CLIMATE INSTITUTE NAMES KRISTY BUCKLEY TO LEAD INNOVATION EFFORTS

John Topping, President of the Climate Institute, announced that the Institute has chosen Kristy Buckley to be the new Director of Strategic Development. In this new post Kristy Buckley will assume several core responsibilities. First, she will catalyze the launching of new initiatives such as educational roundtables on coastal vulnerability in Florida and working with NASA, Dartmouth College and others to strengthen the ability of tribal colleges to be a front line in monitoring and responding to climate change. Secondly, Ms. Buckley will develop a corporate partners program to engage companies in the international activities of the Climate Institute.Finally, she will spearhead efforts to make climate.org the world's most used and trusted online source of information on climate change, while also increasing the organization's capacity through online donations and membership. As part of this effort, the website will be made available in Spanish as well as English by year's end and much of the content available in French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Chinese and Russian within two years.

Prior to joining the team at Climate Institute, Kristy worked to co-found several NGOs focused on humanitarian and social justice causes, and assisted other non-profit groups with websites, online fundraising and membership recruitment efforts. In addition, she has organized international roundtables on sensitive public policy issues and has been published at international conferences focused on issues pertaining to the environment, justice and conflict resolution. Kristy holds a B.A. in International Affairs from the George Washington University and an LL.M. in International Law from University of Kent, Brussels.

Topping commented: "Kristy is the type of driven individual who will help lead the international environmental movement in the future. The Climate Institute is the world's first environmental organization focused on climate and stratospheric ozone protection; in our nearly 21 years we have seen profound changes in the world including the development of the Internet, the growth of China and India as economic superpowers and the emergence of a large middle class in Latin America. Success in surmounting the climate crisis will require thinking of a kind rarely seen in governments or the Western environmental movement. Kristy has the cross-cultural understanding and vision to transcend the stale discussions that have frittered away so much time while the earth verges on metastatic climate change. She believes that we need to draw on successful examples such as Iceland's leveraging of its clean energy transformation to become one of the world's most prosperous nations if we are to move the world to action. The facts on the ground - retreating Arctic sea ice, thawing permafrost and disappearing species- are foreboding, but rather than overwhelming the public to the point of jumping off bridges, we aim to build bridges towards a solution. Kristy is already doing this as she seeks to link the Climate Institute's efforts in Florida and Mexico's State of Quintana Roo."

Kristy Buckley stated: "Public education and outreach on these issues is critical for achieving effective and widespread progress. We hope our efforts to engage progressive corporate entities as well as our projects in Florida and Quintana Roo will serve as replicable models for individuals, stakeholders and policymakers in working together towards a solution."

Posted 6/1/07