Advancing from Analysis to Action: The Drawdown Georgia Initiative

Welcome First Conference Panel.

Thursday, September 23rd | 3:30PM – 4:45PM EST

Drawdown Georgia is a statewide initiative focused on scaling market-ready, high-impact climate solutions in Georgia this decade. It provides a roadmap of 20 solutions that can advance not just decarbonization, but other societal priorities, including equity, public health, economic development, and the larger environment. Panelists will explore how they are working to equitably scale solutions, including reducing food waste, increasing energy efficiency in homes and houses of worship, and growing rooftop solar- efforts that both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lift up communities in our state. 

Meet Your Moderator, Blair Beasley

Blair Beasley is the director of climate strategies for the Ray C. Anderson Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation, Blair worked as a consultant supporting the Georgia Climate Project and Drawdown Georgia. In that role, she served as a member of the Georgia Climate Project Leadership Team and on the Research Team for Drawdown Georgia. Blair spent seven years with the Energy Project at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C., including as the project’s acting director. In this role, Blair advised state and federal regulators on policy pathways to reduce carbon emissions. Before joining the Bipartisan Policy Center, she worked at the D.C.-based think tank, Resources for the Future.

Blair holds a B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Master in Public Policy from Georgetown University.

Whitney Brown

Whitney Brown is a 2007 graduate of Agnes Scott College, with a B.A. in Psychology and Music. She currently serves as the Communications Director for Georgia Interfaith Power & Light (GIPL), a faith-based environmental non-profit that empowers people of faith across Georgia to take climate action and advocate for environmental justice. In this role, she coordinates GIPL’s internal and external communications as well as annual fundraising efforts.

Whitney has a passion for working with youth and young adults, and she enjoys finding the intersections of faith in our everyday activities. In 2019, she graduated from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology with a Master of Divinity.

Michelle Moore

Michelle Moore is CEO of Groundswell, a nonprofit that builds community power by connecting clean energy with economic development, affordability, and quality of life. A social entrepreneur and former White House official with roots in rural Georgia, Michelle is a relentless agent for change. Her accomplishments range from delivering programs that cut energy use by $11 billion and led to the deployment of 3.2 Gigawatts of new renewable energy production while leading sustainability for the Obama Administration; to developing LEED into a globally recognized brand as Senior Vice President of USGBC. Michelle currently serves on the Executive Advisory Board for the American Flood Coalition and on the Board of Directors for THI Studio. Michelle’s work is rooted in her faith, and the commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jasmine Crowe

Jasmine Crowe is an award-winning social entrepreneur, TED Speaker, and leader who is working to make the world a better place one cause at a time. Jasmine’s goal is to foster change and create awareness about the leading socioeconomic issues and challenges of today, including climate change, food waste, and hunger.  In 2017, after years of feeding people experiencing homelessness from her own kitchen, she launched Goodr, a sustainable waste management company that leverages technology to combat hunger and reduce food waste in landfills.
 
Under her direction, Goodr has redirected over 12 million pounds of surplus food from restaurants, event centers, airports, and businesses to the millions of people who are food insecure. Goodr has recently introduced organics recycling to help businesses compost waste. Goodr clients include Six Flags Over Georgia, Tuner Broadcasting System, Hartsfield Jackson Airport, Georgia World Congress Center, Agnes Scott College and many more.

She has been featured on CNBC, Oprah Magazine, Inc., Forbes, Fast Co., NY Times, and named by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the top 100 influential female founders.

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