Michael Zilkha

Michael Zilkha, Michael sits on the board of The Menil Foundation in Houston, TX, Inprint, a literary organization in Houston, and on the film committee at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. He has a BA from Oxford University where he studied French literature. He was the founder of Ze Records in New York, a popular and admired record label which operated from 1978 to 1985. He moved to Houston in 1986 and started an oil and gas exploration company with his father. After selling that company in 1998 they built Zilkha Renewable Energy, a major developer of wind projects from New York to Washington State, which was sold to Energias de Portugal in 2007. Michael spent the following ten years working on a biomass company which was closed when its plant in Selma, Alabama failed to run 24/7. Retiring from the energy business in 2018, Michael started a literary publishing company, Ze Books, based out of Houston. Although Michael had not had any past experience with herpetology, after many years on the board he has extended his love of the natural world to include an appreciation of turtles and tortoises. He brings a strong background in strategic planning, philanthropic management, donor relations and network of donors and nonprofits to his board service.