David M. Yarnold, Chief Executive, National Audubon Society (New York)

By Debra E. Blum

Background: Mr. Yarnold went to work out of college for the San Jose Mercury News, in Calif., rising to become its executive editor in 1999, after a short stint as a vice president at the online media company Knight Ridder Digital. In 2005 he left journalism to become executive director of the Environmental Defense Fund, in New York. Three years later, he took on an additional role as president of the group’s lobbying arm, the Environmental Defense Action