Mark Izeman's Blog
About
- Bio:
Although many people assume I am originally from New York, I actually grew up in Rhode Island. After graduating from Brown University in 1986, I thought I would get a Ph.D in American history and become a professor. But my environmental work in college led me to a research associate position in NRDC’s New York office from 1986 to 1989 and I decided to pursue a career in advocacy.
I then attended New York University School of Law, and continued to work part-time for NRDC. After law school, I clerked for a federal judge in Rhode Island and returned to NRDC in 1993 as a staff attorney in the New York Urban Program. And over the next 13 years, I focused on a wide variety of urban environmental issues, including drinking water, brownfields revitalization, recycling and protection of the Catskills region.
In early 2006, I moved with my family to Moscow, Russia where my wife was born and had an exciting work opportunity. While in Moscow, I continued to work for NRDC – and focused my work on energy efficiency, carbon-trading and climate change issues. (I also took the opportunity to begin studying Russian.)
We returned to the US in the summer of 2009, and I am now the Director of the New York Urban Program.
- Roots in:
- Rhode Island
- Favorite place:
- New York City’s Central Park and the Catskill Mountains
- Why "environmentalism" matters:
- It is impossible to answer this question without sounding cliché. But for me, environmentalism has always been about fighting for the rights of the under-represented -- whether it be polar bears, forests, rivers or disadvantaged urban residents. And of course, it matters for the sake of all our children -- including my two young sons -- and for future generations.
Recent Blog Posts
- Advancing Energy Efficiency in Russia (November 3, 2009)
Read more in Mark Izeman's Archives→
- Mark Izeman
- Senior Attorney and Director of the New York Urban Program
- New York