Felix Kramer

{{Short description|American businessman}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Infobox person | name = Felix Kramer | birth_date = | spouse = [[Rochelle Lefkowitz]] | known_for = Founding CalCars.org, promoting plug-in vehicles | education = [[Cornell University]] | occupation = Entrepreneur, advocate, writer | website = {{url|http://www.beyondcassandra.org}} }}

'''Felix Kramer''' is an American entrepreneur, strategist, and writer. After a succession of jobs and projects in the nonprofit sector and an early internet startup, he gained attention after 2002 as the founder of the [[California Cars Initiative]], promoting mass production of plug-in [[hybrid electric vehicle]]s. Since 2009, he has written broadly on climate change awareness and solutions, and collaborated on or co-founded climate-related projects.

==Biography==

===Education and early career=== Kramer grew up in the [[New York metropolitan area]]. He received his bachelor's degree in American Studies from [[Cornell University]] in January 1971. At college and after, he was active in [[anti-Vietnam war]] and [[draft resistance]] activities,.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Boschert|first1=Sheri|title=Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America|date=2006|publisher=New Society Publishers|location=Gabriola Island, British Columbia|isbn=0-86571-571-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/52 52]|url=https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/52|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref> He worked as a Congressional aide and a writer/editor and director for several environmental organizations, including the New York event of the national [[Sun Day]] event in 1978 and the NYC Energy Task Force, known for its wind and solar installations on low-income buildings.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Boschert|first1=Sheri|title=Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America|date=2006|publisher=New Society Publishers|location=Gabriola Island, British Columbia|isbn=0-86571-571-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54 54]|url=https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

===Personal computer and early internet-era activity=== With the arrival of [[WYSIWYG]] computers and software and laser printing, he co-founded the New York Macintosh User Group's DTP Special Interest Group.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Boschert|first1=Sheri|title=Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America|date=2006|publisher=New Society Publishers|location=Gabriola Island, British Columbia|isbn=0-86571-571-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/53 53]|url=https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/53|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref> In 1984 he started Kramer Communications, one of New York City's first start-to-finish [[desktop publishing]] (DTP) companies; he sold the company in 1997.

Kramer became involved in fax broadcasting and then with business development, usability and online marketing and promotion for a series of early online startups.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Boschert|first1=Sheri|title=Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America|date=2006|publisher=New Society Publishers|location=Gabriola Island, British Columbia|isbn=0-86571-571-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54 54]|url=https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref> In 1997, as he relocated to the [[San Francisco Bay Area]], Kramer founded eConstructors.com, an online marketplace for the web design and development industry, featuring "WhoBuiltIt," the first online reverse directory for websites. He built the company with a small international staff, raised [[Angel investor|angel funding]] and remained as CEO until it was bought in early 2001.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Boschert|first1=Sheri|title=Plug-In Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America|date=2006|publisher=New Society Publishers|location=Gabriola Island, British Columbia|isbn=0-86571-571-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54 54]|url=https://archive.org/details/pluginhybridscar00bosc/page/54|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

===Plug-in car advocacy===

In 2001, interrupted by surgery for an [[acoustic neuroma]], Kramer moved his focus from high-tech back to his earlier environmental concerns. He approached [[Amory Lovins]] of the [[Rocky Mountain Institute]] (RMI), and entered into discussions with RMI-spinoff [[HyperCar]] to advance its concept of a fully optimized, 99 mile/gallon, fuel-cell-powered SUV. He proposed a pre-purchase "demand-pull" model for financing the company. This evolved into what became the [[California Cars Initiative]], which led the successful campaign for commercialization of [[plug-in hybrid electric vehicle]]s.

In 2006, with a conversion by one of the independent conversion companies, Kramer became the "world's first non-technical consumer owner" of a PHEV.<ref>[http://www.calcars.org/where-phevs-are.html Where PHEVs Are]"</ref> He flew that vehicle to Washington DC in May 2006 for the first public viewing of a PHEV on [[Capitol Hill]].<ref>[http://www.calcars.org/phevs-in-dc.html PHEVs in DC]."</ref> Within four years, many of the major automakers began to offer some type of plug-in hybrid or all-electric vehicle, beginning with the [[Chevrolet Volt]].

Author and New York Times columnist [[Thomas Friedman]] acknowledges Kramer's role in promoting the idea of plug-in hybrid vehicles, calling him someone "who has made plug-in electric cars not only his passion but an imminent reality."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Friedman|first1=Thomas|title=Hot, Flat, and Crowded|url=https://archive.org/details/hotflatcrowded00frie|url-access=registration|date=8 September 2008|publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux|page=[https://archive.org/details/hotflatcrowded00frie/page/417 417]}}</ref>

===Climate change activities=== His activities and writing about [[global warming]] emerged from his work on plug-in cars as he focused on powering [[electric vehicle]]s by [[renewable energy]]. He began including the issue in testimony and articles in 2004. After 2009, Kramer focused on writing and organizing about climate change awareness and solutions, working with groups such as [[350.org]], Environmental Entrepreneurs—E2.org, the [[Citizens' Climate Lobby]] and the [[Sierra Club]], and advising and investing in cleantech and clean energy companies.

In 2014, he started Beyond Cassandra, a "mini-think tank" for projects, ideas, campaigns, and initiatives about climate change.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beyond Cassandra|url=http://beyondcassandra.org/|website=Beyond Cassandra|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

In mid-2016, he cofounded The ClimateCongress Wikipedia Project, a [[501(c)(3) organization|501(c)3]] project to assemble on an independent wiki what candidates and incumbents in the House and Senate say and do about climate change. The project, with volunteers, a core team, and crowdsourcers, aims to identify a subset of information to move eventually to Wikipedia. It expects to evolve into ClimatePolitics, expanding to state, regional and local officeholders and appointees.<ref>{{cite web|title=Climate Congress Wikipedia Project|url=http://www.climatecongress.us/|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref> In late 2016, he founded Climate.MBA, a project to promote Emergency Climate Teach-Ins at business schools.<ref>{{cite web|title=Can MBAs Reach Trump on Climate’s Urgency?|url=http://climate.mba|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

==Publications and public presentations==

Using knowledge gained in the DTP business and his early editorial experience, Kramer co-authored (with Maggie Lovaas) an early book on electronic publishing as a business in 1990 & 1991. The book, ''Desktop Publishing Success: How to Start and Run a Desktop Publishing Business'', sold 25,000 copies in seven reprintings and was widely reviewed, including acclaim as "the Bible of the DTP Biz" by ''Publish'' Magazine's editor-in-chief.<ref>[http://www.nlightning.com/dtpsabout.html Desktop Publishing Success: How to Start and Run a Desktop Publishing Business]</ref>

Much of his writing on plug-in cars was distributed via the CalCars Yahoo! news-group news-letter, copies of which are archived on CalCars' website.<ref>{{cite web|title=CalCars-News Archive Index|url=http://calcars.org/news-archive.html|website=CalCars|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref> On climate change and clean energy, he has authored or co-authored with renewable energy experts and advocates including [[Dan Kammen]], Gil Friend, and [[Hunter Lovins]], op-ed pieces for the Huffington Post, the San Jose Mercury-News, Salon, Grist, Alternet, The Guardian and the Houston Chronicle.<ref>{{cite web|title=Beyond Cassandra|url=http://beyondcassandra.org/felix-climate-writing/|website=What Felix Kramer Has Written on climate change & clean energy|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

Kramer has spoken extensively at energy and policy events in the U.S. and internationally.<ref>{{cite web|title=CalCars Events|url=http://www.calcars.org/events.html|website=CalCars|accessdate=23 January 2017}}</ref>

==Personal life== Kramer is married to [[Rochelle Lefkowitz]], president and founder of Pro-Media Communications, and they have an adult son.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[http://www.calcars.org/ California Cars Initiative] *[https://www.amazon.com/dp/0865715718 Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America], by Sherry Boschert, featuring a chapter on Kramer *[http://Beyondcassandra.org BeyondCassandra] *[http://climate.mba ClimateMBA] *[http://climatecongress.us Climate Congress Wikipedia Project]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kramer, Felix}} [[Category:1949 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Cornell University alumni]]