Linda Orel

Linda Orel is Boston Harbor Now’s first Chief Impact Officer where she oversees BHN’s policy, planning and programs.    Previously, Linda served as Senior Director of Government Relations with The Trustees of Reservations where she influenced local, state and federal policy and created new sources of public funding for land and water conservation and climate resilience, while prioritizing public investments in environmental justice communities. Linda was also the Senior Conservation Finance Director with The Trust for Public Land, where she helped pass over a dozen ballot measures, including the campaign to adopt the Boston Community Preservation Act, and led her team’s efforts to develop natural and working lands climate policy for U.S. Climate Alliance states.    Along with her government relations work, Linda spent 20 years as an instructor at the Boston Museum of Science, where she developed and taught educational programs including original Scientific Literacy and Public Policy presentations. Linda was the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions, and served as a conservation commissioner in her hometown of Sharon.    Linda earned her Juris Doctor from the UNH School of Law and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Communications from Northeastern University.