Dr. Sabine O'Hara is Dean and Director of Landgrant Programs of the College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences (CAUSES) at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), which is the only public university in Washington DC, and the only exclusively urban landgrant university in the United States. As Dean of CAUSES, Dr. O’Hara is responsible for academic, research and community outreach programs in the tradition of landgrant universities, and is leading the University’s efforts to build a cutting edge model for urban agriculture and urban sustainability that improves the quality of life and economic opportunity for urban populations.
     
Dr. O’Hara is a respected author, researcher and higher education executive, and is well known for her expertise in sustainable economic development, global education and executive leadership. She has experience in virtually every aspect of university administration including curriculum development, strategic planning, program accreditation, participatory research, and international partnerships.
 
Dr. O'Hara is a strong advocate of higher education who believes that education cannot merely provide answers to our questions, but must also question our answers. She is the founder and principal of Global Ecology LLC, the 10th President of Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, and held faculty and administrative positions at: Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota; Green Mountain College, Poultney, Vermont; Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York; and as Executive Director of the Council for International Exchange of Scholars, a preeminent international exchange organization that administers the Fulbright Scholar Program.  
 
A native of Germany, Dr. O'Hara earned a doctorate in environmental economics and a master's degree in agricultural economics from the University of Göttingen. She serves on the board of directors of several national and international organizations including as President of the International Society for Ecological Economics, and as editorial board member of several academic journals.