Public Good PR has a long track record of advancing social justice and environmental causes through strategic communications.
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About
Nina Erlich-Williams
Principal
She/Her
nina [at] publicgoodpr.com
Nina is an expert at managing communications campaigns on behalf of broad coalitions, helping to refine messaging, coordinate diverse viewpoints and secure strategic media coverage. She has placed op-eds in dozens of outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, New Haven Register and The Hill on behalf of a wide variety of clients. Nina previously worked as a political and communications consultant in San Francisco, where she directed initiative campaigns. She holds a Master of Public Policy degree from UC Berkeley and a B.A. from Wesleyan University, and she completed a Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs.
Nina loves to cook, can and ferment the fruits and veggies that grow abundantly near her Willamette Valley home, where she lives with her husband, two teenagers, a high-maintenance dog and a bonded pair of rescue cats.
Severn Williams
Principal
He/Him
Sev [at] publicgoodpr.com
For more than 25 years, Sev has helped nonprofit organizations, campaigns, and clean energy companies reach their goals through strategic communications. He founded Public Good PR in 2001 to provide communications support to nonprofit groups with ambitious goals, and has since worked with dozens of conservation, social justice and climate campaigns. For more than 10 years, Sev has played a key role in leading a statewide coalition aimed at protecting California’s most important environmental laws, called CEQA Works. Previously, he worked with celebrities and media executives to incorporate environmental themes into TV shows and feature films at the Los Angeles-based Environmental Media Association. Sev is an avid tennis player and loves to garden at his Willamette Valley home, where he lives with his wife, two teenagers, a high-maintenance dog and a bonded pair of rescue cats.
Mary C. Derr
Senior Associate
She/Her
mary [at] publicgoodpr.com
Before joining the firm in 2014, Mary worked as a freelance editor, focusing on ecology and environmental education projects, and as a wildlife biologist with a specialty in ornithology. She holds an M.S. in Wildlife Conservation from the University of Minnesota, a Master of Library Science degree from Emporia State University in Kansas, and a B.S. in environmental biology from Yale University. Her happy place is Squam Lake, NH on a clear August afternoon, on the water with her two sons. Her favorite bird is currently the red-necked grebe (but ask her again next week).
Public Good PR Marks 25 Years of Public Interest Communications
West Coast PR firm specializes in environmental policy with a focus on water issues
Corvallis, Ore., March 27, 2026 — Public Good PR, a public relations firm founded to help mission-driven organizations translate complex policy ideas into persuasive communications efforts, is marking its 25th anniversary this year. Founded in 2001, the firm has spent a quarter-century supporting nonprofit organizations, issue coalitions, public agencies and businesses promoting sustainability. The firm’s work has driven tangible victories for clean air, clean water, and resilient communities.
“Public Good PR was founded to stand with people taking on powerful interests,” said Public Good PR founder and co-principal Severn Williams. “We help David in the David vs Goliath fights, so mission-driven leaders can turn conviction into measurable wins.”
Over the past 25 years, Public Good PR has helped shape media coverage of some of the most challenging environmental and social justice issues in the western United States. For example, the firm provided long-term media and crisis communications support for the coalition of non-profits and Tribes behind the removal of four major dams from the Klamath River, the largest dam removal project in US history. The team has also been central to preventing the California Environmental Quality Act from being weakened out of existence through their work with CEQA Works, a coalition of more than 250 conservation and environmental justice groups.
The firm’s clients from over the years include a wide range of leading non-profit and socially responsible organizations, including California Coastkeeper Alliance, CEQA Works, Central Valley Joint Venture, Jacobs Farm del Cabo, Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, Leakey Foundation, Los Angeles Waterkeeper, Oakland City Attorney’s Office, Pacific Institute, Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP, Sierra Club California, Sustainable Northwest, and many others.
“Environmental justice communities, Tribes, and the natural world don’t have corporate PR budgets,” said Nina Erlich-Williams, co-principal of Public Good PR. “Our role is to work toward leveling the playing field for those fighting for clean air, clean water, and a livable future. Helping these voices break through is both our mission and our privilege.”
Public Good PR excels at helping reporters, legislators, other decision-makers, and the public understand what is at stake on a wide variety of issues, and what actions to take to advance the progressive values that drive many Americans.
“Many of our clients have worked with us for years, even decades now,” added Erlich-Williams. “That’s because this work is built on trust. We take the time to truly understand our clients and their goals, and we stay with them over the long haul – especially when the issues are complex or unfold over time.”
Today, Public Good PR continues to work on the forefront of issues in the western United States related to land use, water policy, climate, energy, and environmental and social justice. The firm provides a full range of strategic communications services, including media relations, social media campaigns, website development and management, and drafting and designing a wide variety of print and digital materials
“In this media environment, where money amplifies the loudest voices, clarity and credibility become public goods,” said Senior Associate Mary Derr. “Helping journalists report accurately, and helping organizations communicate honestly isn’t optional, it’s fundamental.”
About Public Good PR
Founded in 2001, Public Good PR is a boutique public relations firm that leverages strategic communications for nonprofit organizations, issue coalitions, public agencies, and businesses that promote sustainability. We specialize in translating complex policy ideas into persuasive messages that educate, persuade and mobilize.
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