National Audubon Society CEO and leadership

David O’Neill is the Chief Conservation Officer and Senior Advisor to the CEO for the National Audubon Society. In this role, he is responsible for creating and advancing the implementation of an organization-wide conservation vision, developing conservation strategies with clearly defined outcomes and ensuring their successful delivery using science-based accountability tools. He manages the organization’s science and policy departments, working with the leaders of those teams to shape advocacy and science agendas that reinforce one another and advance Audubon’s conservation strategies.

As a senior advisor, David provides CEO David Yarnold with organizational development advice and is a fundraising partner. He is also the President of the Audubon Action Fund, Audubon's 501c4 partner organization.

Prior to joining Audubon, David served as the vice president for Conservation Programs at the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) where he managed a national conservation team and oversaw a $100 million grant portfolio focused on a range of conservation issues including forest health, coastal resilience, estuaries and freshwater biodiversity. David worked closely with senior administrative officials from the Departments of Interior, Agriculture and EPA to shape and advance conservation strategies across the country. He raised tens of millions of dollars from foundations, individuals and corporations to support NFWF priorities.

O’Neill has served in executive positions in both the private and non-profit sectors, including as a vice president for Cherokee Investment Partners, a private equity firm based in North Carolina, as the Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Trust, where he grew the organization and its influence across the Chesapeake watershed, and as the Director of Land Use Policy for the Urban Land Institute. He is the author of many publications on the relationship between land use and environmental health and was the recipient of the prestigious Andrew White Medal from Loyola University for his contributions to the recovery of the Chesapeake Bay.

Elizabeth joined Audubon in 2021 in the role of president and chief conservation officer, where she will lead the strategic development of Audubon's conservation and network efforts. Additionally, she will serve as interim CEO until a new CEO is hired by Audubon's board of directors. Prior to joining Audubon, she was the Global Managing Director of The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) Climate Change program. Trained as an ornithologist, she has spent 30+ years as a dedicated conservationist, spending considerable time in the field nationally and abroad.

Elizabeth has been a leader on equity issues, from founding the first urban conservation program in Washington, D.C., to empowering the next generation of conservation leaders through a young professional’s network and youth advocacy program, to serving as one of five members of TNC’s Global Gender Equity Council.

Marco Carbone joined Audubon as Chief Technology Officer in September 2019, where he leads teams in information technology, data and analytics, and engineering. Carbone comes from the ACLU where he invested seven years, most recently as CTO overseeing a product and engineering team driving the organization’s fundraising, digital communications, and political advocacy work. Earlier in his career, Marco served as a technical lead and engineer for Advomatic, a web consulting agency, where he acted as lead on digital projects for ACLU, U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs/Exchange Programs, Teach for America, and GLAAD. He is a Computer Science graduate of Tufts University (B.S.) and Harvard University (S.M.).

Sean O'Connor is a Chief Development Officer at National Audubon Society. He has experience at Hebrew Seniorlife Inc.

Elizabeth joined Audubon in 2021 in the role of president and chief conservation officer, where she will lead the strategic development of Audubon's conservation and network efforts. Additionally, she will serve as interim CEO until a new CEO is hired by Audubon's board of directors. Prior to joining Audubon, she was the Global Managing Director of The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) Climate Change program. Trained as an ornithologist, she has spent 30+ years as a dedicated conservationist, spending considerable time in the field nationally and abroad.

Elizabeth has been a leader on equity issues, from founding the first urban conservation program in Washington, D.C., to empowering the next generation of conservation leaders through a young professional’s network and youth advocacy program, to serving as one of five members of TNC’s Global Gender Equity Council.