Leadership Transitions at green|spaces

It is with mixed emotions that we announce that our Executive Director, Michael Walton, will be transitioning to a strategic advisory role at green|spaces. Michael has been an invaluable leader and member of the green|spaces team since 2014, and his contributions have been immeasurable. We are grateful for his vision, dedication, and commitment to promoting sustainability in the Chattanooga region.

As part of this transition, Michael will be building a presence in Chattanooga for Emerald Operating Partners, a global energy transition advisory firm and we wish him all the best as he takes on this new challenge. While he may not be in the office as often, he will continue to provide strong support to the organization as a strategic advisor.

“The board is thankful for Michael’s leadership and guidance for green spaces. Under his leadership green spaces has help guide our community to adapt sustainable practices and preparing our workforce for clean jobs. We will continue to build on the foundation that has been laid,” said former Board Chair, Ken Jones.

During his time as Executive Director, Michael has achieved significant accomplishments for green|spaces. Under his leadership, we increased our staff from one in January of 2014 to twenty nine today, increased the diversity of our staff and board, quintupled our annual budget, and improved thousands of lives through our programming. 

Michael facilitated the community-led drafting of the Chattanooga Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, which was adapted by the City into the recently passed Climate Action Plan. He also designed, developed, and launched Empower Chattanooga, our education and outreach program, as well as launched green|light, Chattanooga’s Green Business Certification program, and Green Leader, the sustainabilty professional certificate offered through Chattanooga State. Michael coordinated the Low-Impact Development Design Competition, Green Sparks Design Competition, and NextGen Homes Design Competition. He also managed the design, development, and construction of the NextGen Homes, Chattanooga's first net zero energy development. 

Among countless speaking engagements to spread the word about the great work happening in sustainability in Chattanooga, Michael facilitated the Equity and Resilience Workshop at US Green Building Council’s 2019 Greenbuild Conference in Atlanta, was a panelist at the 2019 Department of Energy Better Building Summit Resilience Applications for Low Income Communities in Washington DC, and he served as a panelist at Oak Ridge National Lab Nexus of Resilience and Energy Efficiency in Buildings Workshop. Most recently he partnered with Associated General Contractors on the Construction Career Center to lead the integration of sustainability in both the building and the curriculum. 

Under his leadership, green|spaces received the Tennessee Governor's Environmental Stewardship Award in 2016 and 2020, the Footprint Foundation's Footprint Award in 2018 and the Chamber of Commerce's first ever Community Collaborator Award in 2019. 

These accomplishments are just a few examples of Michael's transformational contributions to green|spaces, and we are grateful for all that he has done. We will miss his leadership as Executive Director, but we are excited about his new role leading the global energy transition and his continued involvement with green|spaces.

Please join us in thanking Michael for his exceptional leadership, dedication, and hard work over the past years. We wish him all the best in his new endeavors.