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Katherine Smith

About the Speaker

Katherine Smith has served as the USGS Federal Director of the Northeast and Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Centers since November 2020. In this capacity, Dr. Smith advances the mission of both centers by helping formulate their long-term strategic plans and enhancing collaboration with their expansive networks of partners. Prior to her appointment with the Climate Adaptation Science Centers, she served for six years as the Assistant Station Director of the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station in Oregon. There she provided research program direction and developed interdisciplinary research initiatives to inform land management and climate adaptation strategies. She has also worked with stakeholders and scientists to develop national research programs and agendas including the USFS Fish and Wildlife Strategic Program Area and the NOAA Habitat Assessment Improvement Plan. Dr. Smith received her Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of Georgia, her MS in Fisheries and Wildlife Management at Michigan State University, and her BS in Economics & Ecology at Tulane University. She began her federal career with NOAA as a Knauss Fellow in 2007 and was selected for the U.S. Forest Service Senior Leader Program in 2013.