BOARD
Carol Kauffman, Board President
Mike Shelton, Chairman
John Marshall
Daniel Gray
Krista Magaw
Brewster Rhoads
Mark Shanahan
Kyle Strickland
Heather Taylor-Miesle
STAFF
Spencer Dirrig, Director
Pete Bucher, Chief of Staff
BOARD
Carol Kauffman, Board President
Kauffman brings more than two decades of nonprofit and corporate experience advocating for environmental, community, and social justice issues as well as directing sustainability programs and strategies. From 2013 to 2017, Kauffman worked in the nonprofit sector in Cambodia where she designed development projects, helped businesses develop more responsible practices, and responded to natural disasters in the region. Since 2017, Kauffman led environmental and social responsibility efforts within the corporate sector at The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, and most recently, at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Within these positions, she devised sustainability strategies, led philanthropic efforts, and engaged with a diverse array of stakeholders — including a nationwide network of environmental partners.
Kauffman earned her B.A. in English from Taylor University (1999) and Masters of International Development from Eastern University (2012).
Mike Shelton, Chairman
Mike Shelton is Associate Director for the Sustainability Institute, leading the development of a tracking and reporting system for the university’s sustainability goals; managing the Ohio State Sustainability Fund; helping to manage the work of the President and Provost’s Council on Sustainability; and serving as a project manager for a number of sustainability related projects on campus. Prior to joining Ohio State, Mike was at ScottsMiracle-Gro where he was the manager for Corporate Social Responsibility. He has worked in state government, at the Ohio Legislature, Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Ohio Governor’s Office, as well as at The Nature Conservancy’s Ohio Chapter, as Assistant Director of Government Relations.
John Marshall
For more than 30 years, John Marshall has built a career as a distinguished attorney, representing individuals in employment and civil rights litigation. In addition to his litigation practice, John regularly assists clients by reviewing and negotiating employment contracts and severance packages. He received his B.A. from Denison University and his J.D. from The Ohio State University and was one of the first attorneys in Ohio to be certified as a Specialist in Labor and Employment Law by the Ohio State Bar Association. In addition to his service to the OEC Action Fund, John is a proud member of the Columbus Bar Association; Ohio State Bar Association; National Employment Lawyers Association; Ohio Employment Lawyers Association; Columbus Employment Lawyers Association; Central Ohio Association for Justice; and the Ohio Association for Justice.
Daniel Gray, Director of Regional Strategies for Citizens Utility Board
Daniel M. Gray serves as Director of Regional Strategies for Citizens Utility Board, a nationally recognized pro-clean energy consumer advocacy non-profit. In that role, he manages the Consumer Advocacy HUB for CUB’s Consumer Education and Research Fund, leading the strategic development of HUB, managing the budget, and building and maintaining relationships with HUB partners and funders. Prior to joining CUB, Mr. Gray co-founded and served as COO of EmpowerSaves a digitally-driven energy efficiency marketing and sales company and helped lead a team that grew the company to over $1,000,000 in sales. In addition, he ran and consulted on over two dozen grassroots political campaigns including working at the Democratic National Committee. Mr. Gray is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University and received his MBA from The Ohio State University.
Krista Magaw, Tecumseh Land Trust Director
Krista Magaw has been the director of Tecumseh Land Trust for more than 10 years. Her twenty-five years of non-profit organization and government experience complement the preservation project experience of the 25 year old Southwestern Ohio land trust.
Krista’s time with the land trust has been packed with local government and land owner contacts on the Clean Ohio program and the federal Farm and Ranchland Protection program. Through Clean Ohio, Tecumseh Land Trust (TLT) has brought over $20 million to Clark and Greene Counties for conservations easement purchase.
Historic preservation and restoration has long been an avocation for Krista and her husband, who is a history professor at Capital. Art, photography, gardening, and cooking are also interests of Magaw, interests that she shares with her husband and daughter.
Krista has a master’s degree in Public Policy from Duke University.
Brewster Rhoads, Principal Brewster Rhoads & Associates
Brewster Rhoads is consults on political campaigns, ballot issues, and advocacy projects. He has managed or provided strategic advice on more than 150 candidate and issue campaigns in Southwest Ohio.
He is the former Executive Director of Green Umbrella, the sustainability alliance for the region around Cincinnati. Prior to his position with Green Umbrella, Brewster served as the Southwest Ohio regional director for Governor Ted Strickland.
Brewster participated in the first Earth Day celebration in 1970 and has been an environmental advocate and political strategist ever since. A graduate of Williams College, he worked as a community organizer in Western Massachusetts, the director of the Coalition for a New Foreign Policy in Washington, DC, and the director of the Cincinnati Office of Ohio Citizen Action.
Brewster lives in the Mt. Washington neighborhood of Cincinnati with his wife Ann, an attorney specializing in whistleblower law. Brewster is the founder and chair of the Ohio River Paddlefest and an avid kayaker.
Mark Shanahan, Principal, New Morning Energy LLC
Dr. Shanahan provides clients strategic guidance on clean energy technology policy and deployment through New Morning Energy LLC.
As Governor Ted Strickland’s Energy Advisor, he played a key role in designing, negotiating and implementing SB 221 that created Ohio’s first advanced energy and efficiency portfolio standards.
During his tenure serving four Governors as Executive Director, the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority issued $5.8 billion in bonds, supporting investments in air pollution control and prevention, energy efficiency and clean energy technologies.
After getting his undergraduate degree from Boston College, Shanahan received his Master’s Degree from the University of Pennsylvania and Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve University. He lives in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife, Pari Sabety.
Kyle Strickland, Deputy Director of Race and Democracy, Roosevelt Institute
As the Deputy Director of Race and Democracy, Kyle Strickland supports Roosevelt’s work to ensure that racial equity and inclusion are part of all of the Institute’s programmatic areas. Currently, he is leading a multi-year race landscape project that will provide an overview and analysis of the latest research, policy ideas, and political movement-building on race, economics, and politics. In addition, Strickland is the Senior Legal Analyst at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity and the Director of My Brother’s Keeper Ohio, a statewide network that provides educational and community opportunities for youth of color. Prior to joining Kirwan, Kyle earned his law degree from Harvard Law School, where he served as Student Body President. Kyle, a native of Columbus, earned his B.A. in Political Science from The Ohio State University.
Heather Taylor-Miesle
Heather Taylor-Miesle has more than 20 years of experience advocating for greater environmental and public health protections, and working with our nation’s top decision-makers to bring environmental issues into the political spotlight.
Prior to joining the OEC and OEC Action Fund, Heather was the leader of the NRDC Action Fund, where she grew the organization from a mere concept into an environmental powerhouse in national politics. She also served as the NRDC’s deputy legislative director, worked with Fortune 500 companies to strengthen their sustainability practices, and held key aide positions on Capitol Hill working on energy and natural resources issues.
Heather studied political science and government at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio, and earned her master’s of public administration from the University of Southern California.
Andrew Watterson, President and Founder, Blue CSR Strategies
Andrew is President and Founder of Blue CSR Strategies, a corporate responsibility consulting firm located in Cleveland, Ohio. Andrew is an experienced sustainability and corporate responsibility practitioner who leverages his expertise in corporate responsibility and organizational development to guide organizations toward creating a positive impact on society, people, and the planet, while creating positive financial returns. Previously Andrew served as Sustainable Value VP at GOJO Industries, Senior Vice President and Head of Sustainability for KeyBank, Senior Consultant at BrownFlynn, and the First Chief of Sustainability for the City of Cleveland.
STAFF
Pete Bucher, Chief of Staff
Pete has a B.S. in Environmental Policy from the Ohio State University with a focus on water quality. Prior to joining the OEC Action Fund, Pete served as a Legislative Aide in the Ohio House of Representatives and as a consultant for various agricultural associations, labor coalitions and political campaigns. In his role, Pete sits on the Concentrated Animal Feeding Facility Advisory Committee and serves as Vice-Chair of the Ohio Agricultural Conservation Initiative. Pete serves on Worthington City Council.
Spencer Dirrig, Director
A native Ohioan and second-generation American, Spencer Dirrig was born and raised in Delaware County, just north of Columbus. He graduated from The Ohio State University with a B.A. in Political Science and a B.A. in Economics in 2019. An experienced political organizer, Spencer founded Breakthrough Advising LLC in 2019 and managed numerous campaigns throughout Central Ohio on the local, state, and federal level. Spencer joined the Ohio Environmental Council Action Fund in 2021 to help build the political power of the environment movement in Ohio. In his free time, Spencer serves as the 3rd Vice President of the Young Democrats of America, President of Workers United Local 2843, and a Member of the Board of Directors for the Legacy Fund of The Columbus Foundation. Outside of politics, Spencer is a USSF Soccer Referee and enjoys hiking with his rescue dog, Saoirse.