Posted Oct. 24, 2011

Former Energy and Climate Change Adviser, EPA Administrator to Speak at Law School

The former director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy will speak at the University of Virginia School of Law about what she views as political obstacles to achieving progress on public health safeguards that protect the environment, spur growth and save lives.

Carol Browner, who served as a senior adviser to President Barack Obama from 2009-11, will give a talk titled “Environmental Protections and Public Health: The Challenges Facing the United States” on Oct. 27 at 5:15 p.m. in Caplin Pavilion.

In her role as Obama’s adviser on energy and climate change policy — a post that was known informally as “climate change czar” — Browner was closely involved in the crafting of new emission standards for the U.S. auto industry, the inclusion of tens of billions of dollars for renewable energy programs in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, negotiations over the cap-and-trade energy legislation and the federal government’s response to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

After Browner left the administration she joined the Center for American Progress as a senior distinguished fellow and the Albright Stonebridge Group as a senior counselor.

Browner previously was administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President Bill Clinton. Leading the agency from 1993-2001, Browner was the longest-serving administrator in the EPA’s history.

Following her position at the EPA, Browner co-founded with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and others The Albright Group, a global strategy advisory firm, and Albright Capital Management, an investment advisory firm focused on emerging markets. She has also served on the boards of nonprofit organizations, including as chair of the National Audubon Society, and as a member of the League of Conservation Voters, the Center for American Progress and the Alliance for Climate Protection.

A question-and-answer session will follow Browner’s lecture, followed by a wine-and-cheese reception.  Her talk, which is open to the public, is sponsored by the Student Legal Forum.