Janice Castro

Janice E. Castro currently serves as the CNMI’s Coastal Zone and Coral Reef Management Liaison on contract to NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management (OCM). In this capacity, Janice provides local management assistance, subject matter expertise, and technical support to the Commonwealth’s local, regional, and federal partners on behalf of OCM. Prior to this role, Janice served as the Director for the CNMI’s Division of Coastal Resources Management where she oversaw the administration of the state’s Coastal Zone Management Program and Coral Reef Initiative, managing their day-to-day operations of promoting conservation and wise management of the Commonwealth’s coastal resources. Janice is no stranger to serving on local, regional, and national bodies focused on conservation and natural resource management, planning, and policies. Between 2017-2021, she served as the CNMI’s representative to the United States Coral Reef Task Force, the Coastal States Organization, the Micronesia Challenge, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme, and the Pacific Islands Regional Planning Body. Janice holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Studies from Seattle University. She is also an alumnus of the Pacific Century Fellows’ Marianas Chapter and part of the 2021 Executive Leadership Development Program cohort.