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Meet the CA-CP Fellows, Summer 2008
Over the past eight years, Clean Air-Cool Planet has had requests from students from all over the country for fellowship opportunities.  We‘ve counted ourselves lucky to have been able, with funding from various separate projects, to work with many talented and committed young people on projects that have benefited partners and the cause of climate action in general.

This past year, with the support of the Roy A. Hunt Foundation and others, we were able to launch a formal fellowship program.  The first “class” of fellows worked with us this summer on a number of projects.  We’d like you to meet them and read a little about their projects, even as we begin recruitment for our next group of fellows and continue to seek additional sources for future projects.
To read more about the fellows and specific projects, visit our Fellows page.

Fellows for Summer, 2008

Akilah Z. Campbell: Science Center Collaborative Backpack Project*
Akilah recently finished her B.S. in Wildlife Management, with a Wildlife Biologist Certification, and a B.M. in Music Education from the University of New Hampshire. As a CA-CP Fellow, she helped to update the Climate Change Backpack, as well as create a mid-Atlantic version of the backpack. She will also work on developing case studies for the mid-Atlantic region.

Liz Compitello: Community Climate Fellow for New York State*
Liz Compitello is completing a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning at the University at Albany with a concentration in land use planning.  Her in-progress thesis titled “Local Government Response to Climate Change in New York State,” includes case studies of the regional effort to respond to climate change in New York’s Hudson Valley.   

Michael Despines, Climate Policy Center Fellow - Washington, D.C.
Michael has spent the last 17 years working in Africa in humanitarian relief and development.  For 12 of those years he worked for the International Rescue Committee — most recently as the Regional Director for the Great Lakes Region overseeing program activities in Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and the Republic of Congo.  Michael has a B.S in Electrical Engineering, a B.A. in General Arts and Science, and a Masters in International Management. Michael spent much of the summer researching and exploring greenhouse gas emission reduction opportunities, particularly relating to methane, and produced a fact sheet outlining the key rationale and core elements of a potential landfill methane reduction program.  He also researched the opportunities for significant energy use reduction via large commercial-building retro-fitting programs. 

Hillary Harnett, Corporate Climate Fellow
Hillary Harnett is completing her B.A. at Brown University with concentrations in International Relations and Hispanic Studies and a focus on global environmental problems. This summer, Hillary developed several case studies that document the achievements of Clean Air–Cool Planet's partner organizations in reducing their carbon footprints.

Sarah Harpster, Community Climate Fellow
Sarah is a climate fellow working on the Cool Monadnock Project, a regional, multi-sector initiative to assist 35 towns in developing effective strategies to save energy costs and address climate change. She has also worked with a Clean Air-Cool Planet project, the Keene 10% Challenge, which assists local small businesses in saving energy. She has a BA in Anthropology and Latin American Studies and Master’s degrees in Theological Studies, Divinity, and Environmental Advocacy and Organizing.

Hope Hurley, Climate Policy Center Fellow - Washington, D.C.
Hope attends Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, and is a double major in Environmental Studies and Communications, with a minor in Spanish. Hope is currently working on her certification to conduct energy efficiency audits for commercial businesses.  

Dovev Levine: Community Toolkit Project*
Dovev Levine is a Ph.D. candidate in Natural Resources and Environmental Studies, and a Lecturer in Climate Policy, both at the University of New Hampshire. He is currently the admissions officer for the Graduate School of the University of New Hampshire.  He worked on a number of toolkit case studies for CA-CP this summer.

Ryan W. Mack: Community/Campus Fellow, Providence, RI*
Ryan is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Environmental Management at the University of San Francisco in California. Through the Climate Fellows program with Clean Air–Cool Planet, Ryan will be coordinating the development of a Climate Action Plan as well as supporting the establishment of reduction targets and strategies with the City Government of Providence, RI.

Claire Roby: Campus Calculator*
Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, Claire Roby is a recent graduate of American University in Washington, D.C., with a bachelor's degree in environmental studies.  In her time at American University, she worked for AU's Facilities Management to compile a preliminary greenhouse gas inventory for the university using Clean Air-Cool Planet's Campus Carbon Calculator™.  This summer she helped develop version 6 of the calculator and its new planning tool.  

Casey Roe: Campus Outreach*
Casey Roe is a senior majoring in Environmental Studies and Political Science at American University. Casey has been involved in campus sustainability since freshman year, when she contributed to the successful passage of a clean energy referendum.  Last year, as Policy Director of American University's environmental organization, Casey wrote a Clean Transportation Policy that resulted in biodiesel in AU's shuttles and a bikeshare program. As a CA-CP Campus Fellow, Casey assisted the Campus Program with a variety of projects, including campus outreach.

Greg Williams, Community Climate Fellow - Portland, ME
Greg is currently pursuing a Master's in Community Planning and Development at the Muskie School of Public Service, University of Southern Maine in Portland, ME.  This summer, he worked with the City of Portland in implementing a pilot project focusing on the energy efficiency of municipal buildings.  Greg has previously worked as a journalist, an educator, and an outreach coordinator in the environmental field.  He holds a B.A. in Geology from Denison University in Granville, Ohio.

*These Fellowships were funded by the Roy A. Hunt Foundation.