Annie Leonard
Public Citizen Foundation
Annie Leonard is the executive director of Greenpeace USA and a longtime environmental activist. She is author of the book, “The Story of Stuff” and the creator of “The Story of Stuff” documentary, which has been viewed more than 40 million times online. “The Story of Stuff” explores the often hidden environmental, health and social impacts of production and consumption. The Story of Stuff Project has since produced eight more films.
Ms. Leonard began her career as an activist at Greenpeace International in 1988, where she spent eight years as an international toxics campaigner working to prevent international waste exports. She is an expert in international sustainability and environmental health issues. In 2008, she was named one of Time magazine’s environmental heroes. She has worked for Health Care Without Harm and Essential Action.
In addition to serving on the board for Public Citizen, she also serves on the boards of the Wallace Global Fund and the Social Mission Board of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream. She previously served on the boards of the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives, Grassroots Recycling Network, the Environmental Health Fund, Global Greengrants India, Greenpeace India and the International Forum on Globalization.
She did her undergraduate studies at Barnard College, Columbia University, and she has a masters degree in city and regional planning from Cornell University. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and leads Greenpeace USA from its San Francisco office.