Alexander is the Executive Director of the Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN), where he leads and manages a network of 78 organizations across 11 Southeastern states. Alexander was most recently Associate Campus Director of Ana G. Mendez University System - South Florida Campus, where he helped manage the entire Campus operation, including academic and student affairs, and community outreach. Previously, he was Foundations Director at the Democracia USA project of the National Council of La Raza, where he was charged with managing its institutional donor portfolio, while also supporting major individual donor fundraising. Alexander has worked in Hispanics in Philanthropy, where he was responsible for leading program design, fundraising, and project management for capacity building, educational, and economic development projects in varied regions in the U.S. and in Latin America. Alexander also worked as a consultant in the Argentine Consulate General in Miami supporting international trade negotiations. In his varied roles and as a consultant, Alexander has managed and built multiple stakeholder networks, also raising millions for multiple initiatives and causes through donor cultivation and grant-writing activities.  He is a college professor and seasoned presenter at conferences and training workshops on topics such as leadership, fundraising, organizational development, and network management. 

Raised on the Pamlico River in Washington, N.C., Amy has spent her career in public service for environmental protection. She earned a B.S. in biology and M.A. in environmental science education at East Carolina University and spent three summers researching sharks in the Bahamas in association with researchers from the School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. She served as an outreach specialist for the Center of Applied Aquatic Ecology before joining the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources in 2004. Over the next decade, Amy rose in the ranks to become the regional office supervisor for DEQ’s Washington region. in 2013, Amy joined Appalachian Voices, a non-profit based in Boone, NC that promotes diverse local economies and thriving communities and defends the land, air, and water of our region from the worst environmental threats. She is a project partner on The Lilies Project, a project to use art and creative placemaking to increase awareness of the impacts of coal ash and to aid in uplifting the communities who bear the toxic burden of our electricity's hidden cost.  Amy joys spending time outdoors with her two children, hiking, boating, camping and playing music together. Amy served as the co-chair for the Environmental Justice Working Group from 2016 to 2017. 

Sophia is a sustainability scientist whose passion lies in communications and marketing. 

She graduated from Furman University with a Bachelor of Science in Sustainability Science and a passion for grassroots movements. Over the summer of 2018, Sophia conducted research for her senior thesis in Costa Rica, which focused on the challenges of scaling up grassroots conservation programs and mapping partnerships in the area. 

Since graduating in 2019, she interned for Miliken & Company, a diversified industrial manufacturer. Her roles included: data visualization, an overhaul of the recycling program at headquarters, and the creation of sustainability PowerPoints. Most recently, she worked with a non-profit located in Greenville, SC on marketing and research projects. Recently, Sophia joined SCEN as a fellow to assist with communications and the new asset mapping project. 

Abigail Franks graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a B.A in Political Science and Peace, Justice, and Ecology and was a 2019 Rhodes Finalist for the University of Oxford. She is especially passionate about transforming the South into a sustainable and resilient region through advocating for and, eventually, crafting climate mitigation and adaptation policies. Abigail’s interests include nonviolent social movements, environmental policy, community-based leadership, clean energy, and grassroots climate mitigation and adaptation strategies. Previously, she has worked for the nonprofits People’s Justice Council and Black Warrior Riverkeeper, and in college she founded and led the organization WEARE (We Envision Alabamian Renewable Energy). In her free time, Abigail enjoys listening to podcasts, exercising (whether it be dancing, yoga, or running), and cuddling with her dog: Ginny.

Yuri is a graduate of Georgia State University with a degree in Environmental Science. Yuri’s mission is to continue the work of those who have come before him in the environmental justice movement. He’d really like to take the baton and run his leg on his  EJ journey to cultivate social and political power in black and brown communities. It is through Love that makes his work move and reaches lives in an impactful way. Black and brown people have long been stewards of the Earth and it is his intention to tap into that natural inclination toward environmental stewardship as well as cultivating that same inclination in others.

Margis was born in Cuba, where she began her career as a Social Worker, deeply committed to understanding and addressing the needs of her community. Her experience ignited a profound passion for assisting families and children facing economic hardships and impacted by climate change. Motivated by this dedication, Margis founded H4C in Florida in 2012, a faith-based organization devoted to empowering families in need and fostering community development.

Currently pursuing a degree in Psychology from Ana G. Mendez University, Margis remains actively engaged in supporting families with children on the autism spectrum through collaborative efforts. Her multifaceted background and unwavering commitment to social welfare underscore her role as a compassionate advocate and catalyst for positive change in both local and broader communities.

Alexander is a cybersecurity consultant with more than 19 years of experience in the IT industry, managing the entire life cycle of projects and leading teams. During his career, Alexander worked in different industries and government customers, developing and implementing many IT and security solutions. He considers himself a self-taught entrepreneur whose passion is solving problems. 

Dr. Jairo Garcia is an expert in urban sustainability and climate change. As the former Director of Climate Policy with the City of Atlanta, Dr. Garcia was the lead author of Atlanta’s Climate Action Plan. Dr. Garcia was the Principal Investigator for NOAA’s Climate Adaptation Partnerships Program and was nominated by the United Nations Habitat as the North American Curator for urban climate and resiliency. Dr. Garcia received the National Individual Climate Leadership Award by the EPA in 2017 and the Green Ring Climate Reality Award in 2021. Dr Garcia holds an engineering degree, two Masters of Science degrees, and a Doctoral degree in Educational Technology and Sustainability. Presently, Dr. Garcia is the CEO of Urban Climate Nexus and teaches classes in urban sustainability and climate change at Johns Hopkins University and The Georgia Institute of Technology.