Tommy E. Short

Tommy E. Short "is an international entrepreneur and philanthropist whose dedication to environmental concerns from his earliest years has inspired commitments to projects around the world. As co-founder and chairman of the Earth Council Alliance (ECA), Mr. Short has taken further strides in identifying opportunities and communicating sustainability to the world with co-founder, Maurice Strong, a long-time United Nations leader and advisor...

"Mr. Short was also instrumental in ECA’s role as a Founding Sponsor of the U.N. sponsored World Environment Day (WED) 2005 in San Francisco. The ECA sponsored Harmony Foundation’s “Green Cities: a Guide for Community Action,” an implementation manual and workshop, as well as the Children’s Flag Walk and Muir Woods Ceremony, as part of the San Francisco Urban Environmental Accords. In addition, ECA co-sponsored the Al gore Dinner at WED with World Resource Institute and Roots of Peace. Mr. Short also has worked with the Nature Conservancy in the preservation of open space and sacred places, as well as supported the Clinton Energy Conference, “Idea Wild,” and “Pachama Alliance” in Central and South America.

"Mr. Short is the founder and chairman of the Tommy E. Short Foundation, which is dedicated to exploring human potential and advancing sustainable living, seeking to support children, the arts, and the environment. Based in San Diego, the non-profit foundation actively facilitates a new ethic of giving for the success of other non-profit organizations whose missions align with these goals. In addition to environmental projects, the foundation has endowed the Boys & Girls clubs of Northern Colorado, as well as sponsored school programs called Seeds in Space with NASA and 50 school districts. Mr. Short also founded Fields of Jazz, which celebrates music and sponsors concerts in the spirit of gatherings based on shared values and unity.

"Under Mr. Short’s leadership, the ECA actively supports the Institute of Noetics Sciences (IONS) as part of a vision of sustainable communities. Mr. Short, an IONS Founder‘s Circle Member, is the Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Site Development Committee, which is developing a 200-acre campus in Marin County, California, with architect and visionary William McDonough, author of Cradle to Cradle. The IONS campus is being developed as a world class center under a model of regenerative design and sustainable development.

"Earlier in his career, Mr. Short was a successful business owner, restaurateur, and musical promoter with interests in the United States, Europe, and Asia."

• Council Member, Earth Charter International