As Senior Associate Director, Dr. Kaplan assists the RCEI Director in administrative functions of RCEI as well as internal and external engagement. Dr. Kaplan led and managed the full portfolio of activities of the Rutgers Climate Institute for a decade, the precursor initiative to RCEI. She is Co-director of the New Jersey Climate Change Resource Center, a statutorily created climate services center that creates and supports the development of applied research and tools, technical guidance, and delivery of that information to help policymakers, practitioners, communities, and citizens in New Jersey adapt to, and mitigate a changing climate. For 13 years she co-facilitated the New Jersey Climate Change Alliance (a network of diverse statewide leaders that shared the goal of advancing evidence-based climate change strategies at the state and local levels in New Jersey) that has since reorganized into a consultative role to the NJ Climate Change Resource Center. Dr. Kaplan designs and conducts applied research and analyses related to natural and working lands, carbon sinks, climate and health/health equity, and climate and community resilience. Her 40+ year career has included more than 20 years in government and 10 years in the private sector. She was the first Director of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Office of Climate and Energy where she oversaw regulatory programs under the Global Warming Response Act, the Global Warming Solutions Fund Law and regional initiatives to address climate change within various sectors, including the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Dr. Kaplan holds a B.S. in Natural Resources from Cornell University and a Masters and Doctorate of Public Health from Columbia University.