Isabel Hardesty
Executive Director  

ihardesty@shorerivers.org
or 443.385.0511 ext 205

As Executive Director, Isabel leads ShoreRivers’ work to protect Maryland's Eastern Shore waterways through science-based advocacy, restoration, education, and engagement. Isabel is a member of the Board of Directors for Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology and for the Gunston School in Centreville.

Isabel was hired in 2011 by the Chester River Association, one of ShoreRivers’ legacy organizations, where she served as the Policy Specialist for two years and then as the Chester Riverkeeper for four. In these positions she gained experience in local and state advocacy, local enforcement monitoring and compliance, water quality monitoring, and on-the-ground restoration. When ShoreRivers was created in 2018, Isabel served first as the Regional Director and then as the Deputy Director until becoming Executive Director in 2021.

Isabel received a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University, where she concentrated in coastal environmental management, and a B.S. from Bucknell University with a major in animal behavior. In 2011-2012 she completed Leading From Within, a leadership training course through the Institute for Conservation Leadership. Previously, Isabel worked for the Ocean Conservancy in Washington D.C. conducting research in to the impacts of trash, eco-tourism, and renewable energies on ocean ecosystems.