Mallory Rutigliano:
I would like to thank the NYC Group nominating committee and the membership for the opportunity to be a candidate for the Executive Committee this year.
I have been motivated and excited by all the work happening across New York, which I’ve been able to see firsthand during my two terms on the Atlantic Chapter executive committee and would be eager to contribute to further in my home of New York City. Four and a half years ago, I was lucky enough to join the Chapter’s Hudson River Committee, to consider issues facing the River and surrounding areas. I currently chair the committee, working on issues related to pollution, sea-level rise, and estuary protection, including coordinating action with a multi-organization regional coalition. I chair the Chapter’s education committee, for which we are rolling out an environmental justice youth engagement program, our Student Environmental Action Society.
Additionally, I have been able to act as New York’s delegate for the national Sierra Club Council of Club Leaders, for which I newly serve as Secretary of the Executive Committee. I have been working on soil health issues with the Chapter’s Farm and Food Committee and recently joined fellow Sierra members from across the country in Washington DC to advocate for conservation funding in the upcoming Farm Bill.
I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and Psychology and a Master’s in Environmental Science and Policy. I currently work on climate resiliency in New York City and previously worked on several research studies on women and minority populations’ health, and for three years conducted industry research on sustainable finance, green bonds, fossil fuel divestment, and climate finance disclosure regulation among other topics. I am particularly passionate about informing policy with science, providing young individuals with an outlet for environmental action, and creating a sustainable food system.
Jason Dragseth:
I have been a member of the Sierra Club since 2017. Over the last two years, I’ve devoted increasing amounts of time to Sierra Club activities. I am on the NYC Group’s Political Committee and have been co-leading the club’s endorsements for the 2023 City Council elections as well as co-ordinating follow on activities such as phone banking and door knocking in support our endorsed candidates. A second project that I took on in the Spring is co-leading activities for the Sierra Club’s NYC Clean Energy Team and spearheading a legislator education project. The education project is an initiative aimed at educating New York State lawmakers based in New York City about our state’s clean energy transition. Our team is in the process of meeting with a select group of eight Assemblymembers. Consistent with the Sierra Club’s core values of democratic governance and grassroots activism, we are reaching out to Sierra Club members who live in the eight assembly districts to inform them about the project and recruit them to join us in the meetings with their representatives. Our hope is that the combination of education and community support will empower the Assemblymembers to take the actions necessary to achieve New York’s clean energy mandates.
In my work with the Political Committee and the Clean Energy Team, I am excited by the opportunity to positively affect environmental policy and engage Sierra Club members in the club’s work. If elected to the Executive Committee, I will seek to elevate member engagement as a strategic priority. I will continue to use our work on the Political Committee and the Clean Energy Team to increase member engagement. I also would like the NYC Group to do outings. Outings present an excellent opportunity to increase member engagement and do so in a way that is fun and inspirational.
Regina Cornwell:
Regina Cornwell is an editor and writer. She has been involved with the Climate Crisis for well over a decade. In addition to her current role as a member of Damascus Citizens for Sustainability, she is an active member of the Sierra Club, New York City Ex-Com Committee. In her Sierra Club role she is editor of the newsletter, with plans to publish it more frequently and to make it a space where ideas for climate and related actions can be presented and will be followed through. She is eager to continue to serve on the Ex-Com Committee and to work on new ideas and projects to benefit a stronger and safer country and world.
Alexander Francis:
In my three years with the NYC chapter I have worked with the Political Committee, Sustainable Finance committee and most recently served as Secretary of the Chapter executive committee in 2022 & 2023.
Professionally, I work in debt capital markets focusing on financing utility, infrastructure and renewable power projects. By combining my interests in conservation and new climate technologies with my experiences in infrastructure/project finance I believe that I have a unique set of experiences that may be different, but complimentary, to the backgrounds of other Sierra Club members.
Personally, I like to play in the dirt and have been re-foresting a part of my parents farm in North Carolina by planting 100 trees / year since 2020 via the NCFS seedling program.
I appreciate that the NYC chapter of the Sierra Club brings together people of a variety of backgrounds and I look forward to furthering the shared goal of solving the existential environmental issues we face.
Kevin Costa:
I hope to continue bringing to the NYC Group Executive Committee (ExCom) a breath of experience.
As a resident of Greenpoint, an environmental justice community, I advocate for a cleaner, healthier, and safer community. As co-chair of the North Brooklyn Transportation Alternatives committee, I lead a group of volunteers that advocates for open space, sustainable ways of getting around our city via bike lanes and public transportation, and reducing car dependency. As a member of Brooklyn Community Board 1’s Environmental Committee and as Treasurer of the board of North Brooklyn Neighbors, a local non profit, I represent the community's concerns of regarding contaminated site cleanups and other issues relating to the environment.
The New York City area, is susceptible flooding, harsher storms, and erratic weather due to climate change. On the ExCom committee would support actions to mitigate the impacts of climate change and support actions to stop climate change from occurring. I believe we need to continue to fight for legislation like the Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV) for NYC bill, and the full implementation of the mandates of the legislation like the CLCPA.
Thanks!
Kevin Costa
Wayne Arden:
I was elected to the Executive Committee in 2021; I am running for reelection. Although an extensive team effort involving Karl Palmquist and many others, I was the driving force behind the ZEV for NYC Act, which we proposed to CM Rivera and CM Powers. Working with a colleague from the Union of Concerned Scientists, I negotiated the purchasing and deployment deadlines and other aspects of the bill with NYC Council attorneys and the administration. On September 28, the NYC Council voted 47-0 in favor of the bill. Mayor Adams signed it into law on October 23. The ZEV for NYC Act is the most ambitious municipal bill of its kind in the U.S.; the Sierra Club will now attempt to persuade other cities to follow NYC’s lead. Passage of this bill is the greatest success the Sierra Club has had in NYC for quite some time.
I have an MBA in finance and an MS in applied math (Columbia University). To the maximum degree possible, our decision making should be based on scientific evidence and reason. I look forward to working again with colleagues on the Committee, leveraging the Sierra Club’s strong brand, to advance sustainability in New York.
Best,
Wayne