The climate crisis threatens the future of life on earth. To help solve it, an energy revolution is moving the world beyond fossil fuels. How, and how fast that revolution happens will determine the future of humanity…

Mission

Driven by the imperative of climate justice, The Sunrise Project’s mission is to scale social movements to drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy as fast as possible.

How we work

The Sunrise Project is a network of changemakers who believe in the power of social movements to change the world. From ending slavery to civil rights to women’s suffrage: social movements have achieved impossible things to make the world a better place. Now, more than ever, we need to nurture and scale powerful movements to solve the climate crisis.

Sitting at the intersection of social movements and philanthropy, we’ve developed a ‘directed network’ model that supports networks of people and organisations to work together to achieve large-scale change that wouldn’t have been possible by individual organisations acting alone.

We essentially do six things:

  • Analysis to understand the political, social and economic systems driving the climate crisis;
  • Strategy design for multi-partner efforts that create systemic change;
  • Partner with philanthropy to resource these strategies;
  • Fund a diversity of organisations and support them to work together for collective impact;
  • Support organisations and movements to sharpen their strategies and build their capacity to achieve real world outcomes; and
  • Drive strategic interventions that will hasten the transition beyond fossil fuels.

Read more about the work of the Sunrise Project

Governance of the Sunrise Project Inc.

The Sunrise Project Inc. operates in accordance with the legal and regulatory framework of the United States. The Sunrise Project Inc.’s financial accounts are audited annually by independent certified accountants. These reports are made publicly available.

The board of The Sunrise Project Inc. is supported by appropriate subcommittees, including a Grants Advisory Committee and ad-hoc subcommittees as required.

You can find our current board members here.

Governance of the Sunrise Project

Sunrise Inc. is a member of the Sunrise Project, a global network of independent organisations that share a common mission and common values. Driven by the imperative of climate justice, the Sunrise Project’s mission is to scale social movements to drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy as fast as possible.

The Sunrise Project is a global network of independent organisations that share a common mission and common values. The Sunrise Project currently comprises:

  • The Sunrise Project Australia Limited (Sunrise Australia), incorporated in Australia > read more here
  • The Sunrise Project International Stichting (Sunrise International) > read more here
  • The Sunrise Project Inc. (Sunrise Inc.), incorporated in the United States

Each organisation is a fully independent legal entity with its own board of experienced Directors, who bring deep expertise across climate change, social movements, law, finance, organisational leadership and governance.

Further information:

People


People

People are our most valuable asset and we’re passionate about nurturing a culture that supports great people to do great work. The diverse and growing team of passionate changemakers are distributed around the world and work with a wide network of partner NGOs to deliver world changing strategies. If you’re interested in joining the team, please keep an eye on our jobs page for future opportunities.

You can see more details the Sunrise Project leaders and staff via the links below.


The Sunrise Project Inc. Board

John Hepburn

Director
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John Hepburn

Director

John is an activist and social entrepreneur with over twenty-five years experience running environmental campaigns. In 2017 he was an inaugural recipient of the Climate Breakthrough Award which was the catalyst for Sunrise scale its work globally. Prior to founding The Sunrise Project in 2012, John spent a decade leading campaigns with Greenpeace and previously worked on a wide variety of environmental campaigns at a grassroots level. He is the founder of several non-profit recycling businesses which led to him being awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2002. John holds degrees in Manufacturing Systems Engineering and Business Management and before becoming an activist, worked for several years as an engineer making components for the oil, gas and coal industries.

Sam La Rocca

Director
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Sam La Rocca

Director

Sam leads the Sunrise Project’s Australian Program. He brings over twenty-five years experience building people powered movements for a socially just and ecologically sane world. Sam holds a multidisciplinary degree in environmental science, and while completing his first class honours thesis on grassroots mobilisation, he co-founded activist education outfit The Change Agency to deliver social movement education, campaign strategy and organising training programs to community groups around Australia and internationally. He’s worked as a senior political advisor in federal parliament and led highly successful electoral campaigns. He has facilitated movement-wide processes for the Climate Action Network Australia and Friends of the Earth International’s Asia Pacific Region; and he has a strong interest in building powerful networks to catalyse system change.

Sudha Nandagopal

Chair of the Board
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Sudha Nandagopal

Chair of the Board

Sudha Nandagopal is a highly regarded organizer, facilitator, strategist, and movement builder focused on democratizing systems of power. Her career includes leadership roles in strategic communications, international organizing, program design, policy creation, and political campaigns. Through this work and her leadership in social, environmental, climate and racial justice organizations, Sudha has developed expertise in multi-sector stakeholder engagement, networks, collaborative problem solving, and building power with communities of color, immigrants, and refugees in the United States.

As Chief Executive Officer of Social Venture Partners International (SVPI), Sudha cultivates and expands a philanthropic network to catalyze more resources to communities around the globe, demonstrate ways for philanthropy to share power and wealth, and build stronger relationships between philanthropists and communities. Under Sudha’s leadership in response to the systemic crises magnified by the COVID 19 pandemic and the renewed global reckoning on racial justice, SVPI launched Reimagine Giving, to inspire donors to become system change advocates. Prior to joining SVP International, Sudha co-founded, in partnership with community leaders, and led the City of Seattle’s Equity & Environment Initiative.

Sudha is a published author and an expert consultant for foundations, local governments, and national environmental organizations. Grist Magazine recognized Sudha as one of their inaugural Grist 50 visionaries who will “lead us to a more sustainable future.” Puget Sound Business Journal recently recognized Sudha as one of the region’s 40 under 40 for her leadership in philanthropy and the social change sector. Sudha holds a degree in Biology and Society from Cornell University which informs her systems thinking and interdisciplinary approach.

Our US Team

Adreyauna

Adreyauna Lewers

Recruiter
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Adreyauna

Adreyauna Lewers

Recruiter

Adreyauna is a recruiting professional with 5+ years of experience as a business owner and career coach. She works with individuals, startups, and nonprofit organizations to amplify their authenticity and empower them to create equitable hiring practices that can be repeated in the future.

Adreyauna’s mission is to make sure that hiring is easier and gentler for the employer and the candidates!

She currently lives in Tennessee, USA where she enjoys trying new food spots, gardening, and spending quality time with her family.

Amanda Starbuck

Program Director
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Amanda Starbuck

Program Director

Amanda has extensive experience in campaigning, network building and organizational change, working for global organisations in Europe, North and South America. Prior to joining the Sunrise Project, Amanda was the programme director for Greenpeace in South America, responsible for setting the strategic direction and priority campaigns across the region. She also led the global finance team at Rainforest Action Network, pressuring the largest U.S. and European banks to address their role in the climate crisis and significantly reduce their financing of environmentally destructive fossil fuel extraction. With a professional background in the renewable energy and forestry sectors, Amanda holds a MA in Environmental Policy and has lectured at Yale, Berkeley and Leeds Universities.

Amy Galland

Amy Galland

Senior Strategist
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Amy Galland

Amy Galland

Senior Strategist

Amy has over a decade of experience providing strategy, analysis, research, fundraising, and communications services to clients in the US, EU, and Africa. Before joining Sunrise Project, Amy founded a consultancy in Nairobi, Kenya that provided sustainability expertise to NGOs, entrepreneurs, multistakeholder groups, and multinational corporations and wrote numerous publications analyzing industry performance on key issues of corporate responsibility, led successful shareholder engagements to reduce environmental impacts and protect human health, and created organizational and program strategies at As You Sow. Prior, Amy worked as a project manager and production coordinator in the music industry with a #1 song on the UK Singles Chart and as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Binghamton University.

A certified yoga instructor, Reiki master, and Energy Medicine practitioner, Amy was awarded an MBA and a PhD in Art History from UCLA, an MA in Anthropology from Stanford University, and a BA in Philosophy and Art History from Tufts University. She is a recipient of the Business Ethics Network’s Path to Victory Award and a member of New Faces New Voices, Kenya.

Andrew Willis Garcés

North America Coordinator, Finance Action Organizers Network
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Andrew Willis Garcés

North America Coordinator, Finance Action Organizers Network

During two decades as an organizer Andrew has worked on national and international labor union campaigns with teachers, janitors, transport and construction workers; helped renters in several US cities win full control of their building conditions; and designed successful campaigns to force wealthy taxpayers to pay higher income taxes and stop local sheriffs from working with immigration enforcement agents.

A lifelong Southerner now based in North Carolina, he founded and led Siembra NC during the Trump Administration, and draws inspiration from campaigners fighting to “vivir sabroso” in his maternal homeland of Colombia. He’s led trainings for activists across North and South America and hosts the Craft of Campaigns podcast.

Angie Holecko

Senior Digital Campaigner
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Angie Holecko

Senior Digital Campaigner

Angie is a Digital Campaigner with the Sunrise Project based in Denver, CO who works on the asset manager team. An experienced digital organizer, Angie brings perspectives from a variety of gigs in electoral organizing and issue advocacy on both the federal and state level in the United States. She previously worked on organizing and digital teams at national progressive advocacy organizations and at several affiliates of Planned Parenthood Action Fund. As the digital expert on the asset manager team, Angie sets the digital strategy of relevant campaigns and helps to ensure that overall digital strategies are in line with the strategic priorities of each team she works on. She also helps advise and identify opportunities for collaboration among partners.

In her free time, when it’s safe to do so, she loves going to see live music and hiking, skiing, and camping in the great outdoors of Colorado.

Anita Nagpal Schwartz

Managing Director of Development
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Anita Nagpal Schwartz

Managing Director of Development

Anita Nagpal Schwartz is The Sunrise Project’s Managing Director of Development. She has three decades of experience in fundraising, marketing, and communications for nonprofit organizations. Anita was previously the Development Director for The Nature Conservancy’s India Program, guiding startup philanthropic efforts. Anita also worked as the Vice President of Development, Marketing, and Program Administration for Western Resource Advocates for twelve years. At Environmental Defense Fund, she managed fundraising efforts in a seven-state region.

Anita started her non-profit career at Conservation International in Washington, D.C., in 1990. She holds a bachelor’s degree from American University, Washington, D.C., with a double major in literature and American studies. She is a Certified Fund Raising Executive, having secured an internationally-recognized professional credential. She also completed a Certificate Program in Authentic Leadership at Naropa University, Colorado.

Anita is an avid reader, enthusiastic world traveler, and collage artist. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband and pup.

Bobbie Sta. Maria

Program Director, Sunrise Organizing Lab
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Bobbie Sta. Maria

Program Director, Sunrise Organizing Lab

Bobbie has spent nearly 15 years in corporate accountability and human rights non-profits, fighting alongside local groups in national and international legal campaigns.

She draws inspiration from social movements in the Philippines, where she got her start in social justice work as staff attorney for the NGO Saligan (Alternative Legal Assistance Center). She then joined the EarthRights International team in Thailand in building transnational legal strategies to challenge harmful projects in the Mekong region.

She most recently served in the management team of the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre as Director for Labour Rights and Asia, where she grew and led the Asia, labor, and corporate legal accountability teams. She also helped kick off the merger between Global Labor Justice and International Labor Rights Forum as Deputy Director for Strategy and Partnerships.

Outside of the Philippines, Bobbie has worked in Nepal, Thailand, and Myanmar. She is currently based in the Washington DC area with her husband and daughter.

Candice Douglas

People & HR Associate
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Candice Douglas

People & HR Associate

Candice joins The Sunrise Project as the People & HR Associate with previous experience in Operations Coordination. She holds a B.A. in Design and has a professional background in Hospitality, Government Operations, and Education as a former English Language Arts & Science teacher.

As an accessibility advocate, her goal is to support an equitable work environment with intentional consideration of the distinct needs of each team member.

Candice is a native of Detroit, Michigan USA and enjoys tending to her backyard floral garden, exploring vegan restaurants, and working to amplify the voices of marginalized citizens within her community.

Casey Harrell

Senior Strategist
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Casey Harrell

Senior Strategist

Casey has two decades of experience directing successful international climate and corporate accountability campaigns for groups ranging from Greenpeace International to ForestEthics. He helped start the anti-sweatshop movement in the U.S. in the late 1990s, conducted the largest test for mercury exposure in U.S. history, and led campaigns that engaged the tech sector to eliminate toxic chemicals from its supply chains and move industry leaders (Facebook, Google, Apple) to invest in and lobby for 100% renewable energy.  He is a graduate of Duke University and lives with his family in Oakland, California.

Cayla Doweidt

Cayla Doweidt

Hiring & Onboarding Specialist
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Cayla Doweidt

Cayla Doweidt

Hiring & Onboarding Specialist

Cayla supports the Global Finance Team and started with The Sunrise Project in March of 2020. Aligned with her dual passions for productivity and creating a better world, Cayla’s role is ensuring each member of the team can focus on effecting change in the outside world while she manages & supports the recruitment, hiring, and onboarding of the growing organization.

Cayla currently lives in Colorado, USA. She holds a B.A. in Communications and has experience working in retail management, higher education, and banking.

When Cayla is not working, she is enjoying the beauty and rigor that Colorado outdoors has to offer, learning the banjolele, and working with her Women’s Circle.

Colby Sangree

Program & Operations Associate, Investor Program
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Colby Sangree

Program & Operations Associate, Investor Program

Based in Baltimore MD, Colby is a passionate advocate for intersectional climate and healing justice. In their work, Colby has brought their love of systems, innovation, and deep creativity to further the impact of justice-centered organizations. Before and alongside their role at The Sunrise Project, Colby has served their community on the Baltimore City Trauma Informed Care Task Force, and as a health educator, doula, and racial justice advocate.

To unwind, Colby enjoys getting outdoors, making art, reading, and tending to their garden.

Dana Affleck

Dana Affleck

Senior Digital Campaigner
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Dana Affleck

Dana Affleck

Senior Digital Campaigner

Dana got her start organizing and campaigning after visiting people seeking asylum in government run detention centers in Australia. She founded Road to Refuge in 2012 and later joined Behind the Wire to lift up refugee voices in mainstream spaces. Dana volunteered at the Asylum Seeker Resource Center as a legal caseworker in the LGBTQ and women’s clinic before taking a job as an organizer and campaigner in 2015.

In 2017, America called and Dana moved to New York City where she worked as a digital campaigner at Everytown for Gun Safety and then on environmental and climate campaigns at NRDC. Some highlights at NRDC were working on stopping the Williams Pipeline, securing clean cars legislation in Virginia, blocking fossil-fuel friendly bills in Pennsylvania, and helping with the coalition win on #RenewableRikers in New York City. She has a degree in law and Arabic language.

In her spare time, Dana cooks often, volunteers with local campaigns, reads the many books assigned by her beloved book clubs, writes fiction, and tries to track down who’s stealing her New York Times subscription.

Danqing Li

Danqing Li

Senior Strategist
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Danqing Li

Danqing Li

Senior Strategist

As the Senior Strategist at China Program, Danqing has been working on decarbonizing China’s overseas energy finance, and accelerating the low carbon transition in domestic China.

Before joining The Sunrise Project, Danqing has worked at Greenpeace East Asia for 6 years as Climate & Energy Campaigner and Project Manager, focusing on decarbonizing China’s energy and power sector and overseas energy investment. With a master’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering, she has strong expertise in power market analysis, economic assessment, as well as environmental modeling including air pollution and water stress for both domestic China and countries in Southeast and South Asia.

David Pinsky

David Pinsky

Finance Campaigner
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David Pinsky

David Pinsky

Finance Campaigner

David is a Finance Campaigner working to move asset managers like BlackRock away from climate destruction. He has more than a decade of organizing, training, and corporate campaigning experience. Previously at Greenpeace USA, David led campaigns to shut down coal plants on university campuses, take on destructive fishing and human rights abuses in the global seafood industry, and demand corporations break free from plastic.

David has an MA in psychology from the University North Carolina Wilmington and BS in psychology from the University of Kentucky. He lives in Oakland, CA.

Diana Best

Senior Strategist
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Diana Best

Senior Strategist

Diana has over a decade of organising and campaigning experience. Before joining the Sunrise Project team, Diana worked with Greenpeace USA to reform federal fossil fuel leasing policies, stop critical new fossil fuel infrastructure projects like export terminals and pipelines, and engage global financial institutions to restrict lending to new oil projects.

Diana works with a coalition of institutions and partner organizations to move Blackrock’s more than $6 trillion business away from climate and forest destroying investments.

She is a graduate of Vassar College and lives in Denver, Colorado.

Diana Pasquali

Global Director of Learning & Development
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Diana Pasquali

Global Director of Learning & Development

Diana is the Global Learning Director and has 18 years of experience with training, grassroots organizing, and managing teams and projects. Prior to joining Sunrise, she worked with the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Movement Capacity Building program to build a national trainer network and design training and coaching for grantees working on immigration, criminal justice reform and housing. She has led large stakeholder engagement projects, including work for Paid Leave U.S. and Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Other recent clients have included the One Project, Sierra Health Foundation, Swing Left, Change Walmart, and Greenpeace International.

 

Diana loves traveling, hiking, yoga, and she lives with her family in Oakland, California.

Dynica Greer

Hiring Coordinator
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Dynica Greer

Hiring Coordinator

With 7 plus years in building high quality experiences and processes for clients, Dynica is truly passionate and dedicated to helping others. Her background consists of administration, management, client facing success, and a bulk of skills geared towards organization support and satisfaction. Beyond the office, she is also a proud licensed aesthetician and doula.

Dynica currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee, USA and has always loved traveling and learning about the many cultures and practices of others. In her down time she enjoys being with her family, painting, completing crafting projects, and dance.

Emma Alaimo

Strategic Assistant
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Emma Alaimo

Strategic Assistant

Emma Alaimo (she/her) is excited to join the Sunrise Project in such a unique capacity. Emma’s role is a hybrid role, but she spends her days fully embedded in Sunrise’s culture and within the Asset Manager team.

She was born and raised in California and has been working in non-profits for her entire career mostly in affordable housing, and food/farming education/justice.

Emilene Sivagnanam

Senior Digital Communications Campaigner
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Emilene Sivagnanam

Senior Digital Communications Campaigner

Emilene joins Sunrise Project’s insurance team after extensive experience working on environmental campaigns at the federal, state, and local level.

Prior to joining Sunrise Project, Emilene was a campaigner at Natural Resources Defense Council where she led the U.S. Eastern Region social media strategy ranging from stopping new fossil fuel projects to restricting toxic chemicals and more. Emilene holds a M.A. in Climate and Society from Columbia University and a B.S. in Earth Sciences from Oregon State University.

Emilene is based in New York City where she enjoys crafting with textiles and fibers, running, and traveling. She also loves fostering dogs and helping them blossom into confident city dogs and companions.

Eren Can Ileri

Finance Campaigner
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Eren Can Ileri

Finance Campaigner

Eren Can Ileri, originally from Istanbul and Boston, is a climate advocate, analyst, and storyteller.

Before joining the Sunrise Project, Eren worked at Reclaim Finance, campaigning to cut the financial sector’s support for climate-disruptive industries. He conducted policy analysis for the Insure our Future Scorecard, co-authored a comprehensive report on oil and gas financing in the Arctic, and contributed to exposing the fossil and finance sector’s lobbying operations.

In his volunteer time, Eren lobbies EU legislators to support an emissions fee and climate income regulation with Citizens Climate Lobby. He is a guest contributor for Açık Radyo/Open Radio, raising awareness of climate governance, energy, and finance issues. He also works to garner support for the Fossil Fuels Nonproliferation Treaty from Turkish thought leaders.

Eren recently completed his MPA in International Governance and Diplomacy at Sciences Po Paris School of International Affairs. He has two undergraduate degrees from Brown University, in neuroscience and theatre arts/performance studies. His thesis focused on the role of story-telling in social/democratic/environmental movements, focusing on the 2013 Gezi Resistance, in which he participated as a medic.

Grace Regullano

Program Director, Private Banks
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Grace Regullano

Program Director, Private Banks

Grace Regullano has spent nearly 20 years working in the American labor movement. She has been an organizer, communications specialist, and researcher and is passionate about supporting the power of working people to advance policies for the common good.

Most recently, she was part of United Teachers Los Angeles senior leadership team as the Strategic Research and Analytics Director. In that role she facilitated a strategic plan that led to a supermajority 6-day strike that saw 70,000 people marching on the streets of Los Angeles in the pouring rain. Her research and campaign work has been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, and NRK Norway.

Grace obtained her CPA (inactive) while working for a Big 4 accounting firm as a forensic accountant. She is based in Los Angeles, CA.

Jacey Bingler

Senior Communications Campaigner
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Jacey Bingler

Senior Communications Campaigner

Jacey is a communications specialist with over ten years of experience in digital media and public relations. Prior to joining the Sunrise Project, Jacey led international media relations at Urgewald, conducted research for Avaaz’s anti-disinformation campaign around EU und US elections, and headed communications at the tree planting search engine Ecosia. Stints in her earlier career include working for a travel guide publisher, a record label and the city of Hamburg’s online presence. She has a degree in Journalism.

Jacey is half British, half German and recently relocated from Berlin to the United States, where she now lives in a coastal town in Maine. She has a fondness for New Wave music, senior dogs, Bavarian beer and trail running.

Jamie-Claire Chau

Operations Associate
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Jamie-Claire Chau

Operations Associate

Jamie-Claire joins The Sunrise Project from a social activism, community organizing, and educational justice background. Most recently, Jamie-Claire’s leadership and project management has been exercised at Vietlead, Coins for Change Vietnam, and currently at Chili Crisps 4 Spicy Lips, which they founded and co-operate.

Outside of working hours, they enjoy singing/songwriting, watercolor painting, latin dancing, and cooking food with beloveds.

Jane Chu

Jane Chu

Research Manager
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Jane Chu

Jane Chu

Research Manager

Jane is the US-based Research Manager for Global Finance campaigns. Prior to joining Sunrise,

Jane was a Senior Analyst at the Climate Policy Initiative, where she led sustainable cities research for the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance. Jane has a decade of experience in international energy and environmental advocacy with organizations like the Natural Resources Defense Council, the World Wildlife Fund, and the Energy Foundation. Jane started her career in China, where she contributed to national eco-city and eco-industrial park policies and was deeply involved with the grassroots network that created China’s first Toxics Release Inventory.

Jane holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management, an MEM from the Yale School of Environment, a Master’s in City Planning from MIT, and a BA in Economics from UC San Diego. When not at work, Jane is plotting to earn the Triple Crown of Hiking some time in her lifetime.

Jane Li

Chief Operating Officer
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Jane Li

Chief Operating Officer

Jane Li joins the Sunrise Project from TakeRoot Justice, where she was a senior staff attorney and managed the organization’s launch into an independent organization. She has a decade of experience of working with community-based organizations to provide legal services to marginalized individuals and communities. She received a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School and a B.S. from Georgetown University.

Jane lives in Brooklyn, New York. She enjoys eating her way through New York City’s diverse neighborhoods, being outdoors, and spending time with her family.

Jason Schwartz

Senior Communications Strategist
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Jason Schwartz

Senior Communications Strategist

Jason is a strategic communications strategist with a career spanning movements workers rights, and climate, economic, and racial justice. Prior to joining The Sunrise Project, he led communications for Greenpeace USA’s campaigns on pipelines and the financial sector, Change to Win’s strategic and investor campaigns, Athena, the coalition to counter the power of Amazon, and numerous other movement organizations and coalitions.

Jason works on TSP’s campaign to leverage federal and state financial regulation and policy toward the transition away from fossil fuels and to a more equitable and stable system

Judith Crosbie

Judith Crosbie

Senior Communications Campaigner, US Banks
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Judith Crosbie

Judith Crosbie

Senior Communications Campaigner, US Banks

Judith Crosbie has spent over 20 years working in journalism and communications, focusing on social justice and workers’ rights. She worked as a journalist in Dublin, Brussels and Sydney for The Irish Times, European Voice, RTÉ and BBC before joining the labor movement in Australia.

She was director of communications at the Transport Workers’ Union of Australia working on successful campaigns to organize workers to hold wealthy corporations at the top of supply chains to account for unfair and unsafe conditions. She holds degrees from Trinity College Dublin and Dublin City University.

Justin Guay

Director for Global Climate Strategy
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Justin Guay

Director for Global Climate Strategy

Justin Guay is the Director for Global Climate Strategy. He has a decade of experience in nonprofit advocacy and foundation strategy development.

Prior to joining Sunrise he managed grant-making and strategy development for global coal campaigns at the ClimateWorks Foundation and Packard Foundation. At the Packard foundation he oversaw a $40 million grant making portfolio across all climate and energy priorities in India, China, the US, the EU and South East Asia. He also assisted in leading the Foundation’s Innovation in Climate Solutions strategy and energy focused Program Related Investments (PRIs).

He has also run the Sierra Club’s International Coal Campaign as the Associate Director for the International Climate Program.  The program focused on global efforts to transition energy systems beyond coal to clean energy with a special focus on international finance. He worked for the Sierra Club since 2009, in roles involving lobbying, media relations, policy research and advocacy.

He has lived and worked in Mumbai, India where he supported local community groups advocating for clean energy solutions and partnered closely with distributed solar companies serving poor communities. Justin received a Master’s Degree in International Development from the University of Denver and received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah.

 

Kathleen Brophy

US Climate Finance Senior Strategist
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Kathleen Brophy

US Climate Finance Senior Strategist

Kathleen leads work on US financial regulation for Sunrise where she focuses on regulatory interventions that help move money out of fossil fuels. Kathleen joins Sunrise with a decade of experience challenging the oil, gas, and mining industries. Most recently, as the Director of Publish What You Pay-US, Kathleen led SEC strategy focused on fossil fuel sector financial transparency for the 40-member coalition. Previously, Kathleen worked as a Senior Program Advisor at Oxfam America where she supported partners all over the world to design advocacy campaigns related to fossil fuel sector taxation, macroeconomic policy and financial regulation.

Kathleen believes deeply in the power of social movements and also pursues her passion outside of work as an activist and organizer in the Baltimore/DC area.

Leslie Fulbright

Senior Communications Strategist, Private Equity
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Leslie Fulbright

Senior Communications Strategist, Private Equity

Leslie is a writer and communications strategist with over 20 years of experience working for racial and social justice. Passionate about storytelling, she has used her skills to support voting rights, criminal justice reform, environmental justice, and LGBTQ equality.

Prior to joining The Sunrise Project, Leslie was VP of Strategic Communications at Freedom for All Americans, where she worked on state and national campaigns to pass LGBTQ nondiscrimination laws. She also worked as a Communications Strategist for the ACLU of Northern California, and as a journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle and Seattle Times. She lives in Tucson, Arizona

Mary Sweeters

Senior Strategist
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Mary Sweeters

Senior Strategist

Mary brings over 13 years of organizing, activist training, and campaigning experience to her work at the Sunrise Project. She was most recently at Greenpeace US, where she managed a team of field organizers working to shore up support for climate action in key Congressional districts, became the Grassroots Training Director for a few years, and then worked as a campaigner on iconic oil fights including Arctic drilling and pressuring banks to stop lending money to the Dakota Access Pipeline.

As Outreach Manager, Mary works with cities, businesses, and other actors to pressure their insurance companies to divest from fossil fuels and stop insuring coal and tar sands projects.

Matthew McDermid

Mat McDermid

Program Director, Autos
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Matthew McDermid

Mat McDermid

Program Director, Autos

Mat brings over a decade in impact strategy spanning corporate sustainability and social impact campaigning across a wide range of issues.

Prior to joining Sunrise, he worked at Purpose leading diverse client and partner projects—including Everytown for Gun Safety, UN Human Rights, and Oak Foundation’s prevent child sexual abuse programme—and progressed to become Global Head of Strategy shaping Purpose’s strategy practices, skill-sharing, mentorship and growth, and then Co-Head of the New York office. Previously in corporate sustainability, Mat worked across sectors, including the power sector and apparel, pushing clients’ climate and sustainability ambitions.

His career began with the Australian Foreign Service: working daily with local officials on his posting to Baghdad, Iraq, then on the Afghanistan desk, it was a quintessentially formative experience.

Mat received his M.S. in Environment & Energy Policy at New York University and Bachelors from The University of Queensland. Born and raised in Australia, Mat is based in New York City and enjoys practicing photography and woodworking, rock climbing and hiking, and pursuing a lifelong land stewardship endeavor in the Gunks.

Megan Amaral

Megan Amaral

Operations Manager
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Megan Amaral

Megan Amaral

Operations Manager

Megan Amaral has decades of experience in mission-driven organizations. Her professional and volunteer work has spanned the arts, education, community development, and sustainability, often at the intersections of these fields and with a social justice lens. Prior to joining The Sunrise Project she was manager of UC Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group for eight years.

Outside of work she loves to dance, craft, dabble in various digital media, and help others tap their sense of play and creativity. She is also interested in how the arts contribute to climate change response.

Megan is American–born in Minnesota and longtime resident of California–now living on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia. She holds a BA from Goddard College and MS in Community Development from UC Davis.

Milap Patel

Deputy Director
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Milap Patel

Deputy Director

Milap has worked at the intersections of climate policy, global human rights, and economic justice with an overarching commitment to civil society, internationalism, and to our natural world. Prior to joining the Sunrise Project, he was Research Director at MSI Integrity which was exploring mechanisms to challenge the dominant shareholder-led, inequality-fueling corporate form. He has also worked as a Senior Program Officer at the Open Society Foundations on an individual grants portfolio and as a researcher at the World Resources Institute, looking into multilateral development bank lending for climate-compatible projects.

Milap is originally from Nairobi, Kenya of diasporic Indian heritage and currently lives in Brooklyn, New York where he is an avid, if uneven jogger, museum and theater aficionado, and board member on several national and international LGBTQ nonprofit organizations.

Minnie Shin

Senior Strategist, Global Sustainable Finance
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Minnie Shin

Senior Strategist, Global Sustainable Finance

Minyoung “Minnie” works across the global investors, insurance and Asia-focused campaigns at the Sunrise Project. She is a sustainability impact catalyst with a decade of experience advising C-suite executives and policy decision-makers across many sectors and regions. She started her career in corporate sustainability, climate policy and international development consulting, where she spearheaded myriad cross-sector, multi-stakeholder projects on a broad range of issues including sustainable finance, carbon pricing, corporate sustainability, and clean technology. She fell in love with the nonprofit sector in 2016 and since then is on a mission to amplify the good works of the people and organizations making our world a better place. Before joining the Sunrise Project, she has worked for global organizations including the Export-Import Bank of Korea, Environmental Defense Fund and Asia Society Policy Institute.  

She holds an MPA in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University and MA in International Cooperation from Seoul National University. She is also a Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), Fundamentals of Sustainability Accounting (FSA) credential-holder. 

Minnie is originally from South Korea and now lives in Texas. She is a savvy retail investor, loves to learn about different cultures, and hopes to one day publish a vegan Korean cookbook.

Myriam Fallon

Senior Communications Campaigner
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Myriam Fallon

Senior Communications Campaigner

Myriam has a decade of experience in environmental campaigning and communications. She started at Greenpeace US where she worked as a Grassroots Organizer, a Program Coordinator and Trainer, a Media Officer, and Global Communications and Mobilization Coordinator. She also spent time campaigning at sea aboard Greenpeace’s ships. Myriam is based in Chicago, IL and has a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, and Photography. In her spare time she likes to take long bike rides around her home city, rock climb, travel, and play music.

Nic Carroll

IT Support & Systems Administrator
The Sunrise Project Inc
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Nic Carroll

IT Support & Systems Administrator
The Sunrise Project Inc

Nic is based in the United States and is an experienced IT professional from the financial technology industry. With a deep passion for technology and a keen understanding of the evolving needs of the modern workforce, Nic has consistently demonstrated their ability to adapt and excel in a rapidly changing IT landscape.

Nic is also an experienced rugby union player, aspiring to professionalize women’s rugby in the United States. On their free time, they enjoy home DIY, roadtrips, antiquing, and the occasional odd project as a “jack of all trades.”

Phoebe Hall

Executive Program Associate
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Phoebe Hall

Executive Program Associate

“Phoebe joins the Sunrise Project as a member of the operations team. She has several years of experience developing, coordinating, and supporting programs in the education and nonprofit sectors. Phoebe has also worked as a facilitator and educator, focusing on global studies and intersectional, consent-based sexuality education.

Passionate about creating a more just world, Phoebe has lent her skills to initiatives that protect voting rights, promote anti-oppressive education, and support cross-cultural communication.

Phoebe lives outside of Philadelphia with her very chatty cat.

Risalat Khan

Risalat Khan

Senior Strategist
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Risalat Khan

Risalat Khan

Senior Strategist

Risalat is an activist and intrapreneur from Bangladesh, with nearly a decade of experience driving campaigns on climate and intersecting social justice issues across the world.

From campaigning to stop the Rampal coal plant near the Sundarbans mangrove forest in Bangladesh, mobilizing for youthful climate marches on the streets of 4 continents, advocating in the halls of power for the Paris Agreement, and supporting indigenous communities from the Maasai Mara to the Maōri heartlands — Risalat is grateful to have found a career nurturing the common spirit of people-powered resistance worldwide. And he is committed to partnering with communities as they deploy diverse strategies to better their lives.

Risalat’s academic background is in environmental science and policy, with degrees from Amherst College and Columbia University. He has campaigned with the global campaigning organization Avaaz for the past several years.

In his spare time, Risalat enjoys traveling, watching movies and documentaries, traveling, reading futurist non-fiction books, and having a delicious meal with his (new!) wife.

Roberta Giordano

Finance Campaigner
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Roberta Giordano

Finance Campaigner

Roberta, born and raised in Rome, has over seven years of project management, development, and campaigning experience. While in college at the University of California, Berkeley, Roberta worked to pressure the UC to move its money out of fossil fuels investments, and once graduated, Roberta continued to work with coalitions in California to help cities and counties cut their ties with Wall Street Banks.

Prior to joining the Sunrise Project, Roberta worked with Amazon Watch where she helped launch a campaign to expose BlackRock’s investments in oil and gas companies operating in the Amazon basin and directly threatening indigenous communities and territories.

Roberta currently lives in El Cerrito, CA. During her free time, she loves to spend time in the outdoor rock climbing and backpacking. She also volunteers with Sunrise Movement, a youth led organisation working on implementing a Green New Deal in the US.

Ross Hammond

Senior Advisor
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Ross Hammond

Senior Advisor

Ross has extensive experience working on critical policy issues like opening up the UN & World Bank to civil society, promoting strict regulation of the tobacco industry, and challenging the political power of the fossil fuel industry.

At the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids & the Framework Convention Alliance he helped usher in the world’s first public health treaty, the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. He then created & program to fund & support citizen groups as part of the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use.

At Friends of the Earth, he used FOIA to publicly expose conflicts of interest in the environmental review of the
Keystone XL pipeline leading to an official State Department Inspector General inquiry.

Most recently, he served as US Campaigns Director at Stand.earth where they successfully defeated multiple West Coast oil train terminal proposals and pressured Starbucks to recommit to making a recyclable cup. A native of Buffalo, he holds a BA in African Studies from UC Berkeley & an MA in Applied Economics from American University.

Sarah Vázquez

Operations Specialist
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Sarah Vázquez

Operations Specialist

Sarah supports the Operations Team as Sunrise continues to grow in size across the globe and develop their network culture. She is a deep generalist that connects the dots with smooth systems, thorough attention to detail, and a sense of humor to facilitate the climate justice warriors at work.

Before joining Sunrise, Sarah led an international youth empowerment organization while pursing her Ph.D. in Anthropology and Education at Columbia University. Prior to this, she was a classroom teacher and community organizer for a decade. She began her social justice work as an ally in the farmworker, labor, and immigrant rights movements in the United States.

Sarah was born in the Midwest, grew up in California and now calls the Great Garden State of New Jersey home. She earned her B.A. in American Studies from Georgetown University and her M.A. in Teaching from John’s Hopkins University.

When not working, Sarah enjoys adventuring near and far, spending time in nature, and pretending to be one of those cool moms who does yoga with her sons when really they just wrestle together on the carpet.

Umme Hoque

Global Hubs Organizing Manager
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Umme Hoque

Global Hubs Organizing Manager

Umme has spent over a decade organizing and campaigning, with extensive experience building powerful movements that transform individual struggle to broader fights that address systemic challenges.

Through deep and wide organizing strategies, building powerful alliances and networks, and strategic campaigning, Umme has led and supported campaigns in the US and Australia for labor and workers’ rights, environmental justice, and social policies that benefit all.

She holds an MA in International Politics and is currently based in New Mexico with her husband, two dogs, and cat. If she’s not organizing, she’s probably hiking in the mountains.

Vanessa Pierce

Global Chief of Staff
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Vanessa Pierce

Global Chief of Staff

Vanessa Pierce has over a decade of experience building and leading teams, starting and scaling winning campaigns, management coaching, organisational development, and strategy development. She has a track record of bringing greater operational excellence to the groups she works with, listening and leading with empathy, and has a canny ability to connect with stakeholders from a diverse array of backgrounds. Most recently, Vanessa was a consultant and advisor to the Climate Breakthrough Project where she supported visionary climate leaders in developing and launching high-risk, high-impact climate mitigation strategies. As a consultant, Vanessa has worked with a variety of clients as a facilitator, coach, and strategic advisor.

Prior to her consulting work, Vanessa was the Director of Strategic Partnerships at Citizen Engagement Lab, she served as the Sierra Club’s Eastern Region Director for the Beyond Coal Campaign, and was the Executive Director of HEAL Utah, an NGO working on nuclear waste and energy policy issues. Vanessa is an alumna of Green Corps, the field school for environmental advocacy, and has a B.A. from Grinnell College.

Xiomara

Xiomara Chingate

Organizer
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Xiomara

Xiomara Chingate

Organizer

Xiomara Chingaté, AfroIndigenous Muysca woman from Colombia(she/her), is a founder of the grassroots groups Brasil Solidarity Network and Real Talk: Colombia.

She is a community organizer focused on the intersection of climate justice and Black and Indigenous rights, primarily in Colombia.

She is standing for a healthy, beautiful, free future for all people where we can drink out of every river and live in balance with the sacred system of life. She lives in occupied Ramaytush Ohlone Territory.

Our International Team

Alex Wilks

Senior Strategist
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Alex Wilks

Senior Strategist

Alex has spent 25 years bringing citizens and civil society groups together to scrutinise and challenge powerful institutions. As Coordinator of the Bretton Woods Project, and then of the European Network on Debt and Development, he helped bring pressure to bear on the World Bank, IMF to cancel megaprojects, and debt.

Then he helped build Avaaz to become a global movement involving 60 million people. He led many Avaaz campaigns. including several to get governments to forge the Paris Climate Agreement, and two to stop Rupert Murdoch taking over Europe’s biggest independent broadcaster. At one point he led thousands of people at a massive climate rally in a silent gratitude meditation.

When not working you may well find him juggling or cycling. Alex studied at Oxford University, and lives in Bristol, UK.

Alice Delemare Tangpuori

Bonds Campaign Strategist
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Alice Delemare Tangpuori

Bonds Campaign Strategist

Alice has 13 years experience of creating change on issues of social and environmental justice, both globally and in the UK. Alice has previously led campaigns that influenced big multinational companies on a range of issues including nutrition, plastic pollution and sustainable seafood. Across her carer she has worked on topics spanning food and nutrition, to the sustainable development goals and the effectiveness of aid, and gender equality and electoral reform. Alice holds a degree in Ancient, Medieval and Modern History and a Master’s in Development Studies and Gender. When not working she enjoys cooking, yoga, and spending time with her family.

Andrea Harden

Senior Strategist Canada Banks
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Andrea Harden

Senior Strategist Canada Banks

Andrea has over fifteen years of experience in social justice and environmental campaigns, from developing digital and grassroots mobilization strategies, to implementation.

Most recently, Andrea worked as a Senior Strategist with Emdash – a communications agency providing strategy, design and content to progressives. This saw her project lead campaign and communication strategies for national campaigns on a range of topics including Indigenous rights, public education, water justice, and mental health.

Andrea has worked in the non-governmental sector challenging the fossil fuel industry, including the failed Energy East pipeline, and advocating for climate solutions. She has traveled to UN Climate Change Conferences, hosted workshops, and worked collaboratively with Indigenous communities and multi-sector coalitions.

Andrea is also a busy parent of two kids, a cyclist, local volunteer, and violinist.

Andrea Rowe

Global People Director
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Andrea Rowe

Global People Director

Andrea Rowe is the Global Director of People, she is a values – led people professional with extensive experience of leading and coaching teams, organisational development and developing people strategies, with a focus on equity, diversity and inclusion. She has experience of leading and scaling people functions in mission driven, non- profit organisations. She brings a range of experience from social and youth work, education and global women’s health.

Andrea was previously Director of People and Organisational Development at the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, a charity that focuses on improving the standards of care delivered to women. She also held Head of People roles at UK Youth and Frontline, a charity focussing on systemic change in the social work profession.

Andrea holds a BSc. degree in Psychology from the University of Westminster and an MSc. in Human Resources Management from London Southbank University. She also holds a voluntary trustee role at Working Chance, an employment charity that supports women with convictions.

Andrea enjoys travelling and sketching and she lives in Liverpool, UK with her family.

Beau O’Sullivan

Senior Communications Officer
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Beau O’Sullivan

Senior Communications Officer
Having cut his teeth in the press office of a global investment bank, Beau took his experience in media relations and finance to work for the good guys tackling the climate crisis and human rights issues. He loves nothing more than creating and sowing successful messages in the media to win campaigns and looks forward to doing this – and more – for Sunrise’s UK banks and investor work.
Prior to this, he spent nearly four years building up ShareAction’s profile and communications function. A Cambridge graduate in modern languages, he enjoys practising his French and Spanish, zipping around on his bike, and most other things that latte-sipping millennials enjoy (minus avocado).
Becky Jarvis smiling radiantly

Becky Jarvis

Managing Director, Financial Regulation
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Becky Jarvis smiling radiantly

Becky Jarvis

Managing Director, Financial Regulation

Becky has spent the last decade building people power and people-powered movements to hold the most powerful to account for a fairer, more just, and cleaner future.

She helped build 38 Degrees UK into a movement of over 1 million citizens and led many of the biggest campaigns, including the campaign to protect the NHS from privatisation and the campaign to ban fracking.  Most recently as part of OPEN’s senior team, she helped build and sustain a network across 19 different countries, by supporting, coaching, and building fast-growing digitally facilitated organisations.

She’s on the board of Skiftet, Sweden’s biggest online campaign community and Left Foot Forward in the UK.

Camila Schramek

Camilla Schramek

Senior Communications Officer
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Camila Schramek

Camilla Schramek

Senior Communications Officer

Camilla is a communications professional with extensive experience in the climate movement. Before joining The Sunrise Project, Camilla was Head of Climate Change Communications at CARE International where she helped to lead CARE’s initiative to connect climate change and social justice, focusing on issues such as gender, finance and disasters. She is passionate about addressing the climate crisis, forging strong relationships with partners, and finding solutions to some of society’s most complex problems.

Camilla holds a bachelor’s degree in politics and environmental science from Emory University, and was a Fulbright Scholar in Copenhagen where she completed her master’s degree in climate change at the University of Copenhagen.

Camille Barbagallo

Senior Strategist, Sunrise Organizing Lab
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Camille Barbagallo

Senior Strategist, Sunrise Organizing Lab

Camille has spent over two decades campaigning and organising in Australia, Britain and the United States, with a wealth of experience gained from participating in transnational feminist networks, migrant rights campaigns, the labor movement and radical social movements. She has been an organiser of the women’s strike in Britain since 2017.

Before joining Sunrise, she was the COP26 Coalition Coordinator where she worked to cohere and strengthen the British climate justice movement and delivered mass mobilisations in Glasgow and around the world to pressure world leaders to take the necessary action to tackle the climate crisis.

She completed her PhD at the University of East London in 2016. Her research focused on how neoliberalism has transformed motherhood, childcare and the home. She is the editor of Women and the Subversion of the Community: Mariarosa Dalla Costa Reader (2018 PM Press) and Commoning with George Caffentzis and Silvia Federici (2019 Pluto Press). She currently lives in the English countryside with her partner, two children and an ever growing menagerie of animals.

Chris Alford

Senior Strategist, Auto Supply Chain
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Chris Alford

Senior Strategist, Auto Supply Chain

Chris has over a decade of experience leading campaigns for social and environmental justice across Latin America. Before joining the Sunrise Project, he worked with Amnesty International’s Regional Office for the Americas managing regional and national campaigns on economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights. He led Amnesty’s work on the campaign to ratify the Escazú Agreement, a historic regional treaty on environmental democracy; on toxic contamination affecting indigenous communities; on the human rights and environmental impacts of lithium mining; and on sexual and reproductive rights.

Before working with Amnesty, he lived in Guatemala for five years supporting and coaching grassroots groups to lead advocacy strategies on issues such as indigenous rights, food sovereignty, gender justice, anti-corruption, and the right to water.

He is based in Mexico City and in his spare time he loves hiking up Latin America’s mountains and volcanoes, cycling, cooking up tasty food, discovering new music and trying to keep all his plants alive.

Grace Cheong

Senior Programme Associate
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Grace Cheong

Senior Programme Associate

Grace supports the programme team based in Europe to ensure its smooth and efficient functioning.

Prior to joining The Sunrise Project, Grace has spent almost a decade working on responsible business initiatives both in the nonprofit and commercial sector. She holds a BA in Business Management from King’s College London and an MA in Corporate Social Responsibility from the University of Nottingham.

Grace lives in London, UK where she was born and raised. When not working, Grace enjoys traveling, baking, and taking long walks.

Hilal Atici

Strategy Director
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Hilal Atici

Strategy Director

Hilal has extensive experience in movement building, energy sector, finance and story-telling. Before joining Sunrise Project, she has been Greenpeace International’s global campaign strategist for finance work for 3 years and helped build various projects around the world .  

Before she started working for Greenpeace Mediterranean in 2005 as a Climate & Energy campaigner, Hilal had studied Political Science in Istanbul and conducted research on social movements at EHESS-Paris. She led the GP Med campaign team in Turkey, Israel, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt between 2010-2014 and helped build strategies in coal, nuclear, oceans, GM and toxics and addressed issues around peace, having been part of significant moments like the Gezi protests in Istanbul. Between 2015-2017  she has been leading the Climate and Energy campaign in Nordic where she focused on finance work in particular, enabled the campaign for Norwegian Oil Fund’s coal divestment and helped build European energy strategies.

Isabelle L’Héritier

Finance Campaigner, Insurance
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Isabelle L’Héritier

Finance Campaigner, Insurance

Isabelle has spent over a decade organizing and campaigning on social and climate justice issues in Canada, France, Tunisia, Nicaragua and Europe.

Before joining Sunrise as a Finance campaigner and organizer in Europe, she was at Greenpeace, 350.org and Alternatives Montreal working mainly on blocking fossil fuel expansion, stopping corporate impunity, mass mobilizing and building international alliances.

Isabelle is passionate about building people power and powerful networks to catalyse system change.

Jason Mogus

Senior Advisor Directed Networks
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Jason Mogus

Senior Advisor Directed Networks

Jason is Special Advisor, Directed Networks at the Sunrise Project, where he’s helped co-create campaigns including StopAdani, BlackRock’s Big Problem, UK Finance (Bank on our Future), Canadian Banks, Vanguard SOS, and a new campaign targeting Private Equity.

Jason was previously co-founder and principal strategist at NetChange Consulting, one of the world’s first digital agencies focused on social change. Over 25 years Jason led digital transformation and designed campaigns for NGO’s and networks including the Tar Sands Campaign, UN Foundation, Human Rights Watch, TckTckTck, Center for American Progress, RAVEN Trust, and the David Suzuki Foundation.

The co-author of the popular Networked Change Report, Jason is passionate about how new forms of organizing and mobilizing have changed how social change is made. He was the founder and for 14 years manager of the Web of Change conference, a Leadership Fellow at the Broadbent Institute, and co-founder of a hyper-local affordable housing advocacy organization.

Jason lives on unceded Coast Salish territory on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada, with his courageous wife and passionate young son.

Josephine Doyle

Operations Associate, Europe
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Josephine Doyle

Operations Associate, Europe

Josephine supports the Operations team Europe at The Sunrise Project.

Prior to joining Sunrise, she worked as part of a Legal team with a focus on driving client discussions and contract management in both English and German. Academically, Josephine comes from a climate science background, having studied Climate Dynamics and Physical Oceanography at the National Oceanographic Centre Southampton.

Josephine grew up in Germany and now lives in Belfast, Northern Ireland. In her free time, she enjoys time outdoors, swimming, cycling, and hiking. She is an avid reader and always looking for a new book recommendation.

Lindsay Keenan

Senior Strategist
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Lindsay Keenan

Senior Strategist

Lindsay has campaigned on environment and community issues for a number of decades. Prior to joining the Sunrise Project he worked on sustainable fisheries policy in the EU and Baltic. Before leaving Scotland to live in Sweden he was development director of the Kinning Park Complex, a vibrant cultural and community centre in Glasgow.
In the previous decade he was a senior campaigner with Greenpeace International leading global corporate work on the genetic engineering campaign and with Greenpeace Nordic where he variously led the oceans campaign, volunteer department and Arctic project development. Prior to that, working with GreenCity Wholefoods he coordinated the UK Wholefood trade genetic food alert food campaign in which he represented a large number of small and medium sized retailers, manufacturers, wholesalers, importers and exporters.
In his youth Lindsay opened a wholefood shop and catering business, set-up Greenpeace volunteer groups, participated in local community campaigns against toxic waste dumping and in UK and EU campaigns about climate change and the dangers of nuclear weapons.

Marijke van Liemt

Chief Operating Officer
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Marijke van Liemt

Chief Operating Officer

Marijke van Liemt joins the Sunrise project as the Chief of Operations for Europe. She brings a broad range of international experience: she started her career at ABN AMRO Bank in the Netherlands, in corporate finance. After leaving ABN AMRO, she worked for 13 years internationally as a coach and trainer in intercultural communications & leadership. She lived and worked in Brazil, the USA, Austria and Egypt, before moving back to the Netherlands in 2016. She worked as manager operations at KidsRights, an NGO advocating children’s rights before joining NLinBusiness as Manager Operations and Partners in October 2017, where she was responsible for setting up the operations.

Marijke holds a MA in Economics (Groningen University), and a MA in Intercultural Competencies (Donua University Austria). She is a certified leadership and organizational systems coach.

Melanie Mattauch

Senior Communications Campaigner
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Melanie Mattauch

Senior Communications Campaigner

Melanie is a communications professional working for social change with a focus on climate justice. Before joining the Sunrise Project, she has spent seven years leading the communications of 350.org in Europe.

When not working to dismantle the fossil fuel industry, Melanie enjoys gardening, playing handball and long-distance hikes.

Peter Bosshard

Program Director
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Peter Bosshard

Program Director

Peter has worked at the intersection of environmental justice and finance for over twenty years, including in senior leadership roles with International Rivers and the Berne Declaration. Starting in 2006, he pioneered engagement of western NGOs with Chinese state-owned financiers of major projects, helping to prevent Chinese investment in destructive dam projects. He has strong international network experience and helped initiate the World Commission on Dams, the Public Eye on Davos, and several NGO networks including ECA-Watch and Banktrack. Peter is a Swiss national and lives with his family in Berkeley, California.

Renuka Saroha

Senior Strategist
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Renuka Saroha

Senior Strategist

Renuka has been working in the climate domain for more than a decade. She has provided technical support to various government programs on integrating climate impacts with public health, reducing the health impact of air pollution and creating sustainable livelihood options while improving environmental conditions. She has closely worked with communities to implement projects aiming at collecting evidence on the impacts of climate change, health impacts of air pollution and other climate disasters. Before Sunrise has worked in organisations like World Health Organization, 350. org.

In her free time, she likes to talk to her friends, tend to her balcony garden and make edible skin care products.

Rie Aso

Finance Campaigner
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Rie Aso

Finance Campaigner

Rie, pronounced similar to “Leah”, is a Finance Campaigner at the Sunrise Project. She has experience working across non-profit and government sectors. She previously worked at Greenpeace, campaigning to raise awareness of Japanese people to stop tropical forest destructions by palm oil industry. In Ise-Shima National Park, Mie, she worked closely with park volunteers on environmental education and endangered species conservations. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Tasmania, Australia.

Rie is born and raised in Japan, and currently lives in Mie, Japan. In her free time, she is attempting to create a local NPO to clean up and protect the last remaining of untouched beaches for Loggerhead turtles and other oceanic life.

Shannon Lawrence

Director, Global Finance Program
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Shannon Lawrence

Director, Global Finance Program

Shannon has more than 20 years of experience addressing climate change and campaigning for environmental justice, living and working in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America. Previously, Shannon was a Managing Director at C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, where she led strategy development, program design and funder engagement for major urban climate action programs.

Prior to joining C40, Shannon spent over a decade campaigning on finance, energy and water issues with global NGO networks and community groups in Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia.

Shannon has a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, with concentrations in international environmental policy and development economics. She has a BA from Georgetown University. She lives with her family in London.

Siman Li

Finance Strategist
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Siman Li

Finance Strategist

Siman has worked for the China program since April 2021, focusing on decarbonizing China’s overseas energy finance, and accelerating green investment by China. Before joining the Sunrise Project, Siman had four years of experience in CSR consulting and project management. She led one overseas investment project of the Belt and Road Initiative in Germany. Siman holds a master’s degree in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science from Lund University and a bachelor’s degree in Finance Accounting and Management from the University of Nottingham.

Originally from China, Siman has lived in Malaysia, Sweden and Germany. She is a nature lover and hiking enthusiast. Her current goal is to be a better climber and to try the awesome via ferrata routes in the Alps.

Tiba Fazeli

People Specialist, International PEOs
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Tiba Fazeli

People Specialist, International PEOs

Tiba works with The Sunrise Project’s international employment and payroll partners to provide staff with top-tier onboarding and ongoing HR support. She comes to The Sunrise Project with five years’ experience in supporting the management of ISEAL – an international NGO focused on improving and scaling up sustainability systems. There she held various roles in fundraising, governance, executive office and finance. She has also worked in other sectors, including travel, education and public relations/marketing.

She is deeply passionate about sustainability with a particular interest in regenerative agriculture and sustainable food systems. Her other great passions include swimming, spending time outdoors and cooking vegan food.

Tiba holds a BA in Communications and Spanish from UCLA and an MA in Transnational Studies from University College London. She lives in London, UK.

Tim Ratcliffe

Clean Energy Organising Coordinator
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Tim Ratcliffe

Clean Energy Organising Coordinator

Tim has been organising and campaigning on climate issues for almost 14 years. As part of grassroots initiatives and for organisations such as Greenpeace and 350.org, where he helped bring the Fossil Free Divestment campaign to Europe, his focus has been on mobilising people power to take on fossil fuel finance.

In his spare time he enjoys woodwork, baking and exploring nature with his family.

Tonny Nowshin

Finance Campaigner
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Tonny Nowshin

Finance Campaigner

Tonny Nowshin is a Degrowth and Climate Justice activist. She encountered the IPCC reports in-depth for the first time while writing her master’s thesis in International and development economics in 2017. Reading the reports, the urgency of climate change mitigation hit her, and she decided to become active in the climate movement.

Tonny grew up in Dhaka Bangladesh and was an activist for social causes from her middle-school years. She mobilized with her student organization protesting privatization efforts of the World Bank’s structural adjustment program in Bangladesh. In undergrad, Tonny studied economics in her lifelong search to understand societies better and be able to have a positive impact on them. She started her career in the international development sector with the world’s largest non-profit BRAC. She has later worked with other leading NGOs like ActionAid and 350.org. Professionally at the moment, Tonny is working with the Sunrise Project focusing on fossil fuel finance to tackle the climate crisis. In her activist work, she focuses on centering the concept of climate justice at the core of the climate movement by putting forward antiracist and decolonial perspectives.

In a perfect world, we would find Tonny reading books with three cats, all day.

Usman Mohammed

Senior Digital Campaigner
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Usman Mohammed

Senior Digital Campaigner

I’m born and bred in South London, where I spent three years teaching after university. I moved into campaigning and started growing Organise, an online workers’ rights campaigning network. Four amazing years later, I’m jumping into climate campaigning.

Come and talk to me about any musical instruments you play, any weird hobbies you’ve got, and your favorite biscuit.

Yossi Cadan

Senior Strategist
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Yossi Cadan

Senior Strategist

Yossi is a long-time environmental and peace activist. Before joining Sunrise, Yossi spent 30 years of his life in various positions in the environmental movement. Among those, as global finance campaign manager at 350.org, leading Greenpeace’s Canada programmes, serving as the Executive Director of Wildsight and as a regional conservation director at the SPNI. Yossi also represented Israel’s environmental NGOs at the multilateral peace talks between Israel, Palestine and Jordan.

The Sunrise Project

Driven by the imperative of climate justice, The Sunrise Project scales social movements to drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy as fast as possible.

CONTACT

The best way to contact us is by email at [email protected]

ANNUAL REPORT

Jobs

We respectfully acknowledge the Indigenous peoples and local communities of the lands on which we live and work.  We recognise the leadership of these communities in the struggle for climate justice and our responsibility to uplift their voices and histories.