Save Mt. Diablo Greets Ted Clement

Save Mount Diablo Bids Farewell to Executive Director Ron Brown              

Following a nationwide search, the Save Mount Diablo (SMD) Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Ted Clement will succeed Executive Director Ron Brown, who announced his retirement in May of this year.  Clement, who has been Executive Director of the Hawaiian Islands Land Trust and of the Aquidneck Land Trust in Rhode Island, takes on his new role on November 2^nd, 2015.

The transition comes during a period of rapidly increasing development threats to the mountain, and in the middle of several huge planning processes in which Ron has served key roles, including the Reuse of the Concord Naval Weapons Station, and development of a $2 billion Countywide Transportation funding measure.

Ron has led Save Mount Diablo for the past fifteen years and is completing a career in non-profit work spanning more than 42 years. His background in organizational leadership was a great fit for expanding Save Mount Diablo’s programs and helping the organization gain recognition, raise funds, and build support for its mission. “I am proud of our accomplishments in expanding the footprint of protected lands and the policies that we have helped to craft that redefine the types of sustainable communities that future generations of Contra Costa residents will live in,” said Brown.

Ron has made numerous sizeable accomplishments impacting both the day-to-day operations of the organization and the conservation field at large. Some of Save Mount Diablo’s most noteworthy accomplishments during his tenure include:

• Raised more than $25 million for land conservation directly as well as aiding in the passage of measures, such as the East Bay Regional Park District Measure WW, and the East Contra Costa County HCP/NCCP.
• Directly preserved several dozen properties — including the group’s largest and most expensive acquisition, 1,080 acre $7.2 million Curry Canyon Ranch — and indirectly helped to protect thousands more acres.
• Was successful in attaining voter-approved Urban Limit Lines of every city in Contra Costa County as well as Dublin in  Alameda County, and then defending them in a variety of campaigns.
• Dramatically increased Save Mount Diablo’s programs and capacity, and expanded fundraising.
• Spearheaded the fundraising campaign and historic restoration of the “Eye of Diablo” beacon at Mount Diablo’s summit, and improvement of State Park roads prior to the Tour de California bicycle race.

“Ron Brown has done an outstanding job for Save Mount Diablo.  We are grateful for his many accomplishments, including the recent acquisition of Curry Canyon Ranch, our largest project to date, and for the many partnerships he built.” says Scott Hein, President, Save Mount Diablo Board of Directors.

Hein further states, “Ted Clement is the right leader at the right time.  We couldn’t be more delighted.  Ted’s stellar background in organizational leadership, land conservation law, environmental education, and his vision for the role that organizations like Save Mount Diablo can play in building and sustaining healthy communities is exactly what will keep Save Mount Diablo an environmental force in the East Bay”.

Clement was attracted to the role because of the combination of the mission and the potential for impact, “My professional goal is to use my land conservation experience and leadership skills to create lasting public good by protecting and connecting people to the land which sustains us.”

Ted Clement comes to Save Mount Diablo from the Hawaiian Islands Land Trust where he served as Executive Director since 2013. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental studies from the University of Vermont and a law degree from the Vermont Law School where he focused on land conservation. He was an environmental educator for the Outward Bound School in Maine over a three year period and a Peace Corps national park volunteer in Thailand for more than two years providing environmental education and solar energy work. After completing his Peace Corps service, Clement worked in the stewardship and legal departments at Vermont Land Trust while at Vermont Law School.

After completing law school, Ted worked for the Aquidneck Land Trust in Rhode Island where he served as the Land Protection Director for five years and then as the Executive Director for seven years before joining the Hawaiian Islands Land Trust. Clement assumes his new role at a transformational time in the life of Save Mount Diablo.  Following fifteen years of growth, permanent land protection through advocacy efforts, and collaborations with key partners, Save Mount Diablo is poised to expand its position in land preservation, and on critical land use issues and policy decisions.

Save Mount Diablo is a non-profit 501(c)(3) conservation organization, which has been preserving lands on and around Mount Diablo and educating the public to the mountain’s natural values since 1971. Preserved lands have increased from 6,788 acres in one park to more than 110,000 acres in 50 parks and preserves. Save Mount Diablo continues to preserve, defend and restore the remainder of the mountain for people and wildlife to enjoy.

Contact: Save Mount Diablo, telephone: (925) 947-3535, fax: (925) 947-0642, 1901 Olympic Blvd., Suite 320, Walnut Creek, CA 94596;        www.SaveMountDiablo.org