Aimee Barnes

Aimee brings over 20 years of experience in climate, energy, and sustainability, with leadership spanning the state, federal, and international levels across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. She founded Hua Nani Partners in 2019 and serves as its Founder and CEO.

Prior to founding Hua Nani Partners, Aimee served as Senior Advisor to California Governor Edmund G. “Jerry” Brown Jr., where she helped launch the U.S. Climate Alliance and played a key role in advancing California’s global climate leadership. Her work included supporting the landmark 2018 Global Climate Action Summit and Executive Order B-55-18, which committed California to achieving carbon neutrality by 2045.

Previously, Aimee served as Deputy Secretary for Border and Intergovernmental Relations at the California Environmental Protection Agency, where she led strategic climate and environmental partnerships with international governments including China, Mexico, Japan, and the Netherlands. In the lead-up to COP21, she also helped launch the Under2 Coalition, a global alliance of more than 200 subnational governments committed to ambitious climate action.

Earlier in her career, Aimee was a Partner at Allotrope Partners, where she focused on clean energy development and innovative climate finance in emerging markets. She also worked with the government of the United Arab Emirates to help establish the Directorate for Energy and Climate Change within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Prior to this, she served as an Advisor to the UK Government in the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s Strategy Directorate and as Senior Manager of U.S. Regulatory Affairs for carbon offset developer EcoSecurities. Aimee began her career at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in San Francisco.

In addition to her work at HNP, Aimee previously served as the Oʻahu representative on the Hawaii Board of Land and Natural Resources following her appointment by Governor David Ige in 2021. She currently serves on several boards, including the Arthur L. Irving Institute for Energy and Society at Dartmouth College. She previously served as a Board Advisor to Elemental Impact, where she helped launch its Policy Lab on Earth Day 2021. In recognition of her leadership, she received the 2018 Government Leadership Award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Education and Empowerment (C3E) Initiative.

Aimee is  the founder of Powerwomen, a database highlighting leading women in climate and energy, and the co-founder and Board President of  Bright Spot Network, a nonprofit supporting young parents navigating cancer while raising small children. In 2019 she recorded a children’s album, Rainbow Connection, with proceeds supporting Bright Spot Network’s work.

Aimee holds a Master of Public Administration in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a BA in Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College. She lives on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi with her two children.