2013 SPEAKERS

Daryl Hannah

Daryl Hannah has starred and acted in over fifty films and has been an effective, passionate activist and advocate for a more ethical sustainable world for decades.

She is the founder of the Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance (SBA), which is a certification program and set of best practices for sustainably produced, harvested and distributed biofuels.

She sits on the boards of the Environmental Media Association (EMA), Sylvia Earle Alliance, Mission Blue, the Sustainable Biodiesel Alliance, the World Futures Council and the Action Sports Environmental Coalition. She has received numerous awards for her advocacy and activism.

Widely recognized for having the courage of her convictions, Daryl has been arrested five times for actions of conscience. First in an unrelenting effort to help save the South Central Farm in 2006 and then again at a 2009 action in West Virginia intended to usher in an end to Mountaintop Removal Strip Mining. In August 2011 Daryl was arrested at the White House in Washington D.C., along with 1,254 other U.S. citizens, protesting the proposed approval of the dangerous Keystone XL Tar Sands pipeline. In October 2012 Daryl once again put her body on the line when she physically blockaded construction of the Tar Sands pipeline in solidarity with a great grandmother whose Texas farm was threatened by the pipeline.  On February 13, 2013 Daryl returned to the White House to engage in civil disobedience once again in joining with some of the nation’s most prominent environmental and social justices leaders and top climate scientists to protest of the Keystone XL boondoggle and to call attention to the urgent need for serious action on climate change.

In 2005 Daryl Hannah created and designed dhlovelife.com, her website dedicated to sharing solutions on how to live more harmoniously with the planet and all other living things. The site features weekly five-minute inspirational video blogs which Daryl produces and films as well as daily news updates, alerts, community and access to sustainability tools, goods and services.

 

Congressman Raul Ruiz

Congressman Raul Ruiz is not a politician; he is a public servant and physician dedicated to serving the community. The son of farmworkers, Congressman Ruiz grew up in Coachella and learned at an early age that the key to attaining the American Dream was hard work and a great education. In the summer of 1990, under the hot desert sun, Raul walked from business to business in the Coachella Valley asking them to invest in their community – by contributing to his education. With each investment for college, he made a promise to come back home and serve the community as a physician.

 

 

Mayor Steve Pougnet

Mayor Steve Pougnet has been a resident of Palm Springs since 2001, and has served as an elected official since 2003, when he was first elected to City Council. Steve was elected to Mayor of Palm Springs in 2007, where he currently is serving his second term.

Any leader with many years of experience will have a long laundry list of accomplishments. Most notable for Steve include creating and launching Palm Springs’ Hotel Incentive Program, which resulted in over 1,000 jobs, $150 million in economic investment, and 1,600 new hotel rooms. Because of this program, the large conventions like the AOPA and National Guard were able to return to the City.
Also notable in his term is the initiation and adoption by City Council of the City’s Sustainability Master Plan which includes a report card to ensure that it is an actionable blueprint for making Palm Springs greener and more energy-efficient.

Obtaining a balanced budget in a tough economy is another significant achievement for Steve and his colleagues, as is the successful effort to stop a large jail from being built at the entrance to the City, and four straight years of crime decreases.
Steve has served on numerous boards and commissions both within his role as Mayor and as a citizen who stays involved with his community. His leadership style is one of collaboration, open and frank dialogue, with a goal of maintaining and building upon what’s already a world-class destination and a great place to live and do business.

Steve’s greatest pride is his family, including twins Julia and Beckham and husband Christopher—his partner of nearly 20 years. Also part of their family are two yellow labs, Sydney and Sophie, along with a full schedule of soccer games, kindergarten, swimming, skiing, biking, hiking, and running.

 

Commissioner David Hochschild

David Hochschild was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown in February 2013. He fills the environmental position on the five-member Commission where four of the five members by law are required to have professional training in specific areas - engineering or physical science, environmental protection, economics, and law.

Commissioner Hochschild’s career has spanned public service, environmental advocacy and the private sector. He first got involved in the solar energy field in 2001 in San Francisco as a Special Assistant to Mayor Willie Brown where he launched a citywide $100 million initiative to put solar panels on public buildings. He went on to co-found the Vote Solar Initiative, a 60,000-member advocacy organization promoting solar policies at the local, state and federal level. He served as executive director of a national consortium of leading solar manufacturers and worked for five years at Solaria, a solar company in Silicon Valley. In 2007-2008, he served as a commissioner at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.

For his work to advance clean energy, Commissioner Hochschild was awarded the Sierra Club’s Trailblazer Award, the American Lung Association’s Clean Air Hero Award and the Department of Energy’s Million Solar Roof True Champion Award. Commissioner Hochschild holds a B.A. degree from Swarthmore College and a Masters of Public Policy degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and was a Coro Fellow in Public Affairs.

 

Governor Angelina Galiteva

Governor Jerry Brown appointed Angelina Galiteva on May 2, 2011 to the California Independent System Operator Corporation Board of Governors to a term that expires on December 31, 2013.

Ms. Galiteva, of Fountain Valley, is currently President for NEOptions, Inc., a renewable energy and new technology product design and project development firm. Her industry experience includes serving as Executive Director of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and head of its Green LA, Environmental Affairs and New Product Development Organization. While at the municipal utility, she was responsible for strategic positioning and the environmental compliance departments. Her career includes working with the California ISO and Power Exchange on their initial launches and she also worked as a power analyst for the New York Power Authority.

Ms. Galiteva graduated from Pace University School of Law with a Juris Doctor degree in 1993 and a LL.M. degree in 1994 in Environmental and Energy Law. She specialized in electric utility strategic policy analysis and decision making focusing on pending industry transition and deregulation issues.

Ms. Galiteva works to advance the deployment of renewable energy and distributed energy technologies worldwide. She also serves as the Chairperson for the World Council for Renewable Energy, where she is one of the spokespersons, among other duties.

Ms. Galiteva is currently awaiting Senate confirmation.

 

Commissioner Mike Florio

Michel Peter “Mike” Florio was appointed to the California Public Utilities Commission on January 27, 2011 by Governor Jerry Brown. Prior to this appointment, he served for over 30 years as an attorney for The Utility Reform Network (TURN), the leading utility consumer advocate group in California.  In this position, he also testified as an expert witness on a wide variety of issues including ratemaking policy, utility revenue requirements, natural gas and power procurement policy, cost allocation and rate design.  

Commissioner Florio is currently a member of Western Conference of Public Service Commissioners, the Committee on Regional Electric Power Cooperation and the State/Provincial Steering Committee of the Western Governors’ Association, and the Transmission Expansion Planning Policy Committee and Scenario Planning Steering Group of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council.

Commissioner Florio also served on the stakeholder governing boards of both the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) and the California Power Exchange as a residential end-user representative from their creation in May of 1997 until January of 2001. In January of 2001, he was appointed by Governor Gray Davis to serve on the CAISO's new five-member independent governing board, and was reappointed in January of 2002 for a full three-year term, which expired in early 2005.

Commissioner Florio received a B.A. in political science and sociology from Bowling Green State University (Ohio) in 1974. From 1974 through 1978, he participated in a joint degree program sponsored by New York University School of Law and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. In 1978 he received a J.D. from New York University and a Masters of Public Affairs (M.P.A) from Princeton. He was admitted to the California State Bar that same year.

 

Commissioner Karen Douglas

Karen Douglas was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in February 2008, and served a two-year term as Chair from February 2009 to February 2011. She fills the Attorney position on the five-member Commission, where four of the five members by law are required to have professional training in specific areas - engineering or physical science, environmental protection, economics, and law. Commissioner Douglas is the Lead Commissioner on energy efficiency, power plant siting, and federal stimulus programs.

From 2005 to her appointment, Ms. Douglas served as director of the California Climate Initiative at Environmental Defense. Prior to going to Environmental Defense, Ms. Douglas spent four years at the Planning and Conservation League as the Natural Resources Director, General Counsel, and most recently, acting Executive Director.

Commissioner Douglas is a 2001 graduate of Stanford Law School, and holds a Master's Degree in public policy from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

 

Jim Kenna

Jim Kenna, the newly appointed State Director for California, has joined the California State Office leaving his position as State Director in Arizona. As BLM California’s new State Director, Kenna will be involved in the many issues the BLM faces in managing the 15.2 million acres it is responsible for in California and northwest Nevada.

Kenna began his federal career as a wildland firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service in Prescott, Arizona. He previously served in numerous key agency positions, including Associate State Director in Oregon, Deputy Assistant Director for Resources and Planning in Washington, D.C., Budget Analyst for the Department of Interior in Washington, D.C., and Field Manager of the BLM’s Palm Springs Field Office in California. He was BLM’s Arizona State Director from January 2009 to September 2011.

While working in the federal government, Kenna contributed his leadership and planning to many important initiatives and conservation efforts. He provided his leadership in establishing Service First and Stewardship Contracting initiatives and in coordinating federal, state and local land use planning processes balancing community needs, water rights and conservation of multiple species in southern California.

During his time as Palm Springs Field Manager, he worked with communities and tribes leading to the establishment of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, and worked with the Border Area Fire Council in San Diego to address international border security, fire response, public safety and ecological issues.

He also coordinated a national conservation strategy for sagebrush habitats with Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and the Western Governors Association.

Kenna has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Prescott College in Arizona. When not at work, Kenna enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons hiking, rafting, reading and enjoying music.

 

Jonathan Weisgall

Jonathan Weisgall is Vice President for Legislative and Regulatory Affairs for MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway. He also serves as chairman of the board of directors of the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies and president of the Geothermal Energy Association.

He is an Adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center, where he has taught a seminar on energy issues since 1990, and he has also guest lectured on energy issues at Stanford Law School and the Johns Hopkins Environmental Science and Policy Program. Mr. Weisgall graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia College and from Stanford Law School, where he served on the Board of Editors of Stanford Law Review. He previously practiced law in Washington, D.C. at Covington & Burling, has written law review articles for Wisconsin Law Review and University of San Francisco Law Review, and has published articles in Legal Times, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Foreign Policy, SAIS Review, and The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. He lives in Bethesda, MD with his wife Ruth and has three children.

 

Tom Werner

Tom Werner serves as SunPower’s president and chief executive officer, and as chairman of the SunPower board of directors.  Prior to joining the company, he held the position of chief executive officer of Silicon Light Machines, Inc., an optical solutions subsidiary of Cypress Semiconductor Corporation.  Previously, Werner was vice president and general manager of the Business Connectivity Group of 3Com Corp., a network solutions company, and has also held a number of executive management positions at Oak Industries, Inc., and General Electric Co.  He currently serves as a board member of Cree, Inc., Silver Spring Networks, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, and is a member of the Marquette University board of trustees.  Werner holds a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Marquette University and a master's degree in business administration from George Washington University.

 

Mark Wallenrod

Mark Wallenrod is the Director of Demand Side Management (DSM) Program Operations at Southern California Edison Company (SCE). Mark is responsible for managing a portfolio of over $1 billion dollars in energy efficiency, demand response, clean generation, and economic assistance programs. Edison's DSM portfolio includes over 100 rebate, retrofit, and smart energy management offerings which lead the nation in the delivery of energy and environmental savings. Mark also represents the company on demand side management issues before regulatory authorities, state power agencies, and industry and trade

Mark has more than 25 years of experience at SCE leading major regulatory and strategic initiatives, and developing and implementing energy efficiency, demand response, and distributed generation programs. He has previously worked for Regulatory Policy and Affairs, where he managed General Rate Case proceedings, and held positions in Customer Service as the manager of Business, Regulatory and Consumer Affairs, and manager of Tariff Programs and Services.

Prior to joining SCE, Mark was employed as an energy consultant for TRW Energy Engineering and as a consulting engineer for the power plant technical center of Davy McKee Corporation. Mark was also a research fellow for the Department of Energy at the Solar Energy Research Institute (now the National Renewable Energy Lab). Mark holds a Master of Science degree in Energy Management and Policy from the University of Pennsylvania, and is currently serving on the DSM Executive Council (E-Source) and boards of the National Association of Energy Service Companies (NAESCO) and Consortium of Energy Efficiency (CEE).

 

Kevin Kelley

Kevin Kelley is a native of Brawley, California and a lifelong resident of the Imperial Valley. A 1984 graduate of the University of Southern California, where he majored in communications arts and sciences, Kelley’s background in media consulting, marketing communications and public affairs is wide-ranging and extensive.

He is the former editor and publisher of Valley Grower magazine, an agricultural trade publication that was acquired by the Imperial Valley Press in 2003. As a freelance writer, his work has appeared in most major metropolitan newspapers in the West. From 2005-2006, he served as editorial page editor of the Imperial Valley Press.

Recruited to the Imperial Irrigation District in June 2006 to lead IID’s public affairs and communications efforts, Kelley was named general manager in May 2011.

 

Anthony Eggert

Anthony Eggert is the executive director of the UC Davis Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy, which is dedicated to leveraging University of California expertise to inform better policy.

From 2007 through 2012, Anthony served as an appointee of Governors Brown and Schwarzenegger in several senior policy positions including science and technology policy advisor to the chair of the Air Resources Board, commissioner for the California Energy Commission, and deputy secretary for energy policy of the California Environmental Protection Agency overseeing clean energy and environmental policy development for California.

Prior positions include advising the University of California on federal energy and climate policy, directing research on low-carbon fuels and vehicles at UC Davis' Institute of Transportation Studies, and as an engineer and then manager for Ford Motor Company. Anthony serves on the boards of the Alliance to Save Energy, the UC Energy Institute at Haas, the UC Transportation Sustainability Research Center, and is a technical advisor to the US Department of Energy.

Anthony received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering at University of Wisconsin-Madison and master of science degree in transportation technology and policy at UC Davis.

 

Walker Wells, AICP LEED AP

Mr. Wells is Director of the Green Urbanism Program for Global Green USA, a national non-profit organization headquartered in Santa Monica.   He works with affordable housing developers, municipalities, and school districts across the country to further green building and sustainable development practices by providing technical guidance, and developing programs and public policy.  Mr. Wells is editor and a co-author of the 2007 book Blueprint for Greening Affordable Housing and the 2006 publication Creating Successful Green Building Programs, a 2012 Pritzker Fellow at the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, and 2013 Fulbright Fellow with the Royal Institute of Technology Urban Planning Program in Stockholm.
 
Mr. Wells holds Bachelor’s degrees in Sociology and Environmental Studies from the University of California Santa Barbara and a Master’s of City and Regional from the California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo.  He also studied at Lund University and the Lund PolyTechnic Institute School of Architecture in Sweden. Prior to joining Global Green Mr. Wells was a Senior Urban Design with Gruen Associates in Los Angeles, an Associate Planner with the City of Santa Monica, and an Urban Planner for the City of Malmo, Sweden.  Mr. Wells is a certified urban planner, a LEED Accredited Professional, a Green Rater, a member of the State of California Green Building Code Advisory Committee, an invited contributor to the Planetizen web site, a lecturer on Green Urbanism at the Claremont Colleges, and the UCLA Urban Planning Program.

 

Rebecca Boudreaux

Trained as a chemist, Rebecca Boudreaux, Ph.D. is an entrepreneurial, technology executive with a unique blend of technical skills and business development expertise. She has served on the management team or Board of Directors of various startup companies in the clean tech, life sciences, high tech, and non-profit sectors. Presently, she is the President of Oberon Fuels, a San Diego-based company making DME (dimethyl ether) as a cleaner, alternative to diesel. In her role at Oberon, Dr. Boudreaux leads regulatory affairs including the state and federal processes for DME fuel certification and grant opportunities. Additionally, she leads the customer development and strategic partnering efforts with OEMs, trucking companies, and agricultural operations. In 2004, she co-founded Intezyne Technologies and served as CFO for four years and as a member of the company’s Board of Directors.

Dr. Boudreaux has a broad range of academic and industrial experience, having performed research at MIT, Princeton University, University of Southern Mississippi, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and National Starch and Chemical. She earned a B.S. in Polymer Science (magna cum laude) from the University of Southern Mississippi and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Engineering from the University of Massachusetts.

Because of her work at the interface of technology and business, Dr. Boudreaux has given invited lectures at the University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts, University of California Santa Barbara, University of South Florida, ACORE, and Apple Inc.’s MacWorld Conference. She presently serves as a Board Member of UrbanPromise International, an organization working in Malawi, Honduras, Canada, and the US to develop leaders who will break the poverty cycle for individuals in under-resourced, urban communities. She is also a Board Member of the Startup Leadership Program, a non-profit, international organization focused on developing the next-generation of startup CEOs. Dr. Boudreaux has co-authored six peer-reviewed publications and is a co-inventor on eight patent applications.

 

Eric Corey Freed

Eric Corey Freed, LEED AP, Hon. FIGP, is Principal of organicARCHITECT, an architecture and consulting firm in California, with nearly 20 years of experience in green building. Eric co-developed the Sustainable Design programs at the Academy of Art University and University of California Berkeley Extension. He is on the boards of Architects, Designers & Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR), Green Home Guide and West Coast Green, as well as the advisory boards of nearly a dozen other organizations.

He was the founding Chair of Architecture for The San Francisco Design Museum and one of the founders of ecoTECTURE: The Online Journal of Ecological Design. He is a regular contributor for Sustainable Industries Journal, Luxe, Natural Home, Metropolitan Home and dozens of other publications. Eric lectures around the country at 40+ conferences a year, and his work has been featured in Dwell, Metropolis, Town & Country, Natural Home and Newsweek. He has been seen on television on Fox News, HGTV, The Sundance Channel and PBS.

When Eric was just 25 years old, noted architect and critic Philip Johnson described him as "one of the real brains of his generation". Today, Eric continues the tradition of “Organic Architecture”, first developed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

 

Richard Adams

Richard is the Manager of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). In this role he oversees the teams accountable for the Engineered Innovation Initiative, the Industry Growth Forum, the Venture Capital Advisory Board, Investor Networking Initiatives, Regional and National Incubator Programs, and the NREL Commercialization Assistance Program. He also coordinates IEC's work with the Mentor-Protégé program, the Small Business Subcontracting program, and the development of the Center for Renewable Energy and Economic Development (CREED).

He draws on his 20 plus years of international experience with small, medium and large corporations across a broad range of industry sectors. He is recognized as a strategic thinker, skilled operational leader, and outstanding communicator able to influence all levels of an organization; and as a proven driver of organizational performance. He is the author of “Results Ladder” - a model for successful strategic planning and execution.

Prior to joining NREL, Richard was the CEO/President of Warralong Group, a management consulting firm focused on organizational performance with a specific emphasis on how to grow successfully. Warralong Group’s services included strategic planning and execution, growth strategies, executive talent selection, executive coaching, capital raising and operational efficiency.

His background also includes executive positions with Novations Group, a leading training and organizational development company. Before moving to the United States, Richard lived and worked in Australia where he founded and ran Arts Capital, an investment bank. Prior to this he held a variety of senior positions in financial services institutions including Rothschild and Westpac Banking Corporation. He also served as a Director and Shareholder of Virtuosity, a sales training consultancy.

He is a graduate of the University of New England (Australia), with a Bachelor of Agricultural Economics, and holds a Graduate Diploma of Business from the Phillip Institute of Technology (Australia).

 

Scott Perry

Scott Perry is Vice President, Supply Management, Fleet Management Solutions. In this position, which he has held since 2006, Mr. Perry is responsible for managing vehicle and parts procurement, inventory planning and management, new vehicle technologies, as well as overseeing Ryder’s alternative fuel program. Mr. Perry joined Ryder in 1990. Over the course of his career he has taken on roles of increasing responsibility including Operations Manager, Logistics Manager, and Group Logistics Manager, where he was responsible for multiple customer operations across various regions of the country. In 2003, Mr. Perry transitioned to Ryder’s Fleet Management Solutions division as a General Manager and later took on the role of Director of Operations responsible for fleet maintenance operations. Scott holds both a bachelor’s degree from Jacksonville State University and an MBA from the University of Tennessee.

 

Holly Smithson

Holly Smithson is president and chief operating officer of CleanTECH San Diego leading a number of mission-critical initiatives, including member programs, international partnerships, marketing and overall strategic development. Before joining CleanTECH San Diego, Smithson worked in public policy for 10 years in Washington, DC in both the executive and legislative branches, as well as non-government organizations. In 2003, she was selected as a Presidential Appointee and worked in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in its office of congressional relations and then leading its public affairs division. Before serving in the Bush Administration, Smithson was a registered lobbyist for the Solid Waste Association of North America and also worked on the professional staff of presidential, senatorial and gubernatorial campaigns in Florida and North Carolina. Smithson began her career in broadcast journalism in North Carolina as a news director and anchor for several television and all-talk radio stations. She is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Executive Leadership Program and holds a bachelor of science degree in broadcast communications from East Carolina University.

 

Doug Rose

Doug Rose joined SunPower Corp. in 2002 and currently holds the position of vice president, technology strategy. Previous roles at SunPower include cell product engineering manager, director of module research and development, and technology development director. His career spans more than 20 years of manufacturing technology development, thin-film PV research, silicon cell and module development, and technology assessment at GTE, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, First Solar, and SunPower Corporation. Dr. Rose has degrees in mechanical engineering from Iowa State and Stanford University, and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado. He has more than 60 publications and patents in the field of solar energy.

 

Jacob Lieb

Jacob Lieb is the Manager of Sustainability at the Southern California Association of Governments. He oversees sustainability programs including Compass Blueprint, the Sustainable Communities Strategy, electric vehicle planning, and the development of an open space strategy. In prior work at SCAG, Mr. Lieb has been involved in CEQA Compliance, housing, and other issues. Mr. Lieb also serves as lead staff to SCAG’s Energy and Environment Policy Committee, comprised of 25 elected officials. Mr. Lieb has a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California – Berkeley.

 

 

Mike Bacich

Michael J. Bacich serves as the Assistant General Manager of Customer Relations and Marketing for Riverside Public Utilities (RPU) and is the Sustainability Officer for the City of Riverside. His position oversees the management of business relations, public benefits, marketing, sustainability programs, customer service and field services related to metering.

Since 1999, Bacich has played an instrumental role in RPU’s marketing, media and public communications, public benefits, educational outreach, and sustainability efforts for the City. Bacich is in charge of directing and coordinating the implementation of the City’s progressive Green Action Plan, an 18-point plan that addresses the City’s sustainable goals for photovoltaic power, greenhouse gas reduction and efficiency.

Currently, he serves as the Region 6 Director of the American Public Power Association’s Demonstration of Energy-Efficient Developments (DEED) Board, representing California, Arizona, and Nevada. He is also a member of the Sustainable Communities Coalition, and serves on the board of ARC of Riverside County, a non-profit devoted to improving the welfare of those with developmental disabilities. He is also a member of Public Relations Society of America, and the American Marketing Association and hosts a weekly radio show about sustainability issues. Inthe community, he is a graduate of the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce Leadership Riverside class of 2005, and graduated with a degree in political science from the University of California, Riverside.

 

Genevieve Liang

Genevieve Liang is Clean Energy Collective's Vice President of Business Development for the western US. Previously, she was a member of the management team for Sharp Corporation’s Solar Energy Solutions Group, where she structured and executed utility-scale, solar PV projects and module sales for the Americas. Her past professional experience spans strategic consulting, journalism, visual media, and law. She is actively involved in nonprofit leadership as a board director for Girls in Tech LA, and is a team lead for Grid Alternatives as well as a pro bono consultant for the Bankers Without Borders unit of the Grameen Foundation. Genevieve graduated with a dual BS in Geology and BA in Geography from UCLA, and holds an MBA from USC’s Marshall School of Business. She is an ardent believer in using the power of technology to catalyze positive social change, and is dedicated to high-impact missions in clean technology and sustainable development.

 

Robert Frost

Robert is a life long resident of Riverside County, a Graduate of Corona High School, and a Veteran of the U. S. Navy where he began his electrical career.

He graduated from the National Joint Apprenticeship Training Center of Vocational Education at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, is a former instructor for the IBEW Apprenticeship Program at the Riverside/San Bernardino JATC* and now a Trustee to Riverside County Joint Apprenticeship Training Center,

Currently he is the Business Manager for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 440, as well as an Executive Board Member to California State Association of Electrical Workers, and Chairman of the NECA*/IBEW California Statewide Joint Apprenticeship Training Council.

Robert has been a Labor Representative to the Workforce Investment Board since 1997 for Riverside/San Bernardino Central Labor Council and today serves as an Executive Board member of Riverside County’s Workforce Investment Board.  He was recently elected as Chairman of the Riverside County Office of Education Foundation.

 

Rolf Gibbels

Rolf Gibbels is an executive member of IBM’s global  Energy & Utilities organization, and leads the global industry solutions and business development activities with focus on power generation across all IBM brands (services, software and infrastructure).

Areas include plant lifecycle information management and asset performance management including all energy sources (renewables, fossil and nuclear energy).

In that capacity Rolf serves on the board of directors and US-China council of the American Council of Renewable Energy (ACORE).

He has over 15 years international experience selling and marketing software industry solutions, product lifecycle management (PLM) and computer aided design (CAD) software to the energy, process, architecture and construction industries.

Prior to IBM, Rolf was Director of Global Market Development and Energy Industry Solutions at Dassault Systemes. He focused primarily on developing new initiatives, new opportunities and partner relationships in a burgeoning market now realizing the need for PLM. Before that he was a Senior Product Marketing Manager at Visio Corporation (acquired by Microsoft in 2000) where he was responsible for IntelliCAD (OpenDWG) and Visio Technical.

Rolf holds a masters degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Applied Sciences in Munich, Germany.

 

Brendan Jones

Brendan Jones, Nissan’s director of EV Infrastructure Strategy & Development, is responsible for developing the strategic plan for Nissan’s EV Infrastructure and DC (direct current) Fast Structure Deployment.

Jones has been a part of the EV team for more than four years and has contributed to the Nissan LEAF’s success in a number of ways. In those four years, Jones has overseen the design and implementation of the online customer experience for Nissan LEAF including the online reservation and ordering system, and he led the team that established the Nissan LEAF as the best-selling EV of all time in North America.

Since joining Nissan in 1994, Jones has held positions of increasing responsibility in sales and marketing. He joined the EV team in 2009 and has served as the senior manager of the Nissan LEAF Customer Platform and director of Nissan and Infiniti EV Marketing and Sales Strategy. 

Jones earned a bachelor’s degree in communications and marketing, as well as a master’s degree in international trade and commerce, from George Mason University.

 

V. John White

V. John White is the Executive Director of the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies (CEERT), which he co-founded in 1990. CEERT is a non-profit coalition of the nation?s leading public interest environmental groups and businesses working on energy efficiency and renewable technologies. Before founding CEERT, White served as a senior policy consultant for nine years on the staff of the California Assembly. Over the course of his 30-year career, he has been involved in the drafting, negotiation, and passage of landmark air quality and energy legislation and innovative regulatory programs to accelerate improvements in air quality, global warming, and renewable energy sources. These include the California Clean Air Act, the Carl Moyer diesel emission reduction incentive program, the Pavley greenhouse gas emission reduction bill, the renewable portfolio standard, and the California solar initiative.

 

Jim Caldwell

Jim Caldwell is the Statewide Sector Navigator for the Energy Efficiency and Utilities Sector for the California Community Colleges.  He is responsible for creating statewide programs to implement the California Energy Efficiency Strategic Plan, from generating plant to wall socket.  Working with industry and California’s 112 community colleges, he facilitates the launch and execution of strategic education and training initiatives within a framework of Doing What MATTERS for Jobs and the Economy.
 
Mr. Caldwell is also the CEO of Workforce Incubator, a nonprofit consulting firm specializing in workforce initiatives to address rapid change in the Energy Sector.  He is a member of the board of directors of i-GATE, a green transportation and clean energy innovation hub led by Lawrence Livermore and Sandia National Laboratories with a coalition of 32 technology firms and 10 cities.  With more than 30 years in high technology fields, he previously held executive positions at AT&T, Lucent Technologies, DSC Alcatel, and several Silicon Valley firms.

 

Roger Snoble

Coming out of retirement, Roger Snoble is currently serving as Interim General Manager of SunLine Transit Agency. SunLine is a leader in providing public transit using alternative fueled vehicles, which includes the first of its kind, American Fuel Cell bus.

Snoble’s career in public transportation spans 44 years. Prior to retiring, Snoble held the position of Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of Los Angeles County (MTA), from October 1, 2001 To April 5, 2009. MTA is a nationally recognized multi-modal transportation agency that is the third largest transit system in the country. It is responsible for bus and rail operations, transportation planning and programming and the construction of transportation projects in Los Angeles County. Prior to joining MTA, Snoble served as President/Executive Director of the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority (DART) for over seven years. Before DART, Snoble served as President and General Manager of the San Diego Transit Corporation where he worked 20 years, rising in the ranks from Planning and Scheduling Manager to the top executive post of President and General Manager in 1978. Snoble began his transportation career in 1965 as a planner for the TriCounty Regional Planning Commission in Akron, Ohio. He also served as the Manager of Schedules and Research for Akron Metro Transit District from 1971 to 1973.

Snoble has been presented with numerous awards throughout his career culminating with his induction into the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Hall of Fame in 2011. APTA named Snoble as its “Transit Manager of the Year” in 1998 and under Snoble’s leadership, DART was cited by APTA as the “Transit Agency of the Year” in 1997 and Los Angeles Metro was likewise recognized in 2006.

A 1968 graduate of the University of Akron with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Education, majoring in Urban Geography, Snoble earned his Master’s of Science Degree in 1971 in Economic Geography (Logistics and Transportation).

 

Peter Davis

Currently, Mr. Davis is the Statewide Director/Sector Navigator of the Advanced Transportation and Renewable Energy(ATR) for the California Community College's Economic and Workforce Development Program (EWDP).

Mr. Davis provides creative coordination of services and training, forward thinking and consistent leadership to the ATR Sector. He has brought together partners from public and private institutions, industry and business stakeholders, higher education administrators and faculty to collaborate with very clear goals in mind. First, using Statewide and local advisory input align resources with the Regional Consortia and partnering campuses to develop what new skills are needed by the workforce to learn and stay employed. Second, coordinate the services of Advanced Transportation and Renewable Energy training to reduce California’s dependency on foreign energy and help California’s businesses remain competitive in the global market.

Mr. Davis continues to promote the critical use of curricula assessment, curriculum modification and current program evaluation in the adoption, use, management and maintenance of newly emerging alternative transportation and energy focused training.  This includes alternative-fueled (AFV) and hybrid vehicles, and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) in photovoltaic, wind-generation, bio-energy, geothermal, energy efficiency and conservationtraining.  This proven process generates energy and transportation credentials for employees that align with current and future workforce needs.

 

Alexander Winn

As Manager of Policy Outreach and Development, Alexander Winn works on many of The Solar Foundation's key projects, including the SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership program which aims to remove solar market barriers and encourage solar deployment among local governments and communities. In this capacity, he has helped lead many educational workshops across the United States intended to prepare local government officials to address various obstacles to local solar energy development, including permitting, site inspection, zoning, financial incentive, and public awareness issues. 

Among the other educational and outreach projects he has recently managed, Alexander led the design and development of the State Solar Jobs Map, an interactive, online map allowing users to explore solar employment across all 50 states. In addition, Alexander works on The Solar Foundation’s various K-12 schools programs. This work includes tracking K-12 adoption of solar energy technologies and related curricula, and development of grant proposals to support STEM learning at various ages.

Before joining the Foundation, Alexander was an integral member of the George Washington University Solar Institute since its formation in 2008. There, he managed the Institute's public outreach, including the Annual Solar Symposium, online communications, and various research efforts. He regularly engaged with students and student groups to help incorporate solar energy learning into student life programming and classroom curricula. 

Alexander has also worked with the Solar Energy Industries Association, supporting the government affairs team, particularly on regulatory issues related to electricity transmission and public lands. Alexander holds a Master in Public Administration with a concentration in Public-Private Policy and Management and a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the George Washington University.

 

Anne Miller

With more than 20 years of intellectual property asset management, innovation assessment and negotiations experience, Anne Miller brings both business and contractual expertise to establishing the agreements required to transfer technologies and establish research partnerships at a Department of Energy laboratory.  Anne Miller joined the Technology Transfer Office at NREL in 2005 and her responsibilities include negotiating technology partnership agreements and software licenses with corporate partners, federal government agencies, and educational institutions to commercialize and deploy renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, as well as managing the Laboratory’s software/copyright intellectual property portfolio.   Prior to joining NREL, Anne was responsible for negotiating professional service, research and software license agreements at a large engineering firm in Colorado.  She received her MBA from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC and BA from Colgate University in Hamilton, NY.

 

David Nahai

David Nahai is a partner at the law firm of Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard & Smith and co-chair of its real estate, energy, and water practice areas.  He is also a leading expert in real estate, energy and water matters. He is the president of David Nahai Consulting Services, LLC, which advises clients in the water and energy sectors,
 
Mr. Nahai is also the former General Manager and Commission President of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the largest municipal utility in the United States.  As President and General Manager, Mr. Nahai led the overall transformation of the LADWP, including the origination and execution of the City’s groundbreaking Water Supply Plan; the attainment of historic reductions in water consumption in the City; the unprecedented expansion of the utility’s renewable energy portfolio to 15% (paving the way for the attainment of the 20% level by 2010); the realization of record breaking energy efficiency levels; and the launch and implementation of water and power infrastructure improvement programs.

Mr. Nahai is the former Chair of the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality ControlBoard, where he served in the administrations of 3 California Governors. The Regional Water Quality Control Board safeguards the quality of surface, ground, and coastal waters in Los Angeles and Ventura counties, an area with over 11 million residents. He is credited with reinvigorating the effectiveness of the Water Board and spearheading some of its most aggressive programs, especially in the area of coastal protection.

 

Patrick Lee

Patrick Lee is senior vice president of customer service, innovation, business strategy & Chief Environmental Compliance Officer at Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas).

Lee is responsible for all customer services and programs, as well as strategic planning and development of new businesses and technologies at SoCalGas. In addition, he oversees environmental services and policies, supply management, and advanced meter implementation.

Prior to joining SoCalGas in August 2012, Lee served as vice president of Sunrise Powerlink for San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E).  Lee had overall responsibility of the project including public affairs, environmental, land services, engineering, procurement and construction of the largest capital infrastructure project in SDG&E’s history.  The $1.9 billion, 500-kilovolt transmission line was completed successfully in June 2012.

Prior to his role on Sunrise Powerlink in April 2009, Lee was vice president of energy supply for Sempra Generation, which is now part of Sempra US Gas & Power.  Lee was responsible for natural gas procurement, energy sales from a fleet of combined cycle and renewable power plants, and daily trading and long term hedging of power plant output.  Prior to that, he held several director positions at SDG&E.  His past responsibilities included:  construction, maintenance and operations of transmission, substation and distribution systems in the San Diego region; skills and compliance training; business processes support; and performance management.

Before joining SDG&E in 1991, Lee worked for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District and the City of Roseville, California. His utility experience includes electric system planning, engineering standards, transmission & substation construction and maintenance, electric reliability, system automation, smart grid, engineering data integration, business process re-engineering and renewable energy development.

Lee has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from San Diego State University and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from California State University, Sacramento. He is currently serving the California Council for Science and Technology as a council member and a registered professional electrical engineer in California.

 

Sarah Backhouse

Sarah Backhouse is Founder of Future360.tv – an online video platform dedicated to raising awareness about sustainable innovation. Future360.tv uses video to tell powerful stories about why sustainability matters.

A television host, producer and sustainability expert, Sarah has lived in Sydney, London and Los Angeles, where she worked for a diverse array of broadcasters including: CNBC, BBC, PBS, Fine Living, SciFi Channel, Discovery Channel and Planet Green.

A sought-after M.C., keynote speaker and interviewer, Sarah has participated in SXSWEco, the UN’s Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Organization, the Governor’s Global Climate Summit, and has interviewed heads of state and leading sustainability experts.

Sarah was honored as one of Asia Pacific’s Leading 50 Women at the 2011 Advance Women’s Leadership Summit,one of Australia Unlimited’s Global 50 in 2013, and was a host on Al Gore’s 24 Hours of Reality in 2011 and 2012.

Sarah was born in the U.K. and raised in Australia and Japan. She graduated with Bachelor degrees in Economics and Japanese Studies from the Australian National University and Keio University, Tokyo, and speaks fluent Japanese.

 

Bob Woods

Bob has been with Southern California Edison for 28 years. He graduated with a BSEE degree from California State University, Long Beach in 1984. His current position is the Director of Electric System Planning for Southern California Edison. In this role, he is responsible for planning new transmission and distribution facilities needed to serve growing load, infrastructure replacement, and the interconnection of new load and generation for the 50,000 square miles that SCE serves. Prior to this position, Bob held Division Manager roles in Grid Operations and the Substation Construction and Maintenance Organizations. Throughout his career, he has also held various management positions in Distribution Design and Distribution Engineering.

 

Francisco Marquez

Francisco Marquez has served as President and CEO of the San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership and was responsible for workforce training, business attraction/retention and marketing the SGV as the “Human Capital of California.” Currently, he is Director of the Imperial County Workforce Development Office and administers the workforce training, Veterans and business services programs.

 

 

 

 

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