Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins
Encyclopedia
Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins is an American sustainability
advocate and the CEO
of the anti-poverty organization Green For All
."
From 2003 to 2009, Ellis-Lamkins was the Executive Officer of the South Bay AFL–CIO Labor Council, an organized labor federation representing more than 100 unions and more than 110,000 members in California's Santa Clara
and San Benito
counties. She was also Executive Director of Working Partnerships USA, a coalition of community groups, labor and faith organizations working to address economic disparities in California's Silicon Valley
. Working Partnerships raised $6 million in grants during its first six-years of operation and achieved policy successes at the local level while attracting criticism for the non-profit
’s financial ties to the electoral activities of the South Bay Labor Council.
in 1998, Ellis-Lamkins became a union organizer
with SEIU
Local 715 in San Jose
. Following a campaign to secure union representation for home health care workers and other low-income employees, Ellis-Lamkins joined the staff of Working Partnerships USA as the group's education coordinator. She led the Labor/Community Leadership Institute and created its first senior fellows program. In this capacity Ellis-Lamkins created the Faith in Action training program for area clergy and lay leaders. Within five years, she was running Working Partnerships USA. She also became the Executive Director of the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council, a labor federation representing more than 100 unions in Santa Clara and San Benito counties, and more than 110,000 union members.
As the leader of Working Partnerships USA, Ellis-Lamkins expanded the nation’s first county-based universal children’s health insurance program to cover more than 160,000 children. Thirty other counties have replicated this program throughout California. Ellis-Lamkins also led the fight to create one of the first community benefits agreements in the country, which provided community standards for a large-scale economic development project in San Jose. Working Partnerships was also successful in expanding the living wage under Ellis-Lamkins leadership.
In 2003, Ellis-Lamkins led the launch of Partnership for Working Families, a national coalition "dedicated to building power and reshaping the economy and urban environment for workers and communities."
as Chief Executive Officer in March 2009.
One of her first initiatives after taking over Green For All was to build a coalition of "a broad range of groups — many of whom are not known for their engagement in climate and energy issues." This coalition came together to advocate for equity-based amendments to the American Clean Energy and Security Act
of 2009 (ACES) — the climate bill in the House of Representatives
. The coalition declared success when the entire House of Representatives approved a version of ACES that included $860 million for green job
training and a provision guaranteeing local workers access to ACES-funded energy-efficiency and renewable energy
projects. Green For All describes these as "the Act’s only provisions creating opportunity for low-income people and people of color."
Under Ellis-Lamkins's leadership, Green For All has also won significant policy victories in Washington State and New Mexico. New Mexico created "green jobs training programs with a focus on rural, tribal communities and disadvantaged individuals" and incentives for green companies to relocate to New Mexico. Green For All describes the Washington legislation on its website:
Green For All partnered with the city of Portland, Oregon
, on cutting edge use of Recovery Act
funds. The Portland project will create thousands of clean energy jobs for low-income workers, weatherize 100,000 homes, and launch the first model of paying for home weatherization through utility bills.
Ellis-Lamkins has also spearheaded two new campaigns at Green For All. The Capital Access Program, focused on the private sector, "engages businesses and nonprofits - large and small - to create, sustain, and scale green jobs." Green the Block, a campaign of both Green For All and Hip Hop Caucus, is a national effort "aimed at helping low-income communities of color become driving forces of the clean-energy economy."
, the Women’s Fund of Silicon Valley, the City of San Jose General Plan Update Task Force and the Central Labor Council Advisory Committee. Currently, she serves on the board of the Leadership Council of California Forward and is Chair and Co-Founder of the Partnership for Working Families. Ellis-Lamkins also served as Chair of the Board of Team San Jose
, a collaboration to ensure that San Jose’s Convention Center is effectively managed to reduce costs and improve the local economy.
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
advocate and the CEO
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of the anti-poverty organization Green For All
Green For All
Green for All is an NGO in the United States "working to build an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty." Based in Oakland, California, Green For All advocates for a clean energy economy as a solution to both environmental and economic problems. Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins...
."
From 2003 to 2009, Ellis-Lamkins was the Executive Officer of the South Bay AFL–CIO Labor Council, an organized labor federation representing more than 100 unions and more than 110,000 members in California's Santa Clara
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
and San Benito
San Benito County, California
San Benito County is a county located in the Coast Range Mountains of the U.S. state of California, south of San Jose. As of 2010 the population was 55,269. The county seat is Hollister, which includes nearly two-thirds of the county's population. El Camino Real passes through the county and...
counties. She was also Executive Director of Working Partnerships USA, a coalition of community groups, labor and faith organizations working to address economic disparities in California's Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
. Working Partnerships raised $6 million in grants during its first six-years of operation and achieved policy successes at the local level while attracting criticism for the non-profit
Nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
’s financial ties to the electoral activities of the South Bay Labor Council.
Early career
After graduating from California State University, NorthridgeCalifornia State University, Northridge
California State University, Northridge is a public university in Northridge, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles, California, United States....
in 1998, Ellis-Lamkins became a union organizer
Union organizer
A union organizer is a specific type of trade union member or an appointed union official. A majority of unions appoint rather than elect their organizers....
with SEIU
Service Employees International Union
Service Employees International Union is a labor union representing about 1.8 million workers in over 100 occupations in the United States , and Canada...
Local 715 in San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
. Following a campaign to secure union representation for home health care workers and other low-income employees, Ellis-Lamkins joined the staff of Working Partnerships USA as the group's education coordinator. She led the Labor/Community Leadership Institute and created its first senior fellows program. In this capacity Ellis-Lamkins created the Faith in Action training program for area clergy and lay leaders. Within five years, she was running Working Partnerships USA. She also became the Executive Director of the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council, a labor federation representing more than 100 unions in Santa Clara and San Benito counties, and more than 110,000 union members.
As the leader of Working Partnerships USA, Ellis-Lamkins expanded the nation’s first county-based universal children’s health insurance program to cover more than 160,000 children. Thirty other counties have replicated this program throughout California. Ellis-Lamkins also led the fight to create one of the first community benefits agreements in the country, which provided community standards for a large-scale economic development project in San Jose. Working Partnerships was also successful in expanding the living wage under Ellis-Lamkins leadership.
In 2003, Ellis-Lamkins led the launch of Partnership for Working Families, a national coalition "dedicated to building power and reshaping the economy and urban environment for workers and communities."
Green For All
Ellis-Lamkins joined Green For AllGreen For All
Green for All is an NGO in the United States "working to build an inclusive green economy strong enough to lift people out of poverty." Based in Oakland, California, Green For All advocates for a clean energy economy as a solution to both environmental and economic problems. Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins...
as Chief Executive Officer in March 2009.
One of her first initiatives after taking over Green For All was to build a coalition of "a broad range of groups — many of whom are not known for their engagement in climate and energy issues." This coalition came together to advocate for equity-based amendments to the American Clean Energy and Security Act
American Clean Energy and Security Act
The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 was an energy bill in the 111th United States Congress that would have established a variant of an emissions trading plan similar to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme...
of 2009 (ACES) — the climate bill in the House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
. The coalition declared success when the entire House of Representatives approved a version of ACES that included $860 million for green job
Green job
A green job, also called a green-collar job is, according to the United Nations Environment Program, "work in agricultural, manufacturing, research and development , administrative, and service activities that contribute substantially to preserving or restoring environmental quality...
training and a provision guaranteeing local workers access to ACES-funded energy-efficiency and renewable energy
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
projects. Green For All describes these as "the Act’s only provisions creating opportunity for low-income people and people of color."
Under Ellis-Lamkins's leadership, Green For All has also won significant policy victories in Washington State and New Mexico. New Mexico created "green jobs training programs with a focus on rural, tribal communities and disadvantaged individuals" and incentives for green companies to relocate to New Mexico. Green For All describes the Washington legislation on its website:
The Act puts Washington on the path to weatherizeWeatherizationWeatherization or weatherproofing is the practice of protecting a building and its interior from the elements, particularly from sunlight, precipitation, and wind, and of modifying a building to reduce energy consumption and optimize energy efficiency.Weatherization is distinct from building...
, and otherwise make more energy efficient, 100,000 buildings over the next five years. This will reduce energy costs, create thousands of quality new jobs, and obviate any potential need for new electricity-generating facilities. The Act also guarantees access to these jobs for veterans, members of the National Guard, and low-income and disadvantaged populations.
Green For All partnered with the city of Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, on cutting edge use of Recovery Act
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act, is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 and signed into law on February 17, 2009, by President Barack Obama.To...
funds. The Portland project will create thousands of clean energy jobs for low-income workers, weatherize 100,000 homes, and launch the first model of paying for home weatherization through utility bills.
Ellis-Lamkins has also spearheaded two new campaigns at Green For All. The Capital Access Program, focused on the private sector, "engages businesses and nonprofits - large and small - to create, sustain, and scale green jobs." Green the Block, a campaign of both Green For All and Hip Hop Caucus, is a national effort "aimed at helping low-income communities of color become driving forces of the clean-energy economy."
Awards and recognition
San Jose Magazine named Ellis-Lamkins one of the 100 most powerful people in Silicon Valley. The Silicon Valley Business Journal called her one of “40 to watch under 40.” In 2009, Ellis-Lamkins received the Visionary Leadership Award for her work as executive officer of the Labor Council and executive director of Working Partnerships USA.Other activities
Ellis-Lamkins is an alumna of American Leadership Forum. She has served on the boards of the Progressive Technology Project, New World FoundationNew World Foundation
The New World Foundation is a liberal foundation, based in New York. It dispenses funds to liberal advocacy groups. It was founded in 1954 by Anita McCormick Blaine, an heiress to industrialist Cyrus Hall McCormick and a supporter of Henry Wallace's 1948 presidential campaign...
, the Women’s Fund of Silicon Valley, the City of San Jose General Plan Update Task Force and the Central Labor Council Advisory Committee. Currently, she serves on the board of the Leadership Council of California Forward and is Chair and Co-Founder of the Partnership for Working Families. Ellis-Lamkins also served as Chair of the Board of Team San Jose
Team San Jose
Team San Jose is a non-profit management corporation launched in 2004 to promote tourism in San Jose, California...
, a collaboration to ensure that San Jose’s Convention Center is effectively managed to reduce costs and improve the local economy.