SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco Mayor Edwin M. Lee appointed Deborah Raphael as the new Director of the Department of Environmental (SF Environment) on May 1. According to the press release from the Mayor’s website, Raphael worked for 12 years as the Program Director for Toxics Reduction and Green Building.
She has more than 20 years of experience in environmental policy and government administration and was recently Director of the Department of Toxic Substances Control for the State of California. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Biology/Plant Ecology from the University of California at Berkeley and a Master’s degree in Physiological Plant Ecology from the University of California at Los Angeles.
“Deborah Raphael is a proven leader who shares my commitment to extend San Francisco’s environmental leadership in a way that is inclusive of our diverse communities and builds on our innovation economy,” said Mayor Lee. “Her extensive knowledge and her ability to forge meaningful partnerships will help our communities adopt innovative sustainable practices so San Francisco remains the Greenest City in North America.”
Her duties with the city will include working with the City’s diverse residents and businesses to protect and enhance homes, businesses and the urban environment. The San Francisco Environment creates policies and idealistic programs that advocate social equity, protect human health and path the way for a sustainable future.
Governor Edmund G. Brown appointed Raphael as the Director of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) in May 2011. During her time with DTSC, she was responsible for the protection of human health and the environment from toxic chemicals, dangerous waste, and managed over 1,000 employees in nine different offices with an annual budget of about $200 million.
Raphael worked at the Exploratorium in SF for five years, and later joined the City of Santa Monica as an environmental program manager before she joined the SF Environment, where she developed leadership in groundbreaking programs to lessen the usage of toxic chemicals and to improve going green in buildings.
By LaDale Anderson
