Building Political Power
For Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, the bad news is that the national unemployment rate is still hovering around nine percent. But the good news -- that the green economy outperformed the nation during the recession -- stands to make her job a whole lot easier. Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of the Oakland-based nonprofit Green For All, took over leadership of the organization from its founder. Her experience working in California’s labor movement makes her a rarity in the country’s environmental movement today.
For Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, the bad news is that the national unemployment rate is still hovering around nine percent. But the good news -- that the green economy outperformed the nation during the recession -- stands to make her job a whole lot easier. Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of the Oakland-based nonprofit Green For All, took over leadership of the organization from its founder, Van Jones, when he was called to the White House to serve as President Obama’s special advisor on green jobs. Her experience working in California’s labor movement -- she led the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council and Working Partnerships USA -- makes her a rarity in the country’s environmental movement today.
Under her leadership, Green For All has left its mark on policies at the national, state, and municipal levels, from California to Washington, D.C. Notably, it helped get the Green Jobs Act of 2007 through Congress. Most recently, Green For All released “Water Works,” a report calling on legislators across the United States to renew their investment in water and wastewater infrastructure. Such an investment, the organization predicts, would generate 1.9 million jobs and $265 billion in economic activity.
