Who We Are

Let’s Green CA is a climate justice movement with the goal of creating a carbon-neutral California.

Human-made climate change is a threat to all life on Earth. Despite clear international and scientific agreement on this point, little meaningful progress has been made to change the systems responsible for the climate emergency.

Let’s Green CA is a movement designed to overcome the lack of political will needed to address climate change — through a Green New Deal for the Golden State.

The Romero Institute is home to Let’s Green CA. We’re a law and public policy center, based in California. For more than 45 years, in partnership with activists like you, we've harnessed the power of community organizing and the legal system to confront system issues head-on and win justice.

In 2015, inspired by Pope Francis’ Laudato si' encyclical on climate change, we became engaged in climate advocacy. We believe that stopping the destruction of the Earth is a moral imperative that requires a complete transformation of the economy — a national effort on the scale of FDR’s visionary New Deal.

Our first milestone is to create a California Green New Deal and get the core legislation passed into law by Sep. 30, 2022.

With the fifth largest economy in the world, California has a unique opportunity to mandate and enact a carbon-neutral model that can be followed globally.

Passing and implementing a California Green New Deal will prove that a carbon-neutral civilization is not only possible, but results in a more sustainable, equitable, resilient, and healthier world.

Let's Green California Staff

Our team consists of experts in community organizing, advocacy, the law, climate science, environmental justice, and communications.

CHIEF COUNSEL AND PRESIDENTDaniel Sheehan, Esq.
A Harvard-trained constitutional law attorney, Daniel has led or participated in some of the most important public interest cases of the last 40 years. His lawsuits include the Watergate and Iran-Contra Scandals, the Pentagon Papers, and the killing of Karen Silkwood. In 1973-74, he served as amicus counsel to the American Civil Liberties Union regarding the occupation of Wounded Knee. In 1980, he co-founded the Christic Institute, a nonprofit public interest law center that — among many other cases — prosecuted members of the Ku Klux Klan in Greensboro, North Carolina, and represented victims of the Three Mile Island disaster in Pennsylvania. In his work with LPLP, Daniel has been a principal attorney in drafting the legal strategy for the federal Justice Department’s lawsuit against the State of South Dakota for its violations of the Indian Child Welfare Act. He was present at Standing Rock during opposition to the Dakota Access pipeline. Daniel also served as defense counsel for LPLP lead counsel and water protector Chase Iron Eyes, who was targeted by law enforcement and faced severe charges following the Dakota Access pipeline protests. You can learn more about Daniel Sheehan at his website and his Facebook page.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORSara Nelson
The Executive Director of the Romero Institute since 1992, Sara has over 40 years of nonprofit leadership, grassroots organizing, national education, and fundraising experience. She was the director of the Karen Silkwood Fund, executive director and co-founder of the Christic Institute, and executive director of the State of the World Forum in San Francisco. She was the national labor chair for the National Organization for Women and a member of the California Commission on the Status of Women. For over a decade, Sara has been working with our Lakota staff and the nine tribes of South Dakota on matters relating to the Lakota Child Rescue Project, as well as with executive agencies in Washington DC. She holds a BA in anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley.
LGCA DIRECTORBenjamin Eichert
Benjamin's passion for social justice organizing began over twenty years ago. Right after high school, he and two friends bought an old van and drove from Albuquerque to Nicaragua volunteering in rural communities. Following that trip, he co-founded Big Noise Films and directed the award-winning documentary, "Zapatista." He has worked as an organizer and contract negotiator with the New York State Nurses Association and was the field director for US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse’s successful reelection campaign in 2012. Benjamin studied political science at Brown University.
CLIMATE ACTION ORGANIZERLeslie Austin
Making a difference in an interconnected world matters to Leslie. Leveraging her professional experience in publishing and marketing —coupled with her passions for collaboration and sustainability — Leslie works with public institutions, nonprofits, businesses, and communities to conceive and implement environmental initiatives. She aims to inspire equitable action while fostering the adoption of sustainability policies and practices that effectively address our most pressing environmental challenges.
SENIOR RESEARCH ANALYSTJon Conway, PhD
Jon leads our research efforts, and verifies the scientific validity of the issues we expose and the solutions we support. He is an environmental scientist and educator with experience in climatology, Earth science, botany, pedology, marine biology, toxicology, and pollution studies. He earned a B.S. in Ecology & Evolution from UC Santa Barbara, and his Ph.D. in Environmental Science & Management from the Bren School at UC Santa Barbara.
DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATEAnna Mason
Anna oversees fundraising efforts and donor relations for LPLP. With a background in marketing, sales, and entertainment, she is happy to now funnel her energy toward the protection of our planet and the rights of its people. Anna holds a BA in American Literature & Culture from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Senior Public Affairs DirectorHeidi Harmon
Heidi is a social, environmental, and gender justice leader committed to creating an equitable and regenerative world. She has been a climate activist for two decades. As its mayor, she recently led the City of San Luis Obispo CA to one of the most ambitious carbon neutrality goal in the United States. The climate crisis has revealed that everything and everyone is interconnected and that the world thrives when people, planet, and prosperity for all is central. Heidi holds a degree in Liberal Studies from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Communications DirectorAndra Belknap
Andra directs the writing and PR/comms for the critical work of greening California. She began her career in political communications as a junior staffer on the 2008 Obama campaign. She has held communications positions in the U.S. House of Representatives and as a presidential appointee to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Andra served as communications director to Congresswoman Lauren Underwood. She holds a degree in political studies and Spanish language from Pitzer College in Claremont, CA.

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