Alicia Lehrer

About

Alicia Lehrer, Executive Director

Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council

45 Eagle Street, Suite 202, Providence, RI 02909-1082

alehrer@wrwc.org

Alicia Lehrer joined the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council (WRWC) as Executive Director in March 2008. She holds a BA in Environmental Science from Columbia University and an MS in Natural Resources Science from the University of Rhode Island. Alicia’s work at the WRWC has included spearheading migratory fish passage restoration at the first five dams on the river, working with partners to determine cleanup efforts of the Centredale Manor Superfund site, and leading Woonasquatucket River Greenway expansion, improvement and maintenance. Alicia helped establish WRWC’s Watershed-Wide Flood Resilience Project, built organizational capacity to plan, build and maintain nature-based stormwater infrastructure throughout the Woonasquatucket Watershed, and created the Nuevas Voces (New Voices) and Campeones de Combate Climático (Climate Champions) leadership programs training more than 50 frontline resident leaders to direct climate resilience efforts for their neighborhoods.

Alicia serves on several statewide and regional committees in Rhode Island (RI):

• Green Infrastructure Coalition (GIC) Leadership Team
• Transportation Advisory Committee
• Narragansett Bay Estuary Program Steering Committee

Alicia, and the WRWC have been honored to be recognized for their work with several prestigious awards including:

• Alicia received the 2020 Urban Waters Learning Network “Learning Network Signature Award,” for commitment to improving the Woonasquatucket River and revitalizing the communities around it.
• Alicia received Rhode Island Clean Water Action’s 2019 “Community Builder of the Year Environmental Champion Award.”
• Kassi Archambault, WRWC’s first Education Director, honored with Clean Water Action’s Emerging Leader Award in 2017.
• Four Ovies (Olneyville neighborhood awards), two in 2016 and two in 2017, for outstanding programming and community engagement in Olneyville.
• Lisa Aurecchia, WRWC Director of Projects, honored with 2016 RI Blueways Award.
• Grow Smart Rhode Island’s 2016 Outstanding Smart Growth Project Award for mobilizing stakeholders to convert waste brownfield sites in Providence’s poorest neighborhood, Olneyville, into park land and the 7 miles of Greenway/Bike Path.
• River Network’s 2014 International River Hero Award to WRWC’s founder, Jane Sherman for bringing new life to the Woonaquatucket River and the neighborhood around it – Olneyville.