For Immediate Release

September 11, 2014

Contact
Benton Strong, 202.481.8142
bstrong@americanprogressaction.org

RELEASE: Arkadi Gerney to Be Named Senior Vice President of
Center for American Progress Action Fund

Washington, D.C. The Center for American Progress Action Fund announced today that Arkadi
Gerney will be named Senior Vice President of Campaigns and Strategies for the Center for
American Progress Action Fund and Senior Vice President at the Center for American
Progress. Arkadi will lead CAP Actions strategic advocacy and issue campaign efforts, a
responsibility previously held by Lori Lodes, who is leaving for the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, or HHS, this month.

I am excited to announce that Arkadi will be leading the CAP Action team, said Gov. Ted
Strickland, President of CAP Action. We are heading into a transitional time in our country, when
we will decide whether the economy will work for everyone or just the wealthy few, and Arkadi is
uniquely suited to lead CAP Actions role in that debate. Arkadi has a history of leading
organizations that grow our movement and address key issues facing working families and our
communities. We will miss Loris years of leadership here, but know she will continue doing great
work to expand access to affordable health care at HHS.

Arkadi will be a great addition to the CAP Action team, said Neera Tanden, President of the Center
for American Progress. Arkadi has been a top strategist on several key issues facing our country,
including developing the potential of clean energy and his work on gun law reform here at CAP. I
look forward to having Arkadis voice and leadership in the many issues he will work on at CAP
Action as well as CAP. Lori has been an extraordinary leader at CAP Action for several years, and
she will be a great addition to the team at HHS.

Prior to joining CAP as a senior fellow, Arkadi was senior director for policy, partnerships, and public
affairs at Opower, a fast-growing software company that works with more than 75 utilities in the
United States and across the globe to improve the effectiveness of their energy-efficiency portfolios
and motivate their customers to save energy. Arkadi, a Harvard Law School graduate, was also the
first head of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the national coalition co-chaired by former New York City
Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

In addition to Arkadi taking the helm of CAP Action, Noreen Nielsen has been promoted to Vice
President for Communications and Advocacy and Tony Carrk has been promoted to Vice President
for Research and Policy. Both Tony and Noreen are long-time veterans of the CAP Action team,
having served in various roles over the past several years.

The quality of our leadership and the strength of the rest of the CAP Action team will ensure that
we can continue to grow the movement to strengthen working families and fight for social and
economic justice in our country, Gov. Strickland said.

For more information please contact Benton Strong at 202.481.8142
orbstrong1@americanprogressaction.org.

The Center for American Progress Action Fund is the sister advocacy organization of the Center for
American Progress. The Action Fund transforms progressive ideas into policy through rapid response
communications, legislative action, grassroots organizing and advocacy, and partnerships with other
progressive leaders throughout the country and the world. The Action Fund is also the home of the
Progress Report.