Nils and his family moved to Wallowa County in 1999 to start Wallowa Resources field programs. He was promoted to Deputy Director in 2002 and Executive Director in 2007. Nils has diverse experience in place-based natural resource management from working around the world, including ranching in Australia, farming in Israel, fishing and forestry in Norway, and forestry and wildlife in southern Africa. He is passionate about working landscapes and the role of rural communities in their stewardship.

He is a graduate of both Williams College (B.A. in Economics) and Oxford University (M.S. Forestry) and has served on many local and national boards - including the National Commission on Science for Sustainable Forestry, Oregon Board of Forestry, and World Forest Center. He also served on the Enterprise School District Board from 2004-2017 and the Winding Waters Medical Clinic from 2014-2020. He is currently the chair of Rural Voices for Conservation Coalition's steering committee. RVCC advances placed-based policy solutions from across the rural West to advance stewardship economies associated with public and private working lands.