PennFuture announced Monday the appointment of John Norbeck as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer bringing three decades of experience as a manager, most notably as head of the Pennsylvania state park system, where he led the organization to a national gold medal award as the best-managed park system in the U.S. during the period 2010-2011.
"John is a proven and effective leader, and has long made it a point to be cognizant of the needs of the people and places of the Commonwealth," said Cindy Dunn, president and chief executive officer of PennFuture. "His work on the GreenParks program in Pennsylvania, which showcased alternative energy projects while measuring each park's carbon footprint and setting goals for carbon reduction, speaks to an understanding of our work around clean energy and climate change. He is ideally suited to help us navigate the many challenges we face to our land, air and water."
Norbeck served as Pennsylvania state parks director from 2006-2012. Previously, he spent 29 years in the Maryland state park system. A native of Maryland's Chesapeake Bay region, Norbeck holds a B.S. in biology from Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia.
"I'm energized about the work PennFuture does, and have a strong interest in many of the energy issues on which the organization works," said Norbeck. "My work has been guided by the basic tenets expressed in the Environmental Rights Amendment of the Pennsylvania constitution, specifically, 'The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment. Pennsylvania's natural resources are the common property of all the people, including generations yet to come.' I'm gratified that PennFuture shares the same vision."