Barbara Stebbins spent nine years in research science before deciding she would rather teach as a middle school science teacher, which she did for fifteen years. She has actively worked for social justice and environmental causes since she was 16 years old. Currently her efforts are focused on promoting local clean energy and other ways of addressing climate change. She feels that clean energy advocacy must be rooted in the understanding that social justice issues and environmental issues are inexorably linked. Barbara has a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology from University of California at Berkeley.