8 | City of Atlanta
tor and non-profit development gives him
an edge when communicating across the
initiative’s five stakeholder groups all while
strengthening the office’s credibility with
local and national institutions. Juan Garcia-
Sanchez transitioned from practicing corpo-
rate and agricultural law in Illinois and Flor-
ida to overseeing the creation of policies and
legislation needed to advance Atlanta’s sus-
tainability goals in each impact area. Ruthie
Norton, an Atlanta native and environmen-
tal engineer, provides strategic planning and
analysis for the City’s utility portfolio in
addition to benchmarking those accounts
against national standards. Jules Toraya, an
Army veteran, came to the office as a vol-
unteer and has since ramped up Atlanta’s
electric-vehicle readiness and zero-waste ef-
forts, earning him a full-time position with
the team and the distinction of subject mat-
ter expert for veterans in clean technology
and sustainability. Prior to launching many
of the current programs, Quarles says Atlan-
ta completed a thorough assessment of the
factors contributing to its carbon footprint;
it was the first city in Georgia to actually
qualify and quantify such measurements.
That accomplishment was quickly followed
Peachtree Road Farmers
Atlantic Station
