Rev. Susan Hendershot, president of Interfaith Power & Light, and Ken Kimmell, president of the Union of Concerned Scientists, will speak at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Chattanooga Monday as part of their first joint speaking tour on the intersection of faith, science, and climate solutions.
Leaders from Tennessee Interfaith Power and Light will also provide local context and opportunities for action.
“We are most delighted that Chattanooga has been chosen for the Tennessee presentation," said Angela Dittmar, a TIPL Chattanooga member.
The general public is invited to attend. Events have already occurred in Greenville and Raleigh and will be subsequently held in Atlanta and Birmingham. Please RSVP to taptenn@gmail.com.
Rev. Hendershot is president of Interfaith Power & Light, a national nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire and mobilize people of faith and conscience to take bold and just action on climate change. Through their national network of 40 state affiliates, IPL is leading the faith climate action movement at the local, state, and national levels through a combination of personal action and policy advocacy to advance climate solutions, said officials.
Prior to becoming president of The Regeneration Project and Interfaith Power and Light, Rev. Hendershot served as the executive director at Iowa Interfaith Power and Light for seven years. She is ordained in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) with an M. Div. from Emory University in Atlanta, a B.A. from Bethany College in Bethany, W.V., and a certificate in Spiritual Direction.
Prior to Iowa IPL, Rev. Hendershot served as a pastor in both Disciples of Christ and United Methodist congregations, focusing on social justice ministries. She also served as the first Heartland Field Organizer for the ONE Campaign on global poverty.
Currently Rev. Hendershot serves as co-chair of the Executive Committee for the RE-AMP Steering Committee, a network of over 170 climate, energy, and environmental organizations throughout the Midwest. Rev. Hendershot believes that climate change is a moral issue, disproportionately impacting those who are most vulnerable in the world. She gets her motivation and inspiration from her two sons.
Mr. Kimmell is president of the Union of Concerned Scientists, a science-based nonprofit that combines the knowledge and influence of the scientific community with the passion of concerned citizens to build a healthy planet and a safer world, said officials.
Mr. Kimmell has more than 30 years of experience in government, environmental policy, and advocacy. He is a national advocate for clean energy and transportation policies and a driving force behind UCS’s “Power Ahead” campaign to build a large and diverse group of clean energy leadership states. Prior to joining UCS in May 2014, Mr. Kimmell was the commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. As commissioner, he also served as chairman of the board of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, helping to prod the nine member states to reduce power plant carbon emissions by almost 50 percent through 2020, reducing emissions in the region by some 90 million tons.
Mr. Kimmell has also served as general counsel at the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs in Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s administration, and spent 17 years as the director and senior attorney at a Boston-based law firm specializing in environmental, energy, and land-use issues.