CSC's Climate & Energy Group
Our climate and energy practice is grounded in the experience of some of the field's most distinguished professionals.
Our climate and energy practice is grounded in the experience of some of the field's most distinguished professionals. Click the names below for biographical information.
Sharon L. Hays, PhD, Vice President, Office of Science and Engineering
Conrad C. Lautenbacher, PhD, Vice President, Science Programs
Dan Walker, PhD, Director and Chief Climate Scientist
Shalini Jayasundera, PhD, Program Management Principal Lead
Ann-Marie Johnson, Director, Strategic Initiatives
Sharon L. Hays, PhD, Vice President, Office of Science and Engineering
Sharon Hays coordinates CSC’s North American Public Sector science and engineering activities. Before joining CSC, Dr. Hays served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as the deputy director for science and, after confirmation by the U.S. Senate in September 2006, as associate director. In these roles, she led the strategic direction for all OSTP activities related to a range of science initiatives and advised White House offices on environmental and security policies. She also led the U.S. delegation to the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Dr. Hays served previously as OSTP’s chief of staff, where she oversaw operations including the office’s legislative, public affairs, international and legal activities, security operations, and administration.
Prior to coming to OSTP, Dr. Hays was the staff director of the Subcommittee on Research of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Science. Before her promotion to staff director, Dr. Hays worked as a professional staff member, first for the Basic Research Subcommittee and subsequently for the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics. Dr. Hays also served as a Congressional Science Fellow for the American Association for the Advancement of Science in the office of Representative Vernon Ehlers between 1997 and 1999, where she helped develop the Science Committee’s report entitled Unlocking Our Future: Toward a New National Science Policy.
Before going to Capitol Hill, Dr. Hays worked as a research assistant at the University of Southern California and then attended graduate school in biochemistry at Stanford University, where she studied in the laboratory of Nobel Laureate Paul Berg and received her Ph.D. in 1997. Dr. Hays also holds a BA in molecular biology from the University of California, Berkeley.
Conrad C. Lautenbacher, PhD, Vice President, Science Programs
Conrad Lautenbacher brings significant experience in managing one of the world’s largest research and science support infrastructures, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Dr. Lautenbacher also had a career in the U.S. Navy, retiring with the rank of Vice Admiral. During numerous tours of duty, he engaged in leading and managing large-scale military support and combat operations. His background is strong in policy development and ocean, atmospheric, space, climate and environmental matters.
As Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and administrator of NOAA for seven years, Dr. Lautenbacher directed an extensive review and reorganization of the NOAA corporate structure to meet the environmental challenges of the 21st century. Lautenbacher spearheaded the development of the international organization known as the Group on Earth Observation (GEO), a ministerial level body with more than 75 nations and 51 international and intergovernmental organizations participating. GEO is dedicated to work toward a common goal of building a sustained Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) that would collect and dis¬seminate data, information and knowledge to stakeholders and decision makers for the benefit of the global community.
Dr. Lautenbacher was president and CEO of the Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education (CORE), now known as the Consortium for Ocean Leadership, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to increasing knowledge and public support across the spectrum of ocean sciences. Before joining CORE, Dr. Lautenbacher formed his own management consultant business, CEREBRUM, Inc. and worked principally for defense industries.
In his naval career, Dr. Lautenbacher has won numerous accolades for his performance in a broad range of operational, command and staff positions both ashore and afloat. Command experience includes tours as commanding officer of U.S.S. HEWITT and as commander at the U.S. Navy’s largest naval station in Norfolk, Va.
A leader in the introduction of cutting-edge information technology, he pioneered the use of information technology to mount large-scale operations using sea-based command and control while commandeering the U.S. Third Fleet. During his final tour of duty, he served as deputy chief of naval operations in charge of Navy programs and budget. A recognized expert in operations research, financial management and fluid dynamics, Lautenbacher served as a Federal Executive Fellow at the Brookings Institution and has been a sought-after guest lecturer in a variety of academic settings. Dr. Lautenbacher is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. He holds master’s degree and PhD from Harvard University in applied mathematics.
Dan Walker, PhD, Director and Chief Climate Scientist
Dan Walker brings considerable academic and climate change policy expertise. He understands the development and use of large-scale climate data sets and model output and the importance of predictive analytics and risk management in efforts to understand, mitigate, and adapt to climate change.
Prior to joining CSC in 2010, Dr. Walker was chief of the Climate Assessment and Services Division of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Program Office, where he managed NOAA’s Climate and Societal Interactions Program. From 2006 to 2009, Dr. Walker was a member of the staff of the U.S. President’s Science Advisor, where he was involved in leading policy development at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and was eventually named assistant director for environment. He served as a principal and co-chair on various U.S. federal interagency committees and bodies of the National Science and Technology Council, and served as a U.S. delegate to the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) from 2007 to 2010.
Dr. Walker has been involved with strategic planning and management of state and federal science for nearly 20 years. After occupying early positions with the states of Kentucky and North Carolina, he began his career in national and international science policy as a program analyst with the U.S. National Academy of Sciences’ National Research Council in 1996. Dr. Walker was named a National Academies’ Scholar in 2006.
Dr. Walker is a frequent speaker and presenter at climate and ocean policy meetings and panels. In addition to his contributions to various National Academies reports, Dr. Walker has published over 20 articles and editorials for various scientific journals and trade publications. He holds a PhD in Geology from the University of Tennessee.
Shalini Jayasundera, PhD, Program Management Principal Lead
Dr. Shalini Jayasundera is a program management principal leader for CSC’s Civil Group Business Solutions Division. She leads the Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Group under the Science, Engineering and Mission Support practice area. She provides overall management and technical oversight to multiple water security, infrastructure protection, and climate change adaptation projects and leads strategic planning /conceptualization and implementation efforts.
Dr. Jayasundera initiated the climate change program at CSC in 2008 to initially support the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Ready Water Utilities program. Her group now leads efforts to develop adaptation and mitigation strategies related to climate change. These strategies include developing interdisciplinary tools to assess resilience or vulnerability in the face of emerging threats, using integrated climate science information to build awareness of climate change impacts, supporting decision-making for adaptation planning, conducting pilots, disseminating information, and outreach.
Dr. Jayasundera led a technical team of risk analysts, engineers, and environmental and climate science experts to develop the EPA’s Climate Change Resilience Evaluation and Awareness Tool (CREAT). She also leads projects in areas including risk assessment, consequence analysis, decontamination, chemical security, cyber security, national infrastructure protection, and homeland security coordination.
Dr. Jayasundera has more than 20 years of technical, consulting and project management experience. She is a part-time faculty member in the Environmental Engineering, Science & Management Program at the Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University. She has authored and co-authored several technical publications and has made numerous presentations at national and international conferences. She is a technical reviewer for a number of academic journals and participates in multiple working groups.
Dr. Jayasundera has a PhD and MS in Environmental Engineering from the University of Maryland and a BS in Chemical and Process Engineering from the University of Moratuwa.
Ann-Marie Johnson, Director, Strategic Initiatives
Ann-Marie Johnson brings creativity, high energy and a passion for effective collaboration to yield meaningful business results. She provides thought leadership on business approaches aimed toward driving inefficiencies out of government operations and increasing profitability within the private sector.
Ann-Marie has done strategic planning and market development for CSC’s federal civilian market. She also worked pro bono with the Industry Advisory Council by co-chairing a government/industry committee that created a strategic roadmap for an industry organization.
For six years, Ann-Marie was a director in business development at CSC, covering a variety of civilian agency accounts. Earlier, she held several positions in technical operations and management consulting. She started her career with the U.S. General Accounting Office as an evaluator.
Ann-Marie holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from James Madison University and a master’s degree in information systems from George Mason University.
