Adam Bingman, adam.bingman@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, DC - Joanne Spalding is the Sierra Club’s new Environmental Law Program Director.
In this role, Spalding will lead the Sierra Club’s team of 66 ELP staffers, working in close and strategic collaboration with other departments to advance campaign goals for clean air, clean water, and healthier communities.
Previously, as Chief Climate Counsel for Sierra Club, Spalding litigated cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and various appellate and state supreme courts on climate-related issues, and Joanne has also worked in countless other ways to use legal tactics to advance the Sierra Club’s top national campaigns for more than a quarter of a century.
Her decades of experience include litigation that pushed forward standards for clean transportation, cleaning up power plants, methane standards for oil and gas operations, stopping new coal plants, and mitigating air pollution from highways.
Her work defending some of the nation’s bedrock environmental regulations was covered by Rolling Stone in a piece titled “Meet the Lawyers Beating Back Trump’s Reckless Environmental Policies — and Winning.”
“Joanne is a rockstar litigator, trailblazer and dedicated leader in the field of environmental law. We did a months-long comprehensive national search with an internal committee and the MarlinHawk search firm. We simply could not find anyone with the depth and breadth of experience and heart than Joanne Spalding,” said Leslie Fields, Sierra Club’s National Director, Policy Advocacy and Legal. “Her legal victories have wide-reaching benefits for all people who benefit from a livable climate and healthy communities. We are so excited to have her leadership at the helm of our organization’s fantastic team of lawyers and staff.”
“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to lead Sierra Club’s outstanding team of legal professionals in advancing our work to protect communities and the planet from harmful pollution and climate change,” said Joanne Spalding, Sierra Club Environmental Law Program Director. “By combining strategic campaigns, robust organizing, and effective communications with smart litigation, Sierra Club is poised to transform our current fossil fuel dependence to a clean, renewable energy economy that provides opportunities and benefits for everyone.”
ABOUT JOANNE:
In her most recent role as Acting ELP Director and Chief Climate Counsel, she oversaw Sierra Club litigation nationwide, managed Sierra Club’s federal and state climate litigation and regulatory work, and served as lead counsel for Sierra Club in litigation arising from EPA's greenhouse gas rules. She received her B.A. from Northwestern University and her J.D. from the University of California's Hastings College of the Law. She clerked for the Honorable Melvin Brunetti of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.