If the Toyota Prius, the world’s first modern hybrid car, had landed with a thud, we’d be living in a different world. Carmakers would have thought twice before launching rival models. And we’d have less reason for hope in the battle against rising temperatures. That it instead proved a hit is thanks in no small part to Hollywood — and Deborah Levin.

In 2000, when Levin took over as CEO of the Environmental Media Association (Ema), she was uncertain. “I had never done nonprofits. I didn’t know anything about the environment. I knew nothing. I sort of fell into this because I was incredibly inspired by the mission,” Levin tells The Hollywood Reporter. The organization, founded in 1989, was known for its advocacy of green initiatives and environmentally themed entertainment, leveraging Hollywood’s social influence to change industry and consumer behavior. Levin needed a transformative new campaign.

At an...