Lisa Renstrom

Activist

Lisa grew up on a Nebraska farm where crops were grown with the help of every presticide and herbicide available.  The concept of environmentaiist was not a in the region's lexicon.  When she ran the family hotel business in Mexico in the 1990's her decisions were defined by the bottom line, and not by green.  Nonetheless, a love of the land planted in Nebraska burgeoned into a career in environmental advocacy.

Lisa owned and operated two family hotels in Acapulco, Mexico from 1983-1993 when she moved to Charlotte, NC, with her husband Bob Perkowitz.  Seeking to ensure that Charlotte became neither Atlanta nor Mexico City, she became a force in greening Charlotte. She Co-Chaired the 1997 Charlotte Regional Environmental Summit, was the Interim Executive Director of Voices & Choices. 

Shifting from local to national as the President of the national Sierra Club from 2005 to 2007 Lisa transitioned the Sierra Club from its traditional focus on land and toxics to a people-focused approach on energy & climate.

Lisa currently serves on the boards of ecoAmerica and Earth Justice.  Her educational background includes the Owner Presidents Management Program at Harvard University, and a B.S. in Business Administration at the University of Nebraska and Mastes in Public Policy at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.  She and her husband Bob Perkowitz created Bonwood Social Investments, investing in organizations that engage the public in environmental and climate solutions.