Greater Waco Chamber Research Manager Alexis Cooper is one of 1,200 Americans personally trained by Nobel Laureate Al Gore to spread the message about the challenges of and solutions to the climate crisis. Cooper completed The Climate Project (TCP) training program in October 2008.

“Ms. Cooper is an outstanding example of the millions of Americans who have been energized by the call to action on the climate crisis,” said Gore. “We are so pleased that she has made a serious commitment to this challenge.”

Cooper is available to make presentations during the next six months mainly in the Waco area discussing how individuals, businesses and communities can reduce their environmental impact and urge others to action.

Cooper is part of a select group of individuals who have been chosen to become TCP volunteer presenters. Each presenter takes part in an intensive training session, focused on climate change and global warming and potential solutions.

Volunteers receive technical training to become effective presenters of a version of Gore’s slideshow, which was the basis of his best-selling book and the Academy Award-winning documentary film An Inconvenient Truth.

TCP recently held its first-ever faith-based training session, which resulted in the training of 135 additional presenters. This latest group of trainees is as diverse as previous classes of TCP presenters, with the new trainees representing 37 states and numerous faiths.

“People of faith are vital to the effort to combat the climate crisis and represent all walks of life,” said Gore. “This new group of trainees is absolutely amazing. I am certain that they will have a tremendous impact as they return home to their congregations and communities all across the United States.”

TCP, a nonprofit organization based in Nashville, Tenn., began operations in June 2006 with the mission of increasing public awareness of the climate crisis at a grassroots level in the United States and abroad. By April 2007, a diverse group of 1,000 volunteers from throughout the United States had been trained by Gore himself to educate members of the public about climate change.

They have now delivered more than 20,000 presentations and reached a combined audience of 2 million people.In addition, TCP initiatives have resulted in the training of hundreds of equally committed individuals in Australia, Canada, India, Spain and the UK. TCP’s 2,500 presenters worldwide have reached a total audience of more than 4 million.