Carol Browner Speaking Fee: Contact Us for Pricing

Carol Browner has spent a lifetime dedicated to protecting our environment and advancing public health. Growing up in South Miami, just a bike ride from the Everglades, she developed a deep love for nature early on. She graduated from the University of Florida with a BA in English in 1977 and earned her JD in 1979. Her first role in public service was as General Counsel for the Florida House’s Committee on Government Operations before joining Citizen Action in Washington, D.C., where she met her future husband. In 1991, Browner was tapped by the governor of Florida to lead the state’s Department of Environmental Regulation. There, she launched one of the largest ecological restoration projects ever attempted in the U.S.—restoring the natural flow of water to the Everglades. Just two years later, President Clinton appointed her as EPA Administrator. She became the longest-serving leader in that role to date, steering landmark achievements: setting the country’s first clean air standards for fine particulates, tightening smog rules, reauthorizing the Safe Drinking Water Act, and implementing the Food Quality Protection Act. Her efforts also brought environmental justice to the forefront, emphasizing protection for vulnerable communities. In 2009, President Obama named Browner as Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Policy. In that role she guided the most ambitious federal clean energy investment ever, shaped national clean car and fuel efficiency standards, and led the government’s climate policy during critical moments, such as the BP oil spill response. Today, Browner works as Senior Counselor at Albright Stonebridge Group and Senior of Counsel at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C. She also holds influential board roles: Chair of the League of Conservation Voters, Chair of Bunge Limited’s Sustainability Committee, board member of Innovyze, and Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. For her lifelong work across public, private, and nonprofit sectors, she received the 2021 Environmental Achievement Award from the Environmental Law Institute. Carol combines deep policy expertise with pragmatic leadership. She blends science-based regulation with flexible strategies that empower businesses and protect communities. She’s a collaborative thinker who navigates between Washington, D.C., and her Vermont retreat, and speaks about forging paths to a sustainable, equitable future.