Thursday, Feb. 19, students and community members gathered in the Glenna Bowman MacKenzie Theater for a lecture from Chief Executive Officer of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Hilary Falk.
The event was a part of the Institute for Integrative Conservation’s spring 2026 Conservation Speaker Series. The IIC’s speaker series aims to inspire the next generation of conservation leaders.
The event began with an introduction from Faculty Director of the IIC John Swaddle, who detailed Falk’s career trajectory.
Before the CBF, Falk served as chief program officer for the National Wildlife Federation. There, she led programs in wildlife conservation, coastal resiliency, water policy, greenhouse gas reduction and environmental education.
Swaddle also said Falk was a fellow with the International Women’s Forum and a co-chair of the National Wildlife Federation’s Women in Conservation Leadership Advisory Council.
Swaddle highlighted how Falk’s internship with the CBF contributed to the work she does today.
“It shows that all great things can start from those small seeds that eventually grow to being the CEO and president of that same organization,” Swaddle said.
Falk took the podium. She discussed how she navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and pressures around removing the Chesapeake Bay from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Dirty Waters List in her early days leading CBF.
“I knew that I was coming into an organization, a community and a world that was in significant transition,” she said.
Falk explained how she tried to situate her leadership in the broader context of CBF when addressing these challenges.
“What is it about this moment and needing to lead that looks different than it has in the past?” she said. “How do we lean into those things that are going to support the Chesapeake Bay and help really continue to make progress on America’s largest estuary?”
Falk outlined four major traits she believes anyone in the conversation should take to heart.
“21st-century conservation needs to focus on science, but also be human-centered,” she said.
Falk mentioned the famous images of polar bears stranded on melting icebergs, which tug at viewers’ heartstrings but leave no sense of human responsibility. The interconnectedness of society with nature must always be at the forefront, she said.
The second leadership trait highlights collaboration across differences, especially at a time when the United States is divided.
“We’re seeing low trust numbers in the communications research we’re doing, in institutions, and I think we need to spend a lot of time on trust and building those relationships that will endure even when we disagree,” Falk said.
The third trait is being equity-aware and community-rooted. One such example was the 2025 signing of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement with the Indigenous Conservation Council, formalizing tribal inclusion in the management of the bay.
“While that has really been a long time coming, it was really heartening to see how Indigenous knowledge could be incorporated into the decision-making around the Chesapeake Bay, and knowing that leadership means listening and not just directing everybody to do what we want them to do,” Falk said.
The final concept is to be adaptive and future-facing. She noted that people detailing the Chesapeake Bay’s history often focus on its state when English soldier and explorer John Smith first arrived, and hope to return it to this condition. Falk cautions against this unrealistic vision.
“In spending so much time on that narrative in the past, we have neglected to focus on the future and a future vision that I think we can get really excited about and one that we can achieve,” she said.
The session ended with time for questions, open to students and faculty. Richard Boakye, the IIC’s research program coordinator, raised a question about the role of internal motivation in conservation.
“How did you manage to keep this passion for all these years till now? What is the role of passion in conservation leadership? And as young people, how can we hold our passion to be able to become effective conservation leaders in the future?” Boakye asked.
Falk said feeling connected to a place allowed her to overcome major challenges.
“I just can’t imagine a better community to work in,” Falk answered. “I hope that everyone finds something that they’re really passionate about because it makes it possible to continue a career that way.”
Falk left the audience with a final reminder.
“I really believe that leadership is not a title, but it is a practice, and I hope that all of you spend some time to think about your leadership practice and how that can not only fuel your passion and careers but also a healthy environment,” she said.
