Social Change
North America
Denis Hayes is President and CEO of the Seattle-based Bullitt Foundation. He was the U.S. National Coordinator of the first Earth Day in 1970 and is the founder and Chair of the International Earth Day Network. Denis Hayes served as Director of the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI). He has been special assistant to the Governor of Illinois for natural resources and the environment. Denis Hayes was a senior fellow at the Worldwatch Institute. He taught as an adjunct professor of engineering and human biology at Stanford University and as Regents’ Professor at the University of California. He worked as an attorney in Silicon Valley. Denis Hayes has been a visiting scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. and at the Bellagio Center in Italy.
He has published several books, including “COWED: The Hidden Impact of 93 Million Cows on America’s Health, Economy, Politics, Culture, and Environment” (2015) and “Rays of Hope: The Transition to a Post-Petroleum World” (1977).
Denis Hayes has received numerous awards for his achievements, including the World Bank’s Global Environmental Leadership Award and the Jefferson Medal for Outstanding Public Service. He has served on dozens of governing boards, including those of Stanford University, the World Resources Institute, the Federation of American Scientists, the Energy Foundation, the American Solar Energy Society, Greenpeace, CERES, and the Environmental Grantmakers Association.
Denis Hayes holds academic degrees from Stanford University.
Last updated: 2015