Jennifer Morris

Jennifer Morris is The Nature Conservancy’s Chief Executive Officer, a global conservation organization that partners with communities across the world to overcome the barriers to climate and biodiversity solutions. Morris leads over 4,000 global staff working together to develop breakthrough tools and ideas, amplify local knowledge, influence decision-making, and forge new paths to funding in pursuit of a world where people and nature thrive.

Morris has dedicated her life to protecting the environment for people and nature. She brings decades of global leadership, proven management skills, and a passion for conservation to the organization and its ambitious mission -- conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends.

Prior to The Nature Conservancy, Morris spent over two decades at Conservation International (CI), eventually becoming President. At CI, she oversaw all programs across 29 countries and more than 600 million hectares of protected land. She developed some of the organization's most enduring programs, partnerships, and innovative strategies using business development as a tool to protect nature for the well-being of humanity. She led more than 1,000 staff comprising scientists, policy experts and passionate conservation professionals to implement cutting-edge initiatives and work with more than 2,000 diverse partners, from indigenous communities to multinational corporations.

Almost 30 years ago, Morris was teaching in Namibia, with an eye on a career in public health. Years of working and living in a small community showed her that the health of each individual and each family was inextricably linked to the health of the environment. This realization propelled her to serve by working in economic development. An Emory University graduate with a degree in political science, she went on to receive a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University with a focus on business development and micro-finance.

Morris, who was named to Forbes magazine's "50 Over 50" list in 2023, also serves as chair of Enduring Earth, a World Wildlife Fund initiative that collaborates with nations as they accelerate and amplify conservation for a more sustainable, prosperous future for people and planet.