Leadership
Bethany Davis Noll
Executive Director
Bethany Davis Noll is an expert in administrative and environmental law and an experienced litigator. She is an adjunct professor at NYU Law and co-chair of the Environmental Law Committee of the New York City Bar Association.
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Jessica Bell
Energy Director & Deputy Director
Jessica Bell (she, her) is an experienced attorney dedicated to promoting the public interest in the environmental and energy sectors. She previously served as the Clean Energy Attorney at the Center, focusing on energy law issues at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and on state energy policy matters.
Read MoreLegal Team
Christine Billy
Senior Legal Fellow
Christine Billy (she, her) has devoted her career to developing and implementing policies for a sustainable and equitable future. She is an adjunct professor of clinical law at NYU School of Law with over a decade of law and policy experience in climate and environmental law, food law, labor and employment law, human rights law, and local and state authority. She has advised on local and state emergency powers during multiple emergencies, including Superstorm Sandy and the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, she served as Chief Legal Counsel for the NYC COVID-19 Food Czar where she worked on the largest municipal emergency food delivery program in the nation – serving over 200 million meals at the height of the pandemic.
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Madeline Collins
Clean Energy Attorney
Madeline Collins (she, her) is an attorney with litigation experience, an LLM in Environmental Law, and a dedication to serving the public interest. She previously worked as Assistant District Attorney with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.
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Brian Frosh
Distinguished Senior Counsel
Brian Frosh served as Maryland’s 46th Attorney General from 2015 to 2023. During his two terms AG, Brian Frosh worked to ensure fairness, equality and justice for all Marylanders. Prior to being elected AG, he had been an attorney in private practice since 1976.
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Aleksandra “Sasha” George Ruiz
Legal Fellow for Environmental Justice*
Sasha George Ruiz (they, she) is an environmental justice and civil rights attorney with experience in federal Clean Air Act enforcement, hazardous waste act compliance, and community-based justice work.
Lauren McCrea
Clean Energy Fellow
Lauren McCrea (she, her) is an attorney with experience in energy and environmental law with a dedication to serving the public interest. She previously worked in state government focusing on environmental issues.
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Rachel Ramirez-Guest
Staff Attorney
Rachel Ramirez-Guest (she, her, hers) is an attorney with experience in environmental law and policy, including issues of environmental justice and municipal environmental compliance.
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Tatiana Zapata
Legal Fellow
Tatiana Zapata is a graduate of St. John’s University School of Law. She was the Co-Founder and Vice President of the school’s Environmental Law Society, as well as a student member of the NYCBA Committee on Environmental Law. Tatiana is a first-generation law school graduate and Colombian immigrant dedicated to advocating on behalf of historically marginalized communities. She previously worked as a legal intern at the Center before joining staff full time.
Read MoreOperations & Communications
Megan Abron
Associate Director for Operations and Budget
Megan Abron is the Associate Director for Operations and Budget, and supports strategic planning, fund development and operations work at the center. Previously, she was the Operations Manager at the Institute for Policy Integrity, and worked in the immigration field in New York. She earned an MSc in Politics of Population, Migration and Ecology from Birkbeck, University of London and a BA in Global Liberal Studies from New York University.
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Tiernaur Anderson
Digital Media Manager
Tiernaur Anderson is is a climate communications professional with an interest in making climate action more accessible for people at all levels of awareness and engagement. In her role she produces the biweekly newsletter, manages the Center’s AG Actions database and other online tools, designs Center reports and web resources, and assists in research for projects and reports.
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Jasmine Elbekraoui
Communications & Program Assistant
Jasmine Elbekraoui has a background in environmental science with an interest in environmental policy and research. Prior to joining the Center she worked for a student advocacy group, and played a crucial role in advocating for various campaigns and teaching college students how to be effective advocates in their community. At the Center, Jasmine works with the communication and operations team and assist with day-to-day tasks.
Kwolanne Felix
Communications & Program Assistant
Kwolanne Felix is a writer and an advocate of gender equality and the environment. Prior to joining the Center Kwolanne worked at UN Women, the Andrew Mellon Foundation, and the Women Environmental Development Organization. At the Center, Kwolanne works with the communication and programs team and provides day-to-day support.
Carlos E. Minaya Arnao
Communications Manager
Carlos E. Minaya Arnao (he, him) is a public health specialist and environmental conservationist. He joins the Center from the bay area in California, where he worked for Mission Neighborhood Health Center leading their community outreach and patient enrollment department.
Read MoreStudents Working With Us
Meet the students working with the Center as research assistants and interns this semester.
Delaina Castillo
Delaina Castillo is a 2L at Stanford Law School. She is co-president of Stanford Law Students for Climate Action and serves as a Submissions Editor and Web Editor for the Environmental Law Journal. Delaina is interested in the intersection between communications and legal advocacy, and is passionate about helping communities achieve environmental justice.
Andinet Mayibuye
Communications Intern
Andinet Mayibuye (she/her) is a senior at New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study concentrating in human rights, public health, and tech. She has engaged in impactful research as a student, investigating the effects of regional labor laws on migrant workers at NYU’s Abu Dhabi campus, as well as privacy in the new age of digitalization here in New York.
Ana Oropeza
Ana Oropeza is a recent graduate of Columbia University, where she majored in Film and Media Studies with a concentration in Business Management.
Georgia Rock
Georgia Rock is a third-year student at NYU Law. She is co-chair of the Public Interest Law Student Association and a staff editor on the Environmental Law Journal.
Madeline Schwartz
Madeline Schwartz (she, her) is a 2L at Cardozo School of Law. She is Vice President of the school’s Environmental Law Society.
Past Leadership
David J. Hayes
Past Executive Director
David J. Hayes was the State Impact Center’s executive director from August 2017 through January 2021, when he left the Center to serve in the Biden administration as Special Assistant to the President for Climate Policy, a role he filled until late 2022.
Elizabeth Johnson Klein
Past Deputy Director
Elizabeth Johnson Klein was the State Impact Center’s deputy director from August 2017 through January 2021. Klein now serves in the Biden administration as Senior Counselor to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.
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