American Flood Coalition Expands Policy and Outreach Teams by Adding Veteran Congressional and Southeast Experience
American Flood Coalition announces that Matthew Rowland joins the nonpartisan coalition as Policy Manager and Liz Cassin joins as Senior Outreach Associate
The American Flood Coalition today announced new additions to its policy and state and local outreach teams. Matthew Rowland joins from the Office of U.S. Representative Al Green (D-TX), where he served as Legislative Director, and Liz Cassin joins from the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, where she served as Southern Outreach Director and led the organization’s advocacy across Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
“Matthew and Liz bring robust experience with moving impactful legislation through the current Congress and with working on-the-ground with affected communities,” said Melissa Roberts, Executive Director of the American Flood Coalition. “The addition of their unique backgrounds and diverse experiences to our team makes us a stronger, more agile organization as we address the urgent challenges posed by flooding and sea level rise.”
Rowland joins the American Flood Coalition as its Policy Manager. He previously served as the Legislative Director for U.S. Representative Al Green, overseeing his Homeland Security and Emergency Management portfolios. In addition, Rowland previously served as a Legislative Aide for House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY), where he worked on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations efforts.
“Matthew saw firsthand the policy challenges that Houston communities experienced as they struggled to rebuild and adapt following unprecedented flooding from Hurricane Harvey,” said Roberts. “As we continue our work to help communities prepare for, and recover from, flood disasters, Matthew’s experience with federal programs, like the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program, will strengthen our efforts to bring about thoughtful, proactive policy improvements.”
Cassin joins the American Flood Coalition as its Senior Outreach Associate. She previously served as the Southern Outreach Director for the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, where she led that organization’s advocacy in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. In this role, Cassin worked closely with Members of Congress, Congressional candidates, and community leaders. In addition, Cassin previously served as a Staff Assistant in the Washington office of U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ).
“Liz’s years of experience working with elected officials and community leaders will help our team to broaden member engagement efforts and expand our presence across the Southeast and Gulf Coast states”, said Roberts. “As more communities look for guidance to address the challenges of more frequent flooding, we will be ready to provide them with the tools, resources, and guidance they need.”
The addition of Rowland and Cassin comes at a time when the American Flood Coalition team is expanding to meet the needs of communities at risk of flooding. In addition to these two new team members, the American Flood Coalition recently brought on five advisors, Laurel Blatchford; Joyce Coffee; Lindsey Holman; Chuck Porcari; and Chauncia Willis.
About the American Flood Coalition
The American Flood Coalition is a nonpartisan group of cities, elected officials, military leaders, businesses, and civic groups that have come together to drive adaptation to the reality of higher seas, stronger storms, and more frequent flooding through national solutions that support flood-affected communities and protect our nation’s residents, economy, and military installations. The Coalition has over 200 members across 17 states.
Cities, towns, elected officials, businesses, and local leaders wishing to join the American Flood Coalition or read more about the organization’s work can visit the Coalition’s website (www.floodcoalition.org) to find out more.
