American Clean Skies Foundation
American Clean Skies Foundation was a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that promoted lower-carbon energy, energy efficiency, and clean-energy policy.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
American Clean Skies Foundation (ACSF) was a U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 2007 to advocate for a cleaner, lower-carbon energy system. Its work combined policy research, public communications, coalition building, and support for initiatives intended to expand renewable energy, energy efficiency, alternative fuels, and cleaner transportation. The organization operated from Washington, D.C., and focused primarily on federal and state policy rather than on selling consumer products. During its early years, ACSF was chaired by Aubrey McClendon, then chairman and chief executive of Chesapeake Energy, which provided funding to the foundation. That relationship placed ACSF within the broader U.S. debate over natural gas, coal displacement, renewable energy, and energy-market reform. The foundation also addressed policies that could support wind, solar, electric vehicles, compressed natural gas, fuel cells, and other alternatives. Its public materials argued that natural gas could help reduce emissions when it replaced higher-emitting coal generation, while also supporting broader renewable-energy deployment and stronger energy-efficiency standards. Denise Bode, a former Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner, served as ACSF's first chief executive. She left the organization at the beginning of 2009 to lead the American Wind Energy Association. Gregory C. Staple, a Washington, D.C.-based partner at Vinson & Elkins, was subsequently named as her replacement in December 2009. McClendon resigned from the ACSF board in February 2013, and the foundation stated that neither he nor Chesapeake Energy remained involved thereafter. ACSF's policy portfolio included renewable-electricity access in California, direct procurement of renewable power by large electricity users, federal procurement of alternative-fuel vehicles, air-pollution regulation, greenhouse-gas controls for power plants, vehicle fuel-economy standards, and redevelopment of retired industrial sites. Its California work supported community choice aggregation and changes that would allow large businesses to contract more directly with competitive renewable-power suppliers. In 2013, the foundation also provided seed funding for Renewable Power Direct, a for-profit wholesale power-marketing company designed to offer medium-term renewable-electricity contracts to large users that could not build on-site generation or sign conventional long-term power-purchase agreements. The organization also promoted the Oil Shift Campaign, based on a 2012 report arguing that federal purchasing rules could accelerate the adoption of alternative-fuel vehicles, reduce petroleum consumption, and lower greenhouse-gas emissions. It claimed that its advocacy helped influence environmental provisions in a proposed General Services Administration contract for overnight delivery services. In the Washington region, its Potomac River Green proposal outlined an alternative redevelopment concept for a coal-fired power plant site after the facility's closure, combining environmental remediation with housing, offices, hospitality, recreation, and clean-energy business space. Public education was another major part of the foundation's activities. ACSF initially created Clean Skies News, an energy and environmental news service that distributed webcasts and a television program. In 2010, the weekly program was reformatted and renamed energyNOW!, with distribution through Bloomberg Television and broadcast by Washington's WJLA-TV. The program ended in January 2012. In the same year, ACSF announced a $250,000 Energy Visions Prize competition for innovative clean-energy applications and videos. ACSF stopped operations in 2019 while seeking additional funding. It is therefore best understood as a defunct policy and advocacy organization rather than an active commercial brand. Its legacy consists of research, media projects, policy campaigns, and early-stage support for market mechanisms intended to broaden access to renewable and alternative energy.
History
American Clean Skies Foundation was formed in 2007 as a Washington, D.C.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on energy and environmental policy. Its stated objective was to encourage a cleaner, lower-carbon economy through broader deployment of alternative energy and improved energy efficiency. The foundation's work sat at the intersection of renewable-energy advocacy, natural-gas policy, transportation fuels, environmental regulation, and public communication. Aubrey McClendon, the chairman and chief executive of Chesapeake Energy, chaired ACSF during its formation and early years. Chesapeake provided funding during that period. The foundation later emphasized that McClendon and Chesapeake were no longer involved after McClendon resigned from the board in February 2013. Denise Bode, formerly an Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner, served as the first chief executive. She departed on January 1, 2009, to become chief executive of the American Wind Energy Association. Gregory C. Staple, a partner in the Washington office of Vinson & Elkins, was named her successor in December 2009. ACSF pursued policy research and advocacy at both federal and state levels. In California, it worked with businesses, universities, and environmental organizations on measures intended to improve market access for renewable power. Its 2014 public commentary supported community choice aggregation and argued that outdated rules should be revised so companies could contract more directly with renewable generators and competitive power suppliers. The foundation also supported Renewable Power Direct, a for-profit company that received ACSF seed funding in 2013. The venture was designed for large electricity users that could not install generation on their own properties or commit to conventional 15- to 20-year power-purchase agreements. It offered medium-term wholesale contracts for electricity from established renewable projects and was authorized by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate as a wholesale power marketer. Another major initiative was the Oil Shift Campaign. Based on a 2012 report, the campaign proposed using federal procurement to accelerate the adoption of alternative-fuel vehicles and reduce petroleum consumption. The foundation argued that redirecting government purchasing could lower greenhouse-gas emissions, encourage production of cleaner vehicles, and help create demand for alternative fuels. It pursued the proposal through workshops, conferences, opinion articles, and public advocacy. The organization later attributed environmental provisions in a proposed General Services Administration contract for overnight delivery services to this campaign's influence. ACSF intervened in debates over Environmental Protection Agency rules affecting power plants and vehicles. It supported tighter air-pollution standards, including the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, and endorsed greenhouse-gas controls for existing coal-fired plants. It also backed stricter tailpipe standards and the 54.5-mile-per-gallon corporate average fuel-economy rules for light- and medium-duty vehicles. Its transportation position favored fuel-neutral manufacturing incentives that could include compressed-natural-gas vehicles alongside electric and fuel-cell vehicles. In August 2011, ACSF issued Potomac River Green, a redevelopment proposal for a 25-acre coal-power site beside the Potomac River. The plan envisioned remediation and a mixed-use community containing an energy museum, housing, offices, a hotel, recreational facilities, and space for alternative-energy start-ups. The proposal was intended to show that closing an old, highly polluting facility could be followed by employment and tax-revenue growth. The plant, formerly associated with GenOn Energy and later owned by NRG Energy, permanently closed in 2012. Communications were central to ACSF's public profile. In its early period, the foundation created Clean Skies News, which distributed online energy and environmental reports twice daily and supported a weekly television program on Washington's WJLA-TV. In 2010, the program adopted a magazine-news format and became energyNOW!, with Bloomberg Television distribution reaching a large cable audience while continuing to air on WJLA-TV. Former CBS News president Andrew Heyward served as adviser and ombudsman. The final episode was distributed in January 2012. Later in 2012, ACSF announced the Energy Visions Prize, a $250,000 competition for innovative clean-energy applications and videos. The foundation ultimately stopped operations in 2019 pending further funding. No successor operating structure or continuing commercial product line is identified in the available reference material. ACSF is therefore classified as defunct, with its historical importance resting on policy advocacy, clean-energy communications, and initiatives designed to connect environmental goals with market and procurement reforms.
- 2019
Operations cease
[1]ACSF stops operating while awaiting additional funding.
- 2013
Renewable Power Direct receives seed funding
[1]ACSF provides early funding for a wholesale renewable-power contracting business aimed at large electricity users.
- 2013
McClendon leaves ACSF board
[1]Aubrey McClendon resigns from the board, ending his formal involvement with the foundation.
- 2012
Energy Visions Prize announced
[1]The foundation announces a prize competition for clean-energy applications and videos.
- 2011
Potomac River Green plan released
[1]ACSF publishes a redevelopment concept for a coal-fired power-plant site on the Potomac River.
- 2010
EnergyNOW! replaces Clean Skies News
[1]The foundation relaunches its weekly energy and environmental program in a magazine-news format under the energyNOW! name.
- 2009
Leadership transition
[1]Denise Bode leaves to lead the American Wind Energy Association; Gregory C. Staple is named as her replacement later that year.
- 2007
Foundation established
[1]American Clean Skies Foundation is formed as a U.S. nonprofit focused on alternative energy, energy efficiency, and lower-carbon policy.
Products and positioning
A nonprofit clean-energy policy and communications organization focused on reducing carbon emissions through renewable energy, energy efficiency, cleaner transportation, alternative fuels, and regulatory reform.
Energy and environmental news service
Clean Skies News
An early ACSF media program providing energy and environmental reporting through twice-daily webcasts and a weekly television program broadcast on WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C. It was later replaced by the energyNOW! format.
Television and digital news program · 2010
energyNOW!
A magazine-style weekly energy and environmental program introduced in 2010 as the successor to Clean Skies News. It was distributed by Bloomberg Television and broadcast by WJLA-TV. The final episode was distributed in January 2012.
Clean-energy innovation competition · 2012
Energy Visions Prize
A competition announced by ACSF in 2012 to recognize innovative clean-energy applications and videos. The prize was intended to encourage public-facing technology and ideas supporting the transition to cleaner energy.
Industrial-site redevelopment proposal · 2011
Potomac River Green
A detailed redevelopment concept for a 25-acre former coal-power site along the Potomac River. It proposed environmental remediation and a mixed-use community with an energy museum, homes, offices, a hotel, recreation, and facilities for alternative-energy companies.
Marketing campaigns
- 2014California renewable energy market access
California
ACSF worked with businesses, universities, and environmental groups on policies intended to expand renewable-energy market access. Its public advocacy supported community choice aggregation and more direct contracting between large electricity users and renewable suppliers.
Outcome. The foundation published policy commentary supporting these reforms; a broader implementation outcome is not specified in the available material.
- 2013Renewable Power Direct
United States
ACSF provided seed funding to Renewable Power Direct, which sought to give large electricity users access to medium-term wholesale contracts backed by operating renewable-energy projects.
Outcome. The company was authorized by FERC to act as a wholesale power marketer; later operating results are not identified.
- 2012The Oil Shift Campaign
United States
The campaign promoted changes to federal procurement policy that would encourage alternative-fuel vehicles, reduce petroleum demand, and lower greenhouse-gas emissions. ACSF used a report, workshops, conferences, opinion articles, and public advocacy to advance the proposal.
Outcome. ACSF credited the campaign with helping secure environmental performance provisions in a proposed GSA overnight-delivery contract.
- 2011Potomac River Green
Northern Virginia
ACSF proposed converting a retired coal-power site into a mixed-use community and clean-energy hub, pairing site cleanup with new residential, commercial, educational, recreational, and entrepreneurial uses.
Outcome. The power plant permanently closed in 2012, but the available material does not establish that the full ACSF redevelopment proposal was implemented.
- 2010energyNOW! media program
United States
ACSF reformatted and renamed its energy and environmental news program, distributing it through Bloomberg Television and broadcasting it through WJLA-TV.
Outcome. The program ended with its final distributed episode in January 2012.
Brand decisions
2013
Seed-fund Renewable Power DirectStrategyBackground
Large electricity users often faced difficulty installing on-site renewable generation or signing very long power-purchase agreements.
Action taken
ACSF provided seed funding to a for-profit company offering medium-term wholesale contracts for power from established renewable projects.
Aftermath
Renewable Power Direct received authorization to operate as a wholesale power marketer; subsequent performance is not documented in the supplied material.
2013
Separate the foundation from Chesapeake Energy involvementOtherBackground
Aubrey McClendon had chaired ACSF during its early years, when Chesapeake Energy provided funding.
Action taken
McClendon resigned from the board in February 2013, and ACSF stated that neither he nor Chesapeake Energy remained involved.
Aftermath
The foundation continued its policy and advocacy work independently according to the available account.
2012
Use federal procurement to accelerate alternative-fuel adoptionStrategyBackground
ACSF argued that the federal government could influence vehicle markets and reduce oil consumption through its purchasing decisions.
Action taken
The foundation advanced the Oil Shift proposal through research, industry workshops, conferences, opinion writing, and public advocacy.
Aftermath
ACSF later associated its work with environmental criteria in a proposed GSA overnight-delivery contract.
2011
Publish the Potomac River Green redevelopment planStrategyBackground
ACSF sought to demonstrate that retiring an old coal-fired plant could produce environmental, employment, and tax benefits rather than leave a vacant industrial site.
Action taken
The foundation issued a 70-page plan for a mixed-use redevelopment including remediation, an energy museum, homes, offices, a hotel, recreational facilities, and clean-energy start-up space.
Aftermath
The plant permanently closed in 2012, but implementation of the complete proposal is not established in the available sources.
Estimated redevelopment cost. $450 million estimate (2011 proposal)
2010
Reposition the media program as energyNOW!StrategyBackground
ACSF sought a more magazine-oriented format and broader distribution for its energy and environmental media work.
Action taken
The organization renamed and reformatted Clean Skies News as energyNOW!, adding Bloomberg Television distribution while retaining WJLA-TV carriage.
Aftermath
The program continued until its final distributed episode in January 2012.
Recent events
- 2019
American Clean Skies Foundation stops operations[1]
Bankruptcy
ACSF ceased operating while awaiting additional funding.
- 2014
ACSF advocates California renewable-electricity market reforms[1]
Campaign · Regulation
The foundation published commentary supporting community choice aggregation and greater ability for California businesses to contract directly for renewable electricity.
- 2014
ACSF supports proposed federal rules for existing coal plants[1]
Regulation
The foundation backed proposed Environmental Protection Agency greenhouse-gas controls for existing coal-fired power plants.
- 2013
Foundation provides seed funding for Renewable Power Direct[1]
Campaign · Product launch
ACSF backed the launch of Renewable Power Direct, a company offering medium-term wholesale renewable-power contracts to large electricity users.
- 2013
Aubrey McClendon resigns from the ACSF board[1]
Leadership change
McClendon left the foundation's board, and the organization stated that he and Chesapeake Energy were no longer involved with ACSF.
- 2012
The Oil Shift report promotes federal alternative-fuel procurement[1]
Campaign · Regulation
ACSF's report argued that federal purchasing policy could reduce petroleum use and emissions while accelerating deployment of alternative-fuel vehicles.
- 2012
ACSF announces the Energy Visions Prize[1]
Campaign · Product launch
The foundation announced a competition intended to reward innovative clean-energy applications and videos.
- 2011
ACSF publishes the Potomac River Green redevelopment proposal[1]
Campaign
The foundation released a redevelopment plan for a former coal-power site on the Potomac River, presenting mixed-use development and environmental remediation as alternatives to continued plant operation.
- 2010
Clean Skies News is reformatted as energyNOW![1]
Campaign · Product launch
ACSF changed the format and name of its weekly energy and environmental television program, expanding distribution through Bloomberg Television while retaining a Washington broadcast outlet.
- 2009
Denise Bode leaves ACSF to lead the American Wind Energy Association[1]
Leadership change
The foundation's first chief executive resigned at the beginning of 2009 to become chief executive of the American Wind Energy Association.
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