Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN)

SCEN has previously advocated in favor of “Southern Communities for a Green New Deal,” a campaign to promote policies aligned with the Green New Deal adopted to specifically cater to Southeastern U.S. regional advocacy. In addition, SCEN has also advocated for ending fossil-fuel subsidies, halting “new dirty energy projects,” and prioritizing renewable energy infrastructure. ^{2 3 4}

Founded in 2018, and tax-exempt since 2019, SCEN is led by Executive Director Alexander Easdale, with founding board member Michael Hansen serving as Board Chair. In SCEN’s 2024 Internal Revenue Service filing, SCEN reported $1.47 million in revenue, $1.11 million in expenses, and $1.19 million in assets. ^{5 6 7 8}

Background

The Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN) has maintained a regional network model that has coordinated member organizations, hosted working groups and convenings, regranted small stipends/sponsorships, and provided technical assistance including grant-writing support through its Gulf South Mobilization Hub. The Gulf South Mobilization Hub received its primary funding in the form of a $400,000 2024 grant by Mosiac, an environmentalist grantmaking initiative and fiscally sponsored project of the Tides Center, a left-of-center organization created to manage the fiscal sponsorship services of its “sister” organization, the Tides Foundation. ^{9 10 11}

The network has also maintained outreach and narrative products such as the “Climate Justice Y’all” podcast and uses its site and convenings to circulate toolkits and program updates. ¹

Advocacy

The Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN) has promoted the “Southern Communities for a Green New Deal” campaign and has opposed the construction of new fossil-fuel projects, as well as energy technologies like nuclear power. ^{2 12}

SCEN was one of more than 650 signatories on an August 2022 letter organized by People vs Fossil Fuels and addressed to the “Democratic Leadership” in Congress. The letter was titled: “Opposition to Fossil Fuel Project Approvals and Permitting Reforms Conditioned on the Inflation Reduction Act.” The letter portrayed as “false solutions” carbon sequestration, carbon-free nuclear energy and all sources of energy not approved as “renewable” by the signatories, stating: “relying only on large scale investments in renewable energy and environmental justice alone will not stave off climate disaster if Congress simultaneously puts its legislative foot on the gas to expand fossil fuel production and false solutions like carbon capture, hydrogen, biomass, biofuels, factory farm gas, and nuclear power.” ¹²

Nuclear power plants produce no carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gas emissions, and as of 2021 accounted for 20 percent of American electricity production—the largest source of zero carbon electricity in the United States. ¹³ An October 2018 proposal from The Nature Conservancy noted that zero-carbon nuclear plants produced 7.8 percent of total world energy output and recommended reducing carbon emissions by increasing nuclear capacity to 33 percent of total world energy output. ¹⁴

SCEN’s SCEN 4 Southern Communities (SCEN4SC) campaign has emphasized turning the organization’s regional platform into small, localized projects across the U.S. Southeast. From 2023–2025 the initiative aims to support at least 20 community or organization-led efforts under two pillars: Action & Assistance (direct physical and financial help) and Amplification (spreading the word about actions taken by local organizations). Early stops included Tallahassee, FL (solar-policy advocacy with the left-of-center environmental awareness nonprofit ReThink Energy Florida), Petal, MS (disaster-preparedness workshops on canning and dehydrating food), and Brunswick, GA (packing and distributing 500 hurricane-readiness kits with partners). The campaign spotlights work on “climate justice,” disaster resilience, “weatherization,” and transition away from fossil fuels. ¹⁵

Finances

According to the Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN)’s 2024 990 filing, SCEN reported $1,470,242 in revenue, $1,110,252 in expenses, and $1,188,114 in assets, with nearly all revenue from contributions and grants. The organization has received grants from grant-making organizations including the Amalgamated Charitable Foundation ($150,000, 2023), Silicon Valley Community Foundation ($129,925, 2023), and The Solutions Project ($100,000, 2023). SCEN also lists the Laughing Gull Foundation among institutional donors, and Mosaic project publicly announced a $400,000 2024 award to establish SCEN’s Gulf South Mobilization Hub. ^{16 9}

From September–December 2025, SCEN ran a grassroots fundraising drive targeting three key goals: a total of $250,000 raised, 1,000+ donors, and 100–200 new recurring givers. The organization administered the fundraising drive through storytelling, digital outreach, and anchor matching gifts. SCEN argues that proceeds will support member organizations, expand rapid-response capacity for “climate emergencies,” and strengthen grassroots leadership development, with the recurring-donor push intended to bolster long-term financial sustainability. ¹⁷

Leadership

Alexander (Alex) Easdale is the Executive Director of The Southeast Climate & Energy Network (SCEN). Easdale previously served as Foundations Director at Democracia USA, a project of the left-of-center Hispanic-advocacy organization UnidosUS (formerly National Council of La Raza), where Easdale managed institutional fundraising. ⁷

Michael Hanson is the SCEN’s Board Chair. Hansen led GASP (a left-of-center Birmingham, Alabama environmental-justice organization, not to be confused with the left-of-center Ontario, Canada environmentalist organization Grandmothers Act to Save the Planet (GASP) of the same name) as Executive Director from 2015 before stepping down to join SCEN in 2023. ¹⁸