Ethan is a conservation photographer and filmmaker based in his hometown of Lincoln, Nebraska. He is passionate about grassland conservation and he hopes to use storytelling to show the beauty and importance of grasslands and other undervalued ecosystems.
Ethan has bachelor's degrees in Fisheries and Wildlife and Grassland Ecology and Management, as well as a Masters of Applied Science from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL). While pursuing his undergraduate and graduate degrees, Ethan worked on research projects monitoring grassland birds and plants in Nebraska. His masters project, A Year in the Prairie Corridor, highlights the biodiversity of a tallgrass prairie habitat corridor in eastern Nebraska.
Currently, Ethan is a producer with the Platte Basin Timelapse (PBT) project. PBT is a long-term conservation storytelling project that utilizes timelapse photography and multimedia to inspire care for our land and water. The project was founded in 2011 by iLCP Senior Fellow Michael Forsberg and documentary filmmaker Michael Farrell. Ethan has developed a diverse skill set during his time at PBT, including web design, cinematography, and data management.
Ethan has produced a variety of stories about grassland and wetland ecosystems in Nebraska. His most recent film, Nine-Mile Prairie: Hope in the Tallgrass, tells the story of an unplowed tallgrass prairie just outside of Lincoln.
His photos have been featured in Sierra Magazine, NEBRASKAland, and the Lincoln Journal Star. In 2023, he was the recipient of a photography mentorship through Vital Impacts. He is also on the board of the Wachiska Audubon Society, a nonprofit focused on tallgrass prairie conservation.
In his free time, Ethan enjoys tending to his garden, running, and finding new prairies to explore and photograph.