate about the natural world and the integral part humans play in it. Growing up in NYC she sought out any opportunity to escape the city and be in wild places. After earning her B.S in Environmental Biology with a minor in Botany at Oregon State University, she had the opportunity to work as a field biologist studying everything from aquatic macroinvertebrate ecology and bryophyte plant communities in the PNW, to wolf population dynamics in Yellowstone National Park. These studies springboarded her into opportunities working as an outdoor educator in both community science and wildlife guiding settings.
After several years of guiding, teaching, and connecting with people, Julia was passionate about finding more ways to connect people with nature. Through Teaching community science-based restoration courses, she found the most powerful tool was boots-on-the-ground work where scientists, wildlife, and ordinary people can work synergistically to develop solutions. Through restoration and management practices and mitigating human-animal conflict, Julia found a way to not only co-exist, but thrive. This is how the vision for Central Oregon Habitat Solutions LLC was born.
Aside from playing in swamps or catching frogs, you can find Julia hiking, gardening, cooking, or hanging with her dog Rubie and toad Goopy.
Jesse Short
Co-owner, biologist, consultant
Hi, I’m Jesse Short, a born and raised Central Oregonian and co-owner/founder of Central Oregon Habitat Solutions. I’ve spent nearly a decade working hands-on in the field, helping to protect and restore some of Central Oregon’s most important habitats. My work has taken me all over the region, where I’ve had the chance to monitor wildlife populations, manage invasive species, and support healthy ecosystems. Much of my work has centered around understanding and managing Oregon spotted frog populations, removing invasive bullfrogs, restoring aquatic and riparian habitats to support both amphibians and beavers, and finding balanced solutions for beaver dam management to benefit both the beavers and our local landowners. I launched Central Oregon Habitat Solutions LLC in 2020 to offer local landowners, agencies, and conservation partners reliable habitat management services with a focus on science-based approaches, ethical practices, and innovative solutions.
