Julia Roberson

Julia has spent almost twenty-five years working at the intersection of communications, marketing and philanthropy to advance institutional and conservation goals. She was instrumental in brokering the TeamSeas partnership for Ocean Conservancy, which raised $30 million dollars in 2 months to remove 30 million pounds of trash from the ocean. She helped secure Ocean Conservancy as the environmental partner for Superbowl LIV, Miami, which led to Hard Rock Stadium going almost entirely single use plastic-free. Prior to joining Ocean Conservancy, she oversaw the Pew Charitable Trust’s Global Tuna Conservation Campaign, seeking science-based, enforceable catch limits and other management measures for tuna species threatened by overfishing. Prior to Pew, Roberson managed campaigns for SeaWeb, including Caviar Emptor and L’Autre Caviar, which sought protection for wild, endangered Caspian Sea sturgeon, the source of the world’s wild caviar, by partnering with chefs, restaurateurs, and scientists around the world. She secured major media coverage and global attention for the campaigns which resulted in the U.S. listing beluga sturgeon under the Endangered Species Act and led to stricter international trade protection and enforcement for sturgeon fishing. Roberson also managed Too Precious to Wear, a campaign in partnership with the jewelry industry and designers to raise awareness of the illegal wildlife trade and improve coral trade policy. Roberson began her career in the marketing and editorial departments at Euromoney magazine in London, a capital markets publication, and ended up spending ten years abroad in London and Paris. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications, public relations from Appalachian State University.

Julia is from Waynesville in Western North Carolina where The Conservation Fund has helped expand Mount Mitchell, the Blue Ridge Parkway and protected Maggie Valley’s watershed.