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Staff Ben Vitale, President 
Ben Vitale is a carbon market expert and an experienced executive, with over 20 years of executive experience in both for-profit and non-profit organizations. He is the first President of The Climate Trust, succeeding the founding Executive Director in December 2009. Before joining The Climate Trust, Ben served as Managing Director of the Conservation and Community Carbon Fund at Conservation International (CI), where he worked with the private sector to develop climate change solutions and new financial instruments that create business value and achieve measurable climate change results. He supported the development of conservation carbon projects in Biodiversity Hotspots around the world including Ecuador, China, and Brazil. He also advised governments and partners on climate change, particularly in the area of reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD), in countries such as Guyana, Liberia, Madagascar, and Suriname. Ben has served as an adviser for Ecosystem Marketplace, the Chicago Climate Exchange, and Patagonia Sur, among others. He also has been a contributor to the books A Climate for Life, Climate Change & Forests, and Voluntary Carbon Markets. Prior to joining CI, Ben was co-founder and Vice President with Vcapital, a firm that raised corporate financing for businesses through a network of venture capitalists and investment firms. Prior to Vcapital, he was a corporate officer and Vice President with RadioWave Corporation, a Motorola subsidiary, and he held various management and technology positions within Motorola. Ben holds a Master of Management degree from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer and Electrical Engineering from Purdue University. He is also an avid conservationist, bird watcher, and certified SCUBA diver, in addition to competing in marathons.
Sean Clark, Director of Offset Programs  Sean Clark has been with The Climate Trust since 2003 and has been working in the field of climate and atmosphere policy issues for more than 12 years. While at The Climate Trust, Sean has overseen more than $4 million worth of offset project acquisitions. Sean is responsible for offset project acquisitions and various policy initiatives. In addition, Sean directs the organization's business development activities.
Prior to joining The Climate Trust, Sean was with Trexler and Associates, a climate change consulting company, with a focus on working with private companies to address their risk to the climate change issue. While at Trexler, Sean was involved in a variety of carbon market projects and programs including the launch of a Canadian company's carbon market business strategy and the development of an Africa-based carbon fund. Sean also functioned as Trexler's representative to the international climate change negotiations. Other client work included: TransAlta Corporation, PSEG, United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Reliant Energy, MidAmerican, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Prior to Trexler, Sean was a program consultant with UNDP's Energy and Atmosphere Program based at its headquarters in New York City. Sean earned an M.A. in International Affairs at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. He received his B.A. at Claremont McKenna College. E-mail: Sean Clark Maggie Albertson, Office Manager  Maggie Albertson joined The Climate Trust in August 2007 and brings 30 years of bookkeeping and office management experience to our organization. Maggie's work includes day-to-day accounting tasks, as well as preparation of financial reports, budget preparation and monitoring, human resources, and general office management. Maggie's extensive office and accounting training has come through employment in varied settings from the travel industry to secondary education to garment manufacturing. Maggie holds a B.A. in Psychology from Seattle University. E-mail: Maggie Albertson Lucy Brehm, Senior Manager, Business Development  Lucy Brehm joined The Climate Trust in December 2007 as a Senior Manager whose focus is helping governments, businesses, and utilities meet their climate goals. Lucy has more than 20 years of experience in law and business. Prior to joining The Climate Trust, Lucy was a Senior Vice President and Sustainability Officer for ShoreBank, a commercial bank focused on sustainable community development. Her work focused on outreach to depositors and helping commercial borrowers understand their impact on the community, economy, and the environment. Lucy has a B.A. in History from the University of Washington and a J.D. from Lewis and Clark Law School. She is a member of the bars of the Territory of Guam (inactive) and Oregon. E-mail: Lucy Brehm
Shanna also manages the Offset Quality Initiative (OQI), a consortium of six national nonprofit organizations dedicated to providing leadership on greenhouse gas offset policy and best practices. OQI has published papers on issues related to offset quality, including Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), has briefed state and federal lawmakers on the optimal integration of offsets into policy, and has been covered widely in the press for its work. Erica Keeley, Senior Offset Portfolio Manager  Erica Keeley joined The Climate Trust in 2001. As the Offset Portfolio Manager, Erica's primary responsibilities include recruiting and evaluating offset projects, drafting and negotiating new Emissions Reduction Purchase Agreements, and overseeing the existing offset portfolio. During her time at The Climate Trust, Erica has negotiated the purchase of $3.4 million of carbon offsets.
Previously, Erica served as Trust's Program and Operations Manager, where she managed the organization's financial operations, tracked the performance of offset projects, and managed the Trust's communications. Erica also supported the development and implementation of the Greenhouse Gas Offset Partnership Program. Prior to joining The Climate Trust, Erica was the head of the Superfund Amendment and Reauthorization Act Division at United States Compliance Corporation. As an environmental consultant, Erica assisted manufacturing facilities nationwide comply with federal and state environmental regulations. Erica holds a B.A. in Economics and Environmental Studies from St. Olaf College. E-mail: Erica Keeley Aurora Martin, Offset Portfolio Associate Aurora Martin joined The Climate Trust in September 2009. Aurora oversees The Climate Trust’s offset portfolio, which includes developing and assessing monitoring and verification plans, evaluating project performance, and ensuring project developers are in compliance with emission reduction purchase agreements.
E-mail: Aurora Martin
Becky Ostrom, Administrative Assistant Amy Phillips, Marketing and Communications Manager  Amy Phillips joined The Climate Trust in July 2008, bringing more than 15 years of communications experience to her role as Marketing and Communications Manager. Her chief responsibility is planning and executing branding and communication strategies. Other responsibilities include e-communications, media relations, and marketing.
Amy began her career as a print journalist at the St. Paul Pioneer Press and the Star Tribune in Minneapolis before being named editor of Midwest Home magazine. She has significant experience with branding, marketing, strategic communications, and media relations from tenures at the University of Minnesota, Midwest Home, Room & Board, and Alaskan Brewing Co. Amy has also served as a freelance communications consultant working with a diversity of clients including the Environmental Resource Council in Minnesota. Amy has a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. E-mail: Amy Phillips Monica Thilges, Offset Project Coordinator  Monica Thilges joined The Climate Trust in August 2008 as the Offset Project Coordinator. Her primary responsibilities include project acquisition and development and implementation of the Colorado Carbon Fund.Monica has a highly diverse background in marine biology, sales and management of wholesale electrical parts, and microfinance. She has worked in microfinance with Accion Chicago, salmon ecology with the Association of Bay Area Governments, and as an Environmental Volunteer in the Peace Corps in Jamaica. Most recently she completed internships with ShoreBank Pacific and The Climate Trust. Monica holds a B.A. in Biology and Environmental Studies from Carleton College and an M.B.A. in Sustainable Business from the University of Oregon. E-mail: Monica Thilges
Sheldon Zakreski, Senior Program Manager  Sheldon Zakreski has been with The Climate Trust since March 2008. Sheldon has more than 11 years of environmental policy and management experience, with a focus on energy, climate, air, and forestry issues. Sheldon oversees the development and execution of corporate and voluntary offset programs on behalf of private and public organizations.Prior to joining The Climate Trust, Sheldon worked for Metafore, a nonprofit that informs corporate buyers of the environmental aspects of their wood and paper purchasing practices. He was responsible for the development of many of Metafore's advisory services, including conducting sustainability seminars and evaluating the environmental performance of pulp and paper mills. He recently wrote two reports on the greenhouse gas emissions of the paper supply chain. Sheldon also worked as a policy analyst at Trexler and Associates, a climate change consulting company. He developed a carbon offset pricing forecast model and evaluated carbon offset projects in the biomass, forestry, renewable energy, and agricultural sectors. Sheldon has a M.A. in Economics from the University of Victoria (British Columbia). He earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Saskatchewan. E-mail: Sheldon Zakreski  top |
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Shanna Brownstein joined The Climate Trust in December 2008. As Policy Associate, she tracks and analyzes emerging state, regional, and federal policy, prepares policy summaries and white papers, and speaks at conferences regarding US and state climate policy. She also represents The Climate Trust on various state and regional stakeholder committees. 
Becky Ostrom joined The Climate Trust in 2007. As The Climate Trust's Administrative Assistant, her duties include assisting with staff scheduling and event arrangements, managing the office calendar and contacts databases, support with financial tracking, and assisting with general office maintenance and communications. Becky has a strong administrative background through office experience in a variety of different fields.
Peter Weisberg joined The Climate Trust in October 2007. He