John Delurey (‘14) is the Managing Director at Vote Solar where he leads campaigns to advance the organization’s legislative and regulatory priorities across the country. He previously managed Vote Solar’s Midwest region for five years.
With experience spanning government, nonprofits, and solar companies, Delurey has consistently focused on addressing the climate crisis through innovative policy and community-driven solutions.
Before joining Vote Solar, Delurey worked with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), managing front office operations and serving at the U.S. Embassy in Madagascar, where he supported conservation initiatives through photography and videography. His career has included nearly two years overseas, primarily in India and East Africa, where he was dedicated to expanding access to solar energy in communities without electricity.
As a Clinton School student, Delurey was awarded a Boren Fellowship through which he studied KiSwahili while working with Barefoot College and the Zanzibar Women’s Empowerment Project to measure the impact of solar electrification on women’s empowerment in Zanzibar as part of his final Capstone project. His efforts led to the initiation of the Barefoot College Vocational Training Center (VTC), the first of its kind in East Africa. This center trains rural women in solar engineering, equipping them to return to their villages and electrify off-grid communities.
Delurey also partnered with Arkansas Advocates for Children & Families (AACF) on a research project analyzing Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) claim rates and developing strategies to enhance tax preparation services for working families.
In addition to his Master of Public Service from the Clinton School, Delurey earned his bachelor’s degree in International and Area Studies and Environmental Studies from Washington University in St. Louis.
What do you most enjoy about your role at Vote Solar?
I get to spend most of my days trying to solve the most complicated puzzles the world has ever known with the smartest and most compassionate people I’ve ever met. Figuring out how to power the constantly expanding world in a relentlessly warming climate is both thrilling and terrifying. Feeling like I am playing some small role in holding back the climate crisis through my team at Vote Solar is a constant source of motivation.
What does public service mean to you?
Public service means shifting to a higher tier of motive. Humans have been, and always will be, compelled by the fundamental needs: warmth, shelter, companionship. When left unchecked, these needs transform into an insatiable thirst; into greed and a desire to put oneself as the highest priority, even if it comes at the expense of others. Public service is an invitation to expand your circle of compassion and ultimately envision a better, kinder world. It means building and shifting systems towards justice, whether that is at the smallest interpersonal scale or at a global policy level. It means figuring out how your life can be repositioned to serve and support others, especially those currently being crushed by the gears of society.
What is one thing that most people don’t know about you?
I bought a motorized bicycle from a stranger on Craigslist in rural Arkansas during my first year at the Clinton School. After talking for a bit, the man looked me up and down and said, in a classic Arkansan accent, “I fear I’ve just sold you the tool of your demise.”
I’ve proved him wrong … so far.
What was your favorite class in your time as a Clinton School student?
Incredibly hard to choose. I primarily went to the Clinton School because of the three work projects (the Practicum, the International Public Service Project, and the Capstone) and they did not disappoint. I was appreciative that the curriculum allowed me to spend the whole second year overseas as part of my Boren Fellowship in Swahili. I felt that much of my first-year coursework helped me contribute to the organizations that I embedded in through my projects.
What skills did you learn at the Clinton School that you still put to use in your job or life today?
The skills that I picked up about program monitoring and evaluation have proven useful over the years. Nonprofit organizations can become untethered from their original purpose and struggle to connect themselves to impact and outcomes. The logic models and program evaluation skillset that I picked up along the way have helped me think more strategically on every level – from individual legislative campaigns to overhauling an organization’s mission and vision.
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