Jim Lester
 Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (VP/COO)

email:�jlester@harc.edu
phone:  281-363-7918
fax:  281-363-7924

Dr. Jim Lester holds a Ph.D. in Zoology from the University of Texas at Austin and is currently the Vice President of the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). Previously, he served as the Director of HARC’s Environment Group where he was responsible for development and implementation of projects to make more sustainable our management of water, air and biological resources. From 1975 to 2002 he was a faculty member and administrator in the University of Houston System where he held administrative positions at the University of Houston-Clear Lake as a Dean, Associate Vice President, and Director of the Environmental Institute of Houston.

His scientific work is grounded in ecological and population genetics, which he has applied to projects dealing with biodiversity and development of new species for sustainable aquaculture. Dr. Lester has worked in Asia and Latin America on aquaculture and fishery development projects. He is currently engaged in projects that analyze compilations of datasets from multiple sources to obtain new insights for watershed or landscape management.

Dr. Lester serves in an advisory capacity to a variety of organizations. He is Past President of the Texas Environmental Education Partnership. He serves as the co-Chair of the Monitoring and Research Committee of the Galveston Bay Estuary Program, and on advisory committees for the Texas Sea Grant Program and the Rice University Center for the Study of Environment and Society

Expertise

Ecology 
Environmental Management 
Public Policy�

Programs & Projects

Air Quality Research 
Galveston Bay Status & Trends (Statistical Analysis) 
New Technology Research & Development Program 
Texas Groundwater Quality Monitoring Strategy