Jan Cassin

Jan Cassin. Jan is Director of Forest Trends' Water Initiative, where she leads the organization's work on scaling nature-based solutions for sustainable water management. An ecologist with expertise in terrestrial and freshwater systems, her career has emphasized applied research and practice in a wide range of water resource management issues - including integrated watershed management; wetland, stream, and floodplain restoration; green infrastructure design and assessment; ecosystem services...See more

Jan Cassin. Jan is Director of Forest Trends' Water Initiative, where she leads the organization's work on scaling nature-based solutions for sustainable water management. An ecologist with expertise in terrestrial and freshwater systems, her career has emphasized applied research and practice in a wide range of water resource management issues - including integrated watershed management; wetland, stream, and floodplain restoration; green infrastructure design and assessment; ecosystem services quantification; and innovative financial mechanisms such as wetland banking and investments in watershed services (IWS). Jan recently led an international team in developing natural or green infrastructure water projects through investments in watershed services in 6 counties, including facilitating a global community of practice, implementing demonstration projects, and developing new information and tools to support natural infrastructure for water management. She regularly is invited to present at international water conferences and has authored several articles on natural infrastructure, water security, and climate adaptation. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Jan received her Doctorate at the University of Michigan, and has worked as an environmental and water resources consultant, as a researcher at MIT, a biologist for The Nature Conservancy, and a firefighter for the US Forest Service. See less