Beth Tener is a leadership trainer and coach who helps social change leaders live their values as they address complex challenges, such as transitioning to a clean energy economy, disrupting racism, and revitalizing communities. She is a natural systems thinker who holds the big picture perspective and gives attention to how all the pieces work together. Her skills in “sensemaking” and question framing help leaders and groups get strategic clarity and adapt to change in ways that build trust and cohesion. She brings a practical care for how to engage and include many people to collaborate and find the best path forward.
Her work is informed by broad experience in taking a systems approach, equity and environmental/social issues, gained through work with over 200 companies, government agencies, foundations, and non-profits. Previous client projects included: Working Cities Challenge, NH Food Alliance, United Way of Greater New Bedford, Success Boston, Great Neighborhoods Network of MA Smart Growth Alliance, New Hampshire Farm to School, and Vermont Farm to Plate Network.
In her previous role as Executive Director of Sustainable Step New England, she trained hundreds of people in principles of sustainability and putting them into practice. She helped internal “change agents” take leadership within their organizations to adopt green practices and facilitated networks of change agents from government agencies, businesses, and non-profits. She also convened dialogues between sustainable business leaders and government to explore how government policies could help advance sustainable practices. Prior to that she was a Senior Consultant at Arthur D. Little, where over nine years, she consulted with dozens of companies in diverse industries to create strong internal management systems that could deliver on their sustainability goals.
Beth was on the faculty of the Marlboro College MBA program in Brattleboro, Vermont. She has a B.A. in Political Science from Bates College and a M.S. in Environmental Technology from Imperial College in London. She also has a Permaculture Design Certificate (principles of ecological whole-systems design). She was awarded a fellowship with Center for Whole Communities to participate in Whole Thinking Retreat exploring how diverse leaders in the social justice and environmental movements can find common purpose.