Ellen Anderson has a consistent track-record of bringing people together. These achievements result from her service in the Minnesota Senate, her leadership at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, and her current position as a policy researcher and analyst at the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota. As a Minnesota Senator (1993-2011), Anderson built respectful relationships with those holding differing opinions and built numerous bipartisan coalitions. As a result of her bipartisanship, Anderson passed landmark legislation in the Next Generation Energy Act and the Renewable Energy Standard. In 2013, when Anderson worked for Minnesota’s Environmental Quality Board, she organized the Environmental Congress. In that role, she made sure youth played a powerful part by supporting an inclusive, youth-led gathering that involved hundreds of students called the Next Generation Youth Environmental Congress. Summarizing her career of renewable energy and environmental leadership, one of Anderson’s long-time colleagues and a distinguished energy leader, Executive Director of Fresh Energy Michael Noble, says: “No single public sector leader has had more influence on Minnesota’s success as a clean energy leader than Ellen Anderson.”

2018 Critical Collaborator Nominees

  • Whitney Clark
  • Kris Eilers
  • Rebecca Flood
  • Zack Hansen
  • Monte Hilleman
  • Judy Hunter
  • David Legvold
  • Chelsea Reynolds

About the Critical Collaborator Category

The Critical Collaborator Award recognizes an individual whose career has been devoted to fostering enduring contributions to the environment, environmental health, or environmental justice through collaborative partnerships.