Bingham and Bernhard Team Up to Lead CTLCV

Hartford, CT (January 10, 2011)—The Connecticut League of Conservation Voters (CTLCV), the state’s bipartisan environmental advocacy group, welcomes David Bingham, a Democrat, and G. Kenneth Bernhard, a Republican, as co-chairs of the CTLCV board of directors for 2011.

As the political arm of Connecticut’s environmental organizations, CTLCV reaches out to both sides of the political aisle to educate Connecticut legislators and other public officials on matters of environmental significance.  “Clean air and clean water are essential to people of all political persuasions; nothing about the environment should be a partisan issue,” notes Bingham.

Ken Bernhard agrees and adds further, “As a Republican, I also believe that the environment can’t get short shrift at the expense of the economy.  A healthy, sustainable environment is part and parcel of the quality of life that keeps people, businesses and jobs here.  Connecticut’s environment is an asset.  We need to be shrewd about preserving it.”

Bernhard, an attorney, is a principal in the Westport Office of Cohen and Wolf where he practices municipal, business, real estate and family law.  From 1997-2005, he was Westport's State Representative and served as an Assistant Minority Leader. Bernhard previously served as Westport 's Third Selectman from 1987 to 1989 and was elected to the Westport Zoning Board of Appeals in 1989.

Bernhard is also active with animal protection organizations.  In 2010 he traveled to Africa where he teamed up with the Kenyan Wildlife Service in a sting operation against illegal ivory dealers.  Bernhard has traveled to Senegal and Ethiopia to participate in anti-poaching patrols and to protect national parks.

David Bingham, a retired physician from Salem and self-styled “amateur naturalist,” continues as co-chair, a role that he has shared with Goshen resident Martha Phillips since 2009.  An elected member of the Salem Planning and Zoning Commission, Bingham has been active with the Audubon Society, the national League of Conservation Voters and The Nature Conservancy.  He serves on the Boards of Rivers Alliance, the CT Land Conservation Coalition, the Salem Land Trust and the Sierra Club’s CT Chapter.

Bingham ran for Congress in 1994 to emphasize fiscal and social responsibility for a sound environment.  His grandfather, Hiram Bingham, was Governor and US Senator.  Bingham is an enthusiastic proponent of legislation that would let cities and towns set up their own funds for environmental projects within their own borders.