Our Team
Seattle office, (206) 621-0094
Nancy Hirsh
Executive Director
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 101
Nancy directs the Coalition’s efforts to enhance investments in energy efficiency, renewable resources, and low-income energy services through work with utilities, commissioners, regulators, and legislators. She serves on the board of Renewable Northwest and the Centralia Coal Transition Board. She is also on the advisory committee for the Institute for Energy Studies at Western Washington University. From 1996 through 2014 she served as the Coalition’s policy director. Before joining the Coalition, she spent twelve years in Washington, DC working on national energy policy issues for the Environmental Action Foundation and the National Wildlife Federation. She lives in Seattle with her husband, children and dog. When not advocating clean energy solutions, she is an avid backpacker and hiker.
Lauren McCloy
Lauren McCloyUtility and Regulatory Director
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 108
lauren@nwenergy.org
Lauren McCloy joined the NW Energy Coalition as Policy Director in 2021. Previously, Lauren worked as Senior Policy Advisor to Governor Jay Inslee, Washington State, where she led and managed a broad range of issues in support of the Governor’s energy agenda. Prior to serving in that role, Lauren was the Legislative Director for the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC), where she was the commission's liaison to the state Legislature and the Governor's office and was responsible for developing and coordinating the UTC's legislative activities. Lauren was previously a policy advisor at the UTC, where she advised commissioners on energy policy and legislative issues starting in 2014. Before joining the UTC's policy staff, Lauren worked as a Compliance Investigator in the UTC's Consumer Protection Division. She has experience working for the Washington state Senate Ways and Means Committee and several non-profit organizations focused on renewable energy, energy efficiency, and consumer advocacy. Lauren has a B.A. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.S. in International Development from Tulane University Law School.
Charlee Thompson
Charlee ThompsonPolicy Associate
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 104
Charlee joined the Coalition as a Policy Associate in June 2022. She is passionate about using science and policy to have a meaningful impact on the environment and underserved communities. She has worked for electric utilities and energy and clean mobility nonprofits performing data analysis, research, and advocacy. Charlee hopes to dedicate her career towards the clean energy transition and climate change mitigation in the Pacific Northwest. She has an M.P.A. in Environmental Policy & Management from the University of Washington and a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois. In her free time, she enjoys weightlifting, running, hiking, writing, and new experiences!
Kat Plimpton
Outreach & Operations Director
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 107
Kat joined the Coalition in 2015 after interning with the Coalition in 2014. Prior to joining the Coalition, she worked with a variety of non-profit organizations including the YMCA, Cancer Research and Biostatistics, and Climate Solutions. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Northwestern University, and in 2015 she completed her master's degree in public administration and her environmental management certificate at the University of Washington.
Beth Brooks
Beth BrooksDirector of Development
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 109
Beth Brooks joined the Coalition in 2022 as the Director of Development. Her previous work in Development includes Cancer Lifeline, Cascadia Art Museum, and Gage Academy of Art. A longtime arts marketer, Beth has worked with the Empty Space Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Pacific Symphony, and One reel. She lives in Seattle with her family and multiple cats. Whenever she can, she spends time on her family's tree farm up the North Fork in Montana.
Kasi Gaarenstroom
Portland Office
Fred Heutte
Fred HeutteSenior Policy Associate
Phone: (503) 757-6222
Office: (206) 621-0094, ext 103
Fred came on NWEC staff in February 2011 after being a co-founder and board member in the 1980s. He has a background in energy and climate policy, starting with the Oregon Solar Energy Industries Association (now OSSIA) and then at a firm that pioneered energy efficiency program evaluation in the Northwest and nationally. He later formed a database services business assisting nonprofit groups around the country. He has been active in the Sierra Club’s national climate work and was editor of ECO, the daily bulletin of the Climate Action Network at the UN climate meetings. He represents end use customers at the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC). On the side, he has broad interests in music and is a DJ streaming on the internet weekly.\
Alma Pinto
Alma PintoEnergy Justice Policy Associate
Phone: (206) 621-0094, ext 102
Alma joined the Coalition in July 2023 as an Energy Justice Policy Associate. Prior to her role at the coalition, she worked at Community Energy Project, where she advocated for frontline communities at the Oregon state legislature, local government, and Oregon Public Utility Commission spaces to advance energy justice, climate justice, and housing equity. She also interned with Energy Trust of Oregon and the Metro Regional Government, and spent three years doing community organizing and research for a bi-national non-profit in South Texas dedicated to environmental justice. Alma holds a BS in Energy and Sustainability Policy from Penn State, and is passionate about equitable climate solutions and working towards a just and clean energy transition. During her free time, she enjoys curating playlists and DJing, brushing up her viola playing, exploring Portland on her bike, and trying out new recipes and restaurants!
Alessandra de la Torre
Alessandra de la TorrePolicy Associate
Phone: (206) 621-0094
Alessandra joined the coalition in November 2023 as a policy associate after working with Rogue Climate advocating for energy justice and for community resilience. Over the past six years, she has led campaigns, organizing, and implementation in the Oregon Public Utility Commission, in the Oregon State Legislature, and in communities across Oregon. She previously served on Oregon's Wildfire Programs Advisory Council as the environmental justice representative and has a B.S. in Sociology from Southern Oregon University.
If there's flowers around, Alessandra is smelling and admiring them. One of her favorites are dahlias. You can also find her hanging out with her dog, dancing and making fun memories with loved ones in the Rogue Valley, SF Bay Area, Mexico, and beyond.
Zachariah Baker
Zachariah BakerRegional and State Policy Director
Cell: (503) 754-1223
Office: (206) 621-0094, ext 110
Zach joined the Coalition in April 2025 as Regional and State Policy Director. Zach manages the regional and state-specific policy work necessary to advance the goals of the Coalition.
Immediately prior to joining the Coalition, Zach was a Policy Advisor with the Oregon Public Utility Commission where he focused on regional energy issues including electricity markets and transmission. Zach has also worked to advance clean energy and climate policies at the local, state, and national levels in a variety of other roles inside and outside of government, including prior service as a local elected official.
Zach holds a law degree from the University of Oregon with a focus in Environmental and Natural Resources Law and a BA from Tufts University in political science and community health. When not working, Zach enjoys riding his bike, hiking, and enjoying the Pacific Northwest’s agricultural bounty.
Portland Office
Derek Goldman
Derek GoldmanPolicy and Regulatory Associate
Office: (206) 621-0094, ext. 105
Derek joined the Coalition in 2024. Previously, he was the national field director and N. Rockies representative with the Endangered Species Coalition, advocating on wildlife issues in the region. For more than a decade, Derek was a campaign manager with M+R Strategic Services, where he worked to advance policy at the local, state and national level, on issues ranging from land and water conservation, wildlife, and climate, to campaign finance reform, transportation, and more. At M+R, Derek successfully managed seven county-wide ballot issue campaigns, securing voter-approved funding for open space conservation, public schools, a new library, and expanded public transit service. Derek initially entered the advocacy space as a volunteer organizer with a Latin American solidarity group. He has a M.S. in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana and has worked as a river guide and a snowboard instructor. Derek lives in Missoula, Montana, where he enjoys adventuring on land, water and snow.