ILLINOIS — The Clean Energy Jobs and Justice Fund (CEJJF), Illinois’ nonprofit green bank, today announced the re-election of its slate of officers to lead its Board of Directors. The elected officers will help guide CEJJF’s efforts to expand access to clean energy financing, accelerate equitable economic development, and ensure communities across Illinois can benefit from the clean energy transition.
The elected officers are:
- Memuna Lee, Board Chair
- Delmar Gillus, Board Vice Chair
- Chandra Christmas-Rouse, Board Treasurer
- Brad Roos, Board Secretary
The officers were affirmed during the organization’s board meeting this past week and bring decades of combined experience in clean energy, community development, environmental justice, finance, housing, sustainability, workforce development, and nonprofit leadership.
“CEJJF was created to ensure that the benefits of the clean energy economy reach every corner of Illinois,” said Rebeccah Sanders, Executive Director of CEJJF. “I am excited to continue working alongside this talented group of leaders whose experience reflects the communities we serve and the mission we work to advance every day. Their leadership will help CEJJF continue expanding access to affordable financing and technical assistance that creates jobs, lowers energy costs, and builds opportunity in communities that have too often been left behind.”
“I am honored to continue leading the CEJJF Board in such an important moment for clean energy and economic opportunity in Illinois,” said Memuna Lee, Board Chair of CEJJF. “CEJJF is helping communities across the state access the resources they need to invest in clean energy projects, create local jobs, and lower costs for families and businesses. I look forward to working with my fellow board members and the CEJJF team to continue advancing this critical mission.”
Memuna Lee has been a Bloomington resident for 14 years and is dedicated to helping low and moderate income residents of the community leverage fuel efficient ways to live. Memuna is currently Sourcing Consultant for COUNTRY Financial. She grew up in Los Angeles and later moved to Northern California, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. She is married to Craig Lee and has two children
Delmar Gillus is the COO of Elevate and has been passionate about leading and supporting Elevate’s core operational functions – legal, IT, cybersecurity, application development, office operations, workforce development, and Elevate’s project management office. Mr. Gillus also supports Elevate’s portfolio of clean energy programs that are focused on ensuring everyone has access to clean air, clean water, and clean energy. Mr. Gillus is a crucial member of the IL Clean Jobs Coalition that passed one of the country’s most comprehensive clean energy bills – the IL Climate and Equitable Jobs Act – that ensures the benefits of the clean energy economy and the jobs that it creates are accessible to all communities across the state. Mr. Gillus is passionate about equitable clean energy policy and implementation and frequently works with community organizations as well as local, state, and federal agencies to ensure we reach our shared climate and environmental justice goals.
Chandra Christmas-Rouse Chandra Christmas-Rouse is an urban planner, economic mobility strategist and artist based in Chicago, IL. Chandra is the founding principal of Marie Consulting Group (MCG), a strategic consulting firm that partners with social change leaders to ensure communities thrive in place and to transform systems to work for all. A background in community development and environmental justice informs her design approach of working with community stakeholders in a participatory process to support capacity building, achieve place-based solutions, and reimagine systems. Prior to founding MCG, Chandra worked at PolicyLink where she led strategy for bridging technical assistance and capital to advance local projects at the intersection of climate action and racial equity in cities across the Midwest and South using a collective impact approach. Her past experiences include integrating policy and strategy consulting with technical knowledge to advance economic mobility and sustainability for a number of national and international organizations and firms including the Metropolitan Planning Council, Enterprise Community Partners, United Nations-Habitat and Jacobs Engineering Group. Additionally, as an interdisciplinary artist and educator, Chandra creates participatory projects that engage local Black geographies, histories and spatial imaginaries. She is the author of a graphic novel entitled Where the Sidewalk Grows and creator of the Maplibs Project, a living atlas of the spaces that make us remember, feel and imagine community. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Chicago and serves on the Chicago Mayor’s Equity Advisory Council. Chandra was a 2020 Threewalls Artist Fellow and 2023 Chicago United for Equity Fellow. She holds a BA in Environmental Sciences & Policy with distinction from Duke University and a Master of Urban Planning with a concentration in real estate finance from Harvard University.
Brad Roos is retired after serving for over 40 years in neighborhood development with nonprofits in Champaign-Urbana, IL and then in the Midtown District of Rockford, IL where he developed affordable and market rate housing, managed a workshop for less-abled and migrant citizens, developed Rockford’s first permanent supportive housing facility for chronically homeless men and women, and created a world-class wellness program for seniors. Brad recently devised an innovative historic tax credit financing mechanism to restore a 90-year old building in Midtown where he lives. Brad has also served in numerous leadership positions in Rockford, consulted with neighborhood nonprofits in four states, been a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago’s Citizen Advisory Council, and served on the national Lutheran Climate Change Coalition. Most recently Brad founded Sustain Rockford, a nonprofit grassroots organization working to help make the Rockford region more sustainable environmentally, economically and socially.
The Clean Energy Jobs and Justice Fund (CEJJF) is Illinois’ nonprofit green bank, created through the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act to ensure that all communities benefit from the clean energy transition. CEJJF deploys public and philanthropic dollars to unlock private investment in clean energy, especially in communities that have historically been left behind.