Getting Wired for Progress

April 16, 2009, 3:00pm – 5:00pm

About This Event

Whether you view our energy challenge through an environmental, economic, or national security prism, one thing is clear: we need to break our addiction to oil. For the United States, that requires a commitment to developing clean sources of energy and the construction of a clean-energy smart grid. While the Center for American Progress is developing policy proposals to get us there, advocacy groups across the political spectrum are working to mobilize the public, and lawmakers to turn these and other proposals into reality.

Join us on April 16, 2009 for the Internet Advocacy Roundtable’s program “Getting Wired for Progress.” This month’s panel features the internet strategists behind several of the leading campaigns pushing for a clean energy future. Learn how they are leveraging online strategies to educate and mobilize a diverse and broad-based audience of citizens and policymakers.

This month’s Roundtable is part of a national conversation on the smart grid and clean energy. To participate, join us on Twitter starting April 13 through April 20. Use the hashtags #grid and #IAR to help us organize the conversation.

Click here to RSVP for this event

 Speakers:
Kira Marchenese, Director, Internet Communications, Environmental Defense Fund.
Jake Brewer, Internet Director, Energy Action Coalition
Heather Lauer, Director of Online Strategy, Pickens Plan
Michael Silberman, Partner/Co-Founder, EchoDitto and former Internet Director, 1Sky
Michael Sherrard, Power Up America, MoveOn.org Political Action
Brad Johnson, Research Associate and blogger, ThinkProgress.org, Center for American Progress Action Fund

Moderator:
Alan Rosenblatt, Ph.D., Associate Director of Online Advocacy, Center for American Progress Action Fund

Location

Center for American Progress Action Fund
1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

Biographies

Kira Marchenese has been the director of online communications at Environmental Defense Fund since 2004. This is the first nonprofit project for the early Internet veteran. As an undergrad, she studied how the Internet could empower citizens to make change. She helped launch the Washington Post's web site, and filled several roles at America Online, mostly in community and search. A master’s degree from the Kennedy School helped her refocus on changing the world—now it's all about keeping the planet cool enough to live on.

Jake Brewer is an entrepreneur and strategist who serves as the chief digital officer of the Energy Action Coalition—a group of 48 leading organizations committed to the creation of a green economy, 80 percent reduction in carbon emissions, and a moratorium on coal-fired energy. In his work, Jake seeks to develop and connect strategic networks, systems, and ideas to ensure a clean energy future. Prior to Energy Action, Jake has served as the director of partnerships on the management team of Idealist.org, as the executive director of Break Away—the national organization for collegiate alternative spring break programs, and as the director of education Without Borders—a biennial gathering in the United Arab Emirates bringing together 1,000 young leaders from 100 countries seeking innovative solutions to global challenges. Additionally in his diverse career, Jake has spent two years at the United States Naval Academy— subsequently graduating from Vanderbilt University—served as a consultant in the Middle East oil sector, designed and implemented international service-learning programs, conducted community development projects from Central Jamaica to Mongolia, and generally been part of more coalition and nonprofit-NGO efforts than he can anymore recall. Jake is a former All-American tri-athlete, a published photographer and writer— currently he is a contributor to the Huffington Post and author of The Realist Idealist— and in addition to his role with Energy Action, serves on the board of directors for Hostelling International, as an advisor to the University of Texas’ Project on Conflict Resolution, and on the international board of advisers of United Planet.
 
Michael Silberman is a founding partner of EchoDitto, a leading strategic online communications and technology team that works with its clients to leverage new media and participatory technologies to affect positive social and environmental change. Silberman served as the 1Sky campaign's Internet director during its first year to build and manage its online organizing operations. Other recent work includes exciting projects with the Wilderness Society, Seventh Generation, and Mother Jones. Prior to co-founding EchoDitto, Silberman was the National Meetup director for Howard Dean’s renowned presidential run in 2004, where he developed an online organizing and technology strategy that mobilized 189,000 volunteers in more than 1,200 cities worldwide via the internet. Silberman is a frequent writer and speaker on the effective use of technology for converting online activity into real-world action. He also gained valuable organizing and political experience at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and in the Clinton White House at the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). He graduated on skis with a B.A. from Middlebury College.

Heather Lauer has an extensive background in issue advocacy and grassroots organizations. She is a co-founder of Tribe Effect LLC, an Internet strategy consulting firm focused on using online social networks to build advocacy and cultural movements.  Since July 2008, she has been responsible for overseeing the online strategy of the Pickens Plan, a campaign to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil through the use of alternative energy. Previously, Heather was a Partner at DCI Group LLC, a strategic public affairs and global issues management firm based in Washington, D.C. During her 12 years with DCI, Heather worked on a variety of domestic and international issue campaigns for trade associations and Fortune 50 companies in the areas of telecommunications, energy, technology, health care, and homeland security. While at DCI, she was also the Publisher of TCSDaily.com, an online journal of news, commentary and analysis focused on public policy issues in the United States, Europe and Asia. Heather holds a B.S in international business administration from Georgetown University. She is also the author of the blog BaconUnwrapped.com and her book Bacon: A Love Story (HarperCollins) will be released in May 2009. Heather currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona and Fairfield, Idaho.

Michael Sherrard works on Power Up America, MoveOn.org's new grassroots campaign to build a clean-energy economy.  He focuses on advocacy and fundraising strategy to support the offline work of hundreds of volunteer-led MoveOn Councils across the country. Michael came to MoveOn in the 2008 election cycle, helping to recruit hundreds of thousands of MoveOn members to volunteer on behalf of President Obama. Previously, he served as Online Organizer for Sojourners, a progressive Christian group founded by the Rev. Jim Wallis, and consulted for leading nonprofit organizations while working in the eCampaigns division of M+R Strategic Services.

Brad Johnson is a research associate for The Progress Report and ThinkProgress.org at the Center for American Progress Action Fund, focusing on climate issues. Brad holds a bachelor’s degree in math and physics from Amherst College and master’s degree in geosciences from the Massachusetts Institute for Technology. He is the co-author of Technomanifestos and the founder of HillHeat.com. Prior to joining the Center, he worked as a developer for Saatchi & Saatchi, Lextranet, and the Democratic National Committee. Brad grew up in Boston, Massachusetts.