Teresa Leonardo

About Teresa Leonardo

Program director & manager with nearly nine years of experience designing, optimizing, and driving international development programs, with a focus on climate change, natural resource management, and science, technology, and innovation. Savvy strategist who creates vision and direction, and sources and aligns resources and partners. Substantial expertise in strategic planning, program design & management, partnerships and alliances, prizes and challenges, and building and leading teams, as well as developing events, communications, and strategies to share knowledge and amplify impact. Experience managing project portfolios up to $8 million. Creative program designer with track record of successfully developing and launching new activities and of providing strong technical and strategic program leadership. Effective at leveraging science and emerging technology to drive program impact. Passionate about bringing together diverse stakeholders to build engagement at the interface of science and policy. Experienced at building successful collaborations with government, academia, the private sector, and others, and at building consensus and team commitment. Dynamic science advocate and communicator. Ph.D.in Population Biology. Six years of experience based in Asia. Leadership • Strategic Planning • Program Design • Project Management • Contract & Grant Management • Stakeholder Relations • Partnerships • Strategic Alliances • Negotiating • Budgets • Opportunity Identification • Process Improvement • Knowledge Management • Metrics • Writing • Reports • Proposals • Collaboration • Coordination • Training, Coaching & Mentoring • Supervision • Outreach • Event Development • Presentations • Analysis • Science Policy • Foreign Policy • International Cooperation • Prizes & Challenges

Experience

1. Director, Citizen Science & Special Projects

   National Geographic Society

   Jun 2020 — Present · Washington, DC, US

Education

• University of California, Davis

  Ph.D.

  1996 — 2004

• Carnegie Mellon University

  B.S.

  1992 — 1996

Skills

• Project Management
• Environmental Policy
• Public Policy
• Climate Change
• Program Management
• Climate Change Adaptation
• Food Security
• Environmental Awareness
• Natural Resource Management
• Environmental Science
• Leadership
• Program Evaluation
• Strategic Planning
• Energy Policy
• Foreign Policy
• International Relations
• Science
• Capacity Building
• Policy Analysis
• Grant Writing
• Analytical Skills
• Research
• Sustainable Development
• Gis
• Proposal Writing
• Report Writing
• Ecology
• Ngos
• Science Policy
• Team Leadership
• Africa
• International Development