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Born and raised in Nevada, Kaylyn Kardavani has always had a passion for her state and community. Her dad used to bring her and her brother on hikes from a young age and bribe them with snacks to keep going. While not being able to realize it then, Kaylyn now appreciates all her dad taught and exposed her to and all of the amazing things our environment has to offer. She brings her dog Winston with her on hikes now and keeps the tradition alive of bringing snacks for both of them.
Kaylyn serves as Executive Director for New Day Nevada. Prior to this role, Kaylyn worked in government affairs and campaigns in a handful of other roles.
Born, raised, and based in Las Vegas, Nevada, Barbara attended Haskell Indian Nations University—a historical Native American college in Lawrence, Kansas—and later received her Certificate in Labor Studies from the Harvard Trade Union Program in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Barbara brings a strong and diverse background in environmental and economic justice, organizational management, campaigns, labor relations, and advocacy.
Kyle Davis is a Partner at Pinyon Public Affairs, a full-service strategic communications firm that empowers client success and delivers measurable results in Nevada’s complex and changing political landscape. He is an experienced lobbyist and political strategist working at all levels of government in Nevada. Kyle has successfully navigated difficult issues through the Nevada Legislature, including landmark legislation dealing with energy, public lands, transportation, wildlife, land-use planning, water, and public health. Kyle regularly works with a broad set of stakeholders to bring disparate interests together for common sense solutions.
Kyle has been an independent contract lobbyist since 2013, representing a variety of clients in many different issue areas. Prior to that, Kyle served as the Policy & Political Director for the Nevada Conservation League, where he directed all of the program work for the organization for nearly seven years. Kyle has been a registered lobbyist at the Nevada Legislature since 2007 and has been working in the political space for more than twenty years.
Renee Green has been practicing law in the Las Vegas community for nearly ten years and is an attorney at Kravitz Schnitzer Johnson Watson & Zeppenfeld, Chtd. where she represents corporations and individuals in commercial litigation and premise liability matters. Ms. Green received her Bachelors of Science from the University of Florida, graduating cum laude, and subsequently received her Juris Doctorate from the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
With her grandparents being born and raised in Las Vegas, her roots in Nevada run deep. Ms. Green’s commitment is to bring awareness of the impact of climate change to communities that may be unaware that these effects affect them most.
With over 25 years of experience in founding, operating, and transforming various businesses, Steve is passionate about applying my skills and expertise to the renewable energy sector. As the COO of Sol-Up, a company that offers innovative and cost-effective solar solutions, Steve leads his team through their North American expansion. He contributes to our mission of reversing climate change.
Steve has a diverse and entrepreneurial background, having started and grown a national transportation company with revenues over $180 million, a finance company with revenues exceeding $200 million, and a boutique hospitality software firm . Steve also holds a multi-engine aircraft certification and a California real estate agent license.
As a business owner, Steve leverages his knowledge and experience in aviation, finance, and hospitality to develop and execute strategic plans, optimize operations, and drive growth for Sol-Up and their clients.
Matt McKnight has worked in energy and environmental advocacy and on political campaigns for nearly two decades. He has led projects for the League of Conservation Voters, R&R Partners, and former Senator Harry Reid, and he served on campaigns for President Obama, Senator Reid, and Congressman Horsford.
Since moving to Washington D.C. in 2013, he has advocated for many energy, environment, and workforce issues important to the state and in close coordination with organizations on the ground.
He currently leads strategies to advance and defend federal conservation priorities.
Matt is a Reno native and an alumnus of both UNR and UNLV.
Hazel Wong is a tenacious advocate for conservation. Under her tenure as Director of Global Conservation Campaigns, The Nature Conservancy has generated over $60 billion in public funding through ballot measures at the state and local levels for natural resources protection. Her boundless energy, ability to motivate voters to support conservation efforts, and talent for making conceptual ideas tangible has gained her respect and admiration from internal colleagues and partner organizations who benefit from her efforts.
Hazel has spent the last 18 years leveraging her knowledge of communication, and the political and policy process to promote The Nature Conservancy’s legislative agenda in support of its mission to protect the lands and waters on which all life depends. She has used this experience in public opinion research, strategic message development, and political campaign tactics to create a groundswell of public support for conservation funding and policy initiatives. Her team has an 88 percent winning rate at the ballot box because of their ability to translate and analyze both qualitative and quantitative data to determine the viability of their campaigns.
Before joining The Nature Conservancy, Hazel had a long and distinguished career in both politics and the broadcast media. She coordinated candidate campaigns for the Nevada State Democratic Party. She was also an assignment editor, producer, and announcer on local TV and radio.
In addition to Hazel’s professional responsibilities, she is an annual guest lecturer at Yale University in conservation financing, and she has chaired several philanthropic and social organizations and committees.
Hazel’s educational background includes a Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication from California State University, Fullerton.
Born in Seychelles, a group of islands off the East Coast of Africa, Hazel has been at the forefront of researching how to engage communities of color in conservation and has been an advocate on diversifying the conservation community.
Megan Jones, a born and raised Nevadan, has been a campaign operative in her home state for over 20 years working alongside former Majority Leader Harry Reid since his 1998 re-election efforts and subsequent 2004 and 2010 races. She has served in various capacities for campaigns up and down the ballot from the 2012 Obama re-elect efforts to senior advisor for successful statewide ballot measures on gun safety and clean energy.
Jones has been an integral part of building the Nevada State Democratic Party infrastructure, working on the team that elected the first Latina US Senator in 2016, as well as advising the independent expenditure table in the 2018 election that resulted in electing the first Democratic Governor in over 20 years. From message development and fundraising to political and grassroots organizing, Jones has developed expertise in all aspects of running successful campaigns and issue-based advocacy work. Committed to the values of the West, she counts as some of her most meaningful work, the management of a coalition to advocate for the successful creation of two national monuments in Nevada.
Jones ran 10 assembly races in the 2016 election, re-taking the Democratic majority in the state legislature and setting the groundwork for both the election of Nevada’s first African American Speaker and subsequently, the first female majority legislature in the country. She has worked with Kamala Harris, Everytown for Gun Safety, NextGen, Western Conservation Foundation, Energy Foundation, the Pew Environmental Trust. She is active in the Las Vegas community and served as a founding board member for Emerge Nevada Chapter and currently serves on the board of the Nevada Conservation League, KNPR, the Las Vegas Springs Preserve, and Second Chance. Her favorite title is mom to two amazing kids and wife to Clark County Commissioner, Justin Jones.
Ms. Radford started her career in Nevada’s solar power industry in 2005 after volunteering for the local chapter of the American Solar Energy Society, Solar NV, organizing events to raise awareness about solar power in Nevada. She subsequently took a position with Nevada’s largest solar power contractor, under the tutelage of Chris Brooks, where she worked in Project Management until 2018.
A member of the Cherokee Nation, Ms. Radford originally hails from rural Oklahoma hill country where she developed a deep love, respect, and connection with the natural world & wildlife.
Before starting her career in solar, Ms. Radford was a singer/songwriter with Billboard Top Ten billing. Recently, she co-wrote a musical political parody with music industry veteran, Missy Parker, and performs for various Nevada fundraisers & political events.
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