Aurelia Skipwith Giacometto is an American attorney, businesswoman, and

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

who served as the 17th director of the

United States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is a List of federal agencies in the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior which oversees the management of fish, wildlife, ...

from 2019 to 2021. She was confirmed by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

as director on December 12, 2019, by a 52–39 vote, and is the first black director of the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Early life and education

Skipwith was born and raised in

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, the oldest of nine children. Skipwith's family eventually relocated to

Columbus, Mississippi Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, Mississippi, Lowndes County, on the eastern border of Mississippi, United States, located primarily east, but also north and northeast of the Tombigbee River, which is also part of the ...

. Skipwith's father served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed ...

. Her grandfather was a farmer in

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

. Skipwith received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

in 2003, a Master of Science in

molecular genetics Molecular genetics is a branch of biology that addresses how differences in the structures or expression of DNA molecules manifests as variation among organisms. Molecular genetics often applies an "investigative approach" to determine the st ...

from

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

, and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

University of Kentucky College of Law The University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law, also known as UK Rosenberg College of Law, is the law school of the University of Kentucky located in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded initially from a law program at Transylvania Univers ...

Career

Skipwith began her career at

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best-known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed ...

in 2006 as a lab technician, and worked her way to a sustainable agriculture partnership manager. Following her work at Monsanto, Skipwith completed law school and had a brief career as a research and legal intern at the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

. She also served as an

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

consultant for the

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 1961 and reorganized in 1998 ...

. For a period of time, Skipwith worked at Alltech, an organization based in

Nicholasville, Kentucky Nicholasville is a home rule city in and the county seat of Jessamine County, Kentucky, Jessamine County, Kentucky. The population was 31,490 during the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, making Nicholasville the 10th-largest settlemen ...

which specializes in animal nutrition and algae production. She later co-founded AVC Global, an agricultural supply blockchain company in early-2016. From April 2017 to January 2020, Skipwith served as deputy assistant secretary fish, wildlife and parks of the Department of the Interior. Skipwith served as the director of the

starting in January 2020. Her appointment was widely supported by conservatives and opposed by environmentalists due to her ties to the pesticide industry and her support of the Trump administration's efforts to roll back environmental protections. The

Center for Biological Diversity The Center for Biological Diversity is a nonprofit membership organization known for its work protecting endangered species through legal action, scientific petitions, creative media and grassroots activism. It was founded in 1989 by Kieran Suck ...

stated "Aurelia Skipwith has been working in the Trump administration all along to end protections for billions of migratory birds, gut endangered species safeguards and eviscerate national monuments. Skipwith will always put the interests of her old boss Monsanto and other polluters ahead of America's wildlife and help the most anti-environmental administration in history do even more damage." Under Skipwith's direction, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service generated controversy by not granting Monarch butterflies protection, requiring entries in the Federal Duck Stamp Contest to include a hunting theme, weakening rules against the killing of birds by oil and gas companies and others, and massively reducing the protected habitat of threatened owls. She left office on January 19, 2021. She became the Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) in January 2024. She left office on May 2, 2025, after accepting a position with Earth and Water Law in Washington, DC.

Publications

Giacometta has collaborated to

Project 2025 Project 2025 (also known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project) is a political initiative to reshape the federal government of the United States and consolidate executive power in favor of right-wing policies. The plan was published in ...

; she is thanked for his contribution to Chapter 16: "Department of the Interior".

Personal life

Skipwith Giacometto married Leo Giacometto, a former member of the

Montana Legislature The Montana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to t ...

and chief of staff to former Senator

Conrad Burns Conrad Ray Burns (January 25, 1935 – April 28, 2016) was an American politician and lobbyist who served as a United States Senator from Montana from 1989 to 2007. He was only the second Republican popularly elected to represent Montana in the ...

. Giacometto was a co-founder of AVC Global and who worked as a lobbyist in the agriculture sector.

References

External links

* https://www.nola.com/news/environment/louisiana-environment-trump-jeff-landry-aurelia-giacometto/article_83e8f20a-73a3-5960-a1b8-d24ea68a6a69.html# {{DEFAULTSORT:Skipworth, Aurelia Howard University alumni Purdue University alumni University of Kentucky College of Law alumni United States Fish and Wildlife Service personnel First Trump administration personnel Year of birth missing (living people) American women biologists 21st-century African-American scientists American women lawyers 21st-century African-American lawyers Living people Scientists from Indianapolis Indiana lawyers 21st-century African-American academics 21st-century American academics 21st-century American women academics