New CEO at Sonoma County Alliance
Daniel Sohn joined Sonoma County Alliance as its new chief executive officer in early March. Sohn brings to the organization extensive experience in community and government affairs. His background supports the SCA’s mission of business advocacy.
Sohn and his husband, Kai Chan, made the move from Florida to Southern California a year ago, but they were looking to relocate to the North Bay. “This was the perfect role with my experience,” he says. “I was hired because of my background with DEI [Diversity, Equity and Inclusion].
As the new CEO, Sohn’s personal mission in the months ahead is to focus on two areas. “No. 1, work with the board of directors to change how the Sonoma County Alliance engages with marginalized and disenfranchised business owners to ensure that Sonoma County is a more equitable and inclusive place to do work and own a business,” he says. “Sonoma County Alliance has been working around the clock at taking a hard look at how we conduct our operations in the DEI space.” According to Sohn, the board of directors has made significant changes that include embedding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion deep within the organization’s core values. “No. 2, recommit to the organization’s focus and founding principles of working with community stakeholders and elected leaders to focus on the future of Sonoma County Business, and how issues like wildfire prevention and water affect all of us.”
Before joining SCA, Sohn served as the CEO of the Imperial Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, where he lead the organization’s regionalization efforts. He also served as the CEO of the El Centro Chamber of Commerce after relocating from Florida in March last year. Prior to joining the El Centro Chamber, Sohn served as a city councilman for the Town of Haverhill, located in Palm Beach County, Fla. Since 2017, he has served as the managing partner and senior lobbyist for the Floridian Group, LLC-DBA Pacific Partners, a Florida-based consulting firm, specializing in government relations, advocacy, community affairs, grants management and more. Chan is the deputy controller for West Coast Operations of the firm.
Prior to founding the Floridian Group, Sohn served as the legislative aide and chief of staff for several prominent Florida State representatives and state senators. His legislative work led to his hiring as the director of grants and partnerships for Farm Share, Inc.
Currently, Sohn and Chan are renting a home in Sonoma, where they reside for now with their four pooches. When they’re not at work or busy settling into their new place, they’re taking the time to explore the area and enjoy the Wine-Country lifestyle. What do they like the best so far? “The wine and the people,” says Sohn.
The Sonoma County Alliance is a coalition of business, agriculture, labor, and individuals organized to encourage a healthy economy, maintain a sound environment, protect private property rights, and promote a responsive political process.
BamCore’s Hal Hinkle Speaks at Visionaries Forum
The Construction Institute’s Visionaries Forum—a platform for the industry to inspire and create innovative ideas in the world of construction—was held in March at the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford, Conn., and the North Bay had plenty of representation.
Hal Hinkle, CEO of BamCore, was one of five visionaries to speak at the forum. The primary topic this year was advancing building sustainability and technologies. Hinkle and the BamCore team have worked tirelessly to decarbonize the construction climate. His presentation was focused on the regenerative and carbon-capturing properties of timber bamboo, combined with industrialized construction and eliminating waste in the industry.
Hinkle’s first project in sustainability was in 2004 when he started a nonprofit foundation to focus on climate change education. Following a Ph.D. in neuroscience and a graduate research fellowship from the National Science Foundation, he returned to his native California to build an organic and climate-conscious vineyard and winery in Sonoma County, Sei Querce Wines. There, he was introduced to BamCore for his construction projects. Intrigued by the company’s devotion to bamboo as a construction material, he spent nearly a year researching timber bamboo and its ability to quickly capture carbon from the atmosphere, which could then be stored long term in buildings. Soon, he became CEO of the construction company he admired. BamCore, under Hinkle’s leadership, continues its work to create a more eco-friendly construction industry.
