Jane Flegal and Jeff Holmstead Join the Board of Directors

Resources for the Future (RFF) is pleased to announce that Jane Flegal and Jeff Holmstead have joined the Board of Directors.

Flegal and Holmstead bring to the board years of expertise in energy and climate policy—both have worked in the federal government and in the private sector, lending them perspectives that will help inform RFF’s strategic mission.

“Jane and Jeff have been a part of the RFF community for quite some time, and I’m happy that they’ve agreed to solidify their relationship with RFF by becoming board members,” RFF President and CEO Billy Pizer said. “Both of them are incredibly bright, hardworking people, and I am confident that their insights will elevate the board and the entire organization.”

Flegal is a social scientist and champion for the use of research in climate and energy policy. She has worked at the Blue Horizons Foundation, Stripe, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Bernard and Anne Spitzer Charitable Trust. During the Biden administration, Flegal was the Senior Director for Industrial Emissions at the Office of Domestic Climate Policy, where she was responsible for developing and advancing policies that reduced greenhouse gas emissions, promoted technological advancement, and supported job creation. She is a distinguished fellow at the University of Chicago’s Institute for Climate and Sustainable Growth and a senior fellow at the Searchlight Institute. Flegal also works as an independent advisor, where she has been involved in the current permitting debate and supports philanthropy on climate strategy and investments.

“I have experience working in many places that benefit from quantitative economic data,” Flegal said. “As a board member, I hope to use my experiences to help RFF reach key groups—businesses, NGOs, philanthropists, and financial institutions—that would benefit from all that RFF has to offer. Especially in today’s politically fractured environment, it is vital that stakeholders and policymakers have access to high-quality, nonpartisan research that will help them make decisions.”

Holmstead was the Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation at the US Environmental Protection Agency under President George W. Bush, where he oversaw several of the agency’s most important initiatives. He also served in the White House Counsel’s Office under President George H.W. Bush and was involved in the passage and early implementation of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. He now heads the environmental strategies group at Bracewell, where he represents companies and industry groups before the federal government and in court on a wide range of Clean Air Act, climate change, and energy-development issues.

“I’ve worked with folks at RFF for years and have always been impressed by the work that’s done here,” Holmstead said. “The research coming out of RFF is rigorous, practical, and viewed as highly credible by the business community, public interest groups, and policymakers. I’m very much looking forward to working with RFF in this new capacity and hope that my experience will help to ensure that the organization is well situated to navigate the future.”

The board meeting that welcomed Holmstead and Flegal also launched RFF’s 75th anniversary celebrations. Over the next year, RFF will commemorate where we’ve been and where we’re going, with a goal of raising $7.5 million to support future research and programming. Visit rff.org/75 to learn more.