About: Executive Team
ClimateWorks’ staff is comprised of a seasoned team of professionals with deep expertise in philanthropy, energy and climate policy, clean technologies, finance, carbon markets, natural resource conservation, campaign planning, fundraising, management consulting, and institution building.
Hal Harvey, Chief Executive Officer
Hal Harvey served as founder and president of the Energy Foundation, a joint initiative of six large U.S. foundations, from 1990 through 2001. From 2001 to 2008, he was environment program director at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Mr. Harvey served on energy panels appointed by Presidents Bush (41) and Clinton, published two books and dozens of articles on energy and national security issues, and speaks widely on energy topics. He is president of the board of directors of the New-Land Foundation and chairman of the board of MB Financial Corporation. Earlier in his career, he designed and built solar homes. In 2005, Mr. Harvey served as Rhodes Chair and Lecturer in Public Policy at Arizona State University. He has B.S. and M.S. degrees from Stanford University in engineering, specializing in energy planning.
Mark Burget, President and Chief Operating Officer
Mark Burget joined the ClimateWorks staff in September 2008 and was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer in 2009. Prior to joining ClimateWorks, Mr. Burget served as Chief Conservation Programs Officer of The Nature Conservancy (TNC), where he led more than 3,000 staff working in over 30 countries around the world, including country programs in North America, Latin America, Africa, Australia and the Asia-Pacific Region. For sixteen years, Mr. Burget held a variety of leadership roles with TNC, including director of Global Priorities, Director of the California Program and Director of the Colorado Program. Mr. Burget earned both his J.D. and M.B.A. from the University of Virginia and his B.A. in government from Dartmouth College.
Andreas Merkl, Director, Global Initiatives
From 1997 through 2007, Andreas Merkl was a principal at California Environmental Associates, a San Francisco-based consultancy. From 1989 through 1995, Mr. Merkl worked with McKinsey & Company, where he co-founded the firm’s North American environmental practice. Mr. Merkl is also the chairman of Sea Change Investment Fund, LLC, a San Francisco-based venture capital fund that invests in sustainable seafood. Mr. Merkl has also worked in a senior position at CH2M HILL and was founding director of the Conservation and Community Investment Forum. He holds graduate degrees from Harvard University and the University of California, Berkeley in business administration and natural resource analysis, respectively.
Heather Thompson, Director of Climate Programs
From 2001 to 2008, Ms. Thompson was a principal at California Environmental Associates, leading the firm’s work in philanthropic program strategy and evaluation. Ms. Thompson spent part of her time at CEA working with the nonprofit Conservation and Community Investment Forum, which researches, identifies, and designs opportunities for private investments to effectively and profitably stop destructive natural resource practices. Ms. Thompson has worked with leading philanthropic foundations in designing and evaluating investments, including grant programs and program-related investments. Ms. Thompson holds an MSc in environmental economics and environmental management from the University of York, UK and a B.S. in ecology from the University of California, San Diego.
Matthew Lewis, Communications Director
Matthew Lewis has extensive experience leading communications and public relations efforts for clean energy companies and advocates in both the private and public policy sectors. Prior to joining ClimateWorks, Mr. Lewis managed public relations and marketing programs for renewable energy companies at the clean technology practice of Antenna Group, a San Francisco-based public relations firm. From 2002 to 2007, as a program director for Resource Media, Mr. Lewis developed communications and campaign strategies for energy policy organizations working on clean energy policy and fossil fuel development campaigns. He also helped members of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change release the findings of their studies, and trained scientists how to communicate with the media. Mr. Lewis is a former award-winning radio producer, newspaper editor, web editor, and magazine publisher. He received a degree in environmental science and literature from The Colorado College and completed graduate work in technical communications at the University of Colorado, Denver.
Seema Paul, Director, India Energy Initiative
From 2006 to 2008, Seema Paul was Chief of Policy at UNAIDS, where she led work to identify areas of collaboration between the AIDS and climate change advocacy communities. From 1999 to 2006, Ms. Paul worked at Ted Turner's United Nations Foundation as the Senior Program Officer in the Environment Team, where she helped establish global partnerships between the UNESCO World Heritage Program and NGOs, including WWF and Conservation International. She promoted and managed a $100 million portfolio of projects, including innovative initiatives like the Collaborative Labeling and Appliance Standards Program (CLASP), the Global Reporting Initiative, the Millennium Ecosystems Assessment, the World Commission on Dams, and Tackling Invasive Species in the Galapagos Islands. Before leaving the UN Foundation, Ms. Paul was Program Director of India Initiative, where she promoted grantmaking in India that catalyzed public-private partnerships between the UN, the Indian diaspora and the private sector. Ms. Paul is the executive board member of the Indian nonprofit, Ashoka Trust for Research in Environment and Ecology, a former member of Save the Tiger Fund Council and an advisory board member of the Walt Disney Conservation Fund. She is an Alfred Friendly Press Fellow, a Lead International Fellow for Environment and Development and the first (2007) International Herald Tribune-INSEAD Fellow for Accelerating Women in Management.
Jenn Fox, Director of Strategic Planning
Jenn Fox formerly worked in the environment program at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. From 1998 to 2007, she worked for Energy Solutions on energy efficiency-related policy development. Ms. Fox wrote the first Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Plan for the city of Oakland, including performing baseline analysis and projections for the transportation, solid waste, and energy sectors. In 1996, Ms. Fox was awarded a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Service Medal for work on the Puna Geothermal Facility and California air quality implementation plans. Her work at EPA focused on air pollution control in California’s Central Valley and rulemaking for national emissions trading. She has worked domestically and internationally to apply science in resource conservation policy, including research as a Fulbright Scholar into the interplay between policymakers, engineers, geologists, and corporations in hydroelectric decisions. Ms. Fox is president of the board of directors of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and has B.S. and M.S. degrees in environmental engineering from Stanford University.
Zack Macdonald, Director of Strategic Gifts
From 1999 to 2009 Zack Macdonald was a development officer for Stanford University where he served in a variety of roles including as major gift officer for the northeast U.S. and as a member of the principal gifts group. Prior to that, Mr. Macdonald was community campaign director for the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco and worked for several Bay Area non-profits serving severely emotional disturbed youth. He holds a bachelor's degree in history from Wesleyan University.
Brigid McCormack, Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships
Brigid McCormack has spent her professional career in the nonprofit sector, starting as an environmental Peace Corps volunteer in Ukraine where she worked for several Ukrainian NGO’s. Since then she has worked in various fundraising positions for the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association of Philadelphia, the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and most recently at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. Ms. McCormack has a MS in Environmental Management from the University of San Francisco, a BS in Biology and a BA in History from Santa Clara University.
Molly Singer, Chief Financial Officer
Molly Singer has over 20 years of experience managing finance and operations for not-for-profit and for profit companies. Ms. Singer began her career working in corporate finance for the Dun & Bradstreet Corporation and Apple Computers. Her for-profit work has focused on the high-tech venture-backed start-ups, serving clients such as Yelp, Stumble Upon, and Ad Mob. Ms. Singer's work in the not-for-profit sector includes serving as COO and CFO for the Research Libraries Group, a spin-off of Stanford University and a collaborative network of international research libraries, museums, historical societies, and government repositories created to establish standards for research sharing and preservation. Ms. Singer also worked as COO and CFO for Shanti (the San Francisco AIDS organization) and as Interim Finance Director for the Global Fund for Women. She has a BA from Case Western Reserve University and an MBA in Finance from Columbia University.