Funders for Climate Equity July Meeting

A San Joaquin Valley native, Elliott is a community builder and problem solver with a passion for community and economic development. Since 2016 he has served as Chief Impact Officer at the Central Valley Community Foundation, where he supports the Foundation's programmatic growth, new investment practices, and staff talent recruitment. Prior to joining CVCF, he was the City of Fresno's Downtown Revitalization Manager from 2009 to 2014, where he played a lead role in securing funding for a high-profile reconstruction project, creating a property assessment district, drafting an adopted land use plan and development code, and working with real estate developers

Stacy has dedicated her career to community impact. For over two decades, she has specialized in venture philanthropy, social innovation, and economic development. Alongside TTCF staff and board, she engages community members around solving pressing issues. With her national network, she brings resources and expertise to inform our strategies. Prior to joining TTCF in 2012, Stacy was President and CEO of Dallas Social Venture Partners and Co-founded National Rural Funders Collaborative.

Bryna has held leadership roles in government, non-profit, and private sector organizations dedicated to civic, social, cultural, and environmental progress. She is currently CEO of the Humboldt Area Foundation and Wild Rivers Community Foundation, leading a major transformation for the organization to support visionary and generational change in the region.

In her prior role as Co-Founder and SVP for 100 Resilient Cities by the Rockefeller Foundation Bryna led the creation of the world’s first urban resilience practices, its global network, and formation of governmental partnerships to enable cities to adapt to 21st century challenges. Prior to that, she was the (Acting) Director of Philanthropic Research and Initiatives for the Office of International and Philanthropic Innovation (IPI) at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), where she led strategies to spur philanthropic partnerships and promote policy innovation.

Bryna is currently Chair of the League of California Community Foundation’s Committee for Disaster Response and is an active member in many philanthropic networks supporting racial equity and justice. She holds a Bachelor of Design in Architecture from the University of Sydney and a Master of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Her professional fellowships include the Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities and the prestigious Loeb Fellowship at Harvard University.

Laura Seaman, Chief Executive Officer, League of California Community Foundations. Laura is CEO of the League of California Community Foundations, a statewide coalition of 32 community. foundations serving over 95% of California's population. She joined the League in. 2020 after serving as Associate Director of the Digital Civil Society Lab at the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society. She is a proud Californian and is grateful for the opportunity to serve The Golden State's network of community foundations.

Rhea Suh is a senior executive with more than 25 years of philanthropic, environmental and public policy experience. Prior to joining MCF in 2021, Rhea served as the third president of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), where under her leadership, the organization grew by more than $50 million and increased its membership by more than 40 percent.

Before joining NRDC, Rhea served as the assistant secretary for policy, management, and budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior. She was nominated for the position by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate in 2009. She led several cross-cutting initiatives at the department including establishing a successful diversity program for the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, leading the inter-agency Wildland Fire national coordinating body, and creating the first-ever national strategy for federal land acquisition.

Prior to her appointment to the Interior Department, Rhea worked at both the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, focusing on strategies dedicated to environmental conservation and clean energy in the West.