The Sierra Club's national board of directors has elected officers for the upcoming board term 2015 to 2016. Aaron Mair of Schenectady, N.Y., was elected as president. Mair, the Sierra Club’s first African-American president, has been working for environmental justice in New York for over three decades. One of Mair’s goals as president is to make diversity, equity, and inclusion real within the Sierra Club, including its grassroots.
"Nature is the great equalizer. Nature knows no difference between black and white. The biggest challenge the environmental movement faces today is transcending class, gender, and the racial divide so we can come together on climate, both domestically and internationally," Mair said. "Conservation isn't about climate deniers; it's about the people bringing about change. The climate movement isn't about politicians; it's about the grassroots. That’s why I’m so pleased to blaze this new trail for the Sierra Club."
The board of directors is elected by Sierra Club members and serves the organization's 2.4 million members and supporters. As president, Mair will continue to work with volunteer leaders and Sierra Club staff to protect and restore the quality of the natural and human environment. Mair began his activism 31 years ago, organizing the residents of Arbor Hill, New York against a toxics incinerator that was causing respiratory illnesses in the community, including two of his daughters.
"This is a historic moment for the Sierra Club,” said Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club. “Aaron Mair and the rest of the newly elected officers will lead the Sierra Club in the direction our organization and the climate movement need to go. With their leadership, we’re making progress toward becoming an organization that empowers everyone affected by climate disruption, including those on the front lines of environmental injustice."
Other newly announced officers are Robin Mann of Pennsylvania (vice president), Susana Reyes of California (secretary), Loren Blackford of New York (returning treasurer) and Liz Walsh of Texas (fifth officer), making up the executive committee of the national board of directors. New or re-elected directors are Spencer Black of Wisconsin, Liz Walsh, Allison Chin of Virginia, Steve Ma of California, and Margrete Strand Rangnes of Washington, D.C.