Sierra Club has elected a new national Board of Directors for the upcoming board term, 2020-2021 and tapped Ramón Cruz of Puerto Rico as President, becoming the first Latino President in the organization’s 128-year history.
Sierra Club’s National Board of Directors is democratically elected by members and serves the organization's 3.8 million members and supporters.
Cruz has over 20 years of experience and advocacy at the intersection of sustainability, environmental and energy policy, urban planning, and climate change. He has worked in the public sector as the Deputy Director of the state environmental regulatory agency in Puerto Rico and held senior positions at the Environmental Defense Fund, Partnership for New York City and Institute for Transportation and Development Policy.
“I recognize that my term comes during the enormously difficult and unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic, as well as during the dark threat to the environment of the Trump administration. While the challenges we face are daunting, the magnitude of our response must meet the moment with a responsibility to ensure that we advocate effectively for policies that put front and center protecting the most vulnerable among us.”
Cruz’s top priorities as President include:
~ Advancing the Sierra Club’s movement toward equity and justice, especially by ensuring that the organization is an inclusive space for all people to contribute to a safe environment and working in partnership with local groups nationwide.
In a July letter to members and following up on Executive Director Michael Brune’s comments about revisiting our primarily white history, Cruz said “we'll be creating a space for open and honest discussion of this work through a series of panel discussions and town halls,” notably via a “Ask Us Anything Forum.”
~ Doubling down on the organization’s work to defeat the anti-environmental agenda of the Trump administration and the fleet of industry lobbyists he has put in charge.
Hear Cruz speak on how the virus “has exposed major inequalities in America”
And here is a Q&A about his vision for the club’s future.
