Foundation News

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The Sierra Club Foundation elected four members to its board of directors: Academy Award-nominated director Darren Aronofsky, international investments analyst Flavia de la Fuente, entrepreneur Joseph Sanberg, and two-decade Sierra Club member and prominent Bay Area attorney Larry Keeshan.  

The Sierra Club Foundation is the fiscal sponsor of the Sierra Club’s charitable programs and works with individual and institutional donors to align financial resources with strategically focused campaigns, help build capacity in the environmental movement, and create partnerships with a broad spectrum of allied organizations that further shared environmental goals.

“These newly elected Foundation members embrace a wide range of talents and will play a critical role in shaping strategy, advising on campaigns, and raising awareness and funds for our crucial work of protecting our air, water, and climate,” said Peter Martin, the Sierra Club Foundation’s executive director. “Darren Aronofsky, Flavia de la Fuente, Joe Sanberg and Larry Keeshan will be instrumental in our work to educate and empower people to protect the environment and their communities.”

About Darren Aronofsky:
Darren Aronofsky, an environmental activist and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York and is a graduate of Harvard University and the American Film Institute.

Darren first joined forces with the Sierra Club for a film partnership with his most recent project, NOAH, which carried environmental undertones. He has since been instrumental in organizing support from the entertainment industry on critical issues including Keystone XL, People’s Climate March, Shell No Arctic protests, and COP21. He was honored by the Sierra Club as a “Trail Blazer” in 2015.

Darren was nominated for an Academy Award in 2011 for directing BLACK SWAN. In 2008, his film THE WRESTLER received the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. His first feature, π, won the Director’s Award at Sundance Film Festival back in 1998.

About Flavia de la Fuente:
Long-time progressive activist Flavia de la Fuente, an international technology and chemicals investments analyst at a pension fund and previous Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign organizer in Texas, is a native of Orange County, California and currently resides in Austin, Texas. She has spent time in the progressive movement supporting climate and clean energy campaigns, domestic immigration reform and the DREAM Act, and international human rights causes.

Flavia received her MBA from the University of Texas, Austin, with a focus in asset management and her BA in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. With her investment and community organizing background, Flavia will play an important role in ensuring that the Foundation’s investments align with our mission.

About Joseph Sanberg:
Joseph Sanberg, an environmentalist and entrepreneur, is a native southern Californian. Joe attended Servite High School in Anaheim where he has created an International Leadership Program that supports students learning Mandarin and visiting China. Joe graduated from Harvard University, Magna Cum Laude.

Joe is Co-Founder and Chair of the Board of Advisors for Aspiration, an online consumer financial services company that was recently named by Fast Company magazine as one of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies. He is also a founding investor in Blue Apron, the leading provider of home-delivered, moderately priced ready-to-prepare meals for individuals and families.

Joe is determined to bring economic security to all. He is Chair of CalEITC4Me, which is a statewide community organizing campaign to promote California’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) – a campaign that in 2016 connected 400,000 low-income Californians with $500 million of hard-earned tax credits from the state and federal EITC. He also serves as a member of the Board of Advisors of the University of California, Riverside School of Public Policy.

About Larry Keeshan:
Larry Keeshan, a Sierra Club member since 1997, served previously as Chair of the Sierra Club Foundation Board and is re-joining the Board after a year’s hiatus. Larry, a graduate of Georgetown University and with JD and MBA degrees from Stanford University, currently works as an arbitrator and is a member of the  American Arbitration Association’s Roster of Neutrals.

Larry’s prior work experience includes serving as Global General Counsel for PricewaterhouseCoopers and as a litigation partner for the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. At PwC, Larry had overall responsibility for the organization’s legal affairs, acted as counsel to the PwC Global Board, and sat on the on the firm’s Global Management Committee. Larry’s nonprofit experience includes serving as a member of the Stanford Law School’s Board of Visitors.