2005 Air Innovations Speaker Biographical Sketches

Emily Andrews, Community Organizer, St. Louis Community Air Project

Emily Andrews is a community organizer with the St. Louis Association of Community Organizations (SLACO), a 25-year old coalition of neighborhood associations and churches working with St. Louis residents to improve neighborhood quality of life. She coordinates outreach and education for the St. Louis Community Air Project (CAP), which includes implementing strategies towards healthier air for St. Louisans.

Emily grew up in the CAP project area and still lives in and loves south St. Louis. She has a degree in Anthropology with a concentration in Latin American Studies from Grinnell College in Iowa. In her spare time, Emily enjoys bookmaking, sewing, volunteering as a Master Gardener, and gardening in her own backyard.

Michael Armstrong, Energy Conservation Program Manager, City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development

Michael Armstrong manages energy-conservation programs for the City of Portland Office of Sustainable Development.  He works on issues related to energy policy, climate change, green building, and sustainable food systems. Michael coordinated the public process that led to Portland's Local Action Plan on Global Warming and tracks the implementation of local emission-reduction efforts.

Michael received an MPA from Indiana University's School of Public Environmental Affairs and attended Deep Springs College.

Scott Bernstein, President, Center for Neighborhood Technology

Scott Bernstein is President of the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT), which develops resources and systems to promote healthy, sustainable communities; and publisher emeritus (1978-1998), The Neighborhood Works, winner of the Peter Lisagor Award for Public Service Journalism.

He studied engineering and political science at Northwestern University and served on the research staff at its Center for Urban Affairs. He has been Visiting Lecturer at UCLA, Fellow of the Institute for Transportation Studies, Advisory Board member of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Active Living By Design program, a trustee of the Institute for the Regional Community, advisory board member of the Hubert Humphrey Institute State and Local Public Policy Program and of the Energy Futures Coalition, Fellow of the Center for Small Business and the Environment, and Advisory Board member, Brookings Institution Center for Urban & Metropolitan Policy. President Clinton appointed him to the President's Council for Sustainable Development, and where he co-chaired its task forces on Metropolitan Strategies and on Cross-Cutting Climate Issues. He is also co-founded Reconnecting America, with Hank Dittmar, to address the need for modernized transport policies, both in the wake of the September 11, 2001 tragedy, and to help address Congress during the triple reauthorization of the nation's laws governing surface transportation, aviation and passenger rail transport, respectively. Bernstein is also a founding board member of Progressive Trade, a start up venture offering comprehensive equity investment screening services for investors using "triple bottom line" criteria that reflect social, environmental and economic returns.

Cyrus Bhedwar, State Energy Program Manager, Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority

Cyrus Bhedwar joined the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority, Division of Energy Resources in June 2005. As State Energy Program Manager his responsibilities include administering and overseeing the Department of Energy's State Energy Program - a funding mechanism for energy efficiency programs throughout the State of Georgia.

Prior to joining GEFA, Cyrus was a staff member at Southface Energy Institute for nearly two and a half years serving as the Liaison to the City of Atlanta. His responsibilities included serving as the Energy Conservation Program Manager and the chair for Atlanta's Facility Management Subcabinet. He developed and implemented energy conservation programs and practices for Atlanta's operating departments, researched and prepared policy briefs for Atlanta City Council and coordinated energy conservation and sustainability education and communication for city employees and residents. He assisted in generating nearly $500,000 in savings, implementing a green building policy and coordinating energy audits and energy efficiency projects in one million square feet of city buildings.

He received his Master's Degree in Energy and Environmental Policy from the University of Delaware in May 2003.

Jim Blubaugh, Manager, Innovative Strategies Group, Office of Transportation and Air Quality, US EPA

Jim has worked in the Office of Transportation and Air Quality within the Environmental Protection Agency for thirteen years. He graduated from the University of Maryland at College Park with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. His background at the EPA is primarily in mobile source regulation development. He also has led the Agency's efforts in a number of enforcement and compliance activities. He has been instrumental in establishing the Agency's voluntary efforts to reduce pollution from the existing fleet of heavy-duty vehicle and engines. Currently, he is the Manager of EPA's new National Clean Diesel Campaign.

Ron Burke, Associate Director, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

Governor Rod Blagojevich named Mr. Burke Associate Director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in May 2003. At the Illinois EPA, he supervises policy, outreach, community relations, pollution prevention, small business assistance, and "Green Government" programs and staff. In addition, he serves as liaison to the Governor's office and other state agencies on key issues.

Prior to joining IEPA, Mr. Burke served as a consultant to the Environmental Law and Policy Center in Chicago, where he dealt with issues such as Great Lakes restoration and energy policy.

Mr. Burke worked at the American Lung Association of Metropolitan Chicago for nearly twelve years as Director of Environmental Health, Deputy Executive Director of Programs and Policy, and Acting Executive Director. He also worked for USEPA Region 5 in Chicago.

Mr. Burke earned an M.S. in Environmental Policy from Washington University in St. Louis, with undergraduate studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mike Burnett, Executive Director, The Climate Trust

Mike Burnett is an environmental engineer with twenty-nine years of executive, management, policy, and technical experience in climate change, energy efficiency, and renewable resources, mostly in the Pacific Northwest.

As The Climate Trust's initial Executive Director, Mike took the organization through its start up phase. Under his guidance, The Climate Trust has assembled an 11 project carbon offset portfolio totaling over $6 million and 2.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, and has established an international reputation for quality, innovation, and cost-effectiveness.

Previously, Mike was a vice president for Trexler and Associates, a climate change mitigation consulting firm, where he worked on corporate climate change strategies, early action crediting, and carbon offset project feasibility studies.

Mike was also the founding CEO for Conservation and Renewable Energy System (CARES), a consortium of public power utilities in Washington State. CARES conducted the largest municipal conservation bond sale to date ($38 million), which funded an innovative energy conservation program that delivered three times as much energy savings as planned.

Mike also has worked in energy conservation, renewable energy, and power planning for two electric utility trade associations, Bonneville Power Administration, a regional solar energy center, and the National Park Service.

Mike earned an M.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Florida, studying systems ecology and energy analysis with Dr. Howard Odum while on a National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship.

Brian Button, Air Information Specialist, Iowa Department of Natural Resources Air Quality Bureau

Brian Button is an air quality information specialist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. He has been with the DNR 10 years, working recently on school bus retrofits and biodiesel in school buses. His other projects include media campaigns for a smoking tailpipe reporting program and open burning education. He is a graduate of Iowa State University with degrees in Journalism and Environmental Studies.

Daniel Cohan, Ph.D., Air Protection Branch, Georgia Environmental Protection Division

Daniel Cohan works on air quality attainment planning for the Air Protection Branch of the Georgia Environmental Protection Division. He has developed plans for linking the agency's atmospheric modeling efforts with analyses of the costs and health impacts of potential abatement strategies. Dr. Cohan received a B.A. in applied mathematics from Harvard University, a Ph.D. in atmospheric chemistry from Georgia Tech, and served as a Fulbright Scholar to Australia at the Cooperative Research Centre for Southern Hemisphere Meteorology. He is the author of several publications in the atmospheric sciences literature and numerous conference presentations.

Gregg A. Cooke, Counsel, Guida, Slavich & Flores, P.C.

Gregg A. Cooke is"Of Counsel" with the Dallas law firm of Guida, Slavich & Flores, P.C. and is a consultant with the Washington, D.C.-based Global Environment and Technology Foundation. Formerly the Regional Administrator of Region VI of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA"), Mr. Cooke was the top ranking EPA official in the area that encompasses Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.

Mr. Cooke's experience in establishing partnerships to create environmental progress in Texas and the Southwest has been demonstrated by his successful career at the EPA.

Mr. Cooke served as Regional Administrator of EPA Region VI for over four from 1998-2004. He was appointed to the post by President Clinton and was the only political appointee in the EPA retained by current President George W. Bush.

During his tenure, Mr. Cooke was instrumental in developing clean air plans for both Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston-Galveston in partnership with the State of Texas. These plans contain innovative provisions that incorporate economic incentives as well as traditional mandatory measures. His clean air plans also included development of an innovative"compact" to facilitate early compliance with EPA's upcoming eight-hour standard for such cities as Austin and San Antonio, Texas.

Mr. Cooke was also instrumental in development of clean water policy in the region. In 1999, he approved the delegation of the NPDES program to the State of Texas, ending a long-standing regulatory dispute between Texas and the EPA. He was personally involved in resolving water quality lawsuits brought against EPA regarding the promulgation of Total Maximum Daily Loads ("TMDL's") to establish baselines for nutrient contamination in Louisiana and Oklahoma. Mr. Cooke also served on the Board of Directors of the Border Environmental Cooperation Commission ("BECC") which provides funding for water and wastewater infrastructure projects on both sides of the US-Mexico Border

Prior to serving as Regional Administrator, Mr. Cooke practiced environmental law as a partner with Haynes and Boone in Austin. His previous professional positions include service as Chief of the Natural Resource Protection and Energy Division of the Office of the Texas Attorney General. While at the Office of the Texas Attorney General, he also served as the state's North America Free Trade Agreement Environmental Liaison and served as the interim General Counsel for the Border Environmental Corporation Commission in Juarez, Mexico.

Since leaving the EPA in January, 2003, Mr. Cooke worked with Urban Chambers of Commerce on clean air funding from the Texas Legislature as well as funding for advanced environmental technology projects for both air and water quality.

On January 5, 2005, Mr. Cooke was appointed by the Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to serve on EPA's Clean Air Act Advisory Committee which was created to provide high-level policy advice and counsel to the EPA on clean air matters.

Mr. Cooke earned a B.A. in history, cum laude, from Baylor in 1977. He earned a master of foreign affairs degree from the University of Virginia in 1979, and received a law degree from Baylor in 1982.

Larry F. Greene, Executive Director, Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District

Larry F. Greene is the Executive Director of the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District. Larry has earned a Bachelors Degree in Science Education from North Carolina State University, and Masters Degrees in Logistics Management from Florida Institute of Technology and Human Resources Education from Boston University. He is a Past-President of the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA) and serves on the Board of Directors of Walk Sacramento.

Greg Dierkers, Senior Policy Analyst, Center for Clean Air Policy

Greg Dierkers is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP).  Mr. Dierkers has over eight years of experience on air quality, climate change and transportation policy.  He received his Masters in Environmental Management in Resource Economics and Policy from Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment.

For over a decade, CCAP has worked to develop improved understanding -- through dialogues, information dissemination and policy guidance  -- of how land use and transportation policies can cost-effectively reduce greenhouse gases and improve air quality.  One example, is CCAP's new Smart Growth Guidebook.  This tool -- developed with support from U.S. EPA Office of Atmospheric Programs, Climate Protection Partnerships Division, State and Local Capacity Building Branch -- allows states and localities to quantify the energy savings and air quality benefits from 19 land use, transit and travel demand management policies and programs. Greg will be providing a brief tour of this tool.

Dr. Serpil Guran, Research Scientist, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

Serpil is a research scientist at New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Science, Research and Technology. She is specialized on renewable energy, power generation from renewables, renewable energy credit trading, generator attributes trading, and NOx and VOC emissions reductions technologies. Prior to her position at NJ DEP, she worked at Princeton University Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Dept. and National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, CO as Post-doc researcher.

F. Henry "Hank" Habicht, II, Chief Executive Officer, Global Environment & Technology Foundation

F. Henry (Hank) Habicht II, is Chief Executive Officer of the Global Environment and Technology Foundation (GETF). He is a founding Principal of Capital E, LLC, and also serves as Commissioner on the National Commission on Energy Policy. Prior to joining GETF, Mr. Habicht was Senior Vice President of Safety-Kleen Corporation, a provider of industrial and recycling services to more than 400,000 businesses. He was Deputy Administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from 1989 to 1993. He also served as Assistant Attorney General of the U.S. Department of Justice under the Reagan Administration where he directed the Environment and Natural Resources Division. Mr. Habicht holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia and an A.B. (magna cum laude) from Princeton University. He serves on the President's Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations, the Chesapeake Bay Blue Ribbon Financing Panel and the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. In addition, Mr. Habicht serves on numerous boards including Resolve, Inc., 3E Company, the Dow Chemical Corporate Environmental Advisory Council, and the Advisory Boards for the Princeton Environmental Institute and the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable.

Keith Head, P.E., Environmental Engineer, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality

Keith Head has worked for the Air Division of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality since 1999. He works in the Emissions Inventory Group and is the mobile and area sources contact for MDEQ. He received his BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Mississippi in 1996 and received his professional engineering license in 2005.

Brian Henderson, Director, Energy Efficiency Services, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)

Mr. Henderson is currently the Director for Energy Efficiency Services at the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). He has over 30 years of experience in the energy efficiency field for both public and private sector organizations as a senior manager, department head, project manager, and engineer. Mr. Henderson directs a portfolio of technical and financial assistance programs and services, helping thousands of businesses, government facilities and institutions across the State. He also leads the State's implementation of the Governor's Executive Order 111 "Green and Clean State Buildings and Vehicles", and the Coordinated Electricity Demand Response Initiative. In addition, Mr. Henderson serves on various committees and boards of a number of energy related local, regional and national organizations, including Chair of the Federal Energy Management Advisory Committee for the U.S. Department of Energy. Mr. Henderson has a masters of science degree in Mechanical Engineering and a bachelors degree in Physics.

William Hoople, Regional Transportation District, Denver, CO

William Hoople has over 40 year's experience in the bus and transit industry, and since 1976 has held operations and scheduling positions at the Regional Transportation District (RTD) in Denver, Colorado.  During the late 1970's and early '80's, he was Operations Coordinator for the 16th Street Pedestrian/Transit Mall project in downtown Denver, and has continued to coordinate the Mall Shuttle system with the RTD downtown bus stations, the traffic signal system and the two light rail lines that now connect with the Shuttles.  He is currently working on the T-REX Southeast Corridor Light Rail project and bus feeder system planning and scheduling.

Robert G. Kanter, Ph.D., Director of Planning and Environmental Affairs, Port of Long Beach, California

Dr. Kanter serves as Director of Planning and Environmental Affairs for the Port of Long Beach. He received his masters and doctoral degrees in biology from the University of Southern California. Prior to working at the Port, Dr. Kanter served as corporate vice president and senior scientist for a private consulting firm and as a research associate at the University of Southern California. His Port responsibilities include short-range and long-range planning for issues related to environmental compliance, cargo terminal development, transportation infrastructure, and supervision of the Port's permitting agency role. He supervises a staff of dedicated scientists and professionals. Dr. Kanter is the port's representative on legislative committee's addressing the environment and serves as the primary port liaison for negotiations with regulatory agencies. He serves as a port industry representative on policy advisory committees to the federal and state governments. He also manages complex Port projects dealing with air quality, remediation, dredging, and mitigation. Dr. Kanter has served as the maritime industry representative on various committee's drafting State legislation on environmental issues and has been a member of several environmental committees including the South Coast Air Quality Management District AQMP Advisory Committee, National Invasive Species Advisory Committee, CAPA Invasive Species Technical Advisory Committee, and Sea Grant Ballast Outreach Advisory Team.

Glen P. Kedzie, Assistant General Counsel & Environmental Counsel, American Trucking Associations, Inc.

Glen Kedzie is the Assistant General Counsel and Environmental Counsel in the Law and Regulatory Affairs Division of the American Trucking Associations, Inc. (ATA). His primary responsibility at ATA is to provide counseling on federal, state, and local environmental regulations, policies, and programs. In addition, he is responsible for lobbying federal administrative agencies and Congress on a wide variety of environmental, small business, transportation, and maritime issues

Prior to joining ATA, he served as Counsel to the National Paint & Coatings Association in Washington, DC, where he served as a lobbyist and provided legal advice to the association on environmental enforcement and compliance matters. From 1990 through 1998, he worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington, DC, as a Supervisory Attorney in the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA). While serving at the EPA, he was involved in a wide array of enforcement and compliance matters in both the Multimedia Enforcement Division as well as in the Water Enforcement Division. He was instrumental in developing many of the agency's current policies, guidances, and rules.

Mr. Kedzie holds Bachelor of Science degrees in Urban & Regional Planning, Geography, and Cartography & Geotechniques from the University of Wisconsin and completed his post-graduate work in Environmental Planning at the University of Wisconsin. He received his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Tulsa College of Law with an emphasis in environmental and land use law.

Jerry Kotas, Senior Environmental Scientist, US DOE

Jerry Kotas has been with the U.S. Department of Energy since 1992. In the Central Regional Office, he leads new market-based initiatives to advance energy efficiency and renewable energy, focusing on the interrelationships and opportunities between clean energy and environmental quality. In this capacity he works closely with states, businesses, national laboratories and U.S. EPA. Jerry is also the project lead for concentrating solar power and the only regional representative on the DOE Green Power Team. In that capacity he also manages an Interagency Agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency headquarters on green power activities. Before joining the Central Regional Office, Jerry served in DOE's Golden Field Office for over seven years. He previously served as the Senior Environmental Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Jerry has also worked for the U.S. EPA in Washington, DC for over 14 years. He was the first director of EPA's Office of Pollution Prevention from its inception in 1988 until 1992. He also has 6 years experience working for state and regional governments, all in the environmental/natural resource areas.

Jerry is married and has three grown children. He resides in Evergreen, Colorado.

Dennis M. Leach, AICP, Director of Transportation, Department of Environmental Services, Arlington County, Virginia

Dennis Leach is the Director of Transportation for Arlington County, Virginia, a position in which he has served since 2004. His division provides a broad range of transportation services including local transit, commuter services, transportation demand management, pedestrian/bicycle facilities and programs, street and signal operations, signage and parking management, and infrastructure review, permitting and inspection for private sector development. Arlington is an increasingly urbanized community with over 240,000 transit trips originating or destined for the county and over 4.4 million miles of vehicle miles of travel within the county on an average weekday. Arlington was the recipient of EPA's first national Smart Growth Award for its transit-oriented development practices.

Mr. Leach is an Arlington County resident and had served as the Chairman of the County's Board-appointed Transportation Commission prior to his current appointment. Additionally, he conducted in-depth research on Arlington County's 30- year transit-oriented development experience. This research has been incorporated as part of a transit-oriented development state of the practice book titled"The New Transit Town," published by Island Press in December 2003.

Prior to his joining the County, he gained 18 years of experience in transportation planning, policy, organization and program consulting, working with numerous local, regional, state and national organizations. He holds a Bachelors Degree from the University of Notre Dame, an MA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Temple University. He is a certified planner and a member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers and the American Planning Association.

Cynthia Lee, Environmental Manager, Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District

Cynthia Lee holds an AB in Life Sciences and Chemistry from Indiana State University and a MBA from the University of Louisville. For nearly twenty years she worked as an environmental chemist and laboratory manager for public and private sector entities. During that time she represented small laboratory interests on a Federal Advisory Committee to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Ms. Lee joined the Jefferson County Air Pollution Control District in June 1997 in the Air Monitoring Section. The following year she worked on SIP issues and in early 2000, she became the District's Environmental Manager for Environmental Programs overseeing land use, transportation, pollution prevention, energy, and sustainable development programs and strategies that voluntarily reduce air pollution emissions. The Environmental Programs Section also implements USDOT CMAQ and USDOE grants. In the fall of 2000, she added to her duties the management of the District's Ambient Air Monitoring program and its EPA 105 and 103 grant commitments. The monitoring network currently maintains approximately twenty-four criteria pollutant monitors at nine sites in the county. The group, in collaboration with EPA Region IV, is also evaluating mobile air toxics monitors for future use in Louisville.

Tom Livers, Deputy Director, Montana Department of Environmental Quality

Tom has served for three years as deputy director of the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, an agency responsible for protection of Montana's environment and administration of a wide variety of environmental and energy programs. Prior to that, Tom was chief of the Technical Assistance Bureau, overseeing energy policy, conservation and renewable energy activities and the State Revolving Programs for water infrastructure improvements.  While serving in that capacity he also developed and implemented Montana's multi-million dollar bond-financed program to fund cost-effective energy retrofits in state facilities.

Darren Morrissey, Manager, Business Assistance Section, Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality

Darren Morrissey is the Manager of the Business Assistance Section of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality. He works in the Public Outreach & Assistance Division providing technical assistance to Arkansas businesses to help them get into compliance with environmental regulations. Prior to coming to work for ADEQ in 2002, Darren worked for eleven years as an Environmental/Safety Engineer for Raytheon Aircraft Company. Darren holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.

Jim Orgeron, Environmental Scientist, Staff, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality

Jim Orgeron works for the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality as an Environmental Scientist, Staff. He has been with the Department for almost 15 years. Before becoming a SIP Planner he was in the department's air toxics section for almost 11 years. Prior to his employment with LDEQ he was a career officer in the US Air Force. He has a M.S. in Operations Research and a B.S. in Chemistry.

Nathalie Osborn, Program Manager, San Diego Regional Energy Office's Self-Generation Incentive Program

Nathalie Osborn is the Program Manager for SDREO's Self-Generation Incentive program. Her responsibilities include managing contracts related to the deployment of self-generation incentive projects and assisting Program Managers with the development and implementation of energy efficiency programs to targeted market segments.

Prior to SDREO, Nathalie was employed as Field Service Engineer for XCELLSiS, a fuel cell engine company venture funded by Ballard, DaimlerChrysler and The Ford Motor Company to develop and manufacture zero emissions engines for vehicles. Nathalie's background also includes experience as a Sales/Marketing Applications Engineer in the automotive, magnetic components, machine vision and preventative maintenance industries.

Malaika Rivers, Deputy Director, Cumberland Community Improvement District

Malaika Rivers has been with the Cumberland Community Improvement District (CID) since 1996 serving as Executive Director of Commuter Club, the CID's Transportation Management Association (TMA), and as Deputy Director for the CID since 2004. The CID and Commuter Club are dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in the Cumberland Galleria area in Atlanta's thriving northwest market. Ms. Rivers works with area stakeholders to improve transportation and development conditions that support quality growth in the area.

The Cumberland CID is recognized around the nation as a model public-private organization for improving development conditions through transportation investments. To date, the CID has successfully leveraged almost $3 billion for projects that have either been completed, or are slated for construction; a 50:1 ratio. Additionally, more than 40 tons of harmful air pollutants have been removed from metro Atlanta's air through award winning commuter transportation services.

Under Ms. Rivers' leadership, Cumberland Galleria has been recognized for its pioneering programs. In 2002, Commuter Club was named Best TM A internationally by the Association for Commuter Transportation. The following year, the US EPA named Cumberland Galleria a "Best Workplaces for Commuters" District for excellence in commuter services. Commuter Club has earned positive local and national media coverage including features in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Wall Street Journal and National Public Radio and Ms. Rivers speaks at national conferences on Cumberland Galleria's successes.

The Cumberland CID is administered by the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce where Ms. Rivers also serves as the Director of the Chamber's Transportation Department. In this capacity, she assists with similar initiatives around Cobb County. Ms. Rivers has also served in various local and national leadership capacities, including chair of ACT's TMA Council, founder and chair of the Metro Atlanta TMA Network, Cobb Community Transit Advisory Board member, and others. Ms. Rivers is a graduate of the Regional Leadership Institute, Leadership Cobb and a recipient of the YWCA's Women of Achievement Award.

Prior to her current positions, Ms. Rivers was a Senior Transportation Planner with the Atlanta Regional Commission, working with the business community on congestion management. Before coming to Atlanta, Ms. Rivers served in similar roles with organizations in Washington, DC and Northern Virginia. Ms. Rivers is a graduate of Virginia Tech, where she earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business Management.

Dave Sakrison, Mayor, City of Moab, Utah

Mayor Dave Sakrison is a business owner and has been involved in local politics for over 20 years. He has served on the planning commission, 3 terms on the city council, and is in his first term as Mayor.

Patricio Silva, Air Monitoring Projects Manager, Environmental Defense

Manages Environmental Defense's air monitoring research projects, advancing public right-know about air pollution in their communities.

Prior to joining Environmental Defense, worked at the Natural Resources Defense Council on regulatory and legislative advocacy on energy policy, air pollution, and air toxics, Environmental Futures, an environmental and energy consulting firm, analyzing electric restructuring trends, and Citizens For A Better Environment, a regional non-profit organization in Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota, working on reducing long range air pollution.

Member, Board of Directors of the Massachusetts Consumers Energy Alliance. Co-author, NRDC's energy report,"A Responsible Energy Policy for the 21st Century," (2001). Invited witness before Congress on energy and air quality policy matters, and frequent speaker on air quality and energy. J.D., University of Arizona College of Law, B.A., Government, Colby College.

James R. Simpson, Forest Meteorologist, US Forest Service, Center for Urban Forest Research

My major field of interest is environmental physics, which combines aspects of physical and biological sciences to understand organismal/environmental interactions at the soil-atmosphere interface. Current emphasis is on interactions of buildings with urban vegetation and soil in terms of water use, energy conservation and climatic effects, air quality, and water use of isolated plants or groups of plants.

Linda Smith, Senior Program Manager - Rebuild Colorado, Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation

Ms. Smith is the Sr. Program Manager of Rebuild Colorado, a program of the Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation. She developed and implemented many program strategies, offering services on performance contracting, commissioning, high performance design and energy management to help state and local government facilities managers improve their facilities. 

She has a Master's degree in energy engineering and has worked at the Governor's Office of Energy Management for 15 years to improve energy efficiency in commercial and institutional buildings.

he co-founded the Energy Services Coalition, a public-private partnership to maintain high industry standards for energy performance contracting, and served as a long-time Board member and the Vice-President on the Board of Directors.

William E. (Dub) Taylor, Director, State Energy Conservation Office

William E. (Dub) Taylor is the Director of Texas' State Energy Conservation Office (SECO). Under his direction, SECO helps the state make the most of domestic energy, reduce state and local government energy costs and promote cost-effective clean energy technologies. SECO's mission is to maximize energy efficiency while protecting the environment.

Before SECO, Taylor's public sector experience includes six years with the Texas Railroad Commission's Alternative Fuels Research and Education Division. Prior to public service, Taylor worked in real estate, property appraisal and property tax consulting.

A native of Dallas and graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Taylor lives in Austin with his wife and two young children.

Robert W. Thresher, Director, National Wind Technology Center

Dr. Robert W. Thresher has more than 30 years of research, development, engineering, and management experience in wind technology, plant engineering, and aerospace systems. As a professor at Oregon State University, he worked with DOE to develop early wind technologies. Having been a part of early wind exploration and development of the wind program at NREL and finally as the Director of the National Wind Technology Center, Dr. Thresher provides unparalleled expertise in research, development and commercialization of wind technologies. Dr. Thresher's key career accomplishments include:

• Serving on the Advisory Panel for the EPRI-EIT Wave Energy Project, 2004
• Awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Wind Energy Association in 2001
• Recognized as the 1997 Person of the Year by the American Wind Energy Association
• Inducted into the Academy of Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University,"in recognition of significant contributions to the engineering profession," October 1996
• Federal Programs Award, American Wind Energy Society,"for effective management and leadership," 1992
• Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science,"for research efforts to investigate the effects of wind turbulence on the dynamic response of wind machines," 1991
• H.M. Hubbard Award,"for leadership in science and technology management," SERI/ NREL, 1990

Sara Ward, Chief, Ohio Office of Energy Efficiency, Ohio Department of Development

Since 1992, Ms. Ward has served as the Chief of Ohio's Office of Energy Efficiency. The Office is located in the Community Development Division of the Ohio Department of Development. The mission of the office is to develop and strengthen public and private partnerships to increase the economic and environmental benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy use in Ohio's commercial, institutional, industrial, agricultural, transportation and residential sectors.

In this capacity, she is responsible for oversight of the State's energy efficiency and renewable energy programs funded by the U.S. Department of Energy including the State Energy Program (SEP) and the Home Weatherization Assistance Program (HWAP). Ms. Ward also oversees the state's Universal Service Fund- Electric Partnership Program (EPP) and the Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund (ELF), both funded through Ohio's Electricity Restructuring Bill.

On the National and Regional level, Ms. Ward serves as Chair for the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) and is a founding board member of the Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (MEEA). At the State level Ms. Ward represents the Director of the Development Department on the Ohio Power Siting Board and the Technical Advisory Committee of the Ohio Coal Development Office/Ohio Air Quality Development Authority and serves on the American Electric Power Customer Advisory Panel.

Carl Wilkins, P.E., Director of Client Services, Advanced Energy

With over 20 years experience working for Progress Energy in a variety of managerial, supervisory, and research and analysis roles, Carl brings a wealth of knowledge and ability to his role as Director of Client Services for Advanced Energy. Combining experience in sales, marketing, and project management with applied technical skills, he brings a wide array of talents to the member services team.

Bringing a unique utility insider perspective to the task of managing the delivery of products and services to electric utility members, Wilkins is focused on growing this relationship and on providing innovative strategic support and product development services. Acting as a conduit between Duke Power's executive and management teams and Advanced Energy staff, he oversees the supply of appropriate technical and marketing services to Duke Power and its customers.

Wilkins was directly involved in the coordination and development of North Carolina's Green Power Program and renewable energy sources (NC GreenPower). Working closely with stakeholders at the electric utilities, potential renewable suppliers, environmentalists, regulators and others, Wilkins kept the development process flowing smoothly and efficiently. Since the filing of the NC GreenPower tariff, he has become business development manager for the program.

Prior to joining AE, Wilkins served at Progress Energy as manager of national commercial accounts, including national chains, military, federal and state government accounts. While in this position, he was responsible for account maintenance, business development, electrical service coordination, and technical support. Previous positions with Progress Energy include supervisor of Raleigh division marketing, senior analyst for distribution automation R&D, and senior analyst for the customer support department.

Dr. Josias Zietsman, Associate Research Engineer, Texas Transportation Institute

Dr. Zietsman is an Associate Research Engineer in the Center for Air Quality Studies at the Texas Transportation Institute. He has more than 15 years of professional experience in the fields of transportation planning and air quality. He holds a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University and is a registered professional engineer in the state of Texas. Prior to joining TTI in 1998 he was the director of transportation planning for a large MPO in South Africa. He is member of the Transportation Research Board's Committees on Performance Measurement and Sustainable Transportation and he chairs a TRB subcommittee on research.