FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Fort Pierce, Fla., January 18, 2023 – SELF, a non-profit national leader in green financing and energy equity, announced a leadership transition naming Duanne Andrade as the new Executive Director. Andrade has served as the organization’s Chief Strategic and Financial Officer and has co-led the organization since 2013 with Doug Coward, the founder, and past Executive Director. Coward will now become the Director of National Expansion and Partnerships, overseeing the organization’s growth on the national stage and building relationships with key stakeholders and government partners.
“SELF has climbed and clawed over the last decade to become a nationally-recognized pioneer of energy equity,” says Coward. “It has been a team effort, with Duanne as our loadstar developing innovative loan products for underserved markets and raising $40 million in capital. I am incredibly proud of her and our organizational results and impacts.” Coward said, “Duanne has earned this opportunity to lead the organization into the next era. Her knowledge, experience, and financial management skills, coupled with her passion for addressing inequities, will take SELF to the next level. As her colleague and husband, I couldn’t be more proud.”
Andrade, a Bolivian national with deep family roots in Florida, created SELF’s proprietary and inclusive underwriting process based on each borrower’s ability to repay rather than credit scores. SELF’s microloans are the backbone of SELF’s flagship “Green Home Improvement Loan” program which has offered critical capital for thousands of low-credit, LMI homeowners with less than 2% default rates. Before the passage of last year’s landmark climate legislation, Andrade testified as an expert witness on green financing before the Senate and the Climate Crisis Congressional Committee. She has also developed innovative lending programs focusing on small to midsize affordable housing landlords and developers of color. Andrade created the template for SELF’s new Plug-and-Play platform, which will be available to help other green banks, community lenders, and organizations across the country deploy capital in disadvantaged communities to help LMI residents benefit from a clean energy economy, while leveraging funds from the Inflation Reduction Act.
Andrade developed her passion for social and environmental justice issues while growing up in eight countries spanning four continents, obtaining her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics from New York University (NYU) and Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the Harvard International Institute for Development (HIID), in cooperation with the Catholic University of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Before joining SELF in 2013, Andrade held positions in financial institutions in the United States, Bolivia, and Mexico and spent many years as a consultant for startups and innovative financing programs focused on social, environmental, and economic justice.
“This is a make-or-break moment in our country to empower underserved communities with life-changing access to capital,” said Andrade. “I am thrilled to take on this new role to continue to innovate and lead SELF into the future as a trusted green financing model and resource to help advance a just and equitable clean-energy transition for all.”
“Duanne is uniquely suited to lead us with unmatched institutional experience and a vision that will earn SELF a place as a household name in climate equity across the country,” said board president Scott McCracken. “SELF is becoming the one-stop-shop for access to green capital.”
Board Member Susan Glickman added, “This is a pivotal moment to advance energy equity, and it’s the smart leadership of Duanne and Doug that has ensured SELF can rebuild and empower underserved communities. That impact will only grow in their new roles.”
About SELF:
SELF’s mission is to rebuild and empower underserved communities by providing access to affordable and innovative financing for sustainable home improvements, including energy efficiency; solar; wind-hazard mitigation; water quality and water conservation projects; and more. SELF has deployed over $30 million for roughly 3,000 sustainable and property improvements and new ‘climate resilient’ housing, leveraging over $60 million of green economic development activity.
To learn more, visit: Solar and Energy Loan Fund
Media Contacts:
To arrange an interview with SELF, contact Jake Sanders, Marketing Director, at 772.276.6724 or jakes@solarenergyloanfund.org
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