Shannon Aneal Estenoz is an American environmental activist and government official who served as assistant secretary of the interior for fish and wildlife and parks in the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

from 2021 to 2025. She currently serves as Chief Policy Officer at The Everglades Foundation.

Early life and education

Estenoz is a native of

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in international affairs and Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

Career

Estenoz previously served as a member of the South Florida Water Management District Governing Board. She also worked for the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the ...

and

National Parks Conservation Association The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is the only independent, nonpartisan membership organization devoted exclusively to advocacy on behalf of the National Parks System. Its mission is "to protect and enhance America's National Pa ...

. She most recently worked as the CEO of the

Everglades Foundation The Everglades Foundation was formed by a group of outdoor enthusiasts, environmentalists and residents of Florida who were concerned over the decline of the Everglades and the resulting damage in the nearby natural and protected areas such as F ...

and served as director of the

United States Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation ...

's Office of Everglades Restoration Initiatives during the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

. She currently serves as Chief Policy Officer at The Everglades Foundation.

Interior Department Nomination

Estenoz was nominated by

President Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice president from 2009 to 2017 and re ...

to serve as assistant secretary of the interior for fish and wildlife and parks on April 27, 2021. Hearings on her nomination were held before the Senate's Environment Committee on May 12, 2021. Another hearing was held before the Senate's Energy Committee on May 18, 2021. Both the Environment Committee and Energy Committee favorably reported the nominations on May 26, 2021, and May 27, 2021, respectively. On June 24, 2021, she was confirmed in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

. She was sworn in on July 12, 2021.

Personal life

Estenoz and her husband, Richard Grosso, have two children. Grosso is an environmental attorney.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Estenoz, Shannon A. Living people People from Key West, Florida Florida State University alumni Obama administration personnel Biden administration personnel United States assistant secretaries of the interior Year of birth missing (living people)