Sheila Walsh Reddy
Conservation Impact Lead, Chief Conservation Office
Durham, North Carolina USA
Sheila Reddy Sheila Reddy © Johnny Stafford
AREA OF EXPERTISE
Economics, Ecosystem Services, Sustainability
Biography
Dr. Sheila Reddy is the Conservation Impact Lead at The Nature Conservancy (TNC). She leads TNC’s approach to monitoring, evaluation, and learning, with the goal of reducing risk, improving management, and scaling impact in conservation.
Sheila forms strategic partnerships to overcome barriers to measuring conservation impact at the right cost, scale, and level of certainty throughout the life-cycle of conservation projects and programs. Current partnerships leverage a range of agile, science-based, and technology-enabled approaches---e.g., experiments/quasi-experiments, deep learning, remote sensing---to assess impacts on ecosystems, water quality, agricultural practices, and human well-being.
Sheila’s previous collaborative work in conservation science, applied economics, and corporate sustainability has received awards for innovation, academic and social impact. She serves as an Associate Editor for the journal, Conservation Science and Practice.
Sheila previously served as Associate Director of Strategic Initiatives and as a Senior Scientist and Strategy Advisor at TNC. Before joining TNC in 2011, Sheila was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Brown University in Economics and Ecology. She earned her Ph.D. in Marine Biology from Scripps Institution of Oceanography through a program with the Department of Economics, University of California-San Diego. She has B.S. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University.
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- In the News
- Publications
In addition to publishing in peer-reviewed journals (see Publications tab), Sheila has written numerous essays and her collaborative research has been covered by various media outlets (see selection below).
- A New Journal for Conservation Science & Practice, Cool Green Science, September 6, 2018
- Bringing Behavioral Insights into Conservation Programs and Policies, Cool Green Science, January 6, 2017
- When Can Sustainability Drive Business Growth?, Cool Green Science, July 21, 2016
- State of the Art of Ecosystem Service Science, 3rd Biennial Water Funds Summit, Bogota, Colombia
- Local Fishing Groups Hold the Tools for Sustainable Fishing, but Need the Strength of Property Rights, Cool Green Science, April 27, 2016
- Film, Five Questions We Should Be Asking About Human Behavior and Nature, YouTube, March 28, 2016
- Film, Working with Nature to Protect Against Erosion, YouTube and Cool Green Science, December, 2015
- Why Do Coastal Communities Invest in Nature? It's Not Science., Cool Green Science, December 16, 2015
- Book Review, Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics, Science Chronicles, December 2015
- What's the Value of Nature?, Huffington Post, by Glenn Prickett. November 5, 2015
- #BusinessCase: Dow, TNC Study Highlights Power of Green Infrastructure in Natural Disaster Protection, Sustainable Brands, October 23, 2015
- How Dow Protects Its Business Assets Using Nature, Environmental Leader, October 22, 2015
- #BusinessCase: Dow/TNC Study Highlights Benefits of Valuing Ecosystem Services, Sustainable Brands, by Caitlin Kauffman. May 5, 2015
- Is Nature Ready to Transform Big Business?, Cool Green Science, April 10, 2015
- Understanding Dow's Nature Goal, nature.org, April 2015
- Book Review, A Better World, Inc., Science Chronicles, June 2014
- Behavioral Science and Natural Infrastructure, Science Chronicles, January 2014
- A Voice for Sustainability: The People Behind Your T-Shirt, Cool Green Science, December 11, 2013
- Re-Branding Nature: From Dismal Swamp to Constructed Wetland, Cool Green Science, December 2, 2013
- Quick Study: Why conservation science needs to get interdisciplinary—and why it hasn’t, Cool Green Science, by Jonathan Adams. September 11, 2013
- Quick Study: When can eating more fish actually benefit fish populations and fishermen?, Cool Green Science, by Darci Palmquist. July 8th, 2013
- A Green Contagion: What Could Make Investing in Nature Catch On?, Cool Green Science, June 26, 2013
- Science Journey to Loreto, Sustainable Fishing, Part I-III, Conservancy Talk, December 2012
- Webinar on Ecosystem Services, Yale Center for Business and the Environment, May 2, 2012
- Valuing Nature, The Science of The Dow Collaboration, Science Chronicles, May 2012
- Fat Fish, Sick Fishery?, Cool Green Science, March 2012
- Paying for Nature: Dow’s Environmental Bottom Line, Time Magazine, January 30, 2012
- Bringing Efficient and Effective Ecosystem Markets to Scale, Part II, Science Chronicles, November & December 2011
- Bringing Efficient and Effective Ecosystem Markets to Scale. Part I,Science Chronicles, November & December 2011
- Q&A on Biodiversity, Ecosystem Services and the Dow Collaboration, Science Chronicles, June 2011, conservationgateway.org
- Nature: A Major Company Puts a Value on the Environment, Time Magazine, by Bryan Walsh. January 24, 2011
- Reef Conservation Strategy Backfires, NPR
Visit Sheila's Google Scholar Profile for a full list of publications.
2017
Reddy, S.M., Montambault, J., Masuda, Y.J., Keenan, E., Butler, W., Fisher, J.R., Asah, S.T. & Gneezy, A. (2017). Advancing Conservation by Understanding and Influencing Human Behavior. Conservation Letters, 10, 248–256.
2016
Aburto-Oropeza, O., Leslie, H.M., Mack-Crane, A., Nagavarapu, S., Reddy, S.M.W. & Sievanen, L. (2016). Property rights for fishing cooperatives: how (and how well) do they work? World Bank Econ Rev, lhw001.
Reddy, S.M., Guannel, G., Griffin, R., Faries, J., Boucher, T., Thompson, M., Brenner, J., Bernhardt, J., Verutes, G., Wood, S.A., Silver, J.A., Toft, J., Rogers, A., Maas, A., Guerry, A., Molnar, J. & DiMuro, J.L. (2016). Evaluating the role of coastal habitats and sea-level rise in hurricane risk mitigation: an ecological economic assessment method and application to a business decision. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 12, 328–344.
2015
Kochnower, D., Reddy, S.M.W. & Flick, R.E. (2015). Factors influencing local decisions to use habitats to protect coastal communities from hazards. Ocean & Coastal Management, 116, 277–290.
Leslie, H.M., Basurto, X., Nenadovic, M., Sievanen, L., Cavanaugh, K.C., Cota-Nieto, J.J., Erisman, B.E., Finkbeiner, E., Hinojosa-Arango, G., Moreno-Báez, M., Nagavarapu, S., Reddy, S.M.W., Sánchez-Rodríguez, A., Siegel, K., Ulibarria-Valenzuela, J.J., Weaver, A.H. & Aburto-Oropeza, O. (2015). Operationalizing the social-ecological systems framework to assess sustainability. PNAS, 112, 5979–5984.
Reddy, S.M.W., McDonald, R.I., Maas, A.S., Rogers, A., Girvetz, E.H., Molnar, J., Finley, T., Leathers, G. & DiMuro, J.L. (2015). Industrialized watersheds have elevated risk and limited opportunities to mitigate risk through water trading. Water Resources and Industry, 11, 27–45.
Reddy, S.M.W., McDonald, R.I., S. Maas, A., Rogers, A., Girvetz, E.H., North, J., Molnar, J., Finley, T., Leathers, G. & L. DiMuro, J. (2015). Finding solutions to water scarcity: incorporating ecosystem service values into business planning at The Dow Chemical Company’s Freeport, TX facility. Ecosystem Services, 12, 94–107.
Wood, C.L., Baum, J.K., Reddy, S.M.W., Trebilco, R., Sandin, S.A., Zgliczynski, B.J., Briggs, A.A. & Micheli, F. (2015). Productivity and fishing pressure drive variability in fish parasite assemblages of the Line Islands, equatorial Pacific. Ecology, 96, 1383–1398.
2014
Reddy, S.M.W., Groves, T. & Nagavarapu, S. (2014). Consequences of a government-controlled agricultural price increase on fishing and the coral reef ecosystem in the Republic of Kiribati. PLOS ONE, 9, e96817. Faculty 1000 Recommended
2013
Reddy, S.M.W., Wentz, A., Aburto-Oropeza, O., Maxey, M., Nagavarapu, S. & Leslie, H.M. (2013). Evidence of market-driven size-selective fishing and the mediating effects of biological and institutional factors. Ecological Applications, 23, 726–741.
Roy, E.D., Morzillo, A.T., Seijo, F., Reddy, S.M.W., Rhemtulla, J.M., Milder, J.C., Kuemmerle, T. & Martin, S.L. (2013). The elusive pursuit of interdisciplinarity at the human-environment interface. BioScience, 63, 745–753.
2012
Carilli, J. & Walsh, S. (2012). Benthic foraminiferal assemblages from Kiritimati (Christmas) Island indicate human-mediated nutrification has occurred over the scale of decades. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser., 456, 87–99.
Walsh, S.M., Hamilton, S.L., Ruttenberg, B.I., Donovan, M.K. & Sandin, S.A. (2012). Fishing top predators indirectly affects condition and reproduction in a reef-fish community. Journal of Fish Biology, 80, 519–537.
2011
Ruttenberg, B.I., Hamilton, S.L., Walsh, S.M., Donovan, M.K., Friedlander, A., DeMartini, E., Sala, E. & Sandin, S.A. (2011). Predator-induced demographic shifts in coral reef fish assemblages. PLOS ONE, 6, e21062.
Walsh, S.M. (2011). Ecosystem-scale effects of nutrients and fishing on coral reefs, ecosystem-scale effects of nutrients and fishing on coral reefs. Journal of Marine Biology, 2011, e187248.
2010
Carilli, J.E., Norris, R.D., Black, B., Walsh, S.M. & McField, M. (2010). Century-scale records of coral growth rates indicate that local stressors reduce coral thermal tolerance threshold. Global Change Biology, 16, 1247–1257.
Eakin, C.M., Morgan, J.A., et al. (2010). Caribbean corals in crisis: record thermal stress, bleaching, and mortality in 2005. PLOS ONE, 5, e13969.
Sandin, S.A., Walsh, S.M. & Jackson, J.B.C. (2010). Prey release, trophic cascades, and phase shifts in tropical nearshore ecosystems. In: Trophic cascades: predators, prey, and the changing dynamics of nature (eds. Terborgh, J. & Estes, J.A.). Island Press, Washington, D.C., pp. 71–91.
Vermeij, M.J.A., Dailer, M.L., Walsh, S.M., Donovan, M.K. & Smith, C.M. (2010). The effects of trophic interactions and spatial competition on algal community composition on Hawaiian coral reefs. Marine Ecology, 31, 291–299.
Walsh, S.M., Groves, T. & Nagavarapu, S. (2010). Promoting alternative livelihoods for conservation backfires when non-monetary benefits of traditional livelihoods are important(Working Paper No. 10-02). Center for Environmental Economics.
2009
Carilli, J.E., Norris, R.D., Black, B.A., Walsh, S.M. & McField, M. (2009). Local stressors reduce coral resilience to bleaching. PLOS ONE, 4, e6324.
2008
Sandin, S.A., Smith, J.E., DeMartini, E.E., Dinsdale, E.A., Donner, S.D., Friedlander, A.M., Konotchick, T., Malay, M., Maragos, J.E., Obura, D., Pantos, O., Paulay, G., Richie, M., Rohwer, F., Schroeder, R.E., Walsh, S., Jackson, J.B.C., Knowlton, N. & Sala, E. (2008). Baselines and degradation of coral reefs in the northern Line Islands. PLOS ONE, 3, e1548.
2006
Carson, R. & Walsh, S.M. (2006). Preventing damage from major oil spills: lessons from the Exxon Valdez. Oceanis, 32, 349–372.
Garren, M., Walsh, S.M., Caccone, A. & Knowlton, N. (2006). Patterns of association between Symbiodinium and members of the Montastraea annularis species complex on spatial scales ranging from within colonies to between geographic regions. Coral Reefs, 25, 503–512.
Walsh, S.M. & McField, M. (2006). Understanding patterns of bleaching in the mesoamerican reef – a collaborative effort to support resilience-based management. In: A reef manager’s guide to coral bleaching (eds. Marshall, P. & Schuttenberg, H.). Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Australia.