Jennifer DeCesaro is a Nonresident Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where she focuses on resilience and the U.S. disaster response and recovery system.
Prior to joining Carnegie, Jennifer served as Senior Advisor to the Director of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Grid Deployment Office, leading strategic planning efforts focused on mitigating risks to critical energy infrastructure, supporting disaster-impacted communities in rebuilding their energy systems, and strengthening coordination across DOE and other federal agencies.
From March 2021 through January 2025, Jennifer held multiple roles on the staff of the White House National Security Council (NSC), including as Senior Director for Resilience. In this role, she led development of the first U.S. National Resilience Strategy and helped coordinate federal response efforts to major disasters, including the Maui wildfires, the Palisades and Eaton fires, and Hurricanes Fiona, Helene, and Milton. She also coordinated U.S. government resilience efforts at NATO, including organizing the first scenario-based discussion for members of the Resilience Committee.
Before moving to the NSC, Jennifer served as the inaugural Director for Recovery and Critical Energy Infrastructure in DOE’s Office of Electricity, where she led the Department’s long-term energy sector recovery efforts in the United States, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and developed the Defense Critical Electric Infrastructure program to enhance the security and resilience of energy assets supporting critical defense facilities.
Earlier in her career, Jennifer worked at the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in
Abu Dhabi, coordinating technical assistance and advisory support for governments and regional
energy organizations, and held multiple roles at DOE, including Director of the Technology-to-Market Program in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Special Advisor for Renewable Energy and Transmission in the Secretary of Energy’s Office, and Market Transformation Lead for the SunShot Initiative. She also previously served as a senior analyst at Exeter Associates, a Project Director for the Clean Energy Group, and an energy policy specialist for the National Conference of State Legislatures.
She holds a B.A. in Environmental Biology from Colorado College and a Master’s degree in
Environmental Law from Vermont Law School