Aileen Nowlan
U.S. Policy Director, Global Clean Air Initiative
Work
Areas of expertise:
Policy, air pollution, climate and health, zero-emissions transport, corporate leadership
Description
Aileen Nowlan leads the initiative to develop and scale air pollution monitoring, mapping, and analysis. She leads the work to make risks from truck-attracting facilities like warehouses local, personal, and avoidable. Additionally, Aileen helped launch the first framework to attribute air pollution to individual companies. She previously launched a novel project finance mechanism for corporate brands to sponsor medium and heavy duty electric vehicles (EVs) when they don’t own their own vehicles. Earlier at EDF, Aileen catalyzed new technologies and new regulatory frameworks to reduce oil and gas methane emissions. She is an attorney and former management consultant with a background in project finance, restructuring, litigation, international law, sustainability and access to energy.
Background
Prior to joining EDF, Aileen clerked for a federal judge in the District of Columbia and practiced law at international law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in New York City, focused on petroleum industry clients. She is a graduate of Yale Law School, where she led the Yale Journal of International Law and advised on local and international climate change and clean energy initiatives. Aileen previously worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company, then led multistakeholder collaborations to drive market transformations in clean energy, water, and housing at Ashoka in India and D.C. She is also a graduate of the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Latest pieces
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Shining a Light on Warehouse Truck Air Pollution (PDF)
EDF, April 26, 2023 -
New mapping tool could help communities, policymakers prioritize clean transportation solutions
Energy Exchange Blog, October 15, 2021 -
A new way to track truck pollution
Energy Exchange Blog, October 9, 2021 -
Now companies can hit climate and shipping goals with new financing model
EDF + Biz Blog, February 18, 2021 -
Accelerating Zero-Emissions Delivery: An innovative approach to transforming the last mile
EDF + Biz Blog, February 17, 2021 -
Pathways for Alternative Compliance
Source, April 4, 2019
Press materials
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Report: 1 in 4 New York residents lives within a half mile of a mega-warehouse
January 17, 2024 -
EDF Report: Air Pollution from Warehouse Trucks Places Unequal Burden on Communities of Color and Areas of Low Wealth
April 25, 2023 -
EDF report introduces innovative financing model to accelerate adoption of zero-emissions vehicles
February 16, 2021 -
Report: Enormous Market Potential for Technologies Tracking Personal Chemical Exposures
July 31, 2019 -
Smart Oil and Gas Methane Regulations Could Speed Environmental Innovation
April 4, 2019 -
Statoil, Technology Developer and Environmental Defense Fund Partner to Deploy Innovative Methane Detection Device
January 18, 2017 -
California’s PG&E Installs Innovative Methane Detection Technology
December 7, 2016