Maria Dolores Wesson

Maria Dolores Wesson joins ABC after working in conservation and environmental health at several federal agencies, intergovernmental organizations, academia and civil society throughout North America. Her work has focused on water and aquatic resources protection, large landscape and seascape conservation, and climate adaptation and mitigation strategies. Dolores has held numerous science and policy positions including Senior Analyst at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Director of Programs at the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation, Director of Environment and Conservation at the International Community Foundation, and Deputy Director, University of California’s Sea Grant Program at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. She has volunteered on several boards including Pacific Rivers Council, and chaired the US National Advisory Committee under the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation.

She is a graduate of the University of California San Diego’s Warren College, and the University of Washington’s School of Marine Affairs, College of Ocean and Fisheries Science. Her personal interests include exploring remote locations and communities by foot, bicycle or canoe, painting the landscapes she has explored firsthand, and learning folkdances from around the world.