John Cronin
Director and Chief Executive Officer
Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries
Senior Fellow for Environmental Affairs
Pace Academy for Applied Environmental Studies
Pace University
John Cronin
Photo credit: Lynda Shenkman Curtis
John Cronin is director and CEO of Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries, and a senior fellow at Pace University. For 37 years he has dedicated his career to water and environmental affairs.
Cronin is best known for his 17 years as Hudson Riverkeeper, for which Time magazine named him a “Hero for the Planet.” He also served as an aide to Republican Congressman Hamilton Fish, Jr. and as an aide to Democratic Assemblyman Maurice Hinchey. He was the lead environmental negotiator for the New York City Watershed Agreement, and was the author and lead lobbyist of three state environmental laws.
Cronin has worked as a Hudson River commercial fishermen, filmmaker and author. He co-wrote, with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., The Riverkeepers, with an introduction by Vice President Al Gore, and wrote and produced the film The Last Rivermen, named an outstanding documentary of the year by the Motion Picture Academy Foundation. At Beacon Institute he directs a program of advanced technology development for real-time monitoring of rivers and estuaries, and STEM education for teachers and students. At the Pace Academy for Applied Environmental Studies his work is directed at water policy reform and training the next generation of environmental leaders. The Wall Street Journal called John Cronin, “A unique presence on America’s major waterways.”
