Ryan Alexander

About Ryan Alexander

I have spent my career organizing allies and adversaries on the right, left, and center to work together to get things done. · Persistence, patience, and the hard work of building relationships are central themes of my career, both as an advocate and as a manager. Talking to people one-on-one, truly listening, and demonstrating respect gives you access to almost any room. Listening and building trust, leads to unlikely partners and surprising alliances – and to deep insights into your opposition. The fundamental importance of listening and seeing what is rather than what you would like to be is critical to achieving ambitious change.At Taxpayers for Common Sense, the nonpartisan budget watchdog where I served as President for 13 years, I led a team that achieved wins for American taxpayers by building trusting relationships with people on both sides of the aisle – including leading the charge to the only successful effort to defeat a legislative rollback of an Obama-era environmental regulation. I have also achieved policy and organizational change in a variety of other roles, including campaign director, nonprofit founder, and board member. Substantively, I’ve worked to curtail poverty, protect public health, and strengthen our democracy, from voting rights to campaign finance systems.My career has straddled philanthropy, leadership and management, and issue advocacy. I’ve lived in New York City; Washington, DC; and Appalachia, where I’m proud to have co-founded Appalachian Mountain Advocates, the organization that has largely curtailed mountaintop removal coal mining. I now live in Northeast DC with my husband, two children, and our large Bernese Mountain Dog.

Experience

1. Executive Director, Climate Data Collaborative

   Data Foundation

   Apr 2024 — Present · Washington, DC, US

   Launching the Climate Data Collaborative, an independent hub for open, interoperable, cross-sector climate data that is easily useable by decision makers at all levels.

Education

• University of Wisconsin-Madison

  Doctor of Law (J.D.)

• Wesleyan University

  BA, with Honors