MEMPHIS, Tennessee - Jan. 3, 2017 - Ducks Unlimited has named Jerry Holden as the next director of operations for the 13-state Southern Region. Holden replaces Tom Moorman, who will move into the organization's chief scientist position February 1.

"Jerry has been a strong performer and leader with Ducks Unlimited since his arrival to the Southern Region in 1999," said DU Chief Conservation Officer Paul Schmidt. "He has had a notable career, serving in a number of capacities over nearly two decades, and we look forward to his continued success in this expanded capacity."

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Before coming to Ducks Unlimited, Holden was an accomplished manager for Walmart. In the nearly 20 years he's been with DU, Holden has managed conservation staff in multiple states and overseen critical programs in the Gulf Coast and Mississippi Alluvial Valley.

"Jerry's commitment to Ducks Unlimited's conservation mission is evident to anyone who spends any amount of time with him," said DU CEO Dale Hall. "We're pleased to have someone with so much experience and passion leading the conservation programs in some of the most important wintering and migration habitats in North America."

Holden received bachelor's and master's degrees from Kansas State University in geography with an emphasis on natural resources and environmental studies. He has received a number of awards from within and outside DU, including the national 2011 Honor Award for Excellence from the USDA and the 2013 Distinguished Alumnus award from KSU. Holden is a member of the National Conservation Leadership Institute cohort 10.

"I am truly excited about the opportunity to work in this new capacity with DU's extraordinary staff, conservation partners and dedicated volunteers as we rise to meet growing waterfowl and wetlands conservation challenges," Holden said. "While we have made much progress together, there remains a lot of habitat restoration to be done to ensure the future of waterfowl and waterfowl hunting - two of my passions. I look forward to continuing that work as director of operations in the Southern Region."

Holden will assume his new position on Feb. 1 and will continue working out of DU's Southern Regional Office in Ridgeland, Miss.

Ducks Unlimited Inc. is the world's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving North America's continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved more than 13.8 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever. For more information on our work, visit www.ducks.org.