| GNA Expands East Coast Operations, Appoints Rich Kassel to Lead New York Office |
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Kassel is an international environmental expert on alternative fuels and clean vehicles Kassel, a national leader and international expert on clean fuels and vehicles and the environmental and health impacts of the transportation system, will advise GNA clients that are transitioning to cleaner, low emission technologies and represent clients in environmental policy matters at the federal level. In addition, he will lead GNA’s new projects to reduce emissions from transportation and improve air quality in metropolitan areas in developing countries. “We are excited to add Rich Kassel to GNA’s roster of clean vehicle experts,” Gladstein said. “His two decades of experience and success in promoting a better environment through the increased use of low emission vehicles and technologies is unmatched and will provide great value to GNA clients, both current and future.” “Since its inception, GNA has played a unique role in bridging the divide between industry and the environmental community, helping both sides better understand where their interests intersect,” said GNA CEO Erik Neandross. “The addition of Rich in a senior leadership position will both continue this tradition and strengthen our capabilities in this arena.” Prior to joining GNA, Kassel was a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), one of the nation’s leading environmental organizations, where he directed the Clean Fuels and Vehicles Project. At NRDC, Kassel led an award-winning campaign that led to the development of a program that reduced pollution from NYC Transit buses by 97 percent and brought greater public awareness to the problem of pollution from vehicle emissions. For more than two decades, Kassel has played a critical role in the development of programs to reduce emissions from transportation all over the world. Domestically, he worked closely with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a series of car, truck, bus, train, ship, and other fuel and vehicle emissions regulations that will eliminate more than 50,000 premature deaths and $270 billion in health costs annually by 2030. Internationally, Kassel worked with Mexican government and environmental partners to reduce vehicle pollution in Mexico and co-founded the Partnership for Clean Fuels and Vehicles, a Kenya-based international organization that led the successful campaign to eliminate leaded gasoline worldwide. Kassel’s work has been recognized by the U.S. EPA, the U.S. Department of Energy, Jerusalem’s Hadassah College, the German Marshall Fund, and the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition. Involved in his community, Kassel chairs the board of directors of the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a leading transportation reform organization in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut region; is a longtime member of the board of directors of the New York League of Conservation Voters; and sits on the advisory committee of Transportation Alternatives. Prior to NRDC, Kassel was an associate at the global law firm O’Melveny and Myers LLP. He is a graduate of New York University’s School of Law and Brown University.
Contact: Anne Hellwig, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 310-573-8558
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