Sarah Smiley
Distributed Senior Organizer
Sarah is a life-long resident of New York’s Hudson Valley, and is thrilled to support moms in the region in pursuing climate justice initiatives. Sarah has a Bachelor of Arts in history from New York University, and after an early career working in theater and film in NYC, earned a Master of Social Work from Hunter College with a major in community organizing. During that time Sarah became increasingly concerned about climate change which led her to get involved in climate advocacy. Her sense of urgency grew after becoming a mom.
When she and her family moved to Westchester, she wanted to stay involved in climate organizing while balancing life with a toddler and infant. It was at a rally in Peekskill that Sarah (and her baby daughter) were approached by a woman holding a Mothers Out Front sign. Together they went on to start the first Westchester MOF team, and Sarah subsequently founded the Rivertowns chapter after moving to Sleepy Hollow, NY. As a volunteer leader, she built strong relationships in her community, and earned the trust of elected officials, other environmental groups, and school officials. Her team helped secure funding for their district’s first electric school bus, and they successfully advocated for a large-scale real estate development in their community to pursue non-fossil fuel heating.
Prior to joining Mothers Out Front staff, Sarah worked at a non-profit that administers a sustainable energy loan program on behalf of municipalities around New York State. Sarah also volunteers as her village’s Climate Smart Communities Task Force co-coordinator.
Outside of work, Sarah loves spending time with her family, walking their dog Luna, hanging out with friends, and pulling weeds (so many weeds!) in the garden.
