GoodWheels believes EVs can be an engine of upward economic mobility by saving low-income households money, while also opening higher-wage career paths for low-wage workers.
GoodWheels is a start-up nonprofit under the fiscal sponsorship of Vehicles for Change, a Maryland-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
We’re on a mission to bring the benefits of Electric Vehicles to low income communities.
We’re starting by refurbishing end-of-life Nissan LEAFs to make them affordable and practical for low-income households stuck driving old and unreliable gasoline cars that cost them more to fuel and maintain.
Over time, we seek to demonstrate that gasoline-to-electric conversions can not only produce affordable EV’s for low-income households, but also create higher wage jobs for workers in those very same communities. All while, replacing gasoline vehicles that would otherwise stay on the road, worsening climate change for years to come.
Meet the Team
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Founder
Will Villota is an award-winning brand, storytelling, and digital marketing leader whose career spans consumer products, sports marketing, technology, and campaigns to advance climate action and economic mobility.
Will launched the national workforce campaign Tear the Paper Ceiling, inspiring private-sector leaders and state policymakers to remove unnecessary degree requirements from hundreds of thousands of job postings. Earlier, Will’s work at Conservation International was featured at the historic 2015 Paris Climate Conference. He has also led renewable energy, water stewardship, and residential energy efficiency campaigns for Oregon-based nonprofits.
Before his nonprofit work, Will served as Head of Global Digital Marketing at adidas, Product Marketing Manager for Yahoo!’s online dating subscription service, and Director of E-Commerce at the start-up Motosport.com.
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Co-Founder
Greg Dierkers is a strategic policy leader with more than 15 years of experience advancing clean energy, sustainable transportation, and climate action nationwide.
He has shaped state and national strategies through partnerships with governors, regulators, utilities, and community stakeholders, including leading a major National Governors Association initiative that spurred clean energy action in 15 states. Greg helped develop the first climate action plans for California and New York and has supported electric vehicle programs across the Mid-Atlantic.
A longtime collaborator with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Cities program and National Labs, he also designed the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s first environmental justice engagement process to bring community voices into transportation planning.
Board and Advisors
Board of Directors
Eric Brody
Principal, Shift Advantage
Greg Dierkers
Co-Founder, GoodWheels
Will Villota
Founder, GoodWheels
Advisors
Papia Debroy
Chief Impact Officer, Opportunity@Work
Chris Kramer
Clean Energy Finance Consultant
Cristina Lopez
Chief Operating Officer, Greater Baltimore Committee
Jack Mason
Founder & Executive Director, electr0motiv
Molly Rath
Former City of Baltimore Mayor’s Office
Chuck Routhier
Principal, Chuck Routhier Office
Our Partners
