YEO Policy Academies Clean Energy & Environmental Justice Pol. Academy

Detailed Agenda SATURDAY « FEBRUARY 20, 2016 12:30 PM – 2:00 PM LUNCH PLENARY CLIMATE FIGHTS AT THE GRASSROOTS: “CRACKING BIG COAL” Moving “Beyond Coal” has been a well-organized and strategic campaign for clean energy—and it’s winning. We will hear from movement leader Mary Anne Hitt about some of the greatest victories over dirty energy, even in more conservative, coal-burning states. Mary Anne Hitt Sierra Club Mary Anne Hitt is director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign, which is working to eliminate coal pollution, stop climate disruption, and repower the nation with clean energy. In 2015 she was named as one of the POLITICO 50, POLITICO’s list of the “thinkers, doers, and visionaries transforming American politics.” Hitt was listed in 2013 by the Washingtonian as part of “The New Guard: People Who are Shaping Washington” in Obama’s second term, and was named one of the 10 most influential people of 2013 by SNL Energy. In 2014, Hitt and the Beyond Coal Campaign were featured in the Emmy-winning Showtime climate series “Years of Living Dangerously.” She previously served as executive director of Appalachian Voices and other grassroots organizations. She received an M.S. from the University of Montana and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee, where she later received the 2008 Notable UT Woman Award. 2:15 PM – 3:45 PM A CLEAN POWER PLAN FOR ALL COMMUNITIES Aliya Haq Natural Resources Defense Council Aliya Haq is the deputy director of NRDC’s Clean Power Plan Initiative. She coordinates NRDC’s advocacy work to reduce carbon pollution from power plants, including federal and state level efforts. Prior to joining NRDC, Haq was a field director and a climate researcher at Greenpeace USA. She began her career as a grassroots organizer with the Sierra Club and the California Public Interest Research Group. Haq graduated from Yale University with a master’s degree in environmental management, where she worked with the Yale Project on Climate Communication. She also served as a communications coordinator with the U.S. Global Change Research Program. Haq holds a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in environmental sociology. Clean Energy & Environmental Justice Policy Academy | 2016 President Obama’s Clean Power Plan has been called a “game changer” and an historic step to reduce carbon emissions from power plants for the first time. This panel will discuss the opportunities and the challenges in meeting state targets, as well as the role environmental justice advocates can play in improving the plans. 19

YEO Policy Academies Clean Energy & Environmental Justice Pol. Academy | Page 21