The Massachusetts Chapter of the Sierra Club announced the appointment of four new board members to its Executive Leadership Committee.
Joining the board for the first time are Kannan Thiruvengadam of East Boston, Yanisa Techagumthorn of Cambridge, Jenny Daniell of Leverett, and Arthur Desloges of Plymouth. Additionally, Celia Doremus of Arlington was re-elected to a second term on the committee. The newly elected members come from a wide variety of professional and organizing backgrounds.
We are thrilled to welcome Kannan, Yanisa, Jenny, and Arthur to our Executive Committee this year and excited that Celia will continue her tenure on the board,” said Deb Pasternak, Sierra Club Massachusetts Chapter Director. “Their collective expertise adds strength to our presence and outreach throughout the communities in Massachusetts that are looking to get involved with our efforts educating and working with constituents to protect and restore our environment. The Sierra Club staff and volunteers look forward to working with them. 
Kannan Thiruvengadam grew up in India as a farmer’s son. He currently lives in East Boston, an environmental justice (EJ) and climate justice (CJ) community. He runs Eastie Farm, fostering green spaces that demonstrate regenerative agriculture and community-scale climate solutions. As a member of Friends of Belle Isle Marsh, he works to protect Boston’s largest salt marsh. As part of PUEBLO (People United for East Boston’s Liberation & Organization), he has fought for housing and racial justice. On the Democrtatic State and Ward Committees, he strives to increase affirmative action and state-wide civic engagement. He is also part of RENEW New England (a regional Green New Deal initiative). Kannan believes a just, equitable, and sustainable world is possible, and that we can build it through collaboration.
Yanisa Techagumthorn believes that the climate crisis is inherently tied to many issues, including racial justice, public health, and eco- nomic justice. She ran for the Executive Committee to help shape Sierra Club’s strategy and resources in fighting for a future where everyone can thrive. She brings experience as co-lead of the Sunrise Movement Boston Political Team, where she led on endorsements, state house advocacy, and political education among movement members. She is also a volunteer for the Asian American Resource Workshop, working to improve economic justice for pan-Asian communities. By day, she works as a transportation planner, focused on improving public transit around the country, a major tactic both to alleviate environmental emissions and to connect people to economic opportunities.
Jenny Daniell also serves on the steering committee of one of the largest, most active climate groups in western Massachusetts, Climate Action Now (CAN). She chairs CAN’s legislative committee and is the representative from CAN to Mass Power Forward (MPF), a statewide coalition of organizations, businesses and churches working to pass progressive energy legislation. She has had the privilege of working with members of the MA Sierra Club staff and with volunteers of several campaigns. In her professional life she is an attorney and mediator.
Arthur Desloges and his family have been members in the Sierra Club since 2011. His recent background is in legislative advocacy—lobbying to pass environmental legislation that pushes the Baker Administration to take a more proactive role, and working to break logjams in the Mass House and Senate. He just completed a graduate degree at Tufts University where he focused on public policy, and this past spring, he interned in the MA Statehouse learning how to get legislation passed. He has other advocacy experience working with the Peace Corps, having served in Ghana, and recently with Sierra Club lobbying state legislators. Previously, he was a financial executive at a major bank and has extensive management experience promoting inclusion and diversity.
Celia Doremus has been an active member of the Sierra Club for several years. This will be her second term of the Executive Committee. Her lifelong involvement with environmental concerns began in her home state of Georgia and continues here in Massachusetts. She has worked with the Mass Sierra Club since 2016 on projects tackling climate change, climate justice, biodiversity, and conservation. She is currently an active member of the PAC Team, Energy Committee, and supports development and fundraising efforts.
Current Executive members Ben Pignatelli, Clint Richmond, Vernon K. Walker, and Jenny Lau will continue to serve through 2021. We give thanks for outgoing members Paul Dale, Sue Butler, Daniel Vernick, and Robert Kearns for their service.
Click here for more information about the Chapter's Executive Committee.