Fred Krupp has been the president of

Environmental Defense Fund Environmental Defense Fund or EDF (formerly known as Environmental Defense) is a United States–based nonprofit environmental advocacy group. The group is known for its work on issues including global warming, ecosystem restoration, oceans, an ...

, a U.S.-based nonprofit environmental advocacy group since 1984. He has worked towards convincing corporations of the benefits of environmentalism. This has included convincing

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...

and

Duke Energy Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company ranked as the 141st largest company in the United States in 2024 – its highest-ever placement on the ...

to make environmentally conscious business decisions. Krupp is also an advocate for legislative action on environmental issues; he successfully advocated for passage of the

acid rain Acid rain is rain or any other form of Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). Most water, including drinking water, has a neutral pH that exists b ...

reduction plan in the 1990 Clean Air Act and the 2022

Inflation Reduction Act The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is a United States federal law which aims to reduce the federal government budget deficit, lower prescription drug prices, and invest in domestic energy production while promoting clean energy. It was ...

. In 2015, Krupp received the William K. Reilly Environmental Leadership Award.

Early life and education

Krupp grew up in

Verona, New Jersey Verona is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 14,572, an increase of 1,240 (+9.3%) from the 2010 United ...

, and became acquainted with recycling through his father's company, which used old rags to create roofing material. He graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1975. He earned J.D. in 1978 from the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparati ...

. He later taught

environmental law Environmental laws are laws that protect the environment. The term "environmental law" encompasses treaties, statutes, regulations, conventions, and policies designed to protect the natural environment and manage the impact of human activitie ...

at Yale and

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Career

Early career

Prior to joining Environmental Defense Fund, Krupp spent several years in private law practice in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

, at several firms: Cooper, Whitney, Cochran & Krupp and Albis & Krupp. During that time he also was founder and general counsel for the Connecticut Fund for the Environment (1978–1984), a state-level environmental group.

Environmental Defense Fund

Since 1984, when he became president of Environmental Defense Fund, he has been influential in developing several market-based solutions, including the

reduction plan in the 1990 Clean Air Act. He has been described as the environmentalist who "has been the most successful in persuading the corporate world—and those who support its interests—to embrace the green cause". Examples including convincing

to forgo

styrofoam Styrofoam is a brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam (XPS), manufactured to provide continuous building insulation board used in walls, roofs, and foundations as thermal insulation and as a water barrier. This material is light blue in ...

for paper,

Wal-Mart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

to stock energy-efficient light bulbs, and

to invest in

wind power Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. This article deals only with wind power for electricity ge ...

. Krupp has advocated for reducing

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...

pollution. In 2017, he criticized natural gas because the release of methane along the supply chain "made atural gasjust as bad an energy source as coal from a greenhouse gas perspective". Ben van Beurden, then CEO of

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

, canceled a meeting with Krupp because of Krupp's criticism of natural gas. In 2018, Krupp announced that an affiliate of EDF planned to launch an orbital satellite,

MethaneSAT MethaneSAT is an American-New Zealand space mission launched in 2024 aboard SpaceX's Transporter 10 rideshare mission. It is an Earth observation satellite that will monitor and study global methane emissions in order to combat climate chang ...

, to monitor industrial methane leaks. In 2022, Krupp was one of the advocates for the

Other activities

Krupp served on the board of the H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the Environment, and the Leadership Council of the

Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies Yale School of the Environment (YSE) is a professional school of Yale University. It was founded to train foresters, and now trains environmental students through four 2-year degree programs ( Master of Environmental Management, Master of Environ ...

. He has served on the President's Advisory Committee on Trade Policy and Negotiations for Presidents

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

and

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

. He is the recipient of the 1999 Keystone Leadership in Environment Award, and the 2002 Champion Award from the Women's Council on Energy and the Environment. In 2008, his book, ''Earth: The Sequel'', co-written with Miriam Horn, was published. The book highlights technology that aims to fight global warming. In 2014, Krupp was awarded an

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

from

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

. He was elected by fellow alumni to serve as an alumni fellow of Yale's

Board of Trustees A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

for a six-year term beginning on July 1, 2022. In June 2023, he earned an honorary degree from

Williams College Williams College is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established as a men's college in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim ...

and gave the commencement address.

Personal life

He lives in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

with his wife, Laurie. They have three children. As an avid

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

, he won a gold medal in the 2006 World Rowing Masters Regatta sponsored by the

World Rowing Federation World Rowing, also known as the World Rowing Federation (officially FISA; ), is the international governing body for rowing. Its current president is Jean-Christophe Rolland who succeeded Denis Oswald at a ceremony held in Lucerne in July 2014 ...

. At the 2010 U.S. Rowing Masters Nationals Regatta, he won a silver medal in the Mixed Open F 4X.

References

External links

"The Making of a Market-Minded Environmentalist"
autobiographical article by Fred Krupp in ''

Strategy+Business Strategy (from Ancient Greek, Greek στρατηγία ''stratēgia'', "troop leadership; office of general, command, generalship") is a general plan to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty. In the sens ...

''. (Registration required.) {{DEFAULTSORT:Krupp, Fred American environmentalists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Yale University alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni Connecticut lawyers People from Verona, New Jersey