Ted Morton has been appointed executive director at Santa Barbara Channelkeeper, joining Channelkeeper at a pivotal time as the organization intensifies its efforts to tackle large-scale environmental issues through bold local action.
As executive director, Morton will guide the organization’s work to protect the health of the Santa Barbara Channel through science-based advocacy, education, fieldwork, and enforcement. He will support and expand Channelkeeper’s programmatic efforts to monitor waterways, advocate for protective environmental policies, hold polluters accountable, and ensure a cleaner, healthier water future.
Morton has more than 25 years of experience in ocean conservation policy. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Furman University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Georgia School of Law. He grew up in Atlanta and has worked in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and New York City.
“After conducting an extensive, nationwide search, we are pleased to welcome Ted Morton as executive director of Santa Barbara Channelkeeper. His professional achievements are impressive, and he brings strong leadership skills and a tremendous amount of experience,” said Mike Wondolowski, board president,
For seven-plus years, Morton directed the Pew Charitable Trusts oceans’ programmatic work at the federal level, which included efforts to strengthen national policies to end overfishing, rebuild depleted fish populations, advance ecosystem-based fisheries management in U.S. waters, and expand the National Estuarine Research Reserve System.
Before joining Pew, he directed a campaign at the Environmental Defense Fund to improve the international trade of coral reef wildlife. He served as the vice president of organizational effectiveness and operations at SeaWeb, as well as director of operations at the Pew Institute for Ocean Science.
Morton was also federal policy director for Oceana, where he was involved in successful efforts to persuade Congress in 2006 to strengthen U.S. fisheries conservation and establish a deep-sea coral research program.
As policy director at American Oceans Campaign, he was instrumental in the passage of the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act (BEACH bill) in 2000, which required states to adopt criteria for testing coastal recreational waters and notifying the public about beach water quality.
“I’m thrilled and honored to join Santa Barbara Channelkeeper as executive director,” Morton said. “The organization has an impressive record of achievements that are a direct result of its programmatic excellence, from in-the-field scientific monitoring to environmental advocacy, enforcement, and community education. I’m excited to build upon Channelkeeper’s legacy of clean water work.”
For more about Channelkeeper, visit www.sbck.org.