Margaret Cooney is the campaign manager for the Energy and Environment Department at American Progress. Prior to joining American Progress, Cooney led the International Fund for Animal Welfare’s U.S. Shipping and U.S. Ocean Noise Campaigns, which included assisting in the production of the documentary “Sonic Sea,” as well as pushing for the implementation of pragmatic ocean noise and vessel speed reduction policies.
Previously, Cooney worked as an ocean policy and high seas associate at Marine Conservation Institute, where she focused on strengthening surveillance and enforcement of the Central Pacific’s marine monuments against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing as well as supporting the development and implementation of federal management plans for these areas. She has worked with the World Wildlife Fund and Conservation International on Congo Basin conservation and protected area development, and has performed behavioral, nutritional, and reproductive research at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park.
Cooney holds a master’s degree in sustainable development and conservation biology from the University of Maryland.
Follow Tina Sablan, former representative of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, as she goes to Washington, D.C., to advocate for a management plan for the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument—and for the inclusion of the Indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the conservation of their lands and water.
In this special edition episode, six national marine sanctuary advocates came together for a storytelling event hosted by the Center for American Progress and the National Ocean Protection Coalition at the fifth International Marine Protected Area Congress in Vancouver, Canada, to talk Indigenous-led conservation.
In episode 4 of “Under The Pala Pala,” Angelo Villagomez from the Center for American Progress talks about what it’s like for Natives to work for green nongovernmental organizations in Washington, D.C., with Michaela Pavlat from the National Parks Conservation Association and Javan Santos from The Climate Initiative.
In episode 3 of “Under the Pala Pala,” six Native speakers came together at the 2022 National Diversity in STEM Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to talk Indigenous-led conservation and how they bring their Native identity to the work that they do every day.
In this episode, Michael Khus from the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and Sol Kaho’ohalahala, chair of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary, discuss Indigenous healing through the ocean.
In this episode, Violet Sage Walker from the Northern Chumash Tribal Council and Rep. Sheila Babauta from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (D) discuss Indigenous women in ocean leadership.
Fight for Our Future: Activists Demand Action on Climate and Justice
On Saturday, April 23, activists took to the streets of Washington, D.C., to demand that our leaders finally deliver on climate, care, jobs, and justice.
Trump’s Offshore Drilling Plan Would Be an Environmental Disaster
The Trump administration’s offshore drilling plan would be disastrous for the environment, leading to seven times more carbon pollution than the entire United States emits each year and causing nearly 100 large oil spills over the next 30 years.
How Marine Protected Areas Help Fisheries and Ocean Ecosystems
With U.S. fisheries reeling from climate change and other threats, marine protected areas—especially highly and fully protected MPAs—are powerful tools to rebuild, protect, and sustain fisheries and ocean ecosystems.
