Dan Esty is an important global voice on business, energy and climate change and the author of numerous books, including Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage. He is currently the Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). Previously, Esty served as the Hillhouse Professor of Environmental Law and Policy at Yale University and held faculty appointments in both Yale's Environment and Law Schools. He has held a variety of senior positions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and served as an advisor on the 2008 Obama Presidential campaign and transition team.

Commissioner Esty was appointed by Governor Dannel P. Malloy in March, 2011 to serve as Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), now known as DEEP, the state agency charged with conserving, improving and protecting the state's natural resources and environment and ensuring that Connecticut has a clean, affordable, reliable and sustainable energy supply. This new agency is focused on better integrating energy and environmental policies and helping Connecticut to build a sustainable and prosperous 21st century economy.

At the EPA, Esty served as Deputy Assistant Administrator for Policy, Planning and Evaluation, Deputy Chief of Staff, and as Special Assistant to EPA Administrator William Reilly. A former practicing lawyer in Washington, DC, he was the EPA's chief NAFTA negotiator.

Esty is the author or editor of numerous books and articles on environmental policy issues and the relationships between environment and corporate strategy. He has written for many publications including the Harvard Business Review, Huffington Post, and The Guardian. He is a frequent commentator on NPR and has appeared on numerous national TV talk shows to speak on issues of business innovation and the environment.

Commissioner Esty holds a B.A. from Harvard, an M.A. from Oxford, and a law degree from Yale. He is a native of Connecticut and now lives in Cheshire.