Todd Gartner

Director, Cities4Forests and Natural Infrastructure Initiative

Bio

Todd Gartner is the Director of Cities4Forests and WRI’s Natural Infrastructure Initiative, where he leads a multidisciplinary team with a mission to better conserve, manage and restore forests, working landscapes, urban green infrastructure, and other ecosystems. In his role, Todd is responsible for overall leadership, management, partnerships, and fundraising for these initiatives.

Todd directs Cities4Forests, which provides technical support for 60 cities from around the world to invest in their inner forests (such as city trees, urban parks, and green infrastructure), nearby forests (such as watersheds) and faraway forests (such as tropical and boreal forests). Todd coordinates a network of experts and partners who provide cities with technical assistance to align local policies, conduct knowledge exchange and peer-to-peer learning, access financing for project implementation, and raise awareness of the value of forests among city governments and urban residents.

Todd also leads WRI’s Natural Infrastructure Initiative, which works to scale up nature-based solutions for water, climate and disaster risk mitigation, through project development, economic analysis and financing strategies. His team works closely with key decision-makers, such as utilities, investors and local and national governments to finance green infrastructure, pilot innovative projects and scale successful approaches.

Through these initiatives, Todd helps governments, companies, and civil society manage their natural resources to deliver crucial benefits such as poverty reduction, economic growth, rural employment and livelihoods, and disaster resilience.

Examples of his work include:

The Forest Resilience Bond, a public-private partnership that enables private capital to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire by financing much-needed forest restoration, including a $4.6 million pilot in the Tahoe National Forest.
Todd has played a key role in several financial and economic analyses of nature-based solutions as substitutes or complements to built infrastructure systems. This includes an economic analysis that evaluates the potential role of forest restoration in São Paulo's water supply, and similar assessments in Rio De Janeiro, Vitoria, Colorado, California, Maine, the Chesapeake Bay, and Monterrey Mexico.
Todd has worked with CERES, Alliance for Global Water Adaptation, and CDP to develop The Climate Bonds Initiative’s Water Infrastructure Standard which focuses on both built and natural systems. Since launch, over $8 billion of Green Bonds have been issued under the Water Criteria, which provides investors with a verifiable, science-based screening process to evaluate bond investments bringing climate mitigation, vulnerability assessment and adaptation planning to the fixed income investment space for water infrastructure.
Todd and his team of experts work with the World Bank, policy makers and development partners to evaluate green infrastructure from a technical, environmental, social and economic perspective. His analyses seek to mainstream solutions that unite green and gray infrastructure for disaster risk management, water security and improved livelihoods.
In San Francisco, Todd’s team at WRI and partners are working with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commissions to develop a “Joint Benefits Authority”, an innovative governance and financing mechanism that provides a new way for municipal governments and service providers to scale up green infrastructure in the face of climate change.
Todd is also involved in helping watershed stakeholders, governments and land managers build successful natural infrastructure programs through developing and sharing WRI methods and case studies, sharing data, and providing workshops, trainings and one-on-one advisory services.

Todd is the author of several WRI and external publications and is frequently quoted in the media.

Todd’s previous work included developing and running the Conservation Incentives and Ecosystem Markets program at the American Forest Foundation, field forestry work in New England, fire ecology and eco-tourism research in Botswana and India, business consulting for the USDA Forest Service and several years as a corporate financial consultant.

Todd earned his Master of Forestry degree from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a B.S. in finance from University of Maryland’s Smith School of Business. He is also a Doris Duke Conservation Fellow, Switzer Environmental Fellow, Environmental Leadership Program Fellow, and Property and Environmental Research Center Fellow.

Todd is based in Portland, Oregon and is an avid hiker, rock climber, snowboarder and Baltimore Ravens fan.

Blogs

Conservation Finance Takes Off as the Netherlands Issues One of the Largest Green Bonds Ever
by James Anderson, Todd Gartner, Alex Mauroner and John Matthews - June 21, 2019
The release of a nearly $7 billion bond, which will help the Netherlands adapt to sea level rise, was met with widespread enthusiasm from investors. It's the latest in a wave of innovations in green bonds and climate adaptation.
Investors Think They Can Make Money Reducing Wildfire Risk. A Forest Restoration Project in Yuba, CA Puts this Idea into Practice.
by Todd Gartner, Adam Connaker and Nathalie Woolworth - November 01, 2018
The Forest Resilience Bond, backed by several foundations, an investment company and even an insurer, provides an innovative way to bring down costs to utilities and other stakeholders.
45 Cities Pursue a New Urban Strategy: Protecting Forests Near and Far
by John-Rob Pool, Frances Seymour, Todd Gartner and Mariana Campos - September 12, 2018
Most people don’t associate cities with trees, but urban areas are actually dependent on healthy forests. A new initiative helps cities protect trees—both those within city boundaries and others hundreds or even thousands of miles away.
Forests and Wetlands Are Water Infrastructure. New Green Bond Helps Finance Their Protection
by Todd Gartner and John H. Matthews - May 22, 2018
Wetlands, forests and other green spaces are the original water infrastructure. For the first time, they can now be financed through bonds – just like other built infrastructure such as treatment plants and dams.
3 Ways Forests Can Solve the World's Water Crises
by Todd Gartner and James Mulligan - March 20, 2018
Sometimes the best answer to daunting problems is the simplest one. Restoring and protecting forests today is one measure that can help prevent the water crises of tomorrow.
As Wildfires Scorch U.S. Forests, Forest Resilience Bond Blazes a New Trail
by Todd Gartner and Leigh Madeira - September 18, 2017
The US Forest Service has to fight fires with the money meant to prevent tomorrow's, creating a massive budget shortfall for forest restoration. Amid a terrible fire season for the U.S. western states, a new financial instrument can help stakeholders who want to see fires prevented meet that need.
3 Surprising Ways Water Depends on Healthy Forests
by Katie Lyons and Todd Gartner - March 21, 2017
It’s fitting that International Day of Forests (March 21) and World Water Day (March 22) fall next to each other, as the health of these resources often go hand-in-hand.
Seeing Israeli Forests for More than Just Trees
by Yiyuan Qin and Todd Gartner - January 12, 2017
Israel is joining a global movement towards holistic forest management that values ecosystem services.
The Forest Resilience Bond: Leveraging Innovative Finance, Science, and Partnerships to Fight Drought and Wildfire
by Todd Gartner and Chad Reed - November 03, 2016
Forest Resilience Bonds are a new investment instrument; money is fronted to pay for forest restoration, which improves water quality and reduces fires, with beneficiaries offering dividends.
U.S. Cities Go to the Source to Protect Drinking Water
by Suzanne Ozment and Todd Gartner - October 27, 2016
A Colorado wildfire that caused $25 million in damage also played havoc with Denver's drinking water supply, prompting the Mile-High City and others to invest in watershed protection to safeguard forests where the water they need originates. Protecting forested watersheds is critical for utilities that serve over 10,000 U.S. cities. Here are 10 factors that can guide watershed investment.

External Publications

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Todd Gartner

Conservation Finance Takes Off as the Netherlands Issues One of the Largest Green Bonds Ever

Investors Think They Can Make Money Reducing Wildfire Risk. A Forest Restoration Project in Yuba, CA Puts this Idea into Practice.

45 Cities Pursue a New Urban Strategy: Protecting Forests Near and Far

Forests and Wetlands Are Water Infrastructure. New Green Bond Helps Finance Their Protection

3 Ways Forests Can Solve the World's Water Crises

As Wildfires Scorch U.S. Forests, Forest Resilience Bond Blazes a New Trail

3 Surprising Ways Water Depends on Healthy Forests

Seeing Israeli Forests for More than Just Trees

The Forest Resilience Bond: Leveraging Innovative Finance, Science, and Partnerships to Fight Drought and Wildfire

U.S. Cities Go to the Source to Protect Drinking Water

Integrating Green and Gray: Creating Next Generation Infrastructure

Water Infrastructure Criteria under the Climate Bonds Standard

Protecting Drinking Water at the Source

Lessons from United States Watershed Investment Programs

Global Forest Watch Water Metadata Document

Building a Water Quality Trading Program: Options and Considerations

A Product of the National Network on Water Quality Trading

Natural Infrastructure

Investing in Forested Landscapes for Source Water Protection in the United States

Insights from the Field: Forests for Water

Insights from the Field: Forests for Species and Habitat

Gaining Ground

Increasing Conservation Easements in the U.S. South

Keeping Forest as Forest

Incentives for the U.S. South

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Lessons from United States Watershed Investment Programs

A Product of the National Network on Water Quality Trading

Investing in Forested Landscapes for Source Water Protection in the United States

Increasing Conservation Easements in the U.S. South

Incentives for the U.S. South

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