The main focus of her recent work is on developing ecological models including estimates of the flow of environmental services under different management regimes in marine systems worldwide. Ruckelshaus serves on the boards of the Wild Salmon Center and the William D. Ruckelshaus Center, and is a past chair of the Science Advisory Board of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS). She is a past Trustee of The Nature Conservancy's Worldwide Board of Directors and past Chair of the The Nature Conservancy of Washington's Board. She was Chief Scientist for the Puget Sound Partnership, a public-private institution charged with achieving recovery of the Puget Sound terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems.