Gary is co-founder and Director of Business and Research Development at Daemeter Consulting. Gary holds a PhD in Biology from the University of Michigan in the USA, and has worked and lived in Indonesia periodically since 1991. He is currently residing in northern California, managing and developing Daemeter's US office.
Gary has conducted original research on the basic ecology of lowland rain forests in Sumatra and Kalimantan, studying influences of soil and geology on species composition and ecosystem dynamics, as well as the development of novel biodiversity survey methods. He is a specialist on trees in the Dipterocarpaceae, and a leading expert in the identification and management of High Conservation Value (HCV) areas. Gary also leads Daemeter's established program in research, training and outreach with diverse stakeholder groups to promote sustainable palm oil.
Along with Aisyah Sileuw, Gary led the national initiative to revise the HCV Toolkit for Indonesia, completed in 2008. He has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications and public domain reports, regularly presents his research and professional experiences, mostly from Indonesia, at conferences around the world.
