Q&A with Karenna Gore, Paul Gallay, Michael Shank & Manna Jo Greene, moderated by Nancy Vann

Wednesday, Aug. 16 2017, 7:15

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Karenna Gore is the director of the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary. She received an M.A. in Social Ethics from Union Theological Seminary, a J.D. From Columbia Law School and a B.A. from Harvard University. She previously worked as a lawyer and as Director of Community Affairs for the Association to Benefit Children. She is the author of Lighting the Way: Nine Women Who Changed Modern America. She is the daughter of Al and Tipper Gore, and lives in New York City with her three children.

Paul Gallay is the president of Riverkeeper, an organization that works to protect the Hudson River and the drinking water supplies for nine million New Yorkers. As an attorney and educator, Paul began a ten-year stint at New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation in 1990, where he brought hundreds of corporate and government polluters to justice. Paul subsequently spent a decade in the land conservation movement before joining Riverkeeper in 2010. Paul is a graduate of Williams College and Columbia Law School and has held a number of teaching positions, including his current appointment with The Beacon Institute/Clarkson University.

Michael Shank, Ph.D., is Head of Communications for the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network in New York City, where he handles communications for Professor Jeffrey Sachs and SDSN’s work on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Michael has recently served as Director of Media Strategy at Climate Nexus and Associate Director for Legislative Affairs at the Friends Committee on National Legislation. Michael is Adjunct Assistant Professor at New York University’s Center for Global Affairs, Adjunct Faculty and a Board Member at George Mason University’s School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution. Michael is a regular contributor to USA Today, The Guardian, TIME Magazine, MSNBC, and Fortune.

Manna Jo Greene has been the Environmental Action Director for Hudson River Sloop Clearwater since 2000. Formerly a Registered Critical Care Nurse for 22 years and the Recycling Coordinator/Educator for Ulster County for 10 years, Greene is a lifelong environmental professional and community activist. As a teenager, Manna worked with Dr. King and other civil rights leaders to lobby for the passage of the Civil Rights Bill – an event that has empowered her for life. She avidly supports collaborative land use planning and problem solving, promotes green building and renewable energy, and teaches communities how to integrate environmental preservation, economic, and social equity using effective communication. Manna also serves as an Ulster County Legislator, where she Chairs the Ulster County Climate Smart Committee, and on the Local Government Advisory Committee to EPA.

Nancy Vann is the president and founder of the Safe Energy Rights Group (SEnRG), an organization dedicated to protecting communities in the Northeast from unsafe energy development and infrastructure. Nancy received her law degree from Yale Law School where she was the founder and first editor-in-chief of the Yale Law & Policy Review. Before becoming an environmental activist, Nancy worked for over 20 years as a financial services attorney in New York City. She has had extensive experience as chairwoman of a number of nonprofit organizations including the Center for Disability Advocacy & Rights and the Peekskill Housing Authority.