Daniel Gonzalez

Experience

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  Park District of Highland Park

  May 2017 - Aug 2017

  Natural Areas Intern

  Performed invasive species control, bird monitoring and conservation functions on ten distinct natural habitatsConducted research on water quality and coastal erosion on Lake Michigan shorelineDirected volunteer groups of all ages in conservation events and projects

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  Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council

  May 2018 - Aug 2018

  Policy and Advocacy Intern

  Attended EPA meetings on behalf of the organization and presented notes and next step recommendations to supervisors Served as a spokesperson for organizational recommendations for bipartisan watershed septic ordinances based on community member, political official, and shoreline property owner policy preferences survey data Performed strategic communications and outreach with a diverse population of citizens to inform them of watershed programs and mandates, community watershed events, and guidance on individual environmental stewardship Show less

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  City of Highland Park

  Oct 2019 - Sept 2020

  Greenest Region Corps Member

  Communicated with local energy companies to identified financial incentives and funding for a residential solar plant subscription program that brought 20% cost-savings to monthly resident energy bills Managed relationships with restaurant owners and multi-family housing entities to implement the City’s energy efficiency program Led collaboration between grasstop community leaders and grassroot community stakeholders to perform sustainability planning, prioritization, policy goals during monthly Sustainability Advisory Group and Green Alliance committee meetings Show less

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  O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs

  Oct 2020 - Sept 2021

  Graduate Research Assistant - Identifying Environmental Justice Communities in Indiana Project

  Analyzed federal and state environmental justice mapping tools employed to identify vulnerable populations to climate changeCo-authored a report highlighting the strengths and weakness of different story telling strategies used to identify and map environmental justice communitiesUsed quantitative and qualitative data in my approach to informing government and organizational actions to support policy initiatives and address societal needs

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  DMK Consulting

  May 2021 - Dec 2021

  Graduate Research Assistant - State Government Agency Responses to Environmental Complaints Project

  Performed data processing and management tasks for 20,000 citizen complaints to assess fairness and equity in State environmental agency’s responsiveness to citizen concernsPresented a quantitative analysis of indicators of injustice in an agency’s receptiveness to under-represented community voices

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  New York City Mayor's Office of Climate Resilience

  May 2021 - Aug 2021

  NYC Mayor's Office Fellow (Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps Member)

  Recommended 11 metrics to be used by the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate Resiliency and NYC Department of Transportation for long-term transportation resilience planning Researched government organizational team planning, goal setting, and tracking of key performance metrics strategies to encourage ambitious resilient transportation growth in New York City Designed, managed, and completed a project with limited supervision that led to a report distributed City government wide Participated in weekly calls to discuss government strategy, current policy priorities, and compliance with anticipated federal regulations and mandates Show less

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  Center for Transportation and the Environment

  Jul 2022 - Mar 2024

  Policy Associate

  Tracked and researched key legislation and rulemaking processes for the zero-emission transportation industry and advised day-to-day legislative and advocacy efforts to accomplish the organization’s missionPresented written and verbal summaries and briefings to the Executive Director and Director of Membership and Policy regarding current and future zero emission transportation policy trendsDrafted letters, blogs, and other communications materials to invite collaboration and develop relationships with Legislators and member organizations with the respect to advancing the organization’s legislative and advocacy prioritiesMet with Federal legislative and agency officials including House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure members, to promote the organization’s initiatives and industry perspectives on legislative issuesCoordinated actions with local transportation organizations for the promotion of legislation in the Minnesota legislature Show less

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  Minnesota DFL Party

  Aug 2023 - now

  Minnesota DFL Environmental Caucus Volunteer

  Serve in a Director position for Minnesota Senate District 59, advocating for ambitious environmental platforms within the Minnesota Democratic Farmer Labor party.

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  Minnesota Pollution Control Agency

  Mar 2024 - now

  Rule Coordinator

  Coordinated agency rulemaking efforts to ensure that the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency can implement legislation and carry-out important environmental services for the statePerformed research and analysis, project management, and community engagement for rules being developed to protect Minnesota communities