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Richard has worked at the intersection of business, politics and sustainability for over twenty-five years. His experience in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors provides him with a keen appreciation of how to forge effective national coalitions. Richard is a creative, global thinker who translates corporate and community strategic visions into practical action plans. He focuses much of his work on building markets and promoting policies that increase social justice and enable clean energy technologies, sustainable businesses and green products to gain wider acceptance. As a natural convener of people and ideas, Richard is a master at organizing conferences and programs that catalyze thinking and progressive action around issues of sustainability, environmental stewardship and capital mobilization. He is a long-time advocate for the adoption of triple bottom line business practices. Richard has developed a specialty in linking business with environmental and community organizations. As a consultant to the Apollo Alliance since 2005, Richard was responsible for recruiting hundreds of private companies and business trade organizations to support Apollo’s federal and state clean energy-good jobs policy initiatives. His work included directing the AFL-CIO supported 2007 ‘Labor Capital Clean Energy’ program as well as coordinating Apollo’s corporate fund raising effort. He also developed the business outreach strategy for Apollo’s Green Manufacturing initiative, which has led to the introduction of several pieces of federal legislation. Richard also developed several white papers this spring for Oakland-based Green For All, highlighting how business and foundations could support its Capital Access Program. His experience in the renewable energy industry began in 1995 and includes working for several leading solar energy system integrators. This includes Denver based SolSource, Inc. where he currently serves as the firm’s business development and marketing consultant. Richard served as Vice President of Sales and Strategy for Solar Works, Inc., in the Northeast (now Alteris Renewables) as well as Altair Energy (now the Alpha Group). Richard developed the product launch strategy for the nation’s first grid-tied PV inverter to OEMs, utilities and solar dealers in 1997-98. He has helped lead several successful state efforts to have renewable energy portfolio standards adopted, as well as net metering legislation and ‘solar on school’ programs. Richard served on the Board of the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association for several years and has testified before several state legislatures. Richard’s international experience began in the early 1980’s conducting research at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs on European energy and trade policy. Once having moved to NYC after graduate school, he worked for a political risk-consulting firm and then some years later as a staff member at the UN Environment Programme in the late 1980’s and 1990’s. At UNEP, Richard directed a series of groundbreaking conferences that brought together hundreds of corporations, investors, NGOs, U.N. agencies and national and local governments to develop sustainable development programs. He was involved in establishing the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives and UNEP’s Finance Initiative. Richard attended the 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil. His experience in working in the public sector includes four and a half years with the NYC government as a senior policy analyst. He split his time between the Department of Investigation and the Department of General Services. Both experiences honed his skills as an organizational troubleshooter and program analyst. Richard has been involved in the field of corporate citizenship and social responsibility since the mid-1980’s. Richard was an adjunct faculty member with Boston College’s Center for Corporate Citizenship for five years, teaching several courses as well as consulting to Fortune 1000 firms. He was a Board Member for several years of the New Hampshire Business for Social Responsibility organization and helped found the Community Capital Bank in Brooklyn. For the past four years, Richard has been a board member of CORE; Colorado’s leading business sustainability trade association. As part of his Board duties, he serves as the program chair for the annual Sustainable Opportunities Summit. He also teaches an online graduate environmental policy and management course at the University of Denver’s University College. As a political consultant and fundraiser, Richard co-directed the Colorado chapter of the national Clean Tech for Obama 2008 effort. He is now a member of the newly formed national Clean Economy Network, the outgrowth of the Clean Tech for Obama campaign. He served as a consultant on renewable energy and economic development issues to candidate (and now Governor) Bill Ritter of Colorado in 2006 and was one of the principal authors of the ‘New Energy Economy’ blueprint. Richard earned a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Wisconsin and Bachelors in Government from the University of Maryland. He has been living in Denver since 2003 with his wife, Heather. Richard can be contacted at:
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Connecting Business & Community for the Greater Good
RICHARD EIDLIN