NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alexis Maybank, founder and chief strategy officer for Gilt Groupe and formerly an Audubon Alaska board member, has been named to the board of directors of the National Audubon Society.
"Alexis represents a new generation of conservationists," said Audubon President and CEO David Yarnold. "She understands that the future is about giving people choices and meeting them whenever and wherever they want to be engaged. Environmental groups talk a lot about building a new base. That will take real change, and Alexis looks like that change. She's an online entrepreneur and brings a refreshing depth of marketing experience that will help us grow."
"I'm thrilled to join the national board of Audubon, which is one of the most trusted brands in conservation and is also an organization that is innovating rapidly to meet the challenges and opportunities of a new millennium," said Maybank.
Maybank and a founding team conceived of and built Gilt Groupe, a membership-based e-commerce site that specializes in fashion and designer brands. Before founding Gilt Groupe, Maybank was general manager of AOL's e-commerce businesses. In 1998, she became an early member of the eBay team, where she joined the company's first strategic planning group and launched and ran eBay Canada, which became Canada's largest e-commerce business. She also helped found eBay Motors, which grew to over $2.5 billion in sales.
Maybank served on the board of Audubon Alaska – a state program of the National Audubon Society – from 2009 to 2012 and was a key member on the board's fundraising committee and an enthusiastic supporter. Her personal and family connections to the state fostered her strong interest in conservation of Alaska's wild places. She has lived on an Alaskan glacier, visited the Arctic and hitchhiked in the Andes.
Maybank has a degree in environmental science from Harvard University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Audubon's Women in Conservation, and Springboard Enterprises' Media/Tech Council. Named to Crain's "40 Under 40", Alexis was awarded Ernst and Young's New York Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2010, and her book "By Invitation Only," which she coauthored with Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, reached The New York Times Best Seller list.
Read about other members of the Audubon board: http://www.audubon.org/board-directors
Now in its second century, Audubon connects people with birds, nature and the environment that supports us all. Our national network of community-based nature centers, chapters, scientific, education, and advocacy programs engages millions of people from all walks of life in conservation action to protect and restore the natural world. Visit Audubon online at www.audubon.org
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| [Image] | Alexis Maybank |