Bud Ris serves as a senior advisor for the Boston Green Ribbon Commission, focusing on coastal resilience. He brings deep expertise in the Greater Boston climate arena, having served on various advisory boards for both the City and Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He also serves as a Member of the Green Ribbon Commission, a Trustee of Boston Harbor Now, and Trustee of the Boston Society of Architects.
Bud played a key role in the design of the original Climate Ready Boston program and has served on many of the program’s steering committees regarding climate change projections and neighborhood resilience planning. He oversaw two major studies commissioned by the GRC, one focusing on governance and financing needs for resilience implementation in the Seaport and the other on the feasibility of a harbor-wide flood protection barrier.
Prior to his work with the GRC, Bud worked with the Barr Foundation to develop its funding strategy on climate resilience. Bud was president and CEO of the New England Aquarium in Boston from 2005 through 2014. He previously led the Union of Concerned Scientists for 23 years. In these capacities, he led several national and international initiatives on climate change.
Bud received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Duke University. He completed a year of graduate study in environmental science and resource management at the Duke University School of Forestry and received a dual M.L.A. and Master of Science from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse University.