David F. Hales

David F. Hales was selected president and chief executive officer of Second Nature, the Boston-based advocacy organization committed to promoting sustainability through higher education. Prior to assuming the position, Hales was the fifth president of College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine.

Hales has held numerous positions promoting sustainability nationally and internationally. He directed environmental policy and sustainability programs for the United States Agency for International Development and served as deputy assistant secretary at the United States Department of the Interior. He has also served as the director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. For seven years, Hales held the Samuel Trask Dana Chair of Natural Resources at the University of Michigan.

Hales served on the steering committee of the American College and University President Climate Commitment, chaired the Higher Education Committee for the American Council on Renewable Energy, and is currently vice-chair of the Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century. He holds a master’s degree in political science from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Hardin-Simmons University.