Christine Ervin's career as an environmental leader spans executive positions
in both national and state government as well as in the nonprofit sector. As
the President and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council, she led its growth
from 200 members and three staff in 1999 to become a highly influential
coalition of nearly 5,000 companies and organizations, 50 staff, and 70 local
chapters and affiliates. Over her five-year tenure, the Council launched the
LEED' green building rating system - the nation's de facto voluntary green
building standard - and the Greenbuild international conference and expo.
In the public arena, Ervin was appointed by President Clinton to serve as
Assistant Secretary of Energy for the $1 billion portfolio of clean energy
technologies affecting the transportation, buildings, and industrial sectors.
High-impact initiatives included the EPA-DOE ENERGY STAR partnership, Million
Solar Roofs, and numerous technology, climate change, and market-focused
programs. Ervin also directed the Oregon Department of Energy, led a Governor's
task force on livable communities, oversaw budget policy for the State of
Missouri, and conducted policy analyses at The Conservation Foundation and the
World Wildlife Fund.
Having given hundreds of speeches over the last fifteen years, she is
nationally recognized for blending a wealth of knowledge about environmental
policies with both inspiration and humor, and she is widely cited in both the
popular and trade press. She speaks on issues related to energy and
environmental policy, emerging markets, green buildings, and opportunities for
accelerating change.
Frequent topics include:
-High performance green buildings: the market, the business case, exceptional
projects (and people), it's impact beyond bricks and mortar.
-Clean energy: the special case of energy, lessons learned, what's right and
wrong with governmental policy; today's exciting coming-of-age markets.
-Climate change: the challenge and opportunity of our lifetimes.
-The power of a positive vision in accelerating sustainable markets.
