Artealia Gilliard, head of Sustainability Communications & Advocacy at Ford, has joined the Alliance for a Sustainable Future as its first Sustainable Future Fellow. Gilliard is an accomplished leader at the intersection of sustainability policy and communications, bringing with her a wealth of experience from previous roles in the government, academia, and the corporate world. Gilliard's role at Ford makes her a key figure in the company's efforts to transition to carbon neutrality and electric vehicles (EVs). She is helping to shape the company’s narrative and advocacy around EVs and renewable electricity as an expert in sustainability, transportation, and communication.
Alliance Executive Director, Frank Sesno, said “Having Artealia Gilliard on campus and in the GW community will be incredibly valuable for students and faculty. Gilliard’s clear, credible, and creative communication style will allow a deeper understanding of what is at stake and happening in regards to the transition to EVs.”
Gilliard was recruited to work at Ford in 2021, after working at the Center on Global Energy Policy and helping to establish the nation’s first Climate School at Columbia University. “I joined Ford for the opportunity to be part of one of the biggest technology shifts in recent history. The scale of what the industry is trying to do is massive - to create a carbon neutral transportation system that integrates more electric vehicles and renewable energy will take public education and policy shifts. The transition will transform our economy and how our transportation and energy systems work today,” said Gilliard.
In her role as the Head of Sustainability Communications & Advocacy at Ford, Gilliard leads environmental and sustainability communications, supporting Ford’s efforts to transition to EVs and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. She is also working to help build the policy environment education and outreach that the company will need for EVs to reach the everyday consumer audience. Through her work at Ford, Gilliard has found companies do not need to focus solely on the environmental message encouraging the adoption of EVs; there are a variety of other factors that are equally compelling.
“We’re approaching this from a place of what people will gain from electric vehicles: transportation is key to creating opportunity. Having a safe, reliable and affordable vehicle can be the difference between who has access to education, jobs, food and healthcare, and who does not. And electric vehicles have so many benefits - whether it’s lower maintenance and fuel costs, greater reliability or just how fun they are to drive.”
“Cleaner air, cleaner water and an opportunity to be part of the new industries and jobs that will be created by the transition to electric vehicles can benefit communities that have typically borne the brunt of pollution caused by transportation and climate change and society as a whole.”
Gilliard is a Houston, Texas native and grew up in the heart of oil and gas country. “I really saw the impacts of the ‘bust and boom’ economy on my family, but I didn’t begin to understand the bigger forces at play or the impacts of oil and gas production on the environment and human health until I left Houston and went to college.” She was first introduced to the concepts of environmental justice and climate change as a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where she studied engineering and international studies. “The idea of climate change wasn’t political - they were focused on managing the impacts of climate change and building resilience in communities that would be impacted the most. That’s where I became interested in the idea that we’d need to educate the public about what was causing climate change, and work together to find better solutions.” She later earned her bachelor’s in communications from the University of Texas, San Antonio, focusing on multi-ethnic communication and the public interest. Gilliard went on to earn a master's degree from Syracuse University in communications management, focusing on public policy, conflict resolution and negotiation, leading her to various roles in government including the Department of Defense, Department of the Interior, and eventually, the Obama Administration's Department of Transportation.
Gilliard was a Senior Executive Service political appointee in the Department of Transportation. In this role, Gilliard focused on policy development, legislative affairs, and public engagement, bringing a focus to collaborating with communities being affected by transportation infrastructure. She assisted Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration Administrator Marie Therese Dominguez to build bipartisan support for a variety of bills including the pipeline safety bill and the FAST Act transportation safety legislation. Gilliard’s focus was on systems and pipelines that transport natural resources across our country, and natural gas storage safetyat the height of the Bakken oil boom. She also worked on electric and connected vehicles, and environmental permitting reform.
In 2023, Gilliard was invited to deliver the keynote address at the annual Planet Forward Summit in Washington, D.C. She seized this opportunity to educate current and future journalists, as well as students and educators interested in communicating about the energy transition and to address misconceptions about EVs. Throughout the summit, Gilliard experienced robust student presentations and diverse perspectives. “The enthusiasm that I saw from the students at GW about the role sustainability plays in their daily lives inspired me to join the Alliance through this fellowship,” Gilliard stated, “I was able to see young people from similar diverse backgrounds to myself preparing to fill a space where at many points in my career I had been the sole representative from diverse communities.”
Her appointment as a Sustainable Future Fellow will bring fresh and unique perspectives to GW’s campus. Over the course of the academic year, Gilliard plans to engage with students and faculty members through guest lectures, brown bag lunches, and evening salon events. Gilliard also plans to have a virtual presence on campus, providing insights into the convergence of sustainability and technology. As the Alliance’s first fellow, Gilliard will play a pivotal role in helping to build a diverse and multidisciplinary roundtable of external members. Her engagement with the GW community aims to not only enrich academic discussions but also to help bridge the gap between industry advancement and academic research. Gilliard’s commitment to diversity and her passion for mentoring young professionals are key aspects of her role. She hopes to inspire the next generation of leaders and enhance the Alliance’s impact through collaborative, cross-sector approaches to solving pressing societal challenges. “Having fellows as part of our campus experience will provide students and faculty with interesting people, ideas, and connections to the wider world outside our campus,” said Frank Sesno.