Loren Blackford

Loren Blackford is the President of the Sierra Club Board and former chair of the Sierra Club Foundation Board. She works toward a fast, fair and just transition to a clean energy economy through philanthropy, electoral work, political advocacy, and impact investing. In particular, she focuses on the role of communities in protecting clean air, water, nature and democracy and dealing with the catastrophic impacts of climate change.

Loren spent a decade working in community development, first with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, a non-profit that supports community-based organizations as they revitalize low-income neighborhoods. Later she advised Living Cities, a coalition of foundations, financial institutions and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, on incorporating a green agenda into their community development funding, primarily through building energy-efficiency, transportation-oriented development and good, green jobs.

With the UN Non-Governmental Liaison Service and the Quaker UN Office, Loren supported Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), largely from developing countries, as they participated in UN events, including the first Earth Summit. Loren has continued to represent and support civil society at the Paris Summit and other global climate events. She published a book chapter on the role of NGOs in international environmental negotiations, recognizing the key part they play in increasing ambition, ensuring accountability and enacting change.

Loren serves on the board of the political action committee of Rachel’s Network, a coalition of women environmental donors named for Rachel Carson. She previously served on the advisory board of the National Wildlife Federation and the board of the Friends of the High School for Environmental Studies.

Loren graduated from the Harvard Kennedy School and Oberlin College. She lives in New York City with her husband and two teenagers. She publishes a blog: Power to Change.