Manja Holland-Smith, Ph.D., is the Research & Engagement Director at the University of Michigan Water Center at the Graham Sustainability Institute, where she applies her ecological background and deep community engagement experience to leading the Great Lakes Horizon Initiative. The main goal of the Horizon Initiative is to help the region shift from reacting to crises and opportunities to anticipating them. Central to this work is designing and implementing collaborative processes that bring together scientists, policymakers, nonprofits, and community leaders to detect early signals of change and translate them into actionable insights. 

Prior to joining the University of Michigan Water Center, Manja spent nearly 10 years at the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes Regional Center, most recently serving as Senior Director of Community Engagement. She led the development of a successful community-based, place-based model focused on increasing access to nature in frontline communities in the Great Lakes region. Manja led her team in working alongside local organizations and municipal staff to implement a cohort model supporting over 130 houses of worship and other anchor institutions in the design and installation of native plant gardens in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Toledo, and Cleveland. Most recently Manja spent a year as a Senior Consultant at Public Sector Consultants where she had the honor to support a wide range of clients from non-profit and philanthropic organizations to state and local entities in conducting research, facilitating meetings, designing programs, and conducting community engagement.

Manja holds a Ph.D. in Ecology from the Yale School of the Environment, an M.S. in Environmental Toxicology from Cornell University, and a B.A. in Biology from Carleton College.