Kristen Herbert serves as the Senior Advisor for Advancement at the Children’s Environmental Health Network (CEHN), where she leads strategic partnerships and donor engagement to advance the organization’s mission of ensuring all children grow up in safe and healthy environments.

Kristen’s lifelong passion for children’s environmental health was sparked when she helped open the nation’s first healthy child development facility—an award-winning campus that removed or greatly reduced six classes of harmful chemicals through sustainable design and material selection. As Director of Development and later Interim Executive Director at the Helen R. Walton Children’s Enrichment Center, she successfully directed the Center’s $17.5 million capital campaign to build this groundbreaking facility—an achievement that has become a national model for sustainable, health-conscious early learning environments. Her leadership also helped the organization earn NAEYC Accreditation+, the highest distinction in early childhood education.

She went on to design and implement a national model program promoting healthier early learning environments through policy, research, and education—cementing her role as a strong advocate for children’s environmental health. Kristen also authored the Growing Up Healthy Guide, a resource that translates environmental health science into practical, accessible guidance—empowering parents to make informed choices that reduce environmental risks in their homes.

With more than 14 years of experience in advancement and nonprofit leadership, Kristen holds a Bachelor of Science from Virginia Tech, certificates in Healthier Materials + Sustainable Building and Graphic Design from Parsons School of Design, and a certificate in Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles from Harvard University.

A mother of two, Kristen is deeply committed to creating a healthier, more equitable world for all children—one environment at a time.