Kara Palmer Email & Phone Number

A full-service strategy and creative firm dedicated to serving humanity and the planet. • Drive strategy and implementation for a diversity of social and racial justice clients, including Black Future Co-op Fund, Byrd Barr Place, BIPOC ED Coalition, City of Seattle Office of Sustainability & Environment, Inatai (formerly Group Health) Foundation, Magic Cabinet, Marguerite Casey Foundation, NRDC Action Fund, Northwest Indian College Foundation, Philanthropy Northwest, Pride Foundation, Raikes Foundation, and W.K. Kellogg Foundation. • Direct the firm’s philanthropy practice in collaborating with clients to accelerate change in the sector that rebalances power with communities, as well as in developing new business that meets organizational and financial objectives.• Lead cross-functional teams to produce high-quality, high-impact deliverables that advance client goals, including branding, messaging, editorial and content creation, video storytelling, digital communications, media relations, event design, executive visibility, opinion and landscape research, and strategic planning.

Freelance consulting for causes while raising two young kids.• Founded and ran a consulting practice focused on advocacy. Work included researching and writing a policy report for the Raikes Foundation to inform their advocacy giving strategy, and creating campaign materials for The Wilderness Society to raise awareness of and garner support for public land protection.

A full-service strategy and creative firm committed to growing the greater good.• Managed multiple business accounts, developing trusting relationships and delivering strategy and communications services for clients, such as top green architecture firms of GGLO, LMN Architects, and Mithun; Seattle Public Utilities; Suquamish Tribe; and Women’s Funding Alliance.• Conceptualized and implemented strategies to raise awareness about specific issues and enhance clients’ reputations for increased market share; developed key messages to create consistent brand and voice in all communications; and wrote articles, brochures, press releases, and web content to promote clients and their causes. • Built relationships with media and pitched stories that resulted in positive press coverage, including a Wall Street Journal front-page article on proposed Washington wilderness additions. •Wrote business proposals, developed concepts for new services, and improved agency’s deliverables to clients.

A foundation working to create a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life.• Designed and implemented advocacy strategies to elevate key global health, development, and learning issues and influence decision makers’ actions. Led cross-functional teams with internal and external partners to plan and execute events, projects, and programs to advance the foundation’s objectives.• Developed strategic frameworks and funding guidelines for new areas of giving, including the Global Libraries and Early Learning programs, and managed a portfolio of advocacy grants. • Directed the planning and coordination for Bill and Melinda Gates’ and executives’ official trips to Africa, Chile, and India; their participation in conferences like the World Economic Forum; and their delivery of keynote speeches.• Fashioned the foundation’s community engagement around its move; managed special initiatives, such as the foundation’s rebranding, annual reports, and intranet redesign; oversaw the development of $6.8 million department budget; and supervised administrative staff.

A start-up (at the time) public transit agency serving the Puget Sound region.• Led complex planning processes that built consensus among internal and external partners and advanced the environmental, political, design, and engineering aspects of the Link light rail project.• Developed strategic plans and implemented outreach activities to inform and engage the public in the environmental review and project development of the light rail transit line. Wrote and managed the production of public information materials and board briefing books.• Initiated a successful partnership to involve bicycle advocates in Sound Transit’s policy development for rail and bus services and facilitated the creation of an intra-agency team to ensure policy coordination.• Managed special projects, such as the light rail pedestrian and bicycle improvements program; historic and archaeology mitigation; and nighttime noise variance application.

A volunteer, nonprofit group committed to improving the community’s long-term economic, environmental, and social health.• Served as the first paid director, leading the organization in partnership with the board of directors; coordinating volunteer involvement and supervising project interns to carry out the mission; and managing development and communications.• Initiated and administered the Neighborhood Network project, supporting citizen’s efforts to integrate sustainability principles into City of Seattle neighborhood plans.• Directed the production of the organization’s central policy report, Indicators of Sustainable Community 1995; and wrote, edited, and designed the 1998 report. Provided technical assistance to organizations worldwide to assist them in creating sustainability indicators to track changes in their community’s well being.

An environmental education and action program for high school youth.• Planned and supervised large-scale urban reforestation, park enhancement, and stream restoration projects involving more than 150 youth and volunteers in each project. • Organized environmental symposia and workshops that provided hands-on learning opportunities for high school students and engaged business, government, and community partners. • Led restoration project trips to Olympic National Park and a month-long service-learning trip to Costa Rica. Co-authored and published a sustainable development curriculum and video based on the Costa Rica trip.

An environmental consulting firm for nonprofit and government clients.• Developed a model program to promote and implement waste reduction and recycling in King County, Washington schools. Organized the first annual waste reduction and recycling conference for King County that provided technical assistance to school administrators, educators, and custodians.

A regional government responsible for comprehensive planning for water quality protection in Puget Sound and working with state, local, and tribal governments to implement.• Managed two major programs of the Puget Sound Water Quality Authority Comprehensive Plan: Nonpoint Source Pollution and Shellfish Protection.• Planned and facilitated a process to revise Washington State policy for local watershed management, which resulted in improved guidelines and streamlined procedures. Developed and coordinated community outreach programs that led to extensive review of proposed wetland standards and nonpoint source pollution state policy.