Brett Johnson chairs our political committee, focusing on key local races in Pierce County. He also revises and contributes content for the newsletter and website. Endorsements are an important way to identify strong candidates with environmental goals and introduce them to advocates and donors. A complete slate of candidates encourages people to not just vote for President and Governor, but also farther down the ballot to elect folks who can make a difference and get things done right here in our community. If we develop good candidates and leaders here in the community, we can “build the bench” of future candidates for countywide, state, and federal offices.
Brett has volunteered for over 25 years with campaign efforts in Pierce County and northern Colorado, canvassing neighborhoods and connecting with voters. As a habitat steward, he started out with the Pierce Conservation District Stream Team, coordinated Scotch broom removal on several large properties, and later served with the Poudre Wilderness Volunteers weed crew out of Fort Collins, Colorado. More recently, he coordinated the Ivy League at Point Defiance and the Legion of Broom at Parkland Prairie, where most of the English ivy and Scotch broom has been removed for native habitat restoration. He was named the 2002 Pierce Conservation District Volunteer of the Year and the 2016 Outstanding Adult Volunteer by Pierce County Parks & Recreation. He has served on the Parks Tacoma Nature & Environment Advisory Council and the Pierce County Arts Commission. Prior to joining the Coalition, he chaired the Sierra Club Tatoosh Group Political Committee, which endorsed and supported local environmentally-minded candidates for several years.
Brett grew up in Puyallup and graduated from Rogers High School. As a student at the University of Puget Sound, he earned the college’s first interdisciplinary degree in Environmental Policy, and then joined the Peace Corps in Nepal as a Soil & Water Conservation Volunteer. He is grateful for this time living and working with villagers, learning to speak fluent Nepali, and traveling daily by foot in the Himalayas. Nowadays, he serves as Board Secretary for Friends of Nepal, a group of Americans and Nepalis dedicated to raising funds and providing grants for projects in communities throughout Nepal. Since then, he has taught music for over twenty years and lives in Tacoma with his wife, daughter, and dog. He can often be found playing saxophone in various groups around the community.