Holly Cannon

The Conservation Fund

Executive Vice President & General Counsel

Holly Cannon is Executive Vice President and General Counsel of The Conservation Fund. She is the chief legal officer and directs the Fund’s legal affairs, manages legal compliance and transactional matters, and seeks to limit the Fund’s risk exposure. Holly joined The Conservation Fund in February 2014, after spending more than thirty years in the private practice of law in Washington, DC.

The Conservation Fund is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a dual charter to pursue conservation and economic development. Since its founding in 1985, the Fund has conserved almost 9 million acres of land in all 50 states, including parks, historic battlefields, working forests, and wild areas. The Fund works with public agencies, businesses, landowners, nonprofit organizations and other partners to create innovative solutions that integrate economic and environmental objectives.

In her role as Executive Vice President, Holly leads the Fund’s Mitigation Solutions business unit. This business unit works with project developers and public agencies to create and implement plans that mitigate for unavoidable impacts on our natural, historic and cultural resources from infrastructure projects. Her EVP role also includes responsibility for the Fund’s human resources and administration function.

In her role as General Counsel, Holly provides strategic legal counsel and advice to the President/CEO, Board of Directors, and other senior leadership team members, and identifies and manages areas of legal and business risk. She manages the Fund’s internal legal function and legal department staff, and has responsibility for the development of corporate policies, procedures and programs. She serves as the primary or supervising legal advisor on major real estate and business transactions, and is a member of the Fund’s internal Executive Committee.

Prior to joining The Conservation Fund, Holly was a principal of Beveridge & Diamond, P.C., serving as its Managing Principal for five years.  Beveridge & Diamond is a law firm of more than 120 attorneys in seven offices across the United States, with a nationwide practice that is focused on all aspects of environmental law, land use, and related civil and criminal litigation.