Kristin Kelly is motivated by a simple notion: to make her community, and our world, a better place for her son and his generation. As Smart Growth Director for Pilchuck Audubon Society in Washington State, Kristin works to educate and empower her community to make more environmentally-conscious decisions about the use of their land. She also works with the decision-makers on the policies that guide growth and the regulations that determine our urban and rural landscape and protection of our resource lands and water quality.
Kristin’s work takes place in Snohomish County—a very large county just north of Seattle, the population of which has grown by 30 percent over the past decade. This county is home to some of the most productive and fragile fish and wildlife habitat in the country. As a result of the increase in population growth, housing and retail development has increased, now threatening these fragile ecosystems. Increased development also brings with it an increase in impervious roads and rooftops, leading to stormwater run-off that pollutes nearby bodies of water.
For her TogetherGreen Conservation Fellowship, Kristin will work to educate and empower citizens to become voices for policies that promote things like low impact development, Transfer of Development Rights to preserve farmland, and urban amenities such as Transit Oriented Communities, and strong shoreline management plans. Kristin understands that while development is part of modern life, it needs to be balanced in a way that protects the area’s natural value. Building on over ten years of experience and demonstrated leadership in coalition building, Kristin will work to build coalitions on behalf of smart growth policies that balance the ecological and economic value of the land.