Who We Are
Leslie Friedman Johnson
PRINCIPAL AND CO-FOUNDER
Leslie Friedman Johnson is Principal and Co-Founder of CNRG. For over 35 years, she has worked to advance major statewide, regional, and local environmental policy and legislative agendas, and helped unlock billions of dollars for water, land conservation, climate resilience, and community-based natural resource programs.
Before founding CNRG in 2014, Leslie spent a decade as Partner at Conservation Strategy Group and previously led state and federal affairs at The Nature Conservancy, where she launched the organization’s first California Public Lands Program and Water Program.
Leslie is a graduate of UC Berkeley, and currently serves on the Board of Sustainable Conservation and as President of the Board of Russian RiverKeeper. Leslie lives in Healdsburg, along the Russian River, where she remains deeply connected to the landscapes and waterways she’s spent her career protecting.
Steve Johnson
PRINCIPAL AND CO-FOUNDER
Steve Johnson represents CNRG in the areas of strategic planning for NGO’s, conservation project management, land conservation, water policy, land use and endangered species conservation. Steve works with CNRG clients to develop effective and implementable strategies by helping them identify and refine their conservation objectives and matching them up with a realistic evaluation of staffing and funding. In recent years, Steve has led planning projects for the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, the Nature Conservancy, California Audubon, and Save the Redwoods League.
Prior to his consulting work, which started in 2008, Steve served as the Director of Global Mediterranean Habitat Conservation for The Nature Conservancy, the last stop of a 34 year conservation career with that organization that ranged from preserve management, ecological restoration, conservation planning, and conservation science to climate change policy, strategic planning and government relations. Additionally, Steve has worked with the Resources Legacy Fund and the Resources Law Group both in the development and implementation of their very successful conservation grant making programs.
Steve is a graduate of San Francisco State University with an MA in Geography.
Rachel McFerrin
chief operations officer
Rachel McFerrin serves CNRG and clients in her role as Chief Operations Officer. Rachel has over 18 years of experience in project management and oversight, client relations, administration, and business management.
Rachel wears many hats, and oversees CNRG business processes, project management, client management and support, contracting, accounting, human resources, and all aspects of administration.
Rachel is a 5th generation Californian and spent most of her life in the Los Angeles and San Diego counties. She is proud to support the important work that CNRG does in her home state.
Rachel graduated with a B.A. in English from California State University at San Marcos. She now resides in the Rocky Mountain foothills of Colorado with her three children, cats, dogs, and horses.
