2024: New Year, New Heights, New Director

When I first joined Sierra Club California as a policy advocate in 2018, Kathryn Phillips, then-director, entrusted me with the critical task of advocating for wildlife conservation. Specifically I was tasked with addressing the threats facing California’s vital stops along the Pacific Flyway. Climate change, among other factors, imperils the migratory paths of millions of birds seeking to mate, feed, and thrive - whether that be at the Salton Sea or Bay-Delta. As a Policy Advocate for two years, and later as the Director, I took to heart the responsibility of ensuring these feathered travelers could continue their life-affirming journeys.

Much like those resilient birds, the time has come for me to spread my wings and embark on a new journey. For those who might need it spelled out: this will be the last Letter from Sacramento from yours truly. 

Come January 1, 2024, our Associate Director and PhD beluga enthusiast, Jason John, will be guiding the flock as Acting Director. The Sierra Club California personnel committee is undergoing the process to find and hire my successor (keep an eye out for the job posting). 

My time with Sierra Club California has been the highlight of my career. I was just a baby Justice Department lawyer in D.C. when I got the phone call back in 2018 that Kathryn was betting on me. No one could estimate just how much that bet would transform my life over the next 5 years. 

In those first 2 years, I worked with passionate volunteers, staff, and communities to safeguard California’s precious water resources, unique wildlife, and pristine public lands from profit-driven exploitation. Our successes were great — we held both the state and federal administrations accountable for their misguided water management, secured billions for water conservation and efficiency projects, protected thousands of acres of public lands, and ushered in a first-in-the-nation executive order committing California to 30x30. I also got to work with an incredible cadre of advocates to defend California’s landmark environmental law, the California Environmental Quality Act, from unwarranted rollbacks and misinformation. 

Just when I settled into my role and gained confidence, Kathryn saw in me the potential to be her successor, and the powers that be made that transition permanent.

As Director, the number of volunteers I worked with and what we accomplished grew tenfold. It would take me weeks to recount them all. But what I will remember the most is the information and wisdom you all shared with me on topics ranging from PFAS to active transportation to lithium mining to desert tortoises to vegetation management to energy justice. This is knowledge I’ll carry for the rest of my life. I’m known to throw out random facts in conversation, so thank you for that, even if it garners my friends and family annoyance. 

As proud as I am of our collective accomplishments, I must be honest. What I'm most proud of is the Sierra Club California team that your support enabled me to build. I inherited a team of 7, and watched the staff double during my time here. The Sierra Club California staff are a powerhouse team of advocates who embody the Club’s ideals and values, and practices and defends them every day, even when the odds are against us. Simply put, my colleagues are the best of the organization, and I am a better person having had the privilege to work with them. 

But enough tears. As my predecessor wrote in her own swan song, “this organization is in good hands and will continue to be the bold environmental advocacy group it’s been since 1986.” Much of that is thanks to supporters like you. So please keep supporting this team.

So what’s next? I’ll still be doing what I set out to do when I got involved in environmental organizing and advocacy in Texas over a decade ago: protecting vulnerable communities and species from the climate crisis. 

I'm joining a young national environmental justice organization, Just Solutions Collective, to develop and lead their state’s program, resource frontline and BIPOC communities, and help turn their solutions to the climate dangers they face into policy and law at the state level. Although my work will be national in scope, California will always have a large part of my heart (and mind). 

As I reflect on these transformative years with Sierra Club California, I can't help but draw parallels between my journey and the birds along the Pacific Flyway. From my early days of advocating for wildlife conservation to the heights we reached together in promoting clean energy and environmental justice, it has been a flight of purpose.

I am grateful for the wisdom, dedication, and camaraderie of the Sierra Club family. Your support and trust in me allowed us to reach new levels, and I have every confidence that Sierra Club California will continue to soar to even greater heights. 

Sincerely,