David Festa

David Festa is senior vice president of ecosystems at Environmental Defense Fund, overseeing initiatives to reverse habitat loss on working lands, eliminate fertilizer pollution from agriculture, ensure resilient water supply in the American West, and restore coastal ecosystems. Prior to this, Festa led EDF’s oceans program, where he changed the way fisheries are managed by winning approval for the incentives-based system called catch shares. He is president of the California Fisheries Fund, which invests in sustainable fishing. He previously served as part of the Obama transition team and as policy director in the Department of Commerce during the Clinton administration. Festa began his career as a correspondent for The Economist.