The ERF Executive Committee (EEC) is advised by the ERF Council
Council membership is voluntary and open to all former members of the EEC, allowing the current members to draw on collective experience.
The Council currently consists of:
Urs Reif
(ERF Training Officer 2020-2021, ERF President 2021-2025)
After completing his studies, Urs worked at two agencies specialising in nature conservation assessments. When the Black Forest National Park was established in 2014, he took up the position of head ranger there. His task was to set up and establish the ranger system in the new national park.
In 2015, he began working in working groups of the German Ranger Association that dealt with international exchange and working groups. The Black Forest National Park strongly supported the re-establishment of the ERF. In 2015, the employees organised a workshop that formed the basis for the re-establishment.
After working for the Ministry of the Environment in Baden-Württemberg for two years, Urs returned to head the rangers of the Black Forest National Park in April 2021.
Before taking over as ERF President, Urs joined the ERF as Training Officer.
He is also spokesperson for the Europarc Germany Ranger Working Group.
Ilan Yeger
(ERF Vice-President 2022-2025)
Ilan Yeger has a distinguished career in conservation, serving the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA) since 1991, where he currently holds the critical role of Head of Operations and Anti-Poaching. He brings this extensive field experience to the global conservation community.
Profoundly involved with the ERF since 2016, Ilan has attended all major conferences, co-founded the flagship Twinning project, and initiated the first European anti-poaching training program. During his tenure as Vice-President (2022-2025), he successfully drove the organisation toward a more professional direction, advocating for high-level, affordable training for all rangers.
Ilan is always happy to share his wealth of experience for the benefit of conservation, driven by the core belief that nature knows no borders.
Michael Großmann
(ERF Training Officer 2021-2022, ERF Financial Officer 2022-2025, ERF Fundraising volunteer 2025 to present)
From 1990 onwards, I worked in a wide variety of areas within the Bavarian Forest National Park, including nature monitoring, educational work on natural forest development, setting up and designing information centres, forest ranger in a national park district, temporary deputy head of the ranger team and, most recently, head ranger for 11 years until my retirement in 2023.
In addition, I have been continuously involved in the work of the German Ranger Association and the European Ranger Federation, whose establishment and success I have been deeply committed to from the very beginning.
For many years, I have also been involved in fundraising and professional development for rangers throughout Europe. As the former ERF Financial Officer, my focus was on financing ERF training measures and supporting rangers who need help to participate in international training programmes.
Today, as a volunteer and member of the ERF Council, I take care of fundraising, image building and partnerships with other NGOs for the ERF.
Ian Brooker
(ERF Vice-President 2020-2022)
Ian describes himself as follows:
Retired Ranger having spent nearly 40 years working in the Countryside sector. Various seasonal posts before being appointed as the first Countryside Warden in Horsham, West Sussex. UK, managing a Country Park and Nature Reserve. Then 32.5 years as a Ranger working at Dartmoor National Park, SW England.
Always had a wider interest in sharing experiences and knowledge with other countryside professionals by attending Conferences and Congresses throughout Europe and the World, including the first World Ranger Congress held in Poland in 1995.
Held many positions helping to guide the future of Ranger services and encouraging training and exchange of knowledge for Rangers as a Regional Representative, Treasurer and International Ranger Coordinator for the Countryside Management Association (CMA) UK and former Vice President for the ERF. Joint founder of the South West Ranger Forum (SWRF) UK in 2005 and Chair of the ERF Election Committee 2025.
Passion for supporting volunteering in the Countryside to help Rangers in their roles and to promote conservation messages to local communities.
Frank Grütz
(ERF President 2017-2020)
After training and working in a sawmill in the Black Forest, I studied physical geography in the 1990s. Inspired by profound experiences backpacking and hiking in western Canada, Alaska and East Africa, I was determined to work in nature conservation and trained as a ranger.
After graduating, I was offered the position of head of the ranger team in Saarland in 2005, which I still hold today. I was proud and happy to be a ranger and became a member of the German Ranger Association, of which I was chairman from 2008 to 2017.
My vision was to connect rangers across Europe so that we could speak and act with one voice, raise awareness of rangers and highlight the importance of conservation to political decision-makers.
Inspired and encouraged by Sean Willmore, I established an International Relations working group that advocated for the creation of the European Ranger Federation (ERF) under the umbrella of the International Ranger Federation (IRF). At the European Ranger Congress in Litomerice, Czechia, in 2017, the ERF was officially founded and I became its president.
Over the past 20 years, I have been horrified to see a dramatic increase in physical violence against rangers on duty in Germany. In collaboration with a female instructor, I am offering training for rangers since 2020, teaching them about communication, de-escalation and prevention. As I am a karate trainer myself, there are also practical self-defence sessions.
Roger Cole
(ERF Vice President 2017-2020)
Roger trained as a Plant Pathologist and spent the first 30 years of his career in Agricultural Research, working in more than 30 different countries developing new agrochemical products for major world crops.
After 30 years, a career change in 1995 saw him join the Lee Valley Regional Park as the Park Operations manager where he was responsible for managing the Park Ranger team. Lee Valley Park is located close to London and receives over 5 million visitors to its countryside each year. In the 2012 London Olympics it became the location for the white-water canoe slalom and the cycling Velodrome.
Roger is currently Vice President of the Countryside Management Association (CMA) and previously held roles for CMA in Marketing and for International activities. He also edited the association’s quarterly RANGER magazine for over 5 years.
In his retirement Roger continues to co-ordinate the International Ranger Federation annual Ranger Roll of Honour, recording the details of all those rangers who have lost their lives in the line of duty. This annual Honour Roll is published on World Ranger Day each year.
Roger lives in the UK in Essex where he has been a local Scout leader for over 50 years.
