Heidi Stiller, Senior Advisor for the Community Resilience Center, brings over two decades of experience in coastal resilience, hazard mitigation, and community adaptation to her role. She provides expertise to support research and community action projects, offers leadership on flood risk and vulnerability assessment initiatives, and contributes guidance on communication, insurance, and community-led migration efforts.

Before joining The Water Institute, Heidi served as the South Regional Director for NOAA’s National Ocean Service Office for Coastal Management, where she acted as a key liaison for coastal partners from North Carolina to Texas. In that role, she helped implement national and regional coastal and ocean programs, connecting on-the-ground partners with NOAA’s data, tools, and services. 

Her career also includes positions with the North Carolina Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Coastal Management Program. A contributing author to the coastal chapter of the Fourth National Climate Assessment, Heidi’s work emphasizes planning that integrates hazard mitigation, climate adaptation, and natural resource sustainability.

Heidi's love for the coast started early, and she likes to help others appreciate the magic. Ever since her grandmother taught her to paint with watercolors, coastal creatures have been her favorite thing to paint.