Leveraging Software for decarbonization

Thursday, December 8th, 4:30 - 5:30 pm

As the grid becomes more digitized, distributed energy resources multiply, and renewable generation grows, innovative software solutions are emerging to answer the challenges of the energy transition. We will look at a few emerging software applications and discuss how the value chain might evolve in the coming years.

Adam Reeve, SVP of Software Solutions, REsurety

  • Adam Reeve is the SVP of Software Solutions at REsurety, where he leads commercial strategy and policy related to the company’s software and data products. Recently, he has been focused on REsurety’s high-resolution Locational Marginal Emissions carbon data set, which can help companies accurately plan for and then measure the emissions impact of their electricity consumption and generation. Prior to his current role, Adam worked on a number of initiatives within the company, including the development of innovative tools & models to help companies manage the financial risks of renewable purchases or investments. Before joining REsurety, Adam worked as an investor at a private investment group specializing in wholesale electricity markets.

Jonathan Phillips, Product Manager, Enel X

  • My career is mission-driven towards decarbonization, and while studying Energy Systems Engineering at UM, I found that our biggest obstacles would be creating a grid flexible enough to meet the intermittency of renewables. I began my career in flexibility in Operations at the Demand Response leader EnerNOC in 2017, which was acquired by the utility giant Enel. That same year, I joined Product Management at Enel, working on a back-end platform and administrative tools that served our flexibility business lines. In 2022, I pivoted to a market-facing position in Product Management, where I manage our product offerings to energy markets across North and South America.

Therese Miranda-Blackney, Sr. Director of Innovation, LevelTen Energy

  • Therese Miranda-Blackney is the Sr. Director of Innovation at LevelTen Energy, where she evaluated new markets and does early stage product development. A lifelong energy nerd, her prior experience includes a regulated utility, a demand response provider, an off grid lighting business in Rwanda, a federal consulting firm, and a policy think tank. She’s also a proud UM grad - MBA/MS ‘15.

Michael Ryan, COO and Co-Founder of Camus Energy

  • Michael Ryan is the COO and co-founder of Camus Energy. He has over 20 years of experience in software development, service delivery, business operations and executive leadership in the areas of data integration, business process management, Web, IOT and industrial data management. He has delivered key strategies, products, and programs for Xerox, NetApp, BD Biosciences, WellPoint, 2lemetry, GE, and Sony Biotechnology. Michael received his degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley, has been certified as a Stanford Advanced Project Manager, and received an MBA at Santa Clara University.

Innovative Business Models for Negative Emissions 

Friday, December 9th, 10:00 - 11:15 am

Many climate change scenarios require negative-emissions technologies to achieve 1.5-degree° warming. Startups and technology investors in the space will discuss what it takes to launch a viable negative-emissions business model.

Dr. Rakesh Radhakrishnan, Technology to Market Advisor, ARPA-E

Leah Monteith, Director of Supply Chain and Manufacturing, Remora

Laurel Harmon, VP of Government Relations, LanzaTech

Moderated by Professor Volker Sick, University of Michigan

The Ecosystem of Charging Infrastructure

Friday, December 9th, 12:30 - 1:45 pm

Electrifying transportation is a critical component of decarbonization, and the need for EV charging requires a profound shift in our energy infrastructure. In this panel, we’ll discuss business models for public and at-home charging stations, consumer charging behavior, and how stakeholders across the value chain are working to facilitate the EV transition.

Colin Steers, Director of Customer Experience at Fermata Energy

  • Colin Steers joined Fermata Energy in 2016 and has helped develop and operate the first commercial Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) deployments in the US. Fermata Energy's V2G technology enables electric vehicles to generate value using their onboard energy storage, tapping into revenue generating applications and supporting the grid as a distributed energy resource. Colin received a Master of Engineering from UVA and a BA from Carleton College.

Carly Dobbins-Bucklad, Business Strategy Senior Manager at Ford Pro Charging, Ford Motor Co.

  • Carly has over a decade of experience working at the intersection of energy and transportation innovation and its relationship with public policy and investment, private sector business strategy, and how it all has to come together to achieve the exciting potential that new technology in these spaces can deliver for people, places, and the planet.

  • As a Business Development Specialist with Schneider Electric's eMobility Team Alain is focused on helping companies and communities advance their EV infrastructure to adapt to current and future eMobility trends. He is passionate about sustainable solutions that both benefit our society while advancing industry forward.

Alain Lefevre, EV Infrastructure Business Development Specialist at Schneider Electric

Kelsey Peterson, Electrification Business Development Manager at DTE Energy

Energy Justice: It Takes A Village

Friday, December 9th, 2:00 - 3:15 pm

Regressive pricing, negative health outcomes of polluting industries, disproportionate impact of climate change and lack of representation in the clean energy transition are just some of the ways that injustice is embedded into our energy system. It Takes A Village will showcase the work of 3 nonprofits working to address energy justice across each of these pillars and provide commentary on what government and industry can do to move forward faster.

Rozina Kanchwala, Director of EJ Partnerships at Clean Energy Leadership Institute

  • Rozina is an energy and environmental professional who currently serves as the Director of Energy Justice Partnerships at the Clean Energy Leadership Institute (CELI) and is the Founding Executive Director of Eco.Logic. She is a Fulbright scholar; she spent a year in India studying agrarian distress and then completed her Masters degree in Environment and Sustainable Development at University College London. Rozina's work is at the intersection of environmental issues, social justice, and the arts as she believes we need to get creative and work intersectionally to address systemic issues that have led us to the climate crisis we are currently facing.

Justin Schott, Project Manager -- Energy Equity Project, UMich SEAS

  • Justin Schott is Project Director of the Energy Equity Project (EEP) and currently teaching a graduate energy justice course at U of M's School for Environment and Sustainability (MS '06). Schott leads the development and implementation of the EEP Framework to Measure and Advance Energy Equity (published August 2022), a collaborative effort by 45 energy justice leaders to define guiding principles and evaluate 150 metrics and qualitative best practices. Previously, Schott served as Executive Director of EcoWorks a Detroit non-profit, founder of the Youth Energy Squad.

Audrey Schulman, Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of HEET

  • Schulman co-founded HEET in 2008. A lover of maps, she created the first-in-the-nation statewide zoomable public map of utility-reported gas leaks. Through her co-leadership of the FixOurPipes.org study, she helped municipalities coordinate with utilities to find solutions to fix gas leaks faster and at less expense. She started the Large Volume Leak Study, which discovered a way for gas utilities to identify super-emitting gas leaks and repair them. Together with Zeyneb Magavi, she has developed HEET’s innovative solution to transition gas utilities from gas to GeoMicroDistricts, or systems of networked ground source heat pumps. There are several gas utilities now installing thermal networks in Massachusetts and New York. Schulman is also the author of six novels, which have been translated into 12 languages and reviewed by The New Yorker, The Economist and CNN.

Diamond Spratling, Founder and Executive Director of Girl + Environment

  • Diamond Spratling is an impact-driven public health professional and environmental justice leader motivated to mitigate health, racial, and environmental inequities in Black and Brown communities. She is the founder of Girl Plus Environment, the national non-profit organization designed to educate, engage, and empower Black and Brown girls, women, and non-binary individuals to stand up for environmental justice in their own neighborhoods. The Detroit native and 2x TEDx speaker has spent more than six years at the forefront of environmental justice. Her strong dedication to the sector has earned her the William H. Sterner Memorial Award (2017), the Elmore Manufacturing Award (2018), as well as the New Horizons in Conservation Award (2021, 2022). Ms. Spratling has led many climate, energy and health initiatives through her work with cities and organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Bloomberg Associates, WaterAid International, and Greenlink Analytics.