Rich Innes

Rich Innes is a Senior Fellow in Meridian’s Washington D.C. office, where he has lent insight and brought a wealth of experience to Meridian projects for over 15 years. Most recently, Rich has been an integral part of the Joint Ocean Commission Initiative, which is dedicated to catalyzing ocean policy reform and action at the national, regional, state, and local levels. A highlight of Rich’s time at Meridian has been collaborating with Meridian founding Board Chairman Bill Ruckelshaus on a number of projects, including salmon restoration, improving the Nation’s system of environmental protection, and establishing the Ruckelshaus Institute at the University of Wyoming.

Rich began his career at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under then-Administrator Ruckelshaus. He served for nearly a decade on the staff of the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, working on clean air and clean water issues. He was also the Director of Government Affairs at Browning Ferris Industries.

Rich is an avid fly fisherman. He enjoys bike riding and a rousing game of squash. He has led Habitat for Humanity trips to Central America; he also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kenya for three years, establishing forest tree nurseries.