Simon Billenness Email & Phone Number

Washington, District Of Columbia, Us

Founding and managing a new advocacy NGO with the mission to advocate and amplify the voice of the Rohingya with international institutions, governments, corporations, and civil society.

I consult to non-profits, corporations, trade unions, and social investment firms on strategy addressing issues of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and socially responsible investment.My more recent work includes:• Filing a shareholder proposal at Berkshire Hathaway and implementing a media strategy that successfully pressed Russell Athletic to re-open a closed union apparel factory in Honduras• Leading a workshop to help Asian civil society leaders develop a shareholder advocacy strategy targeting oil companies building the Shwe gas pipeline from Burma to China • Advising the American Federation of Teachers on development and implementation of its strategy to engage TIAA-CREF to deepen its shareholder advocacy on issues of human rights and labor rights• Advising MoxyVote to secure partnerships with social investment firms, union pension funds, religious institutions, and non-profits to provide content and direct users to a new website that allowed investors to vote their shares online• Helping to develop the business plan for SumOfUs.org, a start-up NGO that will use the online organizing tools of Moveon.org and Avaaz.org to mobilize people globally to hold corporations accountable• Writing and promoting a report, commissioned by Amazon Watch and Rainforest Action Network, on the financial and operational risks to Chevron from the $9.5 billion judgment against the company for its oil pollution in Ecuador• Organizing investors with over a half a trillion dollars of assets to press Chevron publicly to reach a fair and equitable settlement with the communities in Ecuador affected by oil company pollution of their land and water; my work has included representing investors in the filing of three resolutions at Chevron's annual shareholder meeting and submitting a complaint to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over Chevron's inadequate disclosure of risks to shareholders from the $9.5 billion judgment in Ecuador.

• Organized direct and grassroots lobbying of the U.S. Congress and Administration• Represented US Campaign for Burma in the media, including print, radio, and TV interviews• Organized panels at the World Bank by Burmese NGOs and CSOs to lobby concerning World Bank and IFC support for natural resource development in Burma • Developed donor base, significantly increasing recurring monthly donations

Oakland, Ca, Us

• Trained state-wide teams in shareholder advocacy targeting coal-using utilities• Organized meetings with U.S. Treasury officials and journalists in Washington, DC, for South African delegation seeking to block World Bank funding of coal-fired power plants by Eskom• Developed rating system for banks on issue of mountaintop-removal mining

• Built and managed a coalition of social investment firms, public pension funds, and NGOs that blocked harmful regulatory changes proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission• Developed and led shareholder advocacy with companies operating in Burma and/or Sudan, including Chevron, Total, PetroChina, and Sinopec• Assisted AFL-CIO member unions and allies on specific shareholder advocacy campaigns, including leading dialogue on labor and human rights with Chevron and ExxonMobil

• Built capacity of religious, environmental, labor, development, community, and shareholder organizations to develop strategy and conduct campaigns focused on Wal-Mart

Boston, Ma, Us

• Developed corporate engagement policy with the board of directors and senior staff• Developed annual corporate engagement strategic plan with staff and allies• Conducted trainings to build the corporate campaign skills of Oxfam staff and partners• Developed and implemented corporate campaign strategies and built coalitions of religious investors, social investment firms, and NGOs on issues of fair trade, paying a living wage, and community consent to mining operations• Represented Oxfam in the media, including an interview on “NOW with Bill Moyers”

Boston, Ma, Us

• Developed annual shareholder advocacy strategy• Conducted research, built coalitions, and engaged companies on human rights and social justice • Managed network of media contacts leading to frequent stories in local, national and trade press and participation in both live and recorded radio and television• Updated the proxy voting policy and managed proxy voting process

Education record

Mba, Accounting

Ba, Political Science And Economics

Education record

Education record