Victoria Herrmann, PhD is an Assistant Research Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, a National Geographic Explorer, and the managing director of The Arctic Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to Arctic security research. As the Principle Investigator of America’s Eroding Edges, she traveled across the country in 2016 and 2017 interviewing 350 local leaders to identify what’s needed most to safeguard coastal communities against the unavoidable impacts of climate change. Her current project, Rise Up to Rising Tides, is creating an online matchmaking platform that connects pro bono experts with climate-affected communities. The project seeks to safeguard heritage by connecting national expertise to some of the 13 million Americans at risk of climate displacement in the coming years. Dr. Herrmann teaches environmental communication at Georgetown University and was named one of the world's most influential people in climate policy in 2019. She was previously a Fulbright Awardee to Canada, a Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the National Academies of Sciences, and a Gates Scholar at the University of Cambridge, where she received her PhD in Geography.