Shana Udvardy

Shana Udvardy has twenty years of experience working in the environmental arena. She brings a decade of experience successfully implementing freshwater, flood risk management and climate adaptation policy strategies and a decade of field research experience assessing and monitoring freshwater and terrestrial systems throughout the United States and South America. She is frequently called upon to speak and to present articles on climate adaptation and flood risk management including a recent State Department speaking tour where she engaged with policymakers and civil society organizations in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos.
Under CCAP’s Weathering Climate Risks program, Shana is working to advance corporate and community preparedness for extreme weather and climate change impacts, and assess the economic benefits of risk management and planning ahead.
Previously, as president of Udvardy Consulting, Shana worked on flood risk and climate adaptation initiatives including co-leading the Natural Floodplain Functions Alliance and the American Planning Association’s “Planning for Flood Resilient Communities” workshop series. Prior to this, as the director of flood management policy for American Rivers, she spearheaded national policy initiatives that reduced flood risk and increased resilience in a changing climate. In her role, she authored Natural Defenses: Safeguarding Communities from Floods and numerous blogs. Prior to joining American Rivers, Udvardy led the Georgia Conservancy’s water program and the Georgia Water Coalition’s advocacy efforts that helped establish a comprehensive statewide water plan for Georgia and badly needed state water conservation policies. She also previously worked for the Smithsonian’s Monitoring and Assessment of Biodiversity program where she led a comprehensive biodiversity assessment and monitoring program in Perú.
Shana was a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua where she worked with farmers to improve soil and water conservation practices. She holds a M.S. in Conservation Ecology and Sustainable Development from the University of Georgia’s Odum School of Ecology, and a B.A. from Syracuse University’s Maxwell School.

Joined 2013

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