2022 Policy Conference Speakers

Time: Wednesday, May 11, 9:30am
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

William R. Ellis

Maryland Regional VP, Government and External Affairs

Pepco Holdings, An Exelon Company

William is responsible for engaging in stakeholder relations with state and local officials, community leaders and businesses, consumer and nonprofit organizations within the Pepco Maryland region. Shaping policy and managing issues to deliver value to our customers and key stakeholders. In his role, William is uniquely positioned to drive equity within the company, creating increased customer benefits through electrification and energy efficiency programs, as well as workforce development initiatives.

His previous role as Senior Portfolio Manager of Energy Efficiency, William was responsible for developing and implementing the strategic vision for increasing Demand Side Management programs across Atlantic City Electric, Delmarva Power and Pepco. Work included increasing adoption of behind the meter technology and programs to help customers better manage their energy usage, while leveraging these assets to maximize grid utilization.

William Ellis is a 5th Generation Washingtonian and a past Elected Official in Washington D.C. serving in the capacity as an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner. William currently sits on the board of Clean Air Partners (Chair), Alumni Governors of Catholic University of America, Association of Energy Service Professionals (Treasurer), and Maryland Clean Energy Center Board Advisory Council. In his free time William enjoys volunteering with the National Society of Black Engineers participating in SAT Preparation Courses, as well as Engineering Fairs and Career Days

William Ellis is a graduate of The Catholic University of America, where he attained a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, a master’s degree in Engineering Management and a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering. William is also a University of Idaho Utility Executive Curriculum alumnus, and has a Global Executive MBA from Georgetown University, which he completed in 2014. William is also a currently certified Project Management Profession (PMP).

New Jersey’s Energy Efficiency Landscape

Time: Wednesday, May 11, 10:30 am
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

With the rollout of new utility-led programs, the Governor’s 2050 Clean Energy Plan, and growing momentum for renewable energy generation from wind and other sources, clean energy and energy efficiency opportunities abound in New Jersey. The Board of Public Utilities is convening working groups on equity, workforce, marketing, and EM&V (evaluation, measurement, and verification) – each of which is helping to shape the program rollouts. Hear from the people charged with “making it work” and how they view the successes and challenges of the Garden State’s energy efficiency landscape.

Participants
Susanna Chiu (PSE&G)
Renwick Paige (Energy Infrastructure Partners) – Moderator
Anne-Marie Peracchio (NJNG)
Stacy Ho Richardson (BPU)
Preethy Thangaraj (Governor’s Office)

Susanna Chiu

Senior Director of Operation Services

PSEG

Susanna Chiu is the Senior Director of Operation Services at PSE&G. She leads the team that supports the implementation of residential and commercial energy efficiency programs as part of PSE&G’s $1 billion Clean Energy Future – Energy Efficiency Program. Ms. Chiu led PSE&G’s efforts to identify ways to grow its energy efficiency and renewable initiatives that resulted in the development of programs that comprise the utility’s current energy efficiency and renewable portfolio.

Ms. Chiu’s previous roles at PSE&G include energy efficiency, solar development, program development, program management, business development and marketing. Active in her community, she currently serves on the East Brunswick (NJ) Board of Education as well as the township’s Redevelopment Committee. Ms. Chiu earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and a Master of Science in Management Engineering from NJIT.

Renwick Paige

Managing Partner

Energy Infrastructure Partners LLC

New Jersey EE Landscape Panel – Moderator

Renwick “Renny” Paige founded Energy Infrastructure Partners (“EIP”) in 2011. EIP specializes in energy and energy efficiency projects and is headquartered in New York City. It is uniquely positioned in the market as one of the only Minority-owned Business Enterprises (MBE) with over 20 years of project finance and municipal finance experience. EIP was formed to advise on investing and financing energy and infrastructure assets. This expertise is especially relevant because energy efficiency is a financial decision informed by engineering challenges. EIP has a team of five similarly credentialed professionals.

Renny has broad development and financial structuring experience across the infrastructure and alternative investments markets and has closed over $10 billion of financial transactions. Mr. Paige also has substantial experience with the municipal and governmental sector client base, the MUSH market, and can deliver substantial insights concerning the delivery of goods and services to that constituency. Mr. Paige has a broad network of relationships and sometimes partners to include analytical resources from a small team of independent colleagues with whom he has collaborated over the years. In addition, Mr. Paige’s operational expertise is informed by his roles as Chief Marketing Officer for both an AmLaw 100 law firm and a national utility privatization firm.

Renny has over 30 years of experience in infrastructure finance, public finance and private equity. He led transportation, utility, and education financings at Lehman Brothers and launched the project finance and air cargo product lines for the Financial Guaranty Insurance Company (GE Capital). He led Acquisitions and Development at U.S. Water (Bechtel and Kiewit) and helped to build the alternative assets fundraising banking business at JP Morgan/Chase.

Mr. Paige is also an executive board member of New York City Energy Efficiency Corporation (NYCEEC), a public private partnership that finances energy efficiency in New York City buildings. He received a J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School, attended Wharton Graduate School, and received a B.A. from Amherst College.

Anne-Marie Peracchio

Managing Director of Marketing & Energy Efficiency

New Jersey Natural Gas

Anne-Marie Peracchio is the Managing Director of Marketing and Energy Efficiency for New Jersey Natural Gas. Anne-Marie has more than 28 years of experience in the utility industry. Since 2007, she has focused on new programs and outreach approaches to help NJNG customers lower their energy bills. Anne-Marie also leads NJNG’s efforts to support New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program and works closely with other utilities on energy efficiency issues through the New Jersey Utilities Association and on the recent transition of the energy efficiency programs under the Clean Energy Act. She is active on committees for the American Gas Association and the Consortium for Energy Efficiency. Anne-Marie also serves as the Executive Sponsor for New Jersey Resources (NJR) Supporting Women’s Advancement and Growth (SWAG) resource group and as a member of the NJR Sustainability Council. Anne-Marie previously served as Chair of the Board of Trustees for Sustainable Jersey and is currently a Trustee for Lead New Jersey.

Stacy Ho Richardson

Deputy Director of Clean Energy Division

NJBPU

Stacy Ho Richardson is Deputy Director of the Division of Clean Energy at the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. She has also served the NJBPU’s Legal Division, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and New Jersey Governor’s Office. Having also worked in the nonprofit sector and in legal aid, Stacy’s background in public interest environmental and natural resources policy and law is mission-based, with a focus on building an inclusive and equitable green economy.

Preethy Thangaraj

Policy Advisor for Energy and Environment

Office of Governor Phil Murphy

Preethy Thangaraj servs as the policy advisor to the Governor on energy and environment and serves within the Office of Climate Action and the Green Economy.

Preethy initially joined the Governor’s Office in 2021 as a policy coordinator, supporting the energy, environment, and transportation portfolio. Prior to serving in the Administration, Preethy served as an energy informatics and policy research specialist at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, focusing on climate action and key mitigation policies, wholesale electricity, the bioeconomy, and sustainable development. While at Bloustein, she also worked at the Rutgers Energy Institute, supporting academic leaders in energy planning, policy, and engineering.

Preethy is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh and Rutgers-Bloustein.

Pennsylvania’s Energy Efficiency Landscape

Time: Wednesday, May 11, 1pm
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Take a deeper dive into what’s happening in Pennsylvania on the Energy Efficiency front. Join utility representatives, regulators, and statewide influencers to talk about program progress, challenges, and emerging opportunities through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and RGGI. Join us as we focus on the “state of the energy efficiency union” in Pennsylvania and what panelists’ organizations are doing as part of that mix—including policy barriers or opportunities for the future.

Participants:
Scott Gebhardt (PA PUC)
Heidi Kunsch (PA DEP)
Elizabeth Marx (PULP)
Joe Nunley (Performance Systems Development) – Moderator
Gregory J. Poulos (PJM)

Scott Gebhardt

Energy Utility & Conservation Analyst

PA PUC

Scott Gebhardt is a Utility Energy & Conservation Analyst at the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in the Policy and Planning Section of the Bureau of Technical Utility Services. He serves as a lead technical contact for issues related to the Pennsylvania Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act (AEPS Act), providing technical analysis related to renewable and alternative energy and guidance on the Commission’s AEPS Act regulations. Since its inception more than 13 years ago, Scott has been engaged with Act 129 and the Commission’s implementation of mandatory energy efficiency and conservation programs by Pennsylvania electric distribution companies (EDCs). Scott’s responsibilities include review of implementation plans, reports and studies associated with EDC implementation activities as well as working with and reviewing studies and reports from the statewide evaluator.

Scott started at the Commission in February 2009 following 20 years at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, with his most recent work, in the Office of Energy and Technology Deployment, included responsibilities related to energy efficiency programs, renewable energy, and grants management. Scott holds a degree in Environmental Science from Westminster College, New Wilmington, PA.

Heidi Kunsch

Environmental Group Manager

PA DEP

Heidi Kunsch serves as an Environmental Group Manager at PADEP’s Energy Programs Office, where she manages education and outreach, as well as financial incentive programs aimed at promoting alternative transportation fuels and energy efficient buildings. She also supports the PA GreenGov Council & DEP on developing sustainability strategies. Prior to DEP, she served as Director of the US Green Building Council Central PA chapter. Heidi is a Certified Climate Change Professional, LEED Accredited Professional, and earned a BS in Environmental Science from Muhlenberg College, as well as a Masters in Environmental Pollution Control from Penn State University.

Elizabeth Marx

Executive Director

Pennsylvania Utility Law Project

Pennsylvania EE Landscape Panel – Moderator

Elizabeth is the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project (PULP), a statewide specialty legal services program within the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network. Elizabeth leads PULP’s litigation, policy, training, technical assistance, and specialized projects in furtherance of its mission to ensure that all low-income Pennsylvanians can access and maintain safe and affordable energy, water, and telecommunications services in their home. She is the current Chairperson of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program Advisory Committee and serves as an appointed member of the Department of Community and Economic Development’s Weatherization Assistance Program Policy Advisory Council and the Pennsylvania Utility Commission’s Consumer Advisory Council. Elizabeth previously served as PULP’s Supervising Attorney, where she led PULP’s litigation in a range of matters before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. Before joining PULP, Elizabeth was an attorney at the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence. She holds a BS in Political Science and Women’s Studies, cum laude, from Temple University, and a JD, magna cum laude, from Widener University School of Law, where she served as Managing Editor of the Widener Law Journal.

Joe Nunley

Vice President of Program Services

Performance Systems Development

Joe Nunley is the Vice President of Program Services at PSD. In this role Joe leads the PSD Program Services Division, which implements Residential, Commercial, and Energy Code Programs throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest.

Joe has been in the EE field for 15 years. Prior to joining PSD, he was an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Senior Analyst with UGI Utilities, where he was responsible for managing the commercial and residential natural gas Energy Efficiency and Conservation Programs. Joe was also responsible for emerging technologies, customer satisfaction, and trade ally relations. Joe previously worked as an Energy Efficiency Trade Ally Manager with Puget Sound Energy in Seattle, WA. Prior to that position, Joe spent eight years as the owner of a Harrisburg, PA energy auditing firm, focusing on Utility Low-Income Weatherization Programs, and residential and small commercial energy audits. Rooted in a deep love for building science, Joe is an Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) Certified Energy Manager (CEM), as well as a Building Performance Institute (BPI) Certified Building Analyst.

Gregory J. Poulos

Executive Director

Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc.

Greg Poulos has been the executive director for the Consumer Advocates of the PJM States, Inc. (CAPS) since April, 2017. Established in 2013, CAPS is a nonprofit organization whose members include state advocate offices in the 13 PJM states and the District of Columbia. As a whole, the CAPS members represent over 65-million consumers throughout the PJM footprint. As the executive director of CAPS, Greg coordinates the efforts of the member offices, stays active in the PJM stakeholder process, and monitors relevant proceedings at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to ensure that the prices consumers pay for reliable, wholesale electric service are reasonable.

Prior to joining CAPS, Greg spent over six years at EnerNOC as a member of the Regulatory Affairs team. While at EnerNOC, Greg regularly represented the company at public utility commissions throughout the Midwest. He also interacted with many regional transmission organizations including PJM, Inc., the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) and the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO).

Greg earned his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He received his Juris Doctorate with from the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

Cost Effectiveness: Friend or Foe?

Time: Wednesday, May 11, 2:30 pm
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Take a break from panels with a more conversational-style forum! We’ll look to address questions about the current state of cost testing in PA and NJ. What factors should be included in cost tests? How can we better measure and incorporate energy efficiency and non-energy benefits? How do well-meaning cost-test measures sometimes trigger unintended consequences? Hear diverse perspectives from professionals who work with cost-effectiveness on a daily basis, and decide for yourself: is cost-effectiveness friend or foe?

Participants (more to be announced)
Tim Fagan (PSEG)
Isaac Gabel-Frank (Gabel Associates)
Theo Love (Green Energy Economics Group) – Moderator
Julie Michals (E4TheFuture)
Franklin Neubauer (Core Metrics)
Megan Partridge (Franklin Energy)

Tim Fagan

Manager of Planning and Evaluation

PSE&G

Tim Fagan is the Manager of Planning and Evaluation for PSE&G, where he oversees program evaluation activities for all PSE&G energy efficiency programs, as well as the all PJM capacity market activities for its energy efficiency programs. He has been with the Company for over 25 years, having held various positions in environmental and corporate strategy, marketing, and energy efficiency. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rutgers University, and a Masters of Business Administration from New York University. He has also been a board member of the New Jersey chapter of the Association for Energy Engineers.

Isaac Gabel-Frank

Vice President

Gabel Associates

Cost-Effectiveness Forum – Moderator

Isaac Gabel-Frank, Vice President at Gabel Associates, has over 12 years of experience supporting complex energy issues related to renewables and energy efficiency, cost-benefit analysis, energy project development, economic and tariff analysis, electric vehicles (EV), regional transmission organizations (RTOs), and energy procurement. Mr. Gabel-Frank has also submitted expert testimony in matters regarding the cost effectiveness of energy efficiency.

He is an expert on cost-benefit analytics and has supported a multitude of clients in quantifying cost and benefit dynamics related to the economic impact of energy projects. This includes past and present work for state and local governments, school districts, Federal agencies, and private sector clients on renewable energy, energy efficiency, cogeneration, and traditional generation projects. Mr. Gabel-Frank also performs sensitivity analysis to help identify risk boundaries and market deviations. This analysis is critical to investment decisions as it allows clients to understand the full value proposition associated with energy initiatives.

Mr. Gabel-Frank is currently supporting energy efficiency filings on behalf of various New Jersey utilities. He has served the role as an expert witness and provided testimony to support the filings.

Mr. Gabel-Frank also assists in the development of numerous renewable and energy efficiency projects including in-depth economic, technical, and utility tariff analysis, which incorporates long-term utility and energy forecasts. He has developed various tariff models from the ground up, which are customized to reflect the specific parameters of each project. He is also skilled at calculating energy savings associated with various project structures. As a result of his strong analytical skill set, Mr. Gabel-Frank has served an integral role on various progressive projects throughout the region for public and private sector entities.

In addition, he is extremely knowledgeable on RTO issues and actively monitors activities related to energy and capacity markets, energy efficiency, demand response, ancillary services, interconnection, and general grid issues. Mr. Gabel-Frank helps clients formulate and strategize positions on current RTO rules as well as provides analysis on potential market changes. This includes development of offer and bid strategies for energy efficiency, demand response, renewable, and traditional generation resources into the PJM market. He has also supported capacity price forecasting in ISO-NE and conducted analysis in relation to NYISO issues.

He was a key contributor in the development of the Analytical Likelihood of Availability and Non-Performance Risk (ALAN) model, a proprietary stochastic modeling tool that computes the exposure of capacity resources within the ISO-NE and PJM footprints. ALAN uses resource outage data as well expected performance assessment event information to determine the probabilistic coincidence of outages and performance assessment events.

He has also supported wide-ranging EV analysis and modeling as it relates to energy markets and distribution grid impacts.

Theo Love

Partner

Green Energy Economics Group

Theodore Love has worked with GEEG for the past 15 years. He provides assistance in the review and analysis of multiple energy efficiency and renewable projects and plans around North America. Utilizing his background in mathematics and computer science, he assists GEEG’s clients with the design and usage of tools for analyzing the economic and financial characteristics of energy efficiency projects, programs, and portfolios. He also plays a key role in the development and implementation of many energy efficiency portfolios in Pennsylvania.

Julie Michals

Director of Valuation

E4TheFuture

Julie Michals joined E4TheFuture in 2016 as Director of Valuation where she focuses on developing economic guidance on cost-effectiveness assessment of distributed energy resources and leads the National Energy Screening Project (NESP).

Michals joined E4TheFuture after over a decade at Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP), where she directed the Regional EM&V Forum, a multi-state regional platform steered by regulatory commissioners and state officials from across the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic regions, with the goal of building a common currency for evaluating and reporting energy efficiency impacts. She holds a B.A. in Business Economics from University of California at Santa Barbara, and an M.A. in Energy and Environmental Analysis at Boston University. She enjoys cycling, gardening, and hiking with her family.

Franklin Neubauer

Principal

Core Metrics

Franklin Neubauer is an independent consultant with sixteen years’ experience in energy resource planning, energy modeling and economic research. He provides analysis and insight on demand-side planning and modeling to achieve long-term energy goals. Franklin started at Cambridge Systematics in transportation demand modeling (VMT) and end-use forecasting. He provided on-site consulting to Bonneville Power Administration to model energy efficiency policies and impacts in the Pacific Northwest (IRP). He identified deficiencies in New Jersey’s energy efficiency plans, and contributed to RGGI program reviews. He has worked with forecasting methods that include energy end-use modeling, econometrics, time series, stock and flow models, scenario analysis and traditional optimization. Franklin also has experience in commodity research and investment management. He has an M.S. in Engineering & Economic Systems from Stanford, a Certificate in Computational Finance from Oregon Graduate Institute, and a Sc.B. from Brown University.

Megan Partridge

Director of Business Development

Franklin Energy

Megan Partridge, Director of Business Development with Franklin Energy, brings a holistic understanding of the opportunities and the pressures facing utilities and other energy services providers to her role representing Franklin Energy to existing and prospective clients in the Mid-Atlantic region. Before joining Franklin Energy, she held management positions in program design and evaluation, energy efficiency program management, regulatory affairs, and customer care during a seven-year tenure with Pepco Holdings, an Exelon Company. With this perspective, she helps clients chart a path that balances the needs of regulators and other external stakeholders, fiduciary responsibility to shareholders, customer preference, market demand, cost-effectiveness, cost-to-achieve, and bill impacts.

She also brings more than a decade of experience in strategy, communications, quantitative and qualitative analysis, and persuasion analytics from her work with the World Bank and political research consulting in Washington, DC. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time in her studio painting and making of all kinds, plays volleyball, and is a burgeoning gardener. Megan holds degrees from the University of Virginia and Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Keynote

Time: Thursday, May 12, 9:00am
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Senator Nikil Saval

Minority Chair, Urban Affairs & Housing Committee

PA State Senate

Senator Nikil Saval is a father, husband, writer, and organizer representing Pennsylvania’s First Senatorial District, which lies in the heart of Philadelphia.

Saval’s commitment to solidarity and justice for working people, and his skill at coalition building, carried him from his roots as a labor organizer to the Pennsylvania General Assembly, where he currently serves as Democratic Chair of the Senate’s Urban Affairs & Housing Committee. Since taking office in December 2020, Saval has focused his legislative work on critical response to Pennsylvania’s ongoing housing, mass incarceration, wage, and climate crises, while simultaneously pushing for deep structural change so that communities across the Commonwealth have the resources and support they need to thrive. One of his current legislative initiatives is the Whole-Home Repairs Act, a sweeping bipartisan bill that establishes a one-stop shop for home repairs and weatherization while creating new, family-sustaining jobs in a growing field.

In his career as a writer, Saval has been a frequent contributor to The New York Times and a contributing writer for The New Yorker, covering architecture, design, and housing. Saval previously served as co-editor of the literary journal n+1 and still serves on its board of directors. In 2014, Saval published his book Cubed: A Secret History of the Workplace. In Cubed, he examined the long-term evolution of the office from its roots in 19th century counting houses all the way to the cubicle, ultimately presenting a world in which workplaces, and the lives of the workers within them, could be improved in the future. Saval has continued to write while in office. A recent op-ed features his analysis of Pennsylvania’s bloated criminal legal system.

Saval’s parents immigrated to the United States from Bangalore, India. In 1982, the year Saval was born, his parents opened a pizza restaurant, where Saval spent much of his childhood and adolescence. The employees of the restaurant were immigrants of all statuses, and Saval’s parents helped many of them secure documentation. His family’s experiences, as immigrants and as small business owners, were formative for Saval, giving shape to his perspective on workers’ rights and his first experiences with solidarity.

Saval lives in South Philadelphia, where he is proud to be raising his sons, Ishaan and Mayukh, with his wife, Shannon Garrison, a historic preservationist.

Saval is fighting for a Philadelphia and Pennsylvania that work for everyone.

Pushing the Envelope: Zero-Energy and Zero-Carbon Buildings

Time: Thursday, May 12, 9:45 am
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Achieving the aggressive goal of “net-zero carbon” building demands thoughtful and creative engineering, sustainable features, and sometimes, just a few carbon offsets. Net-zero carbon buildings are energy-efficient, fully electric, and use carbon-free energy—and they’re a critical tool to address climate change and increase resilience. Big names in the home building industry are teaming up to build new, large net-zero communities. Now, retrofitting is the big challenge for multi-family, commercial, and single-family homes. Solar, EV chargers, high-performance building envelopes, greywater reuse, super-efficient mechanicals, and renewable energy all play a part. But what about building codes, policy, and capacity? Learn how rapidly is ZNC shaping our industry and how to be prepared.

Participants
Alex Dews (IMT)
Doug McCleery (MaGrann Associates)
Steve Moritz (Encentiv Energy) – Moderator
Michele Pitale (Counterpointe SRE)
Cornelia Wu (NEEP)

Alex Dews

Managing Director of Programs

Institute for Market Transformation

As IMT’s Managing Direct of Programs, Alex oversees all programmatic work across policy, business engagement, and strategy & analysis. He leads the execution of IMT’s organizational strategy and sets the programmatic pathway for IMT to realize broad adoption of building regulations at the city, state, and federal levels; new utility regulatory models that center investments in people and that improve the health and wellbeing of citizens; and engagement with real estate and other business operations to embody commitments to equity and the environment.

Alex has more than ten years experience working on green building, urban sustainability, and building decarbonization. Before joining IMT, Alex served as Executive Director at Green Building United for six years, where he led an organizational transition to broaden the scope of the organization’s work to include all buildings at all points in the lifecycle. He supported code and policy adoption at the state and local levels and led effective implementation of building performance programs at the city and regional scale, ranging from coordinating climate action among large real estate owners to supporting the launch of an environmental and housing justice coalition focused on equitable decarbonization. Prior to this role, led policy and program work for Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability, including the creation of its energy benchmarking program. He began his career working in real estate development before pursuing a Master’s degree in Sustainable Design from Jefferson University. He is a LEED AP BD+C and holds a BA in English from the University of Vermont and a certificate in Nonprofit Executive Leadership from Bryn Mawr College.

Douglas McCleery

Principal and VP Technical Services

MaGrann Associates

Zero Energy and Zero Carbon Buildings – Moderator

Doug is Vice President of Technical Services with responsibility for the quality and compliance of all engineering and technical consulting activities performed by MaGrann Associates. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh and is a licensed Professional Engineer and Certified Energy Manager. Doug has been a practicing engineer for more than 30 years, creating design solutions on the leading edge of energy efficiency for thousands of homes and buildings during this time, and championing MaGrann’s engagement with the technical evolution of the Home Energy Rating System, LEED for Homes and other performance-based programs. With increasing adoption of Passive House standards in multifamily construction, Doug has gained valuable and informative experience designing for zero net energy and decarbonization goals in new and adaptive reuse buildings that require innovative approaches and technologies. Doug is a past Chair of the Northeast HERS Alliance Technical Committee, PA Uniform Construction Code RAC Technical Advisory Committee for Commercial Energy code, and currently sits on the RESNET SDC 200 Committee.

Steve Moritz

President & CEO

Encentiv Energy

Steve Moritz has worked in the energy industry for over 25 years, helping to start and grow many of today’s leading energy supply and technology companies. As the Founder, President & CEO, Steve started Encentiv Energy in 2009 to help utilities manage their rebate programs and help customers process rebates. After processing thousands of utility rebate applications manually, Encentiv realized there had to be a way that technology could play a role to drive the process. So, the Encentivizer was created – a cloud-based technology and a comprehensive utility rebate database that works together to bring energy efficiency intelligence to all industry stakeholders. Encentiv Energy has been on a mission ever since to connect all energy efficiency industry stakeholders with a technology platform that engages business customers and guides intelligent decision making for energy efficient products. Steve has a JD degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and a BS in Business from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Encentivizer is a two-time winner of the “Energy Innovator of the Year” award from the World Energy Engineering Congress and is used by thousands of industry professionals every day to help make better energy efficiency decisions. /// Steve brings over 25 years of experience in the energy industry working for multiple industry start-ups. Steve has spent his career building and managing successful businesses that thrive in the ever-changing world of state and federal energy regulation. His passion is to create opportunities for energy savings, carbon reduction and revenue generation by influencing and leveraging the energy regulatory process.

Michele Pitale

Managing Director

Counterpointe Sustainable Real Estate

Michele Pitale, M.D. is head of Counterpointe Sustainable Real Estate’s retrofit financing team and specializes in financing commercial real estate and sustainable infrastructure. Dr. Pitale graduated from Juniata College and Temple University School of Medicine with academic appointments at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health.

Since 2014, Counterpointe Sustainable Real Estate has invested in sustainability and resiliency project through diversified energy financing products and administers PACE Programs in Florida, California and for the City of Chicago.

Cornelia Wu

Building Policy Manager

Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships

Cornelia brings to her role nearly two decades of experience in building science, design, management, and construction. At NEEP she provides technical assistance on codes and standards to states and municipalities in the NEEP region and facilitates the Maine Energy Code Collaborative. She is currently partnering with states to disseminate NEEP research on the energy efficiency benefits of off-site construction, as well as trends and protocols regarding remote virtual inspections. She is the project manager for the Total Energy Pathways Workforce program, which aims to grow and diversify the energy efficiency workforce throughout the northeast, with an emphasis on training women and BIPOC.

Cornelia has worked on sustainable projects her whole career, including post-Katrina houses in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, university buildings, and cultural projects for the New York City Design Excellence Program. Cornelia graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from Columbia University, holds a Master of Architecture from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, and a MPA in Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Registered Architect, New York State

LEED Accredited Professional: Building Design and Construction, United States Green Building Council

Building Electrification

Building Electrification – Moderator

Time: Thursday, May 12, 11:15 am
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Increasingly frequent extreme weather events, power outages, and calls for decarbonization have placed the electrification movement on “full charge.” States including Illinois, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Minnesota have passed laws that incentivize switching from fossil-fueled heating to efficient electric heat pumps. But—will worrisome equity concerns and shortages of qualified HVAC technicians short-circuit this dramatic current of change across our industry? Join a fast-paced discussion about how the electrification transition is accelerating, what policies and programs can catalyze its expansion, its impact on the grid, and the ramifications for the EE industry.

Participants
Nate Adams (HVAC 2.0)
Lindsay Baxter (DLC) – Moderator
Weston Berg (ACEEE)
Jamal Lewis (Rewiring America)

Nate Adams

CEO & CoFounder

HVAC 2.0

Building Electrification

Nate “The House Whisperer” Adams is the author of The Home Comfort Book and has helped numerous clients make their homes healthier, more comfortable, and able to run on clean electricity. He and his partners have adapted that upgrade process into the HVAC 2.0 program which gives HVAC contractors a business model to deliver the same results for their clients while enjoying their work more and being more profitable.

His focus on residential electrification retrofits earned him the moniker “The Father of Electrify Everything” from Panama Bartolomy, CEO of the Building Decarbonization Coalition. He splits his time between living on the Cuyahoga River in Hiram Ohio and in a former West Virginia coal mining village with his wife and young daughter.

Lindsay Baxter

Manager of Regulatory and Clean Energy Strategy

Duquesne Light Company

Lindsay Baxter is Manager of Regulatory and Clean Energy Strategy for Duquesne Light Company (DLC) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Prior to joining DLC in 2018, she was Program Manager, Energy and Climate with the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, where she worked with diverse stakeholders to advance clean energy policy and programs. She has also worked in local government, as the Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Pittsburgh. She holds an MS in Environmental Science and Management from Duquesne University and a BA in Environmental Studies from Allegheny College. She is also mom to a five-year-old daughter and a 10-year-old Labrador Retriever, and in her free time enjoys running, hiking, and baking.

Weston Berg

Senior Researcher, State Policy

American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy

Building Electrification

Weston Berg conducts research, analysis, and outreach on energy efficiency policy areas including utility regulation, state government policies, building energy codes, and aligning energy-saving policies with state climate goals. He leads development of ACEEE’s annual State Energy Efficiency Scorecard report and State Energy Efficiency Policy Database. He joined ACEEE in 2016 and holds a master of science in environmental studies from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, NY.

Jamal Lewis

Director of Policy Partnerships and Equitable Electrification

Rewiring America

Building Electrification

Jamal is the Director of Policy Partnerships and Equitable Electrification for Rewiring America. Previously, he led the energy and climate initiatives at Green & Healthy Homes Initiative and worked with states and localities across the country to advance electrification, healthy housing, and energy efficiency programs and policies. He has multiple publications outlining pathways to promoting equity by retrofitting our existing housing stock to be healthy, energy-efficient, all-electric, and affordable. He is a Young, Gifted, & Green 40 under 40 award recipient for his leadership in Environmental Justice.

Jamal has an MPH from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, a BA in Environmental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania, and a certificate from the Fall 2021 DC Cohort of the Clean Energy Leadership Institute.

Workforce Development

Time: Thursday, May 12, 1:45 pm
Location: Symposium @ Building 661, Philadelphia Navy Yard

Our industry faces an unprecedented scale and pace of change with escalating funding and deployment of clean energy solutions, along with new marketplace challenges from reliance on remote work and higher levels of employee burnout related to the pandemic. The need for ongoing employee retention and newly qualified workers is quickly becoming one of the EE industry’s top challenges. Experienced professionals in weatherization, HVAC, plumbing, and electrical trades are rapidly retiring, and engineering and program manager roles are proving challenging to fulfill. Companies often struggle to hire at all, let alone effectively meet DEI goals, and very few succeed in drawing employees from underserved communities. Learn who is doing it right, how they are tackling the challenge, and the pathway forward in workforce development!

Participants
Alison Diehl (Clean Energy Center)
Paul M. Douglas (JPI Group)
Waltasia Mansano (PSEG)
Mike Newman (CMC Energy Services) – Moderator
Walt Yakabosky (Energy Coordinating Agency)

Alison Diehl

Director

Clean Energy Center, PA College of Technology

Alison Diehl is the Director of the Clean Energy Center at Pennsylvania College of Technology, which offers industry-aligned clean energy workforce training and credentials in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region. Alison brings over 12 years of expertise in training and workforce development specific to the residential and commercial building performance sectors. She works directly with the US Dept of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program in Pennsylvania to develop creative strategies to attract and retain a diverse pipeline of new energy efficiency workers. She is a member of the PA Weatherization Policy Advisory Council, the National Weatherization Trainers Consortium, and the Crew Leader Scheme Committee for US DOE’s National Guidelines for Home Energy Professionals.

Paul Douglas

President

The JPI Group

Paul Douglas is an Entrepreneur, Speaker, Workforce Development Consultant and the President of the award-winning JPI Group. With more than 20 years in the recruiting and workforce development space, Paul has gained a reputation as a dynamic expert in hiring diverse talent through innovative strategies that help companies grow and scale — with ease. In a short period, The JPI Group has rapidly emerged as a leading-edge solution that provides skilled and diverse talent for top utility and energy companies, including Comcast, PSEG, DNV and PECO. Paul and his wife Iyomekha “Yom”, have been honored with multiple awards for the success of their multi- million dollar company as well as the incredible advocacy of minority-owned businesses. In 2020, they received the prestigious National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) Supplier of the Year award and the regional Eastern Minority Supplier Development Council (EMSDC) Minority Business Advocate of the Year. The couple has been featured in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Minority Business News and The Lou Hutt Show on Sirius XM.

Waltasia Mansano

Clean Energy Jobs Program Manager

PSE&G

Workforce Development – Moderator

Waltasia Mansano manages the PSE&G Clean Energy Jobs Program.
This innovative initiative has been developed to help build and train the workforce needed to implement the utility’s energy efficiency projects.

Ms. Mansano joined PSE&G in 2001 and has acquired a broad background that spans program management, cybersecurity, strategic planning, balanced scorecard, and key performance indicator development.

A Cum Laude graduate of Seton Hall University with a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems, Ms. Mansano also holds a Master of Science in Information Systems from Stevens Institute of Technology. She is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP®) and holds a certificate in Organizational Change Management from Cornell University.

Mike Newman

Director of Commercial Services

CMC Energy Services

Mike leads the CMC Energy’s commercial and industrial engagement teams in support of several utility program portfolios across the country. Under Mike’s leadership, CMC establishes relationships with business customers, applies expert understanding of key drivers and barriers to implementing energy-efficiency solutions, and demonstrates a customer-centric approach to delivering energy savings.

Mike joined Clean Markets–now CMC Energy–in 2013, bringing to the team more than ten years of solar energy and HVAC equipment sales experience, knowledge of energy auditing best practices and business development acumen. Prior to joining Clean Markets, Mike was part of both the commercial HVAC and solar sales and design teams for Haller Enterprises Inc., a regional mechanical contractor serving Central Pennsylvania. Mike also served as Vice President of the Pennsylvania Solar Energy Industry Association (PASEIA) from 2010 to 2013.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Audio Recording Engineering. He is a Certified Energy Manager (CEM), and he holds the LEED AP designation.

Walt Yakabosky

Director of Training

Energy Coordinating Agency

Mr. Yakabosky served as adjunct faculty at several community colleges and private schools across the country. He was the Director for Business and Industry Training at the Community College of Philadelphia. He was the Dean for Technical Education at Delaware County Community College. He received several awards and citations for his efforts in supporting economic development through education including the Governor’s Award for a best practices in developing a 2+2+2 career pathways model, Excellence in Manufacturing Education from the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, the Golden Apple Award from the Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry for education in support of economic development just to name a few. Mr. Yakabosky has also been inducted into the 3E Institute at West Chester University for Excellence in Entrepreneurship in Education. Currently, he is the Director of Training at ECA’s Knight Green Jobs Training Center located in Kensington and is responsible for developing and implementing curriculum and courses related to energy efficiency, environmental remediation, renewable energy and commercial HVAC.

Federal & State Policy Update