Brian Byrnes is a nonprofit leader with a background in science, education, and conservation. Currently he serves as a Grants Specialist at Ellucian, servicing clients in higher education. He entered higher education at Delaware County Community College, where he served as Grant Writer for five and a half years after spending more than a decade in the nonprofit conservation field. He remains active in conservation through volunteer service as Vice President of the Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology and small consulting projects focused on bird conservation and habitat.Previously, as Executive Director of the Chester Ridley Crum Watersheds Association (CRC), he was responsible for the planning and implementation of education, restoration, and development programs. Brian has extensive experience in strategic planning, impact measurement, and grant writing. He is an effective communicator and partnership builder with diverse audiences and interests. Brian has worked with multi-partner coalitions to set goals, execute projects, and measure results.At CRC, Brian expanded the organization's capacity to complete strategic projects. He secured significant grant support for habitat restoration efforts, designed and implemented a water quality monitoring program, and strengthened an education partnership of 45 municipalities.Brian led Audubon's Important Bird Area program for six and a half years in southeastern Pennsylvania. He built partnerships, implemented a variety of projects to protect and enhance bird habitats, and made dramatic improvements in strategic planning and impact measurement. Brian was awarded a prestigious TogetherGreen fellowship in 2009 by Toyota and Audubon. Prior to joining Audubon, Brian worked at the Brandywine Conservancy as an Associate Planner. He provided land conservation planning services to private landowners, with an emphasis on the cultivation and preparation of conservation easements. Prior to becoming Associate Planner, Brian served as Assistant Easement Manager, assisting in all aspects of the management of 400 conservation easements covering more than 30,000 acres.Brian is a member of the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology, currently serving as Vice President. He also serves on the Environmental and Bird Conservation Committees for the Willistown Conservation Trust. He holds a Master of Environmental Studies degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from Swarthmore College.