Oak Park has hired a new chief sustainability officer, Lindsey Roland Nieratka, after the role has been vacant for about eight months.
Marcella Bondie Keenan previously held the role, starting in March 2023. She was originally hired as a sustainability coordinator for the village in August 2021. Her last day as chief sustainability officer was Nov. 10, 2023, according to village officials.
Roland Nieratka will take on the position beginning July 29. Since 2018, she has been the first sustainability manager for Boca Raton, Florida. She was also the first environmental sustainability coordinator in Hollywood, a suburb of Miami.
“I am very proud of the work I have done in sustainability in the Southeast and am very excited to return to my roots in Illinois, where I was born, raised and educated,” Roland Nieratka said in a village news release. “The sustainability work Oak Park is already doing is remarkable and I am eager to continue moving that effort forward.”
Oak Park’s chief sustainability officer position is intended to help further goals in the Climate Ready Oak Park plan adopted in 2022, according to Village Manager Kevin Jackson. The plan lays out goals to respond to the global climate crisis, including decreasing community greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2030 and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.
Some recent moves to reach those goals include the upcoming implementation of a user fee for electric vehicle drivers, Oak Park Climate Action Network’s climate coaching program, and an ordinance requiring new buildings constructed after Jan. 1, 2024, to be fully electric.
“I am confident that Lindsey’s strong skillset and vision align well with our priorities as she brings nearly a decade of experience overseeing sustainability programming at the municipal level,” Jackson said in the release. “We are thrilled to welcome her back to her home state to lead the many initiatives that will help us reach our goals in this key area.”
Roland Nieratka is also a founding member of the Coastal Resilience Partnership of Palm Beach County, according to village officials. This team worked on a regional climate change vulnerability assessment, policy development, grant applications and programming, according to the news release.
She has also spent more than 15 years in higher education, according to village officials, and was an adjunct environmental science instructor at American Intercontinental University.
The soon-to-be chief sustainability officer is a member of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives and the Southeast Sustainability Directors Network. She recently completed coursework at Harvard University in executive education for sustainability leadership. Roland Nieratka has a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology and anthropology, as well as a graduate degree in tropical ecology and a Master of Science in environmental studies.
