Joel Clement joined The Lemelson Foundation in 2023 as a Senior Program Officer. As an award-winning policy expert, scientist, and former federal executive, he brings to the Foundation more than 20 years of experience in the climate arena, including climate and energy policy, resilience and climate adaptation, and climate philanthropy.
Clement has led international climate initiatives, provided advice and analysis for White House leadership and two Interior Secretaries, developed and contributed to research and conservation science programs in temperate and tropical ecosystems around the world, and established a leading conservation science program for a philanthropic foundation. As a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, he led international efforts to address climate disruption in the rapidly warming Arctic.
A native of Maine, Clement has received multiple awards for championing climate action and promoting the role of science in public policy. He has been featured and interviewed on CNN, MSNBC, PBS, ABC, NBC, CBS, and Democracy Now and has been published by the Washington Post, The Hill, Denver Post, The Guardian, NBCThink, and the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. In addition to his full-time role at The Lemelson Foundation, Clement remains a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Belfer Center and is an Associate at the Stockholm Environment Institute.
