Chelsea Green Publishing today announced the appointment of Dave Rapaport as Associate Publisher and Chief Operating Officer, effective July 1.
The company’s leadership unanimously supported Mr. Rapaport’s appointment.
“Dave’s 30 years of experience as a leader in the field of sustainability - in both the business and non-profit sectors – is precisely what we need to grow this company as we embrace publishing in a digital age,” said Chelsea Green board member Kevin Ellis.
“Dave has a unique combination of business acumen, deep experience in the field of sustainability, and an unmatched personal commitment to our larger mission. We’re thrilled to have him on board,” said President and Publisher Margo Baldwin.
“Chelsea Green has always been on the vanguard as a publisher, and we’re now at the forefront of a dramatically changing industry,” said Baldwin. “We’re not afraid of the new digital frontier – we emphatically embrace it – and Dave is the ideal person to move us boldly forward. ”
Rapaport comes to Chelsea Green after holding senior positions with green household care products pioneer, Seventh Generation, including directing sustainability and corporate social responsibility initiatives, leading advanced product innovation and responsibility for business development.
He is a former business and project development executive with Northern Power Systems and East Haven Windfarm, and was named “Vermonter of The Year” in 2005 by the /Vermont Guardian/ weekly newspaper for his efforts to bring utility scale wind power to the state.
Before joining the business world, Dave spent two decades in the public policy arena in roles as Executive Director of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group and various senior staff positions with the environmental organization, Greenpeace, including directing their work on toxic chemicals and pollution prevention.
Rapaport has been an adjunct professor at the University of Oregon and has worked internationally as a consultant to UNICEF, the Swedish International Development Agency and the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme on issues related to sustainable development, waste management, sanitation, and marine pollution. He has served on the Steering Committee of The Sustainability Consortium, and has served on the boards of numerous national and local organizations including Greenpeace USA, the State Environmental Leadership Program, Renewable Energy Vermont and the Vermont Association of Conservation Voters.
“Chelsea Green has a long and proud history as an important publisher on issues like sustainability, renewable energy, organic agriculture and green building,” said Rapaport. “I’m excited about the opportunity to further that mission in the face of world’s growing challenges and for our company to grow as we navigate the huge changes in the publishing industry.
“As more and more people wake up to the realities of climate change in a post-peak oil world, they’re increasingly interested in the information, inspiration and solutions Chelsea Green’s books provide. The national movement to build more sustainable communities, grow our local food systems, produce our energy locally, and reduce our collective carbon footprint is growing rapidly and will continue to do so. Chelsea Green’s authors will be there to lead a way forward.”
About Chelsea Green Publishing
Founded in 1984 by Ian and Margo Baldwin in Chelsea, VT and now headquartered in White River Junction, VT, Chelsea Green is regarded as the preeminent publisher of books on sustainable living. With well over 400 books in print, Chelsea Green leads the industry both in terms of content—foundational books on renewable energy, green building, organic agriculture, eco-cuisine, and ethical business—and in terms of environmental practice, printing all of its books on chlorine-free recycled paper and using nontoxic inks.
