LOIS SCHWENNESEN

LOIS SCHWENNESEN

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SCHWENNESEN & ASSOCIATES, LLC

1170 Alki Avenue SW #500, Seattle WA 98116

206.605.9529

Professional Experience

Principal, Schwennesen & Associates 1994-98; 2001‑Present

Schwennesen & Associates specializes in collaborative natural resource policy development and management, including prevention planning, mediation and conflict resolution. Lois Schwennesen has a track record structuring and training problem-solving teams and getting projects accomplished. Her firm offers policy analysis, implementation and trouble-shooting, facilitating multi-party discussions and mediating negotiations. Expertise in inter-jurisdictional natural resource management, government to government negotiations with tribal and U.S. representatives, hydroelectric power project relicensing, economic and environmental dispute resolution, and mediation of collaborative agreements of regional, national and international scope.

Project examples:

· Moderated multi-party teams that implement protection, mitigation and enhancement projects agreed to in the N. Umpqua Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement in Oregon, including in-water fisheries mitigation projects.

· Mediated and obtained a fifty year settlement agreement for the operation of four hydropower projects on the Lewis River in Washington State. The agreement was signed by 26 competing interest groups, including two hydropower utilities, two tribal nations, nine federal, state, and local governments, ten non-governmental environmental organizations from the national, state and local levels, and three citizens groups.

· Facilitated the Oregon Blue Mountains Forest Plan Revision with environmental, government, and divergent community “multi-users” participation.

· Provided conflict resolution, project management, and collaboration training to community, tribal, government and NGO groups in northern Africa, Pakistan, and Bolivia related to land reclamation and management.

Mediator and Vice President, Triangle Associates, Inc. 1998 ‑ 2001

Provided mediation, facilitation, strategic advice, and conflict resolution services, and helped define policy options and implementation mechanisms for a number of projects that involved local and tribal governments, water utilities, state and federal governments, private corporations, non-governmental organizations, and others.

Project examples:

· Mediated a settlement agreement among state, federal, utility, environmental and other parties related to FERC re-licensing of N. Umpqua River hydropower projects, Oregon.

· Developed solutions to water supply policy conflicts for inclusion in the Governor's legislative package through a negotiations process with the broad range of interests concerned with water supply in Washington State.

· Worked with a nationally representative group of stakeholders to design a collective process for making inter-state nuclear waste transfer decisions.

· Facilitated Hanford nuclear site budget reductions.

Natural Resource Management, King County Government, Washington 1983 ‑ 1994

Management positions ranging from a one million dollar budget and twenty-two staff to a seventy-six million dollar budget with 780 staff. Directed a cabinet level agency responsible for natural resource management and policy, zoning, development permitting, environmental protection, parks and trails management, open space and wildlands acquisition, and community, economic & cultural development.

Education

1980

Masters in Public Administration

Harvard University

1973

Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies, Cum Laude

University of California

Professional Affiliations

U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution

National Association for Conflict Resolution