Former Mass. City Official Takes Charge of a Venerable Conservation Group

New job: John Judge, 44, took over this month as president of the Appalachian Mountain Club, a group in Boston that promotes environmental conservation and encourages people to embrace the outdoors. Mr. Judge succeeds Andrew J. Falender, who is retiring.

Previous jobs: Mr. Judge worked as the chief development officer for the city of Springfield, Mass., for two years, overseeing a project to turn a 14-acre site into a field that generates solar energy. Before that, he ran the Boston chapter of Habitat for Humanity for seven years.

Education: Mr. Judge holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Stonehill College and a master’s in public administration from Harvard University.

Challenge he expects: Mr. Judge wants to expand the 136-year-old organization’s reach. To do that, he says, it needs to spread the word about its mission, “unlocking the potential of that best-kept secret.”

His goals: By 2020, Mr. Judge wants to increase membership from 100,000 to 500,000 people. “We’re actively seeking dynamic partnerships with other nonprofits,” he adds. In particular, he hopes to work with other charities that serve young people.

Fundraising advice: “To love fundraising you have to love people and love relationships, because it’s all about relationships,” he says.

Salary: The organization declined to disclose his salary.

What he’s reading: The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World, by Daniel Yergin.