Rob Caughlan's speeches are based upon 40 years of experience as a political advisor, communications professional, and environmental activist – rallying citizens to action and consulting in the halls of power. He is a veteran of more than 350 environmental speeches, presentations, and guest lectures. A powerful and entertaining speaker, he alternates between inspiring and illuminating accounts of environmental problems and successes and funny often poignant stories about the all too human actors on all sides.
Caughlan was a member of the White House staff under President Carter, and he also served as Special Assistant to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency. He was an EPA representative to the interagency Task Force which prepared the Global 2000 Report to the President, the federal government's first long range analysis of the convergence of economic, environmental and social trends.
Other advisory and staff roles in the halls of power have included stints working for three U.S. Senators (Feinstein, Cranston, and Rockefeller). He was a staffer for the late Congressman Leo Ryan, who played a key role in investigating the Jim Jones Peoples Temple cult in Guyana, South America. Ryan was assassinated when he was caught up the mass murder/suicide of hundreds of Americans in the Jonestown tragedy.
As a communications professional, he first conceived and then assembled the resources to produce a major ten-hour television series for Turner Broadcasting on global environmental issues entitled Voice of the Planet. The series starred William Shatner and Faye Dunaway.
He traveled to Egypt to produce, write and edit Future in the Cradle, an award winning film about population, and he produced the documentary Solar Energy: The Great Adventure, which won a Golden Eagle Award.
Caughlan also directed and produced a documentary about the life of Pete McCloskey, co-founder of the first Earth Day. Leading from the Front was narrated by Academy Award winner Paul Newman and aired on 180 PBS television stations around the country.
As an activist, he was the first President of the Surfrider Foundation. Under his leadership, Surfrider grew from 200 members to 25,000 members, and it won the second largest clean water enforcement lawsuit in the nation's history. The influential conservation organization Friends of the River was founded in his living room. To marshal additional clout for his activist projects, he often enlisted Hollywood notables, including Robert Redford, Paul Newman, and William Shatner.
Stories about Caughlan's work have appeared in publications ranging from Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times to People Magazine and The National Enquirer, and he has appeared on more than 125 radio and television news, feature, and talk programs. He has been featured on the national television networks' nightly news broadcasts, including Peter Jennings, Dan Rather and Walter Cronkite. National Geographic, Businessweek, and Vanity Fair have also done stories.
Caughlan speaks on how everyone can make a difference, the most successful methods of green activism, the many forms of political and civic engagement, the critical importance of ocean, coastal, river and lake protection and conservation, green and social marketing, how to be an effective communicator, and the techniques of media relations. He also offers presentations focusing on population stabilization, protecting endangered species and wildlife habitat, environmental video and TV production, and the history of the American environmental movement.
Rob Caughlan's speeches are based upon 40 years of experience as a political advisor, communications professional, and environmental activist – rallying citizens to action and consulting in the halls of power. He is a veteran of more than 350 environmental speeches, presentations, and guest lectures. A powerful and entertaining speaker, he alternates between inspiring and illuminating accounts of environmental problems and successes and funny often poignant stories about the all too human actors on all sides.
Caughlan was a member of the White House staff under President Carter, and he also served as Special Assistant to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency. He was an EPA representative to the interagency Task Force which prepared the Global 2000 Report to the President, the federal government's first long range analysis of the convergence of economic, environmental and social trends.
Other advisory and staff roles in the halls of power have included stints working for three U.S. Senators (Feinstein, Cranston, and Rockefeller). He was a staffer for the late Congressman Leo Ryan, who played a key role in investigating the Jim Jones Peoples Temple cult in Guyana, South America. Ryan was assassinated when he was caught up the mass murder/suicide of hundreds of Americans in the Jonestown tragedy.
As a communications professional, he first conceived and then assembled the resources to produce a major ten-hour television series for Turner Broadcasting on global environmental issues entitled Voice of the Planet. The series starred William Shatner and Faye Dunaway.
He traveled to Egypt to produce, write and edit Future in the Cradle, an award winning film about population, and he produced the documentary Solar Energy: The Great Adventure, which won a Golden Eagle Award.
Caughlan also directed and produced a documentary about the life of Pete McCloskey, co-founder of the first Earth Day. Leading from the Front was narrated by Academy Award winner Paul Newman and aired on 180 PBS television stations around the country.
As an activist, he was the first President of the Surfrider Foundation. Under his leadership, Surfrider grew from 200 members to 25,000 members, and it won the second largest clean water enforcement lawsuit in the nation's history. The influential conservation organization Friends of the River was founded in his living room. To marshal additional clout for his activist projects, he often enlisted Hollywood notables, including Robert Redford, Paul Newman, and William Shatner.
Stories about Caughlan's work have appeared in publications ranging from Time, Newsweek, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times to People Magazine and The National Enquirer, and he has appeared on more than 125 radio and television news, feature, and talk programs. He has been featured on the national television networks' nightly news broadcasts, including Peter Jennings, Dan Rather and Walter Cronkite. National Geographic, Businessweek, and Vanity Fair have also done stories.
Caughlan speaks on how everyone can make a difference, the most successful methods of green activism, the many forms of political and civic engagement, the critical importance of ocean, coastal, river and lake protection and conservation, green and social marketing, how to be an effective communicator, and the techniques of media relations. He also offers presentations focusing on population stabilization, protecting endangered species and wildlife habitat, environmental video and TV production, and the history of the American environmental movement.
Making a Difference
As the former president of the Surfrider Foundation, Rob Caughlan tells the exciting true-life adventure about fighting...
History of the American Environmental Movement
When the Pilgrims stepped off the Mayflower and onto Plymouth Rock, the environmental consciousness on this continent was already 10,000 years old. Rob Caughlan traces the evolution of environmental thinking over 15 generations - starting with the famous Iroquois law that required thinking about the 7th generation all the way to Earth Day.
He describes the conflict between Native American beliefs in our spiritual connections with nature and the Judaeo Christian dictum that nature...
Ocean Protection
The renowned biologist Sylvia Earle said, "Without the ocean, life on earth would simply not be possible. Should we care about the ocean? Do we care about living?"
The horrible Gulf oil disaster, the slow motion whirlpools of floating plastic garbage the size of Texas, the acidification of the seas from global warming, the collapse of fisheries, coral bleaching - all are symptoms of terrible ocean abuse. Rob Caughlan's lecture on Ocean Protection concludes with a call to...
7 recommend Rob
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Union College
On-Site
T.M., Associate Dean of Students, Union College
Rob Caughlan had us in the palm of his hand. He is a natural storyteller, self-effacing, and very authentic. Our students connected with his humor and knowledge and his obvious concern for our planet.
On-Site
J.W.
Emory University students packed the house for a talk and slideshow by Rob Caughlan... (His) attitude and vast experience turned on the crowd. It was fun and inspirational.
CREEC Network
On-Site
C.R., Statewide Director, CREEC Network
Dynamic, funny, and inspirational... He encouraged everyone to put their heart into environmental education. Participants commented that it felt like he spoke to them as individuals, not as a group of educators.
San Mateo, CA
On-Site
A.H., Professor of Environmental Science, San Mateo, CA
A wonderful presentation… there was only positive feedback about how down-to-earth, relevant, and inspirational you were. It is great to have such a positive role model… I can't thank you enough.
Lake Forest
On-Site
J.T., Lake Forest
Everyone loved you. Your speech was thought-provoking and consciousness-raising.
Union College
On-Site
S.P.C., Udall Scholar, Union College
Caughlan's funny and poignant personal accounts effectively supported his lecture and engaged the audience. His humble demeanor despite extraordinary accomplishment and foresight gives him a type of credibility we do not often see in these sorts of lectures.
Ohio University
On-Site
M.L., Office of Sustainability, Ohio University
Thank you so much for coming to Ohio University to share your perspectives and some great stories. We really enjoyed having you and hope you feel the same. Your talk sparked a lot of interesting questions and important conversations.
