Executive Director

Rock Creek Conservancy Appoints a National Conservation Leader as New Executive Director

Dan Puskar, Public Lands Advocate, Brings Track Record of Leading Conservation Nonprofits to Growth

Bethesda, MD (May 21, 2025) — The Board of Directors of Rock Creek Conservancy is pleased to announce that after an extensive search process, Dan Puskar has been named to lead the organization as its new Executive Director. Puskar is a longtime leader of national public lands conservation organizations and brings the extensive leadership experience and knowledge needed to support the Conservancy's ambitious mission to restore Rock Creek and its parklands as a natural oasis for all people to appreciate and protect.

Puskar brings a wealth of leadership, finance, and conservation experience; extensive knowledge of national parks; a well-established network of relationships; and—most importantly—a deep love for Rock Creek. He comes to the Conservancy from the Public Lands Alliance, where he has served as president and CEO since 2013. He has held prior leadership positions with the National Park Foundation, National Park Service, and Mesa Verde Association. He will begin his new role on July 7, 2025. 

Pavan Khoobchandani, the Conservancy’s Board Chair, said: “Dan is adept at building long-term relationships, and we’re excited that he’ll be walking alongside our valued National Park Service (NPS) partners and our amazing community of supporters to bring the same growth and vibrancy to Rock Creek Conservancy that he’s fostered in other organizations. His deep experience with nonpartisan advocacy for public lands will equip the Conservancy with the thought leadership we need to grow.”

Brian Joyner, Superintendent of Rock Creek Park, said: "On behalf of Rock Creek Park, we welcome Dan as the new Executive Director of our valued partner, Rock Creek Conservancy. I look forward to collaborating with Dan as he expands the Conservancy’s support for Rock Creek Park, as an environmental steward and philanthropic partner."

Dan Puskar, a Washington, DC resident since 2007, said: “For me, Rock Creek Park is an urban treasure of forests, trails, and beloved spaces like the Carter Barron Amphitheater and the Nature Center where everyone can enjoy respite and recreation. I’m thrilled to lead the Conservancy and to work alongside its amazing staff, volunteers, and community partners.”

Rock Creek Conservancy, a nonprofit founded in 2005, is a philanthropic partner of Rock Creek Park.  Through its unique model of programming called “people-powered restoration,” the Conservancy provides people and communities with meaningful volunteer experiences in the parks, empowering them to be long-term stewards of Rock Creek and its many cultural and historical treasures. 

The Conservancy and NPS have together created an innovative landscape-scale framework to restore and maintain the park's fragile forests. Since 2019, thousands of Conservancy volunteers have removed nearly one million square feet of invasive plants from 30 acres, with the goals of reducing invasives to less than 5% cover, planting or allowing for regeneration of the understory shrubs and herbaceous plants, and helping visitors recreate responsibly.

Rock Creek Park’s nearly 1,800 acres of forest and cultural sites are the heart, lungs, and soul of the DC region, providing critical resilience for the more than six million people who live, work, and play in the region and storing 100,000 tons of carbon above ground. The Conservancy also serves as an important water quality advocate for Rock Creek throughout its entire watershed. The creek flows thirty-three miles through Montgomery County, Maryland and Washington, DC, and crosses federal lands as well as District, city, county, and state boundaries.

Additionally, the Carter Barron Alliance, a Conservancy program, is a network of arts, parks, historic preservation, philanthropic, and community groups working together to revitalize the Carter Barron Amphitheater. On October 23, 2025, Rock Creek Conservancy will hold its annual gala, the Party in the Park, in the Carter Barron Amphitheater. Join us there!

Learn more: www.rockcreekconservancy.org