Carbon Washington Welcomes New Executive Director

Since 2015, when Carbon Washington became the first organization in the U.S. to put a carbon tax on a statewide ballot (I-732), it has been an active participant in state government, working closely with concerned citizens and elected officials to pass meaningful and pragmatic climate policies that work for as many people as possible. Under the leadership of Kyle Murphy, Carbon Washington has been at the forefront of climate action in the state. With a dedicated team of volunteers and a highly engaged base across the state, Carbon Washington has organized legislative action and ballot measures that led the nation, developed insightful policy analysis, and supported climate candidates who won close races.

All of this has been done with a commitment to making a meaningful difference while generating broad support across Washington.After nearly five years of leadership with Carbon Washington, Kyle is stepping back to focus on his studies as a second-year student at the University of Washington School of Law. Continuing the organization’s mission of increasing demand for climate action and fighting for smart carbon policies, Carbon Washington is pleased to announce the appointment of Jessie Martin as the new executive director.

Jessie brings more than a decade of diverse, cross-functional, leadership experience in the corporate, public, and non-profit sectors. Most recently, she served as executive director of Earth Economics, where she developed strategies to harness the power of markets to redirect capital toward nature-based solutions to urban and rural challenges.Jessie has lived and worked in both Western and Eastern Washington, building relationships with diverse groups of stakeholders by listening, identifying shared values, and working together to achieve common goals. Her work has taken her from global consumer brands to academia, energy, agriculture, and finance. We’re very excited to have her skills and experience on the team, as she ushers CarbonWA into an exciting new phase of growth, partnership, and action in the 2020 legislative session and beyond.

We are so grateful to Kyle for his passionate and tireless leadership and innumerable contributions to Carbon Washington, and we are pleased that he will remain engaged with the organization. Kyle will continue to support Noa Kay, our Sustainable Farms and Fields campaign manager, leading an important piece of carbon farming legislation, the Sustainable Farms & Fields bill (SB 5947), through the legislative session.Please join us in thanking Kyle for his outstanding leadership and extending a warm welcome to Jessie as our new executive director!

A note from Jessie

Hello!

My name is Jessie Martin, and I am thrilled to introduce myself to you as the new executive director of Carbon Washington. After nearly five years of leadership, Kyle Murphy is stepping back to focus on his studies as a second-year student at the University of Washington School of Law. You’ll still see him around, though. He’s going to continue working with Noa Kay on getting our Sustainable Farms and Fields bill passed in the legislature this session. We are so grateful to Kyle for all he’s done for Carbon Washington, and we’re thrilled that he’ll remain a part of the organization.

Now a little about me.

I’ve been lucky to spend my career working with incredible teams in the corporate, academic, public, and non-profit sectors. I’ve helped US cities finance climate-resilient infrastructure, worked with public officials and business leaders to account for nature on corporate balance sheets, and even counted bugs in Washington mint fields to support sustainable pest management programs. I grew up on a potato farm in Northern Maine and have worked my way here to Carbon Washington, where I cannot wait to work with all of you to continue to make Washington a leader in carbon policy. And when I’m not doing that, you might see me running the hills of Tacoma, bike camping in Whatcom County, mushrooming near Quinault, or meeting friends at the Ellensburg Farmers Market. 

Please join me in thanking Kyle for his stellar leadership, and feel free to reach out and say hi or with any questions. I’ll be in touch soon with more updates from Carbon Washington. We’ve got exciting things in store for the 2020 legislative session and beyond, so stay tuned for news and ways to get involved.

Jessie