Adam Chapdelaine Joins the Green Ribbon Commission as Deputy Director

Adam Chapdelaine, Town Manager of Arlington, brings with him an extensive policy expertise that makes him an asset to the GRC. With more than 10 years of experience spearheading policy measures in various cities and municipalities throughout Illinois, Adam brings invaluable policy expertise.

Arlington was instrumental in joining the Metro Mayors Coalition several years ago and remains active within its work on climate, housing, and youth violence prevention. He’s also actively engaged with both local and regional advocacy groups.

Early Life and Education

Adam Schiff was born in Framingham, Massachusetts to Edward and Sherrill Ann Schiff and raised in Fall River where he attended St. Anne’s Elementary School before going on to Bishop Stang High School in Dartmouth.

After graduation from Dartmouth, he moved on to study Political Science at University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth and went on to work for State Senator Joan Menard in public service roles.

Chapdelaine first became town manager in 2012 before being promoted to police chief in April 2014. As one of four finalists for this position, the board interviewed and hired Chapdelaine last week and finally made it official on Wednesday with his appointment as police chief, paying $103,000 annually and set to begin working April 22.

Professional Career

Adam Chapdelaine has long been recognized as an authority on local and regional climate and sustainability matters, pioneering numerous energy efficiency and climate resilience initiatives for Arlington Town Center including creating the Net Zero Action Plan 2021.

He also served as President of the Massachusetts Municipal Association and led Arlington into joining the Metro Mayors Coalition on climate, housing and youth violence prevention.

Chapdelaine also co-chaired a state-wide task force on youth development, working to enhance the quality of life for young people through leadership, education and outreach activities. Through these experiences he gained a keen sense of what local government leaders should offer their communities as well as how best to meet those needs; additionally he gained valuable lessons about communicating effectively when representing a public service position.

Achievement and Honors

Adam is an experienced policy leader with more than 10 years of experience advancing policy measures across Massachusetts cities and municipalities. A graduate of UMass Dartmouth and Suffolk University, Adam also holds certification from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Executive Education in Sustainability Leadership program.

Chapdelaine has worked tirelessly since taking office as Town Manager of Arlington to make it an industry leader on climate mitigation and resilience, including installing solar PV panels, making energy-saving investments, electrifying municipal fleets and planning and implementing resilience projects. These efforts led to Arlington’s Net Zero Action Plan being created in 2021 – featuring solar PV installations, energy-efficient investments, electrifying municipal fleets as well as resilience planning/project implementation plans.

Chapdelaine serves as Deputy Director for the Boston Green Ribbon Commission (GRC), leading its climate strategy and implementation work with an emphasis on climate resilience and policy priorities for City and Commonwealth of Boston. His extensive experience working with local advocacy groups allows him to match his policy expertise with GRC needs as climate action becomes ever more high-stakes.

Personal Life

Adam Chapdelaine is an renowned entrepreneur in Dedham, MA and serves as a partner of the Boston Green Ribbon Commission (GRC), where he designs and implements strategies aimed at decarbonizing Boston’s energy supply while increasing climate resiliency.

His other career accomplishments include serving Arlington for 10 years as Town Manager, where he led them in creating its Net Zero Action Plan and an award-winning sustainability department. Additionally, he is highly accomplished as an attorney having worked at several Am Law 50 firms; being recognized as a top attorney by Massachusetts Bar Association as well as winning multiple environmental awards over his time of practice. In addition, he is active with volunteerism having served on many boards and committees over time.

Net Worth

Adam Chapdelaine has played a vital role in making Arlington an international leader on climate mitigation and resilience during his tenure as Town Manager. He has spearheaded energy-efficient investments, solar PV installations and municipal fleet electrification as well as creating and implementing its net zero action plan. Now, after nearly six years in this post he will leave to become deputy Director of Boston’s Green Ribbon Commission.

Chapdelaine currently estimates his net worth as being in the vicinity of $10 million and plans to take some time considering what comes next in his career. The Select Board commended Chapdelaine for years of service as Town Manager as well as for helping make Greenwich greener, but they expressed worry over what the long-term effect would be of his departure on economic development in Greenwich.