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Van Jones (1968-) is a civil rights and human rights advocate in Oakland, CA working to combine solutions to social inequality and environmental destruction. He is the founder and executive director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.
Jones founded the Ella Baker Center in 1996. Named for the civil rights and human rights heroine Ella Baker, the Center challenges human rights abuses in the United States criminal justice system and "promotes alternatives to violence and incarceration".
Jones won his first major award in 1998 when he was given the Reebok International Human Rights Award. Other significant awards include the international Ashoka Fellowship, selection as a World Economic Forum "Young Global Leader," and the Rockefeller Foundation "Next Generation Leadership" Fellowship.
Jones has served on the boards of numerous environmental organizations, including the National Apollo Alliance, Social Ventures Network, Rainforest Action Network, Bioneers and Julia Butterfly Hill’s "Circle of Life" organization.
Jones currently focuses on green economic development for urban America. The City of Oakland has adopted the Ella Baker Center's "Green Jobs Corps" proposal, which aims to train youth for eco-friendly “green-collar jobs.” Now Jones is pushing to create the first-ever "Green Enterprise Zone" and attract environmentally-sound industry to Oakland.
A 1993 Yale Law graduate, Jones is also a husband and father.
References
- 'Staff and Board', Ella Baker Center (2007) Retrieved January 25 2007.
- 'Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in California', The Nathan Cummings Foundation (2004) Retrieved January 28 2007.
- 'Van Jones' The Huffington Post (2007) Retrieved January 28 2007.
See also
External links
- The Ella Baker Center website
- Van Jones' blog on The Huffington Post
- An interview with Van Jones in The Witness
- Biography of Van Jones
- "Creating Green-Collar Jobs" by Van Jones and Ben Wyskida
- Stories by Van Jones on alternet.com