Nonresident Fellow

Ronny Just served as the Governmental Relations Manager for Georgia Power for almost 38 years until retiring in 2023. In that position, he developed and implemented statewide strategies for ensuring informed policymaking around energy and environmental matters. He also directed Georgia Power’s strategic research relationships with the University of Georgia, Georgia Southern University and other academic institutions. In previous positions, Just served as the Environmental Issues and Air Quality Manager for Environmental Affairs, where he oversaw power plant compliance and helped improve working relationships with environmental advocacy groups. He also was the Customer Service Manager for more than 14 business offices in northeast Georgia, serving more than 156,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers. Just has had extensive experience working collaboratively with elected officials across the Southeast and Washington, D.C., through his roles as Senior Environmental Specialist, Assistant to the Vice President of Governmental and Regulatory Affairs, and Federal Legislative Affairs Director. In these positions, he assisted with providing a science-based voice on energy and environmental issues. In the Georgia community, Just served as a board member for the Georgia Institute of Environmental Leadership, the Clean Air Campaign, and co-chaired the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Energy & Environment Committee for a decade. He also served at the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce as a loaned executive as Interim Vice President for Transportation Policy. He currently serves on the Georgia Southern foundation board and as a Nonresident Fellow of the UGA Center for International Trade and Security (CITS). He is also an Emeritus Member of UGA’s School of Political and International Affairs (SPIA) Board of Visitors. Just is a graduate of Georgia Southern with a B.S. in biology. He and his wife Kim, a registered nurse, reside in Athens, GA. On conclusion of his professional career he is repurposing around more focus on his wife, grandchildren, woodworking…and other passions.