Speakers

Ali Ward is a public school educator, with 20 years in the high-school science classroom, she is now in her third year as the Boise School District’s Sustainability Supervisor. In this work, she has the primary responsibility of creating a strategic plan for sustainability, with a focus on resource conservation (energy, water, and waste) and environmental education and stewardship opportunities for the district’s 23,000 PreK-12 students. With a B.A. in Visual Art, and B.S. in Biology, and an M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction, Ali has now also earned a Permaculture Design Badge (OSU) as well as a Design Thinking Certificate (MIT), and is a 2023 Sustainability Fellow with the US Center for Green Schools (USGBC). Ward oversees the district’s participation in the Idaho Power Cohort, including the DOE 50001 Ready sites, as well as our full district Scope 1, 2, and 3 Greenhouse Gas Audits, and the engagement of the 54 site-based Green Teams and their students, known as Green Ambassadors. Looking at environmental conservation and energy efficiency as part of the fiscal and moral responsibility of the district, Ali is leading the work on long-term sustainability strategy and investment, including existing incentive and rebate programs as well as the new tax law structures and opportunities afforded to public schools and other governmental and nonprofit entities.