For Immediate Release May 16, 2011 Media Contacts: Nicole Catalano, Communications Manager ncatalano@pacificenvironment.org 415-399-8850 x316 Leah Zimmerman, Interim Executive Director lzimmerman@pacificenvironment.org 510-495-4923
Pacific Environment Announces New Executive Director SAN FRANCISCO—Alex Levinson has been appointed Executive Director of Pacific Environment, a nonprofit organization that protects the environment of the Pacific Rim by promoting grassroots activism, strengthening local communities, and reforming international policies. Pacific Environment will introduce Alex to supporters and colleagues at a public Open House on June 9, 2011. B.J. Chisholm, chair of the organization's Board of Directors, said, "We are thrilled to welcome Alex to Pacific Environment and look forward to working with him as we engage and support communities around the Pacific Rim. Alex brings tremendous leadership experience and vision to Pacific Environment's work." Alex Levinson is a 20-year veteran of the Sierra Club, where he built its Environmental Law Program into one of the nation’s most effective tools to protect the environment and communities from coal, oil, and gas industry activities; protect forests and endangered species; and promote civil society development and government transparency. Under his leadership, the Sierra Club challenged the secret meetings held by the Dick Cheney Energy Task Force, drilling plans for the Arctic, and the environmental deficiencies of the North American Free Trade Agreement. More recently, Alex has turned his attention to promoting clean energy solutions to replace our fossil-fuel dominated energy system.
Alex Levinson, new Executive Director, Pacific Environment
“I’m very excited to join an organization with such strong, community-based program work to protect the environment and ecology of the Pacific Rim,” said Alex Levinson. “I can see that this organization is asking just the right strategic questions about how to effectively expand its work to strengthen communities and protect the environment.”
Alex plans to continue and build on Pacific Environment’s substantial track record of environmental victories in Russia and Alaska. He also brings to Pacific Environment significant international perspective, including experience working on international trade issues, and teaching law and networking with local NGOs in China. Prior to joining the Sierra Club, Alex worked on political campaigns in California. He earned his bachelor’s degree at Harvard College and his Juris Doctor at Stanford Law School. Alex and his wife Kim seek to share their love of backpacking, camping, and traveling with their children, Paul, 14 years old, and Eleanor, 10 years old, both of whom attend San Francisco public schools. Alex and Kim share a special affection for the northern California coast, where they were married, and the Sierra Nevada, where Alex enjoys spending time. “I became active in the environmental movement because I was upset by the ongoing threat to our natural heritage caused by extractive industries, and I’ve focused more recently on clean energy solutions to many of those threats,” added Alex. “Pacific Environment’s focus on local communities, wildlife ecology, and financial leverage offers a path that weaves together these threads in an effective way.” Alex succeeds David Gordon, who now serves as Senior Environmental Program Officer at the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation in Minneapolis. For a full biography, photos, and other press information, please go to www.pacificenvironment.org/alexlevinson. To set up interviews, or for additional materials, please contact Nicole Catalano, 415-399-8850 x316. About Pacific Environment Pacific Environment (www.pacificenvironment.org) is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco that protects the living environment of the Pacific Rim by promoting grassroots activism, strengthening communities, and reforming international policies. For over two decades, we have partnered with local communities around the Pacific Rim to protect and preserve the ecological treasures of this vital region. Please visit www.pacificenvironment.org to learn more about our work. ###