Meghan Hertel, of Sacramento, has been appointed Director of the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Hertel has been the Deputy Secretary of Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency since 2024. She was the North American Director of the Land Life Company from 2022 to 2024. Hertel held several positions at Audubon California from 2010 to 2022, including Director of Land and Water Conservation, Interim State Co-Director, Director of Working Lands, Associate Director of Public Policy, and San Joaquin River Project Manager. [Hertel is an alum of the Water Education Foundation's Water Leaders program].