Nels C Johnson

Background

About Nels C Johnson

Nels Johnson is Senior Advisor and North America Renewable Energy Strategy Co-Lead. In that role, he works with teams across North America to integrate “smart-siting” into energy development, the leading cause of land-use change across much of the continent. During his 30 year career, he has worked on forest management, carbon sequestration, protected areas design, climate adaptation and incentives to sustain ecosystem services in Asia, Latin America and North America. He has published over two dozen articles, reports and books on these topics. As Deputy State Director in Pennsylvania between 2002 and 2014, Johnson worked with chapter and regional staff to build innovative programs to maintain ecological water flows, conserve private working forests, restore habitats on public lands and develop strategies to reduce impacts from shale energy development in the Central Appalachians. He has volunteered for leadership assignments with The Nature Conservancy’s programs in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and at the Worldwide Office. Johnson serves on a variety of public and private boards and advisory committees, most recently including the Shale Roundtable and as board chair for The Pinchot Institute for Conservation. Before joining The Nature Conservancy, he was a senior associate and deputy program director at the World Resources Institute. Johnson has a B.A. from Reed College and an M.S. from the Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Specialties: Ecosystem services, forest carbon, conservation planning, energy development, strategic planning, program development.