Robert Bonnie
Former Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment, U.S. Department of Agriculture
As a Rubenstein Fellow, Bonnie worked with students and faculty to address issues related to climate change and natural resource conservation, with a focus on rural America.
Through Duke’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions Catalyst Program, Bonnie led a project to assess rural attitudes on the environment in order to better engage rural Americans – who manage large portions of America’s lands and watersheds – in collaborative solutions to addressing environmental challenges. This work culminated in a policy report “Understanding Rural Attitudes Toward the Environment and Conservation in America.”
Bonnie also led a 2017-18 Bass Connections project team that developed policy proposals to meet the goals of the Mid-Century Decarbonization plan and a second Bass Connections project team in 2018-19 titled Rethinking the Endangered Species Act’s Implementation on Private, Working Lands. Bonnie also taught courses in the Nicholas School of the Environment and the Sanford School of Public Policy and mentored several Nicholas School Master’s students.
Biography
From August 2013 to January 2017, Robert Bonnie was the Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In this role, Bonnie oversaw the U.S. Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service on a variety of natural resource issues, including management of the 193 million acre National Forest and Grassland System, implementation of Farm Bill conservation programs on America's farms, ranches and forests, and climate change. From April 2009 to July 2013, Bonnie served as Senior Advisor to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack for environment and climate change. Prior to joining the USDA, Mr. Bonnie was Vice President for Land Conservation for the Environmental Defense Fund where he focused on developing incentives to reward farmers, ranchers and forest owners for stewardship activities on private lands. Mr. Bonnie has master degrees in forestry and environmental management from Duke University. He grew up on a farm in Kentucky and now lives in Virginia.
Understanding Rural Attitudes Toward the Environment and Conservation in America
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy SolutionsBy Robert Bonnie, Emily Pechar Diamond, and Elizabeth Rowe Rural Americans matter—a lot—to the fate of U.S. environmental policy. Not only do farmers, ranchers, and forest owners manage huge portions of American lands and watersheds, but rural voters also have an outsized impact on national policy. While rural Americans express…
Bonnie Joins Nicholas Institute as Executive in Residence
Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions | September 12, 2019 The Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions at Duke University is pleased to welcome Robert Bonnie as an executive in residence following a two-year Rubenstein Fellowship at Duke. Bonnie specializes in issues related to climate change and natural resource conservation, with a focus on rural America. “The Nicholas Institute…
Putting America's Forests to Work on Climate Change
The Hill | June 23, 2019 Opinion by Robert Bonnie and Jad Daley With the impacts of a warming planet becoming more apparent every day, climate change is taking center stage in the race for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination. Most of the candidates have articulated commitments or released plans to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions…
"The Rubenstein Fellowship has provided me with a tremendous opportunity to work with faculty and students at the Nicholas School, the Nicholas Institute and the Sanford School to explore challenges in environmental conservation in rural America and to develop new policy approaches that can work for both rural constituencies and the environment."- Robert Bonnie, 2017-19 Rubenstein Fellow