Mary Hanley

Board Member

Mary has spent most of her professional career as a communications expert in the public sector. She has worked in political campaigns, for city and the federal government, including the U.S. State Department, Commerce Department and the White House. She has also worked as a communications director for a U.S. senator.

Mary’s first encounter with Wilderness Inquiry was during her 13-year tenure as vice president for communications at The Wilderness Society in Washington, D.C., when Greg Lais was lobbying for wilderness protection for the Boundary Waters. She helped organize an all-women’s Wilderness Society trip to Menogyn with Wilderness Inquiry in 1997 and since then has traveled with Wilderness Inquiry to Tanzania, New Zealand, Uganda, and Iceland. She has also enjoyed participating in Canoemobile outings in Washington, D.C., where she lives. Mary joined the Wilderness Inquiry Board of Directors in 2018. With her deep experience, Mary is most notably taking a leadership role on our Advancement Committee.