WRISE Leadership Forum

Erin Duncan | Vice President of Congressional Affairs, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)
Erin Duncan is SEIA’s Vice President Of Congressional Affairs where she leads SEIA’s congressional affairs team in their work to influence energy, tax, trade, appropriations and other policies in support of the solar industry. Prior to joining SEIA, Erin spent eleven years as a lobbyist with the National Education Association, the largest union and professional association in the United States. Erin began her Washington career as a staffer in the House of Representatives, including six years as Legislative Director for Congressman Tom Osborne (R-NE).

Evelyn M. Butler | Vice President, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)
Evelyn leads SEIA’s technical services team that provides industry expertise and program development to advance the deployment of solar and energy storage in the following areas – R&D, building, energy, fire, and construction codes and standards, automated permitting and interconnection, industry standards development, and industry circularity and sustainability. She’s been with SEIA for over 8 years and in the solar industry for about 20 years.

Carina Federico | Partner, Crowell & Moring
Carina Federico is a highly experienced tax advisor who handles complex tax issues and disputes, including transfer pricing and energy credits, at all stages from IRS audits to appellate court litigation. She regularly engages with key stakeholders at the Department of Treasury and IRS on tax policy matters, advocating for regulatory changes and clarity. Her background includes serving as a trial attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice, where she earned multiple awards, and as deputy associate counsel for the White House.

Leanne Russell Fate | Director, Sales & Marketing Operations, Ambient Fuels
In her current role, Leanne develops and manages the company’s sales and marketing tools and processes, directs the development and execution of MarCom objectives, and facilitates a transparent and inclusive company culture. Prior to Ambient Fuels, Leanne held project development and origination roles at EDF Renewables (EDFR) where she led the development of over 3GW of utility-scale wind and solar projects in SPP and MISO. She subsequently led RFP responses for EDFR’s pipeline across a range of U.S. power markets. Leanne’s passion for team culture and inclusivity includes volunteer work with WRISE’s annual Leadership Forum and ACP’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee.

Manka Khanna | Chief Commercial Officer, NovoHydrogen
Manka is a seasoned energy executive with ~15 years of experience in the energy industry. She started her career with Shell and spent a decade across multiples roles focused on upstream strategy and business development. In 2022, she joined NovoHydrogen, a pure play green hydrogen developer. As the Chief Commercial Officer, she is responsible for overseeing sales and customer activity, New Markets, Policy and Marketing

Lucie Dupas | Chief Delivery Officer, PowerFlex
With many years of experience as an engineer in the renewable energy industry, Lucie manages a national team of project managers, engineers, and coordinators, as well as a team of supply chain professionals. Her extensive background in solar, energy storage, and electric vehicle (EV) charging project development and construction allows her to successfully lead a team covering a wide variety of projects. She is a results-driven leader with a passion for smooth operations and digital transformation that ensure the highest project quality and customer satisfaction. She is passionate about sustainability and believes that it is everyone's job to participate in the global effort to preserve our planet.

Stacy Ettinger | Senior Vice President of Supply Chain & Trade, Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)
Stacy J. Ettinger is Senior Vice President of Supply Chain and Trade at the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), where she oversees SEIA’s policy and legal work on supply chain, trade, and sustainability efforts. Prior to joining SEIA, Stacy was a partner in the global law firm K&L Gates. She also served previously as senior advisor to Senator Chuck Schumer, and as a trade negotiator, legal and policy advisor, and litigator at the U.S. Commerce Department. Stacy is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, as well as a member of EXIM’s Council on Climate and Energy Transition.

Jean Nelson-Houpert | Chief Financial Officer, Volt Energy Utility
Jean Nelson-Houpert is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Volt Energy Utility a national Minority-Owned Utility Scale Developer in Washington DC. She oversees all financial aspects of the company, ensuring its continued success and stability. Additionally, Jean volunteers financial counsel to the Sharing the Power Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Volt Energy Utility to support organizations that provide services to urban and rural communities disproportionally affected by climate change, air and water pollution, and inaccessibility to renewable energy opportunities. With over 25 years of experience in finance, public, and corporate accounting, Jean served as the inaugural Chief Financial Officer and Interim CEO at the DC Green Bank for three years, leading the organization from its inception until September 2023.

Mary Palmer | Director, Energy Equity & Inclusion, Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA)
Mary Palmer is the Director of Energy Equity & Inclusion at the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA). She is responsible for guiding SEPA’s efforts to help its members embed equity into their organizations in a way that creates enduring change, aligning SEPA’s mission to accelerate the achievement of a carbon-free energy system with its vision of a new, more equitable legacy of systems and processes. Mary previously worked at Austin Energy, where she led initiatives that advanced the goals of the Resource, Generation, and Climate Protection Plan. She has more than ten years of experience in public policy, grassroots community engagement, and coalition building at organizations such as the League of Women Voters, Women Creating Change, and Global Vision International. Her proudest achievement is working with local communities and volunteers from all over the world to install rainwater harvesting systems totaling 82,900 liters of potable, accessible water to residents of Fiji.

Julia Bell | Chief Investment Officer, CleanCapital
Julia oversees project acquisitions, due diligence, and construction for CleanCapital, including structuring, negotiating, and implementing the company’s acquisition and development strategies. Prior to joining CleanCapital, Julia was an energy and project finance attorney with global law firm White & Case LLP in New York City and Mexico City. Before practicing law, Julia worked as a policy adviser for operations in the Mayor’s Office of the City of New York. Julia is a graduate of the University of Chicago and NYU School of Law.

Shannon Angielski | President & Founder, Clean Hydrogen Future Coalition
Shannon Angielski has devoted her career to developing and advocating for clean energy and carbon management policies and federal funding for projects. Shannon has a particular focus on the decarbonization of hydrogen, recognizing early on its significance to the success of the energy transition and potential to cut across multiple industries. She has worked to raise awareness and build support among key stakeholders, including founding and leading the Clean Hydrogen Future Coalition.

LaTisha Phillips | Manager, Origination, Policy, and Corporate Affairs, Onyx
LaTisha served in the United States Army for 25 years in the Miliary Intelligence Corps, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. As the Manager of Policy and Corporate Affairs at Onyx Renewables, Tish monitors and reports on changes in federal, state, and local policies, while also leading the development of sustainability and DEI initiatives.

Cornelia Ogendo | Vice President and Impact Capital Manager, Environmental Finance
As an Impact Capital Manager for the environmental finance team, Cornelia supports its mission to deploy capital to historically disadvantaged low-income communities, especially communities of color. This involves executing and underwriting tax equity impact investments, coordinating internal and external partnerships. Prior to U.S. Bank, Cornelia was the Project Finance Analyst at Siemens and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and began her career at the Renaissance Economic Development Corporation underwriting minority-owned small business microloans. Her background demonstrates a central thread and her personal commitment to contributing impact to society. She received a bachelor's degree in sustainable development at Columbia University.

Jade Garrett | Executive Director, Northwest Xcelerator & Owner, Positive Deviancy
Jade Garrett is the Founder of Positive Deviancy, a platinum-level Connector organization and Power Connector for the Department of Energy's American-Made Network. With over 6 years of experience supporting teams in the American-Made Challenge Programs, Jade has helped more than 350 renewable energy startups apply for 48 different renewable energy innovation prize topics and helped them secure over $12M in innovation funding awards. As a seasoned founder herself, with over 15 years focused on renewable energy, rapid prototyping, and robotics, Jade fully understands how to elevate and empower other startups to access idea stage funding and get traction and investment. She is one of the 2% of female founders who have raised VC investment, managed multiple hardware makerspaces, did business development for a startup that won the MIT Clean Energy Prize, and has served on the Virginia Governor's Council for Youth Entrepreneurship. She specializes in renewable energy centric, JEDI, hardware based, and social impact driven startups that want to use technology and innovation as tools to change the world.

Sara Moffat | Senior Policy Advisor, Bureau of Land Management
Sara Moffat currently works as Senior Policy Advisor to the Director of the Bureau of Land Management, focusing on renewable energy and recreation policy. She has worked in natural resource policy on Capitol Hill, in the non-profit sector, and in state government. Sara earned her master's degree at the London School of Economics and Political Science and her bachelor's at the University of Nevada, Reno. She grew up in southern Nevada and currently lives in Washington, DC.

Kelly Velazquez | Managing Director, Energy Leadership, Clean Energy Leadership Institute (CELI)
Kelly is the Managing Director, Energy Leadership. She is dedicated to supporting and connecting communities of dynamic change-makers across disciplines to drive equitable, inclusive, and sustainable clean energy development. She joined CELI to support the 2022 Chicago cohort and has since collaborated with alumni and practitioners to create curriculum and programming for the next generation of clean energy leaders. Her previous experiences include working with grassroots environmental groups, leading post college success programming, and community redevelopment projects.

Esther Morales | Executive Director, Clean Energy Leadership Institute (CELI)
Esther Morales brings over 25 years of cross-sector, business-facing, public service leadership to advance economic, energy and racial justice through roles within nonprofits, government, philanthropy, and campaigns. Since January, 2021, she has served as the executive director of the Clean Energy Leadership Institute (CELI). Just prior, she was the Deputy Director of the California Office of the Small Business Advocate in the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). Esther spent the preceding years, 2009 - 2017, working on policy implementation at the national level on a range of issues in Washington, DC including at the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Women’s Business Council, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and at the White House in the Office of First Lady Mrs. Obama. Before moving to Washington, DC, she spent ten years managing issue and candidate campaigns, and working with nonprofits organizing around racial justice issues. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Princeton University.

Karla Loeb | CEO, Loeb Consulting LLC
Karla Loeb is a leader in the clean energy industry, specializing in policy, communications and business development strategy with more than 15 years of experience in state and federal work. Her contributions to the industry have distinguished her resulting in 4 concurrent terms as an elected member of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) Board of Directors. Karla currently serves as an elected at-large member on the Board as well as the policy chair for the DEIJ Committee. She has served in a variety of positions on the Board including the State Policy Chair, the Distributed Generation Division Chair and on the Executive Committee. She is well known in the climate advocacy arena, as well as environmental justice circles, often acting as a liaison between industry and non-profit advocates

Angie Daoud | Chief Operating Officer, ONYX
Angie is a versatile and experienced management professional, able to see the "big picture" while maintaining focus on project details. She demonstrated success in developing the processes and procedures necessary to streamline operations and enhance performance. Prior to Onyx, Angie spent the last eight years working in various executive roles in project management, development and operations roles at Safari Energy, Trina Solar, ForeFront Power and Sunpower. Prior to that, she held various engineering and operations positions at companies in Egypt, including the DMG Dar Al Mimar Group. Angie holds a B.S., Biomedical and Systems Engineering, Cairo University

Kristine Janhunen | Chief People Officer, Generate Capital
Kristine Janhunen is the Chief People Officer of Generate Capital. Prior to Generate, Kristine consulted globally for private equity and venture firms on many talent and organization-building matters. Kristine graduated from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, where she was a Sloan Fellow. She also received an MEd in Psychology from the University of North Carolina and a BA in Psychology and International Studies from Taylor University.

Jessica Ennis | Managing Director, Invest in Our Future
Jess is a solutions-focused leader with a demonstrated record of building and executing successful environmental and energy public policy campaigns at the federal and state level. As Managing Director at Invest in Our Future, Jess leads a team working to bridge the gap between federal investments and communities. Prior to IOF, Jess was the Director of Public Engagement at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and Legislative Director for Climate and Energy at Earthjustice.

Megan Timpane | Principal Trainer, SpeechSkills
Megan Timpane brings more than 10 years of HR and corporate training experience, having previously worked for prominent companies in the fashion industry, such as Michael Kors and Rent the Runway. Originally from San Francisco, Megan began acting at a young age, honing her skills at ACT and The British Academy of Dramatic Arts at Oxford, before getting her BA in Theatre Performance from UCLA. She currently lives in NYC, and has worked with SpeechSkills for the past four years, catering to a diverse clientele across industries such as big tech, legal, medical, construction, and more. She works with everyone from newly-on boarded employees to C-suite executives.

Tanya Murphy Willacy | Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer, esVolta LP
Tanya is a strategic business partner who directs all legal, compliance, and policy matters and supports risk mitigation for esVolta. Tanya has more than twenty years' of legal experience in the renewable energy and power sector. Prior to joining esVolta, Tanya was General Counsel for ENGIE Storage, Head of Legal for Sun Edison's North American distributed solar division, and spent more than a decade with Pacific Gas & Electric engaged in developing and implementing the utility's renewable and storage development and procurement strategies. Tanya holds a BA from Stanford University and a JD from NYU School of Law.

Tasha McCarter | Vice President, Cleantech Innovation, RWE Clean Energy
Tasha is currently the Vice President of Cleantech Innovation at RWE Clean Energy, where her responsibilities include identifying growth opportunities and positioning our technical teams for scaled delivery. Prior to this she was the Vice President of Project Engineering at, where her responsibilities include leading the technical execution of Utility Scale Solar, Battery Storage, Wind, and Green Hydrogen Projects. She is a licensed Professional Engineer in six US States and a certified Project Management Professional. Tasha recently completed her Execution Education at the Wharton School of Business, Chief Technology Officer Program.

Dana Redden | Founder and CEO, Solar Stewards
Celebrating over a decade in the solar industry, Dana Clare Redden is a passionate solar energy professional dedicated to the development of distributed generation solar globally. She is the founder of Solar Stewards, a social enterprise connecting corporate social responsibility initiatives with historically excluded communities. Dana holds a Bachelors of Science degree from Drexel University as well as an Executive MBA from IE Business School and Brown University. She volunteers on multiple committees dedicated to equitable renewable energy development including The Nature Conservancy and Clean Energy Buyers Alliance Standards Steering Committee, and the VOTE Solar Access and Equity Advisory Committee. She is a co-founder of BOSS: Black Owners of Solar Services, an inaugural American Council of Renewable Energy (ACORE) Accelerate member, and serves on the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) board of directors.

Kerry Duggan | Founder & CEO, SustainabiliD
Kerry C. Duggan is a CEO, sustainability expert, corporate board director, angel investor, faculty member, public speaker, executive producer, national political advisor and the former climate advisor to President Joe Biden. In 2017, she founded SustainabiliD, a strategic advisory firm, providing coaching and consulting services to CEOs, C-Suites, and innovative climate tech entrepreneurs with a mission to equitably solve the climate crisis. Duggan serves on several corporate boards (Perma-Fix, Envergia and BlueGreen Water Technologies) along with various climate tech advisory boards (such as Mill, Aclima and ONE); is a faculty member at the University of Michigan’s (U-M) School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS); holds current appointments with the Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board (SEAB) and Governor Whitmer’s Council on Climate Solutions.

Rachel Petry | O&M Strategy and Support Manager, Southern Power
Rachel Petry is a senior manager with over 20 years of experience in Energy Generation. Currently, she is the O&M Strategy and Support Manager for Southern Power and is responsible for over 13,000 MW of generation across 15 states. Rachel has been a member of WRISE for over a decade and a member of the Webinar Committee for 4 years. WRISE is her favorite professional organization.

Rebecca Glazer | Senior Director, Energy Transformation, Walmart
Becca Glazer leads renewable energy investments within Walmart's Energy Transformation team with a primary focus on tax equity. Becca has been in the renewable energy industry for over a decade, focusing her career on finance, capital markets, and innovation. Prior to Walmart, she led the Valuation and Finance Innovation teams at AES Clean Energy, co-led tax equity structuring and syndication at Sol Systems, and earlier in her career advised Investors, Sponsors, and Corporates within EY's Tax Credit Investment Advisory Services team. Becca is passionate about collaborating with other female leaders in the renewable energy industry and on creating a more inclusive industry for the next generation of women devoting their careers to sustainability.

Alisha O'Connell | Vice President 7Skyline, LLC
An enrolled member of the Penobscot Nation and a Passamaquoddy Tribal member, Alisha manages Tribal energy project development alongside 7Skyline partner technical organizations. She is passionate about supporting Tribal communities and welcomes the opportunity to help Tribes realize their energy sovereignty goals and increase economic growth.

Sheiyenne Baloo Seegmiller | Finance and Tax Project Manager, 7Skyline, LLC
Sheiyenne Baloo-Seegmiller is the Finance and Tax Project Manager for 7Skyline, LLC, a woman-owned energy consulting firm based in Oregon. In her role, she supports clients in their grant submissions through tax advising, assists with legal contracts, and leads a financial literacy course for Tribal members. She is a member of the Navajo Nation and graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Oklahoma with her Masters in Indigenous Peoples Law.

Steph Speirs | Board Director, Vote Solar, Sierra Club Foundation, Clean Energy for America
Steph Speirs serves on the Board of Directors of the Sierra Club Foundation, Vote Solar, and Clean Energy for America, and she was the co-founder and CEO for Solstice through its acquisition by MyPower/Mitsui. She previously deployed solar in India and Pakistan, managed field operations on the Obama campaign, and developed policy at the White House. She was selected as EY New England’s Entrepreneur of the Year, C3E’s Entrepreneur Award, Inc Magazine’s Female Founder 100, and Elle’s US Woman Entrepreneur of the Year.

Yamit Lavi | Technical Advisor, Grid Deployment Office, U.S. Department of Energy
Dr. Lavi is a technical advisor at the U.S. Department of Energy Grid Deployment Office, where she oversees a portfolio of projects focused on expanding interregional transmission to accelerate decarbonization while ensuring system reliability. With experience in the energy industry since 2014, Yamit brings a strong technical foundation and a deep understanding of policy implications to support a clean energy future. Yamit holds a Ph.D. in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon and a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.

Aditi Passalacqua | Talent Acquisition Manager, Clearway
With a diverse background in talent acquisition, human resources, sales account management, and program management, Aditi is dedicated to elevating candidate experiences and advancing DEI initiatives at Clearway Energy. As a seasoned talent acquisition professional, Aditi has a proven track record of streamlining processes, fostering accountability, and driving efficiencies across various roles and industries. Aditi's expertise in strategic planning, influencing, and personnel development, combined with a self-starter attitude and entrepreneurial spirit, empowers her to deliver exceptional results and contribute meaningfully to organizational success.

Dawn James | Managing Director | Sustainability, ESG Strategy & Transformation Deloitte Consulting LLP
Dawn James leads Sustainability Strategy and Transformation within Deloitte’s Strategy & Analytics practice. As a Managing Director within the Energy and Technology sectors she leverages her subject matter expertise to foster industry alignment and new business development, helping customers leverage the Sustainability, Climate and Equity market offerings to accelerate their sustainability journey. Dawn leads a wide range of initiatives in energy transition, sustainability, digital cloud solutions, and innovation. Dawn has over 25 years of industry program management experience as a geoscientist and systems leader. She is a certified naturalist, formerly serving as Global Director for Industry Strategy -Energy & Sustainability and Director for US Sustainability & Environmental Science strategy at Microsoft. In addition, she served as Research Hydrogeologist with the U.S. Department of the Interior (USGS). Dawn’s expertise not only includes results-driven leadership, market incubation and ecosystem innovation but she also articulates value at the convergence of industry and technology.

Monisha Shah | Division Director, Solar for All, EPA
Monisha Shah is the Division Director for EPA's Solar for All - one of three programs in the historic Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. She was most recently the Deputy Director for Justice40 and Environmental Justice Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality after serving as the Equity Lead for the Joint of Office on Energy and Transportation. Ms. Shah has over 20 years of experience leading both domestic and international analysis and technical assistance efforts to accelerate the equitable deployment of clean energy and transportation technologies primarily as a principal investigator at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Ms. Shah has a M.S.E. in Environmental Engineering from Johns Hopkins University and a B.S. in economics and B.S.E. in chemical engineering from the University of Iowa.

Eileen Mendoza | Engineer, Wind Technology Group, DNV North America
Eileen Mendoza is a professional engineer with more than eight years of experience in the energy industry spanning multiple disciplines. Eileen is a licensed engineer with the Professional Engineers of Ontario and holds a master's degree in mechanical engineering with a specialization in sustainable energy and engineering leadership. Through her diverse background, she brings with her a unique perspective and a comprehensive understanding of industry dynamics. Transitioning seamlessly into the wind energy sector, Eileen has dedicated the past four years of her career in wind turbine engineering focusing on the U.S. and Canadian onshore wind market. Upon joining the Wind Technology group at DNV in 2022, Eileen has taken on technical due diligence work for both pre-construction and operational wind projects in support of project financing and M&A transactions. Her current responsibilities include independent turbine technology risk assessment, site suitability and life extension studies, O&M failure rates and cost projections, construction audits, and operational turbine assessments.

Miriam Athmer | Director, Sustainability, RWE Clean Energy
Miriam is a sustainability leader in the renewable energy sector, with experience in the US and Europe. Having started her career in Germany, she moved to Austin, Texas, in 2022 to establish the corporate sustainability program at RWE Clean Energy. As the Director of Sustainability at RWE Clean Energy, she and her team are responsible for the company’s strategic programs on supply chain decarbonization, biodiversity impact, circular economy, social responsibility and sustainable finance.

Melinda Baglio | General Counsel & Chief Financial Officer, Clean Capital
Melinda oversees all aspects of CleanCapital’s legal affairs, including structuring, negotiating, and implementing the company’s investment strategies, as well as the structuring and execution of capital markets transactions. She began her career in the non-profit sector, advocating for clean energy legislation with the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG). In 2008, she switched gears to practice law; first as an attorney at Chadbourne & Parke and later at global law firm White & Case. Her extensive legal experience has centered on representing investors and developers in energy financing transactions, including several award-winning and innovative deals. Melinda is a graduate of Colgate University and Fordham Law School.

Kamaj Bailey | Founder & Managing Director, Apeiron Leadership
Kamaj is committed to helping sustainability professionals thrive. Her coaching and learning programs equip leaders with the tools they need to generate lasting results, effect positive change, build stronger relationships, and promote wellbeing. Her practical approach to leadership is rooted in the lessons learned during her time as a consultant at Willis Towers Watson providing actionable insights to Fortune 500 HR leaders as a Talent Engagement Leader, at Con Edison developing programs to attract and retain top talent, and as Director of Learning & Development at Generate Capital, empowering teams through leadership and DEIJ programs. Kamaj holds an MBA from the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and a BBA in Accounting from the City University of New York – Baruch College.

Priscilla Barbour | Director, Policy & Communications, Primergy Solar
Priscilla leads policy and communications for Primergy Solar. With a decade of policy and public affairs experience, she is responsible for Primergy’s external communications, stakeholder engagement, and public policy strategies. Prior to joining Primergy, Priscilla managed state government affairs and policy in Texas, California, Connecticut, and federal government affairs efforts on behalf of Vistra. She is also a former Congressional staffer and worked for former Congressman Cedric Richmond (LA-02) and the House Energy & Commerce Committee.

Cameron Benton | Principal Recruitment Consultant, SolSearch Energy
Cameron is a Principal Recruitment Consultant for SolSearch Energy, a talent acquisition consultancy specializing in sourcing, representing, and placing talent within the renewable energy project development space. Cameron worked for Duffy Group Inc. as a general recruiter, supporting a variety of industries before making the jump to renewable energy. Phoenix, Arizona native now based in Brooklyn, New York, Cameron is a dedicated recruitment partner who facilitates important industry connections through transparent, empathic communication with an emphasis on amplifying and promoting diverse voices. Cameron sits on the Professional Development committee for WRISE and has hopes of starting an organization dedicated to supporting queer-identifying members of the renewable energy and sustainability space.

Stephanie Bosh | Vice President of Communications, Solar Energy Industries Association
Steph Bosh serves as Vice President of Communications at the Solar Energy Industries Association, the national trade organization for America’s solar energy industries. She oversees SEIA’s marketing and communications team dedicated to promoting the organization and its 1200+ members companies—working side by side to fight for policies that create jobs and promote the growth of reliable, low-cost, and renewable solar power. Prior to SEIA, Steph served as executive director of corporate communications at JPMorgan Chase and in other roles with the Pew Charitable Trusts, multiple political campaigns and on Capitol Hill before that. She lives in Kensington, MD with her husband, twin daughters and cat Jade.

Maryam Brown | President, Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) ▾
Maryam Brown is president of Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), the United States’ largest gas distribution utility. SoCalGas’ 8,000 employees serve 21 million consumers in 500 communities from California’s Central Valley in the north to the San Diego County line in the south. As president, Brown develops and executes SoCalGas’ strategic vision with a focus on the company’s aspiration to achieve carbon neutral operations and delivery of energy by 2045. Brown has 25 years of experience in the energy industry across engineering, legal, policy, and regulatory roles, having started her career as an engineer in the petroleum refining sector. She joined SoCalGas in 2019 from SoCalGas’ corporate parent Sempra, a diversified energy services company based in San Diego, where she was vice president, federal government affairs.

Robin Carnahan | Administrator, US General Services
Robin Carnahan currently serves as the Administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). As Administrator, she is working to empower GSA career professionals and build on the agency’s efforts to deliver the best value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to the government and American people. Prior to joining GSA, Carnahan served in executive and leadership roles in business, academia and government, including as the Secretary of State of Missouri (2005-2013), and founded and led the State and Local Government Practice at 18F, a tech consultancy, inside GSA (2016–2020). She’s a nationally recognized government technology leader and in 2017 was named one of the federal government’s “Top Women in Tech.” Most recently, Carnahan was a Fellow at Georgetown University’s Beeck Center where she co-founded the State Software Collaborative. As Secretary of State, Carnahan also served as the state’s Chief Election Official and State Securities Regulator and was responsible for providing in-person and online services to hundreds of thousands of customers. An essential part of her job was leading the office’s technology modernization efforts across 7 operating divisions. She frequently speaks, writes and testifies about government innovation through smarter use of technology.

Evelyn Chavez | Senior Project Engineer, SOLV Energy
Evelyn Chavez is a project engineer at SOLV energy, one of the world's leading EPC companies in solar energy, where she works on-site to navigate and lead the construction of utility scale solar projects. She has seen the full completion of a project totaling over 500MW, is currently working on a project in production, and is set to work on another 450MW site in 2025. She has been working at the company for 2 years after graduating from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a B.S. in Industrial Engineering. Prior to her industry experience, she was an outreach pioneer in her club, Society for Women Engineers, where she founded an online program outreaching to students while physically distancing that won the WELocal Outstanding Outreach Award in 2021.

Shirley Chin | Head of Tax Insurance, WTW ▾
Shirley Chin is the Head of Tax Insurance at WTW, one of the largest and most experienced global insurance brokerages in the world, with roots dating back to 1828. She is a tax attorney with more than 25 years of legal experience in the private, public, government and non-profit sectors. Her in-house experience includes nine years as an energy tax lawyer, first as the Vice President of Tax at Sunrun, a publicly traded solar, storage and energy services company, where she advised its C-Suite executives on the company's tax strategies, including tax controversy, tax policy, project finance, and tax operations.

Francesca Costello | Senior Growth Marketing Manager, Enverus
Francesca Costello is a Senior Growth Marketing Manager at Enverus, the world’s largest energy-only software company. With a focus on driving brand growth in the renewable energy sector, she plays a key role in expanding Enverus' data analytics and research solutions for developers, EPCs, and utilities. With over 15 years of B2B marketing experience across industries such as oil and gas, insurance, and agriculture, Francesca has a proven track record of executing impactful, multi-million dollar marketing campaigns. Her strategic leadership goes beyond marketing, as she is also an active member of the Enverus DE&I executive council and serves as Social Media Director for WRISE Colorado.

Ashleigh Cotting | Director of Origination & Development, Stormfisher Hydrogen
Ashleigh Cotting is an accomplished leader in the renewable energy sector, currently serving as the Director of Origination & Development at Stormfisher Hydrogen. With a Bachelor's degree in Integrated Science and Technology from James Madison University, Ashleigh has built a robust career focused on advancing sustainable energy solutions. Prior to joining Stormfisher Hydrogen, Ashleigh worked at Apex Clean Energy for over four years, where she played a pivotal role in negotiating and executing Power Purchase Agreements for more than 1GW of renewable energy. In her capacity as the Green Fuels Commercial Lead, she spearheaded initiatives to define Apex's green fuels commercialization strategy. Her expertise encompasses identifying and assessing green fuel project opportunities, developing compelling business cases, and fostering vital commercial agreements that drive project success.

Darleen DeRosa | Vice President, Policy & Regulatory Affairs, Stem
Darleen is an energy policy executive with 15+ years of leadership experience in the climate tech, renewables and utility industries. At Stem, she leads federal and state policy strategy for the company's AI-driven clean energy solutions that maximize the economic, environmental, and resiliency value across energy assets. Darleen also serves as a member of the Board of Directors at SEIA, the Solar Energy Industries Association.

Becky Diffen | Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP
Becky Diffen is a partner based in Norton Rose Fulbright's Austin office where she focuses her practice on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and project development of renewable energy, energy storage, power generation and transmission projects. Becky has over 20 years of experience in the renewable energy industry and previously worked as a utility-scale wind power developer. She has been recognized annually by Chambers Global and Chambers USA, was honored as a 2021 Law 360 Project Finance MVP, and in 2019 was named the C3E Law and Finance award winner by the U.S. Department of Energy. Becky serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of WRISE and is a member of the Advisory Board of the WRISE Austin Chapter.

Gretchen Dolson | Vice President, Renewables Practice Lead, HDR
Ms. Dolson is HDR's Renewables Director and a Professional Civil Engineer (NE) experienced in the design of renewable energy and industrial land development projects. Her alliances in the renewables world have led her to the development of more than 15 GW of renewable energy facilities globally. She currently leads business development and technology thought leadership efforts in the areas of solar, off-shore wind, wind, biogas and energy storage development at HDR. With HDR renewables staff working in more than 20 offices, Ms. Dolson and HDR’s focus is on utilizing national technical expertise and local presence to deliver sustainable facilities to HDR’s renewable energy clients. HDR is an Architectural, Engineering & Environmental Services firm with more than 13,000 Employee Owners at more than 220 office locations globally.

Alana Duerr | Principal Consultant, M&A Advisory, Energy Systems, DNV North America
Dr. Duerr is a Principal Consultant in DNV’s M&A Advisory Team. Alana has worked in the offshore wind industry in the U.S. since 2013, with experience in both the public and private sectors. In her previous roles, she served as the Offshore Wind Lead for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind Energy Technologies Office, where she led the offshore wind R&D portfolio, and was Director for DNV’s North American Offshore Wind team from 2019-2021. Most recently, she served as the President, Offshore Wind US, for Simply Blue Group (SBG), leading SBG’s floating offshore wind strategy, development, and execution within the U.S. and leading their JV with TotalEnergies in the US. She has a Ph.D. in ocean engineering, and a B.S. in naval architecture and marine engineering.

Kristin Dugas | Operations Engineering Manager, Scout Clean Energy
As the Operations Engineering Manager at Scout Clean Energy, Kristin draws upon her systems engineering background to promote data-driven solutions for Scout's operating wind and solar assets. Her expertise in operability and performance allows her to break down complex technical concepts for stakeholders. Kristin is passionate about leadership in the workplace and promoting the clean energy transformation.

Leslie Elder | Vice President of Policy & Regulatory Affairs, Summit Ridge Energy
Leslie Elder serves as Vice President of Policy and Regulatory Affairs for Summit Ridge Energy. In this role, Leslie drives the company’s strategic efforts to engage federal and state governments. With more than fifteen years of regulatory and campaign work, most recently as Director of the MidAtlantic Region for CCSA (Coalition for Community Solar Access), she educates leaders on the economic and social benefits of community solar energy and energy storage. She held prior leadership roles as Executive Director at the Pennsylvania Solar PAC and as Director at the Energy Foundation. Leslie holds an M.C. in Women in Leadership from Cornell University and an M.S. in Community Nutrition from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She has a B.S. from Metropolitan State University of Denver.

Pamela Fann | Founder & CEO, Integrated Solutions ▾
Pam, an award-winning diversity specialist, is the Founder and CEO of Integrated Solutions, an energy services company that focuses on energy efficiency project implementation, workforce development, and civic engagement. They develop frameworks to implement the cultural competency necessary for successful, equitable, and sustainable program implementation. Their mission is to promote an equitable energy economy that positively impacts lives and supports community advancement. Pam has a degree in Marketing, a Human Resource Management certification, and is a Certified Cultural Diversity Professional and Trainer (CDP, CDT). She also holds a certification in Understanding Diversity and Inclusion from Purdue University.

Amanda Flores | Project Development Director, Grid United
Amanda Flores is the Project Development Director at Grid United, where she manages the development of large-scale interregional electric transmission projects that will modernize the U.S. power grid. Prior to joining Grid United, Amanda was responsible for stakeholder relationships, land acquisition, permitting, and overall project management of 3,000 MW of wind, solar and battery storage projects at ConnectGen. Prior to that, Amanda worked at Clean Line Energy Partners where she supported the development of the 150-mile Western Spirit transmission line and associated 1,000 MW wind project.

Hema Gupta | Director of Procurement Operations, Onyx Renewable Partners
As Director of Procurement, I develop comprehensive procurement strategies to support the company’s portfolio of investments in sustainable generation as we aim to create innovative customer-centric solutions for our valued clients.

Bri Hamilton | Vice President, Human Resources and Marketing, Javelin Capital
Ms. Hamilton is the Vice President of Human Resources and Marketing at Javelin where she focuses on leading marketing efforts, managing the New York office headquarters and supporting the senior management team on strategic initiatives of the firm. Prior to Javelin, Bri worked for several firms in the mortgage services and real estate industry where she supported marketing and business development efforts. She is skilled in Strategic Marketing, Operations Management, Vendor Relations, Sales, Leadership and Client Experience. Ms. Hamilton holds a BS in International Relations and Affairs from the University of Southern California.

Kara Herrnstein | Partner and Solar Co-Chair, Bricker Graydon LLP
Kara is a partner and the co-chair of the solar practice at the law firm of Bricker Graydon LLP. As part of a full-service law firm and comprehensive energy practice, her team focuses on supporting every aspect of renewable development in Appalachia.

Tonya Hicks | President/CEO, PowerSolutions Int. and Founder/Managing Principal of Women Do Everything ▾
Tonya Hicks, an accomplished leader, and trailblazer in construction, energy, and promoting women's empowerment. As the President and CEO of Power Solutions, Inc., and the Managing Principal of Women Do Everything, LLC, Tonya has made significant contributions in several male-dominated industries. With a passion for excellence, Tonya's journey began as she broke barriers, becoming the first woman to become a Journeyman Inside Wireman Electrician in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Local 917 and the first Black Woman to become an IBEW Journeyman Electrician in the State of Mississippi.

Heather Holland | Founder & Chief HR / Diversity Consultant, The Holland Collective, LLC
Heather Holland, SPHR, Founder & Chief HR / Diversity Consultant of The Holland Collective, LLC, partners with clients to curate custom workplace experiences resulting in healthy workplace cultures where people and their talents thrive and flourish. Prior to independently consulting, Heather thrived in various human resources and global DE&I leadership roles with Fortune 500 companies traversing industries including consumer goods, energy, manufacturing and rail. Heather is a sports fan, appreciates the joy and adventure of domestic and international travel, and a lover of architecture and the art of live music.

Dustin Homer | CGO, Farym
Dustin Homer is Chief Growth Officer at Fraym. Fraym uses AI to create geospatial data on global populations. Fraym's population data is used to expand global energy access, improve gender equity investments, increase healthcare access, and counter mis- and dis-information. Prior to Fraym, Dustin led growth at Development Gateway and conducted development impact evaluations at Soci Impact. He has degrees from Johns Hopkins University and Brigham Young University.

Dani Hughes | VP Impact, Churchill Stateside
Danielle Hughes is an established leader in the financial industry, working with large corporations to advance energy sustainability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. She specializes in renewable energy tax equity investments that empower solar and energy storage projects nationwide. Dani is passionate about the well-being of our planet and elevating female business leaders.

Esther K. | Capital Management Analyst, 8 Rivers
At 8 Rivers, Esther spends her time building and evaluating financial models and project economics for her company's low-carbon technologies. Prior to 8 Rivers, Esther worked in Private Equity investing in infrastructure projects both within the U.S. and sub-Saharan Africa. She holds a bachelor's degree in finance and a master's degree in finance and data Analytics. Esther is an avid singer and runner.

Mansi Kansal | Senior Product Manager, Google
Mansi Kansal is a Senior Product Manager in the AI for Climate team at Google Research. In her role, Mansi is focused on bringing Google technology and AI to tackle climate change and to support healthier and more resilient communities in a changing climate. Mansi previously co-led Google’s efforts focused on informing the COVID-19 response by governments globally.

Melanie C. Kelly | VP of Marketing and Client Partnerships, Pivot Energy
Melanie C. Kelly is an ESG-focused marketing and client experience executive who nurtures startups into industry-leading companies by developing unique human-centered brands and marketing strategies. With 10 years in the renewable energy industry, she’s supported organizations through high growth periods by leading acquisition and retention campaigns, developing strong company cultures, change management strategies, and operational processes that support teams and scale with growth. Melanie empowers teams and colleagues through mentorship and coaching, guiding them to reach their full potential both professionally and personally. Her approach to leadership is rooted in a commitment to helping individuals grow while driving organizational excellence and innovation.

Jessica Lawrence Vaca | Chief Commercial Officer, Array Technologies
As Chief Commercial Officer at Array, Jessica leads the company's commercial strategy with a strong emphasis on driving growth, expanding market share, and fostering customer-centric innovation in solar solutions. Her focus is on enhancing revenue streams, optimizing commercial operations, and positioning Array as a leader in the renewable energy market. Jessica brings over a decade of experience in solar trade and supply chain policy. Prior to joining Array, Jessica served as vice president of government affairs at SOLV Energy (FKA Swinerton Renewable Energy), where she collaborated with SEIA and other industry partners to support and lead industry advocacy efforts against a wide range of trade actions, as well as helping to shape, pass, and implement the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Jessica holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and French from the University of Washington as well as a Master of Arts in Global Security Studies from Johns Hopkins University.

Wanda Lee Florestine | Sr. Director, Outreach (People Development), GRID Alternatives, Inc. ▾
Wanda Lee Florestine (flor-ES-steen) is an HR Professional with 25+ years of HR, Recruiting, Management, and Training experience. She is currently the Sr. Director, Outreach (People Development) with GRID Alternatives, Inc., the nation’s leading nonprofit provider of community led renewable energy solutions, headquartered in Oakland, CA. Wanda has served in all functions of HR within the renewable energy, IT/Tech, biotech, healthcare, publishing, and finance industries. She has worked for startup and growth organizations, to multinational corporations including: GRID Alternatives, Solar Mosaic, Sungevity, Kaiser Permanente, Zonare Medical Systems, Sun Microsystems, and Ajilon Services, Inc., with a heavy career focus in recruiting, but also strong emphases in, career development, professional and executive coaching, and training, all within the lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Hilary Lefko | Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright, US LLP
Hilary Lefko is a Partner at Norton Rose Fulbright's Washington, DC office. She focuses her practice on all areas of federal income tax law, with a particular emphasis on renewable energy and project finance tax issues. She represents developers, lenders and investors in various energy and renewable energy projects, including transactions involving section 45 production tax credits, section 48 investment tax credits and other renewable energy incentives. Most recently, Hilary has been advising clients on the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Hilary regularly advises buyers, sellers, brokers and lenders on transferability.

Jillian Majka | Head of HR, CleanCapital
Jillian Majka is a seasoned human resources and organizational development professional with almost two-decades worth of experience. She has helped new companies develop their initial human capital recruitment, retention, training, and growth goals while aiding legacy organizations adapt to changing norms within the industry. In addition to her professional accomplishments Jillian is an active member in her community, helping lead the East Aurora chapter of the 4-H Club, has advocated for greater outdoor recreation opportunities with the national nonprofit KABOOM! in Washington, DC, and is active in her daughters’ sports and school activities.

Catherine McLean | CEO & Founder, Dylan Green
Catherine McLean is the CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, a strategic talent acquisition consultancy. After working for the U.N. developing relationships with governments on public-private partnerships, Catherine founded recruitment business McLean Ross in 2011, with a core focus on placing professionals within the energy & utility industry. In 2017, McLean Ross merged with global engineering recruitment business JDR Energy, creating JD Ross Energy. With a growing need for diversity in clean energy, Catherine launched Dylan Green in 2019.

Sanjna Malpani | Chief of Staff, Weavegrid
Sanjna Malpani is Chief of Staff at WeaveGrid, a climate tech startup driving decarbonization at the intersection of clean energy and transportation by helping utilities and automakers transform EVs into grid assets. At WeaveGrid, Sanjna serves as a jack of all trades - helping fundraise, run cross-functional projects and company communications. Sanjna has always been an enthusiastic operator, working at venture-backed startups in the climate tech field for over 7 years - from helping build California's largest behind-the-meter virtual power plant at AMS to working on energy access in Kenya with Sparkmeter. Sanjna's passion for climate solutions and energy policy started when she ran a non-profit in Mumbai that provided low-cost lighting solutions to slum communities. She holds a Masters in Environmental Management from Yale University, is a proud CELI alum as well as a Global Shaper with the World Economic Forum (WEF). Sanjna enjoys traveling, baking focaccia, and hanging upside down from her aerial yoga hammock.

Jenny McTague | Senior Associate, Hydrogen Development, Invenergy
Jenny is passionate about the clean energy transition with over 7 years of experience in the energy industry focused on green hydrogen development, electricity and natural gas procurement consulting, wind asset management, and origination of solar and battery storage distributed generation projects. This diverse mix of specialties within the energy industry allow Jenny to successfully lead project development of green hydrogen projects in various markets across the United States, perform economic and financial modeling to evaluate project feasibility, and implement the clean electricity procurement strategies for each project. Jenny holds bachelor’s degrees in both Economics and Environmental Studies from Lake Forest College and an MBA from Northwestern Kellogg School of Management.

Caitlin Mixter | Executive Vice President, Corporate Operations, Reactivate▾
Caitlin Mixter serves as Executive Vice President of Corporate Operations at Reactivate and is a member of the Executive Committee. In her role at Reactivate, Caitlin is responsible for business unit development and oversight as well as managing and overseeing core infrastructure and operational functions such as technology, legal, marketing and branding, human resources and corporate impact.Prior to joining Reactivate, Caitlin served as a Managing Director, Head of Investor Relations and member of the Operating Committee at Lafayette Square, an impact investment management firm. Caitlin was a day one employee at Lafayette Square in 2020 and played an integral role in building out the firm’s infrastructure and operations as well as developing and marketing the firm's credit products. Additionally, Caitlin built and managed the Investor Relations department from the firm’s inception until the summer of 2022 when she transitioned into her leadership role at Reactivate.

Jackie Murphy | Chief Legal & ESG Officer, Pivot Energy
Jackie Murphy serves as the Chief Legal and ESG Officer at Pivot Energy, Inc a leading national clean energy Independent Power Producer (IPP) and B Corp focused on the equitable clean energy transition. As an experienced lawyer and C-Suite executive, Jackie has a long demonstrable history of working in the renewables. Jackie's deep understanding of market policies, regulations, people management and industry best practices has elevated her as a thought leader in the industry. In recent years, Jackie has expanded upon and influenced Pivot’s ESG, B Corp and DEI commitments in her role as the ESG Officer. Jackie is passionate about corporate profitability rooted in ethical practices, equity and fairness.

Marissa Naranjo | Deputy Director, Sovereign Energy ▾
Marissa Naranjo is a Tribally-enrolled member of the Pueblo of Santa Clara in New Mexico. She is currently the Deputy Director with Sovereign Energy, an Indigenous women-led non-profit organization supporting Tribes across the Southwest with renewable energy deployment. She has worked with Pueblos and Tribes across the Southwest and Pacific Northwest engaging in government-to-government legislative, administrative, and legal efforts at the local, state, and federal levels on Tribal environmental, cultural resource, and cultural landscape preservation campaigns. She previously served the All Pueblo Council of Governors (APCG) as a Policy Coordinator where she managed Pueblo collective organizing and advocacy efforts on the protection of Greater Chaco and Bears Ears National Monument and managed development and advocacy of strategic priority areas including State and Federal Legislation, Natural Resources, and Youth Leadership Development.

Karen Nashiwa | Acting General Counsel, Triple Oak Power
Karen Nashiwa is the acting general counsel of Triple Oak Power LLC in Portland, Oregon. Prior to joining Triple Oak in 2022, Karen worked with Avangrid Renewables for seven years handling real estate and deal matters. Prior to her renewable energy work, Karen practiced commercial real estate, litigation, and tax. She graduated from Claremont McKenna College and the University of Washington School of Law and is a proud member of the Portland chapter’s board of directors.

Ayanna Nibbs | Chief Marketing Officer, CRC-IB
Ayanna is CRC-IB’s Chief Marketing Officer and leads the firm’s marketing, branding, corporate communications, and go-to-market strategies across the energy transition spectrum. Ayanna has more than 15 years of experience driving strategic growth and client acquisition initiatives for renewable energy investment banks. Ayanna holds a B.A. from Cornell University.

Maureen Ochola | Director, Transmission & Interconnection, Lightsource BP
Maureen Ochola-Hill is a Director of Transmission and Interconnection at Lightsource BP where she leads interconnection activities in the Southeast US markets and provides expertise on congestion and curtailment risk throughout the US markets. She is a dedicated, passionate professional with more than a decade of experience in the energy industry. Maureen holds an undergraduate degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and an MBA from Georgia State University.

Quinn Parker | CEO, Encolor
Ms. Parker has over 16 years of professional experience including regulatory finance and analytics, as well as program research, design, planning, implementation, implementation and strategic planning. Ms. Parker is CEO of Encolor, a firm committed to supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Encolor provides inclusive strategies and thoughtful guidance, helping clients achieve their operational and equity goals. Ms. Parker is a Certified Diversity Professional (CDP) and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt. Ms. Parker holds an M.B.A from California State University, Dominguez Hills and a B.A. from Loyola Marymount University.

Noelle Paige | Vice President, Project Development at Aspen Power
With nearly a decade of experience in the sustainability space, Noelle Paige is passionate about working towards a future with more renewable energy deployment while supporting an inclusive atmosphere within the solar industry. She has worked on both development and finance teams for community solar, C&I, and utility scale solar energy projects. Noelle earned her BA in Urban Planning from the University of Illinois at Chicago and MPA from DePaul University.

Liane Randolph | Chair, California Air Resources Board
Liane Randolph has spent most of her career in public service, specializing in environmental law and policy, effective administration, and a commitment to transparency and public process. She was appointed Chair of the California Air Resources Board by Governor Gavin Newsom in December 2020. During her time as Chair, CARB has expanded its focus on equity issues and solutions, and the Board has adopted landmark climate and environmental policies, including the 2022 Scoping Plan laying out California’s path to carbon neutrality by 2045, and regulations that will accelerate the transition to a zero-emission transportation system. Prior to her work at CARB, Randolph served as a Commissioner at the California Public Utilities Commission, as Deputy Secretary and General Counsel at the California Natural Resources Agency, and as Chair of the California Fair Political Practices Commission. Randolph earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law.

Shubhi Rao | Founder and CEO, Uplevyl ▾
For more than 30 years, Shubhi Rao has been a global executive, board member and advisor who delivers strategic and operational leadership for dynamic and complex businesses including Alphabet/Google, Tesco, PwC, Tyco and Ford. She has demonstrated expertise in Capital Raising, Corporate Strategy, Budgeting/Forecasting, Investment Management, Investor Relations, Regulatory Compliance, M&A, Risk management and SaaS complemented with emerging technologies, including Cloud, AI, ML, Robotics and Blockchain.

Madeleine Ray | Project Manager, Permitting, AES Clean Energy
Madeleine is a permitting project manager at AES Clean Energy, a global energy company developing renewable and innovative energy solutions. She also founded the Charlottesville Chapter of WRISE (Women in Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy) in 2018 and has been a co-leader since. In her free time she enjoys gardening, painting, reading, and paddleboarding. She holds a BS in environmental science from Ohio University and an MSc in corporate social responsibility from the University of York, England.

Liz Reicherts | Global Head of Government Affairs, SolarEdge Technologies
Liz Reicherts serves as SolarEdge Technologies Global Head of Government Affairs. In this role, she leads the development and execution of SolarEdge's political strategy and advocacy across the globe and is responsible for managing and further building a global team. Liz joined SolarEdge in July 2023, bringing close to 30 years of experience in U.S. and international government affairs. Throughout her career, Liz has developed political, policy and crisis management experience, providing strategic counsel at the U.S., international and managing board levels.

Staci Schwartz | VP Human Resources, Primergy Solar
Staci’s title explains what she literally does for Primergy, but her passion lies in “how” by creating strong cultures where employees can thrive, bring their authentic selves to work and have some fun along the way. She has more than 20 years of human resources experience, with much of that career spent in the clean energy sector.

Traci Scott | Vice President of Workforce Development, National Urban League
Traci R. Scott is the Vice President of Workforce Development at the National Urban League. NUL’s Workforce Development program spans the whole of the workforce, inclusive of youth, reentry, mature workers. Too, NUL has operated programs that served the technology, supply chain, and construction. Prior to her tenure at the NUL in 2016, she served as the Director of Education and Workforce at Covenant House New York as well as served over 15 years in the out of school time education (workforce and program development) field. Ms. Scott holds a BA from Kenyon College (OH) and a MPA from CUNY-Baruch for which she is a National Urban Fellow.

Nicole Sitaraman | Director, Office of Public Participation, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Nicole Sitaraman was appointed to serve as Director of the Office of Public Participation (OPP) at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in May 2024. Ms. Sitaraman joined the Commission as the inaugural Deputy Director of OPP in February 2022 and served as Acting Director of the office from March 2023 through April 2024. She has 20 years of experience in litigation, consumer and civil rights advocacy, energy policy and stakeholder engagement. Prior to joining FERC, she served in legal and policy advocacy roles such as Vice President of External Affairs and Policy at Sustainable Capital Advisors, Senior Manager of Public Policy at Sunrun, and Assistant People’s Counsel in the Office of the People’s Counsel for the District of Columbia. Ms. Sitaraman has received honors from We Act for Environmental Justice, Grist.org and Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE). Ms. Sitaraman serves on the Advisory Board of the Yale Center for Business and the Environment. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at Yale University in 2000 and J.D. at Boston University School of Law in 2004.

Nicole Steele | Director of Climate Banking, Amalgamated Bank ▾
Nicole Steele is a nationally recognized leader and expert with over 20 years’ experience in clean energy, focusing on equitable deployment and workforce development. She recently joined Amalgamated Bank as the Director of Climate Banking where she will lead the bank’s efforts to execute on the potential of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF). Prior to joining Amalgamated, she was instrumental in the development of the GGRF programs including the National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF), Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (CCIA), and Solar for All (SFA) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and worked in partnership with the U.S. Treasury on the Inflation Reduction Act’s solar tax credits including the Low-Income Communities Bonus Tax Credit.

Anisha Steephen | Senior Advisor, U.S. Treasury
Anisha Steephen (they / them) is a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Treasury where they lead policy development for Treasury’s efforts to advance racial equity across domestic finance and tax policy. In their role, Anisha serves on the Treasury Tax Policy team implementing the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in U.S. history. They bring 15 years of experience in community investing and economic policy as well as a deep understanding of the structural and systemic barriers that affect low wealth communities of color. Anisha is a first-generation American.

Emily Stiever | Senior Solar Equity Program Analyst and Technical Advisor, contractor to U.S. Department of Energy ▾
Emily Stiever is a Senior Solar Equity Program Analyst and technical advisor for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO). She works with the Workforce & Equitable Access (WEA) team and brings 15 years of experience scaling equitable, distributed solar across the country. Prior to joining SETO, Emily served as VP of Strategic Initiatives and Chief Operating Officer at Solar United Neighbors (SUN), a national nonprofit that helps communities go solar, join together, and fight for their energy rights. Before joining Solar United Neighbors, Emily worked as a renewable energy consultant specializing in solar electric and solar water heating initiatives and incentive programs. Emily holds a B.S. in political ecology from Grinnell College and was a member of the 2016 Neighborworks Achieving Excellence program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

Suzanne Swink | Vice President of Government Relations, KORE Power
Suzanne Swink is Vice President of Government Relations for KORE Power, the leading U.S.-based developer and manufacturer of battery cell technology for the clean energy industry. In this role, she is responsible for the company’s legislative and regulatory strategy for federal and state affairs, community engagement, and sustainability. Ms. Swink joined KORE Power from bp, where she spent over 11 years as a government affairs and strategic communications leader. She has nearly 20 years of government, advocacy, and policy communications expertise. Prior to joining bp, Suzanne was Senior Legislative Assistant to Congresswoman Susan A. Davis (D-CA) and served as the Congresswoman’s lead advisor on a broad domestic portfolio, including energy, environment, infrastructure, trade, tax and judiciary issues. She received her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Southern Mississippi and her master’s in public relations and corporate communications from Georgetown University, where she also serves as adjunct faculty. Suzanne currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the American Council of Young Political Leaders and is a past president of Women in Government Relations.

Denise Tait | Chief Investment Officer, Arevon
Denise Tait is Chief Investment Officer at Arevon, overseeing the company’s project finance and investment activities. She brings more than 30 years of experience to this role and has a proven track record in managing billions of dollars of assets, executing financial transactions, and leading teams. Denise joins Arevon after serving as Co-President for Starwood Infrastructure Finance, a leading real estate and infrastructure finance company, and she also worked for more than 20 years at GE Capital, holding various senior financial roles in credit and origination lending, as well as serving as the Global Head of Project Finance Debt – Managing Director. Denise graduated from American University’s Kogod School of Business, where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Finance. She is currently Board Chair of Earthplace and was previously the Finance Chair.

Kameale Terry | CEO & Co-Founder, ChargerHelp!
CEO of ChargerHelp!, Kameale Terry was born and raised in South Central Los Angeles. The daughter of Belizean immigrants Kameale has always had a focus on environmental sustainability and community engagement. With over a decade of experience in CleanTech, Kameale formed ChargerHelp! with her co-founder Evette Ellis to create a reliable Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure. The CleanTech company, powered by technology, uses data to identify and provide maintenance and repair services for electric vehicle charging stations. Previously Kameale worked at EV Connect where she was the Director of Programs for the electric vehicle charging station network provider. In that role, she structured and led teams to execute infrastructure projects in the United States, Australia, and Canada for both commercial and government entities. Her notable projects include Electrify America - Phase One program, the Southern California Edison Charge Ready Pilot, and the New York Power Authority portfolio. Prior to that role, Kameale established the Customer Experience Department at EV Connect by partnering with the South Bay Workforce Investment Board employing candidates from the local community. She believes that an equitable green economy can be achieved through impactful development and realignment of existing workforces in conjunction with clean technology.

Constance Thompson | Senior Vice President, Equity and Justice, American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE)
As a member of ACORE's leadership team, Thompson is responsible for collaboratively driving and implementing ACORE's DEIJ strategy focused on leveraging ACORE's public and private networks to build opportunities for smaller renewable energy companies owned and operated by women, Black, Indigenous, and people of color leaders while advocating for national policies and industry best practices that accelerate social and economic justice as a part of our nation's transition to a renewable energy economy. She brings to ACORE over 20 years of experience collaboratively launching, sustaining, and measuring the impact of transformational DEI-focused initiatives, coalitions, membership programs, and strategic partnerships on behalf of leading Fortune 500, Ivy League, scientific, and engineering-focused institutions. A Cornell University Certified Advanced Diversity Practitioner (CCDP/AP), Thompson holds a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and French from Virginia State University and serves on the boards of Renewables Forward and Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE).

Marta Tomic | Managing Director, National Programs, Vote Solar
Marta serves as Vote Solar’s Managing Director, National Programs. In this role, she provides learning, systems and support for the bold, equitable, impactful and strategic work of our National Program team. Marta brings nearly 15 years of expertise in the renewable energy field spanning the public, private and non-profit sectors. Throughout this, she has maintained a keen focus on solar and distributed generation. She holds a M.S.C in Energy Policy and Climate from Johns Hopkins University and a B.A. in Biology from the University of Virginia.

Niki Tsaprazi | Senior Project Manager, DNV
Niki Tsaprazi is a Senior Project Manager with a diverse background in renewable energy, maritime, and offshore industries. Currently, she leads the development of solar, wind, and storage projects across North America as part of the renewables advisory team at DNV in San Diego, CA. Her expertise encompasses technology evaluation, bid assessment, engineering design, and contract review, ensuring successful project delivery from inception to completion. Niki consistently prioritizes development, engineering design, safety, risk compliance, and cost efficiency. She has been actively involved in project development and operations across various sectors, including maritime, oil & gas, and renewable energy. She has worked as a maritime consultant in Miami, FL, and as a surveyor for major cruise ship development in France. Additionally, she has focused on the safety and certification of oil and gas assets in Scotland, ensuring compliance with national and international safety and environmental regulations. Her academic credentials include a Master of Science in Marine Technology and Sustainable Engineering from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, and a Bachelor of Science in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering from the Higher Technological Educational Institution of Athens, Greece.

Becca Ward | Chief of Staff for the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains, Department of Energy
Becca Ward is the Chief of Staff for the Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. She has served in Department of Energy under the Biden Administration since 2021, most recently as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Senate Affairs. Previously she served as the Managing Director of the Clean Energy Leadership Institute, a national organization dedicated to creating new energy leadership for an equitable, resilient, and decarbonized energy ecosystem. Previously, she served as U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley's Legislative Assistant working on energy, climate, and transportation policy. Ward is from Portland, Oregon, and holds a B.A. in Public Policy and Energy Technologies from Duke University.

Sarah Watts Martin | Vice President, Tetra Tech, Inc.
Sarah Watts is a Vice President and Operations Manager for the New England Operations of Tetra Tech, managing and overseeing a staff of approximately 100 engineers, scientists, environmental planners, and permitters. Sarah is Tetra Tech’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Council Chair, and has led the Council through the development of eight Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that support our thriving, global employee community. Sarah is responsible for convening the DEIA Council, understanding and translating Senior Corporate vison for DEIA into action, setting goals, ensuring accountability, and guiding the strategic direction of the DEIA Council.

Kristine Wiley | Vice President, Low Carbon Energy Solutions, GTI Energy
Kristine leads the Low Carbon Energy business at GTI Energy. She is focused on mobilizing a collaborative team of technical experts that are developing strategies around integrated technology solutions that leverage existing energy infrastructure and transform how we use low carbon energy in residential, commercial, industrial, power and mobility applications to enable deep decarbonization. Kristine also leads GTI Energy’s Hydrogen Technology Center which brings together diverse partnerships to facilitate R&D to enable clean hydrogen generation, transport, storage, and utilization at scale to enable a hydrogen economy. Her career spans two decades at GTI Energy. She has held positions of increasing responsibility managing research addressing gas utility operations and environmental compliance to advancing the use of low-carbon fuels such as renewable natural gas. Kristine holds a BA in Biological Sciences from the University of Chicago as well as an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Joan White | Director of Storage and Interconnection Policy, Solar Energy Industries Association
Joan White is the Director of Storage and Interconnection Policy. She advances the rapid deployment of storage and solar through advocacy and as an expert witness in state and federal proceedings. Prior to joining SEIA, Joan served as a Hearing Officer and Senior Analyst with the Vermont Public Utility Commission and the Vermont state energy office. She holds a Masters of Environmental Law and Policy, summa cum laude, and a Certificate in Energy Law from Vermont Law School and a Masters of Science in Natural Resources from the University of Vermont. She lives with her two sons in Montpelier where she enjoys hiking, back-country skiing, and paddleboarding.

Jetta Wong | Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, U.S. General Services Administration ▾
Jetta Wong is Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy at the U.S. General Services Administration. She took on this role in the summer of 2024, previously serving as the Senior Advisor on climate change to the Administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration. At GSA she provides advice and assistance on all elements of the agency’s climate, energy, and sustainability programs and participates in key policy decisions, affecting the operations of GSA. Prior to her work at GSA Jetta worked as a consultant developing clean energy policies and programs that help commercialize new technologies. She was a Senior Fellow at the Center for Clean Energy Innovation at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation where she focused on U.S. competitiveness and the commercialization of technologies that reduce carbon emissions.

Laura Zapata | CEO & Co-Founder, Clearloop
Laura Zapata is the CEO & Co-Founder of Clearloop, the climate solutions platform that helps organizations of all sizes—from small and medium sized-businesses to Fortune 50 companies to universities—tackle their carbon footprint and expand access to clean energy. Laura is a staunch advocate for accelerating grid decarbonization by investing in communities—like her own in the South—that can benefit the most from the environmental, health, and economic benefits of new solar projects. Laura built Clearloop, now a Silicon Ranch Company, to capture the broader purchasing power of organizations seeking to invest in tangible climate action and unlock innovative funding mechanisms to bring clean energy projects to life more equitably across the United States. Prior to starting Clearloop, Laura spent her career in Washington, DC working in Congress, in Silicon Valley at Uber, as well as across the country on political campaigns. Laura immigrated from Colombia with her family and grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. Laura graduated from Dartmouth College and lives in Nashville with her husband, Dylan, and their dog, Magnolia.