Chief Resilience Officer

NYC Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) mission is to protect public health and the environment by supplying the highest-quality drinking water; treating and recovering valuable resources from wastewater to protect New York City’s waterways; minimizing exposure to air, noise, and hazardous materials pollution; and constructing dependable infrastructure to foster a more resilient New York City for generations to come. DEP is the largest combined municipal water and wastewater utility in the country, with more than 5,500 employees. DEP's water supply system includes 19 reservoirs and 3 controlled lakes spanning a 2,000 square mile watershed that extends 125 miles north and west of the City. DEP annually collects $4.8B in revenues, primarily through customer billing, supporting its operations and a $33 Billion Ten-Year Capital Construction Plan.

New York City faces increasing risks from more frequent and severe storm events, coastal flooding, sea level rise, extreme heat, and drought. DEP plays a central role in preparing the City for these challenges through the operation and protection of critical water and wastewater infrastructure, construction of stormwater management projects, implementation of major coastal resilience initiatives, and long-term planning for a changing climate. DEP also operates some of the City’s most energy-intensive facilities and has significant opportunities to advance decarbonization through energy efficiency and expanded beneficial use of biogas and other byproducts. Additionally, DEP protects public health and the environment through its air quality, noise, and hazardous materials regulatory programs. As both a climate resilience leader and a major infrastructure operator, DEP is uniquely positioned to help achieve the City’s climate goals equitably while ensuring the continued reliability of essential public services.

About the role

DEP is seeking an experienced and strategic leader to serve as Chief Resilience Officer (CRO). Reporting directly to the Commissioner, the CRO will lead agency-wide coordination on climate policy, climate commitments, and interagency initiatives, ensuring that climate considerations are integrated across DEP’s operations, capital program, and regulatory functions. The CRO will serve as the Commissioner’s principal advisor on climate-related policy and strategy, working closely with senior leadership across DEP, City Hall, and partner agencies to advance the City’s climate goals and strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure systems. The CRO will also ensure that climate and environmental justice considerations are integrated into agency decision-making, with a focus on advancing equitable environmental and public health outcomes for communities disproportionately burdened by pollution and climate risks.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate agency-wide implementation of climate-related initiatives, commitments, and strategic priorities, ensuring alignment across DEP bureaus and offices.
• Lead DEP’s engagement in citywide climate and environmental justice initiatives and represent the agency in interagency working groups, task forces, and external forums.
• Serve as DEP’s primary point of coordination with City Hall, other City agencies, State and Federal partners, utilities, and external stakeholders on climate policy and strategy.
• Work with DEP bureaus to integrate climate resilience, greenhouse gas reduction, and sustainability considerations into agency planning, operations, and capital investments.
• Support the development of strategic initiatives related to climate adaptation, decarbonization, environmental justice, energy, and resilience.
• Lead agency-wide coordination on environmental justice priorities, ensuring that DEP policies, programs, capital investments, and regulatory activities advance equitable outcomes and meaningfully engage communities disproportionately affected by environmental burdens and climate impacts.
• Foster relationships with external stakeholders, including advocacy organizations, community organizations, industry groups, and peer utilities to advance DEP’s climate agenda.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college and 7 years of satisfactory experience of a nature to qualify for the duties and responsibilities of the position, at least 18 months of which must have been in an administrative, managerial, consultative, or executive capacity or supervising personnel performing related activities; or a combination of education and/or experience equivalent to this, with the same 18 months of administrative, managerial, executive, consultative, or supervisory experience.

Skills

• Significant experience in advancing and implementing climate policy, environmental justice policy, infrastructure, sustainability, resilience, or a related field, particularly as they relate to infrastructure systems and local government.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex, cross-functional initiatives involving multiple stakeholders.
• Experience working with federal, state, and city agencies, elected officials, advocacy groups, or utilities.
• Ability to synthesize complex technical and policy issues and provide strategic recommendations to executive leadership.
• Demonstrated ability to build consensus and effectively manage relationships across diverse stakeholders.

Benefits

• Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility for prospective City of New York employees. For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website.

Pay

$240,000.00 – $260,000.00

Schedule

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County.