Leaders in Environmental Justice, Labor, Green Finance, and Climate Policy Join the CGC Board
Washington, DC— The Coalition for Green Capital proudly announces the election of four new members to its board of directors: Julie Greene Collier, William G. Demas, David J. Hayes, and Cecilia Martinez. Reed Hundt, CEO and Chairman of the Board stated, “We are honored to welcome four distinguished individuals to our board of directors. They will play a critical role in our governance, not only in conjunction with our applications for funding under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund but also in managing any awards we may receive from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).”
Julie Greene Collier, Chief of Staff of the AFL-CIO said, “I am pleased to bring the labor perspective directly into board decision-making. I look forward to expanding our organized workforce, needed to implement CGC’s vision and focus on underserved and low-income communities.”
William G. Demas, Head of Green Investments, Americas, Macquarie Asset Management, said, “I am honored to join the CGC board. I look forward to applying my almost two decades of green investing experience to ensure the prudent management of any EPA capitalization grant.”
David J. Hayes who returned to the CGC board after serving in the White House as Special Assistant to the President for Climate Policy and who served as the Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer at the U.S. Department of the Interior in two previous administrations, reflected on the remarkable progress made in building a national network for clean energy investment during his absence. He said, “I am very pleased to rejoin the CGC board. I am not only impressed by the progress and national network built since my departure but also am hopeful that tens of billions of dollars of additional clean power investment, focused on low-income and disadvantaged communities, lies in the immediate future of CGC.”
Cecilia Martinez, the Chief of Environmental and Climate Justice at Bezos Earth Fund, said, “It is with a sense of excitement and hope that I join the CGC board. In my experience in environmental and climate justice, including serving as the Senior Director for Environmental Justice at the White House Council on Environmental Quality in the Biden Administration, I know firsthand the need for tens of billions of dollars in investments for vulnerable and overburdened communities. This is essential to deliver a just transition to the new clean power economy.”
The Coalition for Green Capital is thrilled to introduce these four exceptional leaders who have joined the board of directors before the forthcoming Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund application submission. With their expertise spanning environmental justice, labor advocacy, effective administration of governmental funding, and green finance, these new board members will play a pivotal role in building a sustainable and equitable future.
About the Coalition for Green Capital
The Coalition for Green Capital (CGC), operating as the American Green Bank Consortium, is a 501(c)(3) organization specifically chartered to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, combat other forms of air pollution, and address climate and energy-related environmental injustice. Green banks are a proven finance model that utilizes public and philanthropic funds to mobilize private investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and other decarbonization technologies. For over a decade, the Coalition for Green Capital has been at the forefront of the Green Bank movement, collaborating at the federal, state, and local levels in the U.S. and internationally. Learn more at https://coalitionforgreencapital.com.
William Demas, Senior Managing Director & Head of Americas, MAM Green Investments
William G. Demas is Senior Managing Director & Head of Americas, MAM Green Investments, within Macquarie Asset Management. William re-joined Macquarie from Stonepeak Partners, where he was instrumental in leading the firm’s American renewable energy and energy transition investment activities. Prior to Stonepeak, he spearheaded and led Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners in the Americas. Prior to CIP, William was a senior member of Macquarie Capital’s renewable energy principal and investment and advisory team and spent the early part of his career at Good Energies, one of the first dedicated clean technology venture funds. He began his career at Lazard, as a founding member of its’ Clean Technology and Renewable Energy advisory business. William received a Bachelors Degree from Harvard University.
Julie Greene Collier, Chief of Staff, American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)
Julie Greene Collier is the chief of staff of the American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) under the Shuler-Redmond administration. In this capacity, she is responsible for the alignment of mission and focus around the Federation’s issue agenda and operations. She is also responsible for helping to activate unions, their workers and allies in fights for higher wages, decent benefits and a voice at work so all working people can enjoy a better life. Julie has over 16 years of experience in various roles with the AFL-CIO, including running its political and mobilization member apparatus.
In 2021, Julie served in the Biden administration in the Executive Office of the President at the United States Trade Representative’s office as assistant United States trade representative for public engagement. In that capacity she was primarily responsible for executing Ambassador Katherine Tai’s vision of moving forward worker-centered trade policy and focus among external stakeholders.
Julie has also held several senior-level positions at the Democratic National Committee including Director of the Office of the Secretary, which was responsible for the certification and roll call of states of the 2016 Democrac Convenon’s 8k delegates; and Director of the Office of DNC leadership working in close coordination with the Commitee’s national officers. With a professional background rooted in the grassroots, Julie has spent a dedicated amount of time working in the field at every level including working on campaigns, and running national campaign trainings for allies.
Julie is a native of Cleveland, OH and lives in northern Virginia with her husband, two children and English bulldog, “Honey.”
David J. Hayes, Senior Fellow, Natural Resources Defense Council
David J. Hayes is a Lecturer in Law at Stanford Law School and a Senior Fellow at the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Hayes served as Special Assistant to the President for Climate Policy from January 20, 2021 until October 2022. As a senior member of President Biden’s White House Climate Policy Office, Hayes assisted in developing and implementing national climate policy in three principal areas: reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change—with a special focus on reducing methane emissions and deploying nature-based climate solutions; accelerating the transition to a clean energy economy—with a special focus on successful permitting of clean energy projects (e.g., offshore wind; transmission); and organizing the Biden Administration’s whole-of-government strategy to improve resilience to climate-related disasters.
Prior to joining the White House, Hayes was a climate policy advisor for the Biden-Harris Transition and, from 2017 to 2021, was the founder and Executive Director of the State Energy & Environmental Impact Center at the NYU School of Law, where he worked with state attorneys general to advance climate, environmental and clean energy laws and policies.
Hayes served as the Senate-confirmed Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer at the U.S. Department of the Interior for Presidents Barack Obama (2009-2013) and Bill Clinton (1998-2001). At the Interior Department, Hayes co-chaired the Secretary’s Energy and Climate Change Task Force, where he led efforts to accelerate the development of renewable energy on public lands and offshore waters and directed the Interior’s climate change adaptation strategy, including the formation of Landscape Conservation Cooperatives and regional Climate Science Centers. Hayes also played the lead role in settling the long-standing Cobell Indian trust litigation and overseeing the implementation of the $3.4 billion Cobell settlement, including the $1.9 billion dollar buy-back program to return fractionated lands to tribal control. He was the first Administration official dispatched to the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and had overall responsibility for the Department’s internal regulatory and cleanup response actions and for coordinating with Administration principals and BP executives during the spill and its aftermath. In 2012 and 2013, Hayes engaged deeply in international wildlife protection initiatives, including developing the Obama Administration’s anti-trafficking initiative relating to the African elephant and rhinoceros poaching crisis. When serving as Deputy Secretary in the Clinton Administration, Hayes negotiated the acquisition of the Headwaters Forest in northern California (the largest remaining old-growth redwood forest in the U.S.) and played a principal role in negotiating major water settlements in the Colorado River basin and the California Bay-Delta.
Before and between his time in government, Hayes was a lecturer in law at Stanford Law School; a partner and Global Chair of the Environment, Land & Resources Department at Latham & Watkins; and Chair of the Board of the Environmental Law Institute. Hayes is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and Stanford Law School.
Dr. Cecilia Martinez, Chief of Environmental and Climate Justice, Bezos Earth Fund
Dr. Cecilia Martinez is the Chief of Environmental and Climate Justice at the Bezos Earth Fund. Cecilia joined the Earth Fund after serving as the Senior Director for Environmental Justice at the White House Council on Environmental Quality in the Biden Administration. In this role, she helped to establish a whole of government approach to equitable climate and environmental policy. Before this, Cecilia served as the Executive Director of the Center for Earth, Energy, and Democracy where she helped launch the Equitable and Just Climate Forum. She has directed numerous projects at the local, state, and national levels. She received her B.S. from Stanford University, MPA from New Mexico State University, and Ph.D. from the University of Delaware.