Dr. Mari-Vaughn Johnson is the Director of the Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center (PI CASC), one of the nine regional centers that form the National and Regional Climate Adaptation Science Center network.
Dr. Mari-Vaughn Johnson was previously an agronomist with the US Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service in Temple, Texas. She brings a systems-oriented perspective, informed by her experiences in international diplomacy, multi-functional land-use solutions, and policy impact assessments. She originally trained in plant ecology and wildlife sciences, earning an MS in environmental and plant biology at Ohio University and later a PhD in wildlife science at Texas A&M University. Between degrees, she volunteered as an intern with the USGS Biological Resource Division's Palila Restoration Project on Hawai‘i Island, conducting floristic surveys of invasive, endemic, and naturalized species. In 2010, Mari-Vaughn became a AAAS Fellow and put this team-building strategy into effect. She worked with the US State Department, leading the Lower Mekong Initiative and creating the Friends of the Lower Mekong. In this position, she formed multi-lateral relationships across multiple disciplines, coordinating between the federal agency, foreign governments, domestic and foreign academic institutions, and multi-national foundations, all with the goal of bringing science to policy more effectively. The experience also helped to hone her ability to work with diverse stakeholder interests and negotiate cross-discipline solutions. Mari-Vaughn provided scientific expertise to inform the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, an international agreement between the US and Canada. She also served as co-chair of the Global Young Academy, where she worked internationally to promote science-based solutions to local, regional, and global challenges including those of poverty, clean water access, biodiversity, and agriculture. Her most recent position at the USDA focused on the Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP), providing leadership and direction in funding of research related to wildlife, wetlands, and agricultural conservation practices by developing collaborative science portfolios that addressed stakeholder concerns related to sustainable agricultural production systems and water quality at regional and national scales.
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. in Wildlife Science, Texas A&M University
M.S. in Environmental and Plant Biology, Ohio University
Science and Products
Webinar: Ridge-to-Reef and Icefield-to-Ocean: Collaborative Research in Extreme Environments
Pacific Islands Indigenous Communities
Increasing Climate Extension in the Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center
Future of Fire in the Pacific Islands: Towards a National Synthesis for Wildland Fire Under a Changing Climate
Science and Products
- Publications
- Science
Webinar: Ridge-to-Reef and Icefield-to-Ocean: Collaborative Research in Extreme Environments
This webinar discussed how Alaska and Pacific Islands CASC scientists are responding to climate change challenges through cross-regional research, cultural engagement, and synthesis.Pacific Islands Indigenous Communities
For millennia, Indigenous Pacific Islanders have stewarded natural resources to sustain their communities, traditional ways of life, and cultural identities. This close relationship with the natural world puts these communities at the forefront of climate change impacts. Drawing upon a strong history of adaptation and innovation, Indigenous communities are key collaborators on adaptation work...Increasing Climate Extension in the Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center
Hawaiʻi and the United States Affiliated Pacific Islands face unique challenges in adapting to climate change due to geographic isolation, coastal hazards, close cultural and economic links natural resources, and underserved populations. To address these problems, the PI-CASC works to develop actionable research products through collaborative engagement with cultural and natural resource manager t...Future of Fire in the Pacific Islands: Towards a National Synthesis for Wildland Fire Under a Changing Climate
Wildfire is a significant yet underappreciated issue on Pacific Islands that threatens ecosystems from ridge-tops to reefs, including native species, waters, human communities, and natural and cultural resources. In the Hawaiian archipelago, the percentage of land burned annually is equal or greater than that burned across the western United States, with most fires occurring in drier nonnative gra