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Keynote and Invited Speakers
| Dr. Sam Baldwin | Dr. Helena Chum | Dr. Jon Creyts |
| Dr. Mehrdad Ehsani | Dr. Juris Kalejs | Dr. Charles Kutscher |
| Mr. George Roe | Ms. Wanda Reder | Gov. Bill Ritter, Jr. |
| Mr. Steve Saylors |
 Gov. Bill Ritter, Jr. |
Currently, Bill Ritter, Jr. is the founding Director of the Center for the New Energy Economy (CNEE) at Colorado State University, which was founded in February 2011. Ritter was Denver’s District Attorney from 1993-2005 and was elected as Colorado’s 41st governor in 2006. Ritter led Colorado forward by bringing people together to tackle some of Colorado state’s biggest challenges. During his 4-year term, Ritter established Colorado as a national and international leader in renewable energy by building a New Energy Economy that created thousands of new jobs and establishing hundreds of new companies. His commitment has transformed Colorado into an important national and international hub for renewable energy companies and entrepreneurs, clean-energy research and production, and has fostered growth in companies that focus on energy efficiency. The Center works directly with governors, legislators, planners, policymakers, and other decision makers, providing technical assistance to help them create the policies and practices that will facilitate America’s transition to a clean-energy economy. |
 Dr. Sam Baldwin |
Dr. Baldwin is a PhD. Physicist and currently serves as the Chief Science Officer for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). In previous positions he has served with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), Princeton University, the U.S. Senate, and elsewhere. Dr. Baldwin is the author or co-author of nine books and monographs at OSTP, OTA, DOE, and elsewhere, and more than 30 papers and technical reports on energy technology and policy, physics, and other issues. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. |
 Dr. Helena Chum |
Currently, Research Fellow in the Renewable Fuels and Vehicle Systems Directorate at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and a member of the NREL Research Fellows Council. Dr. Chum’s expertise is in renewable fuels, transportation systems, and international renewable energy activities including biomass, biofuels, and biorefineries. Dr. Chum conducts research on the sustainability of biomass and biofuels in the global context. She has developed technologies for the conversion of biomass and a variety of organic wastes into fuels, including hydrogen, chemicals, electricity, and high value materials. She directed analytical chemical research and the development of standards and reference materials for biomass. To these and other fields she has contributed more than 110 papers and 20 patents, has lectured and participated in seminars and conferences worldwide, and is a co–inventor on 20 patents. She was the Coordinating Lead Author of the Bioenergy Chapter in the IPCC Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change (2011), contributed to the Global Energy Assessment Report of 2012 in Renewable Energy, and to the 2012 REN21 Global Status Report. |
 Dr. Jon Creyts |
Currently, Program Director, Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI). Dr. Creyts is a recognized thought-leader on the business implications of climate change. Over the past decade he has met with the leadership teams of over 100 leading global companies and institutions, briefed officials and committees at the highest levels of international, federal and state government on the topic, including the United Nations, the jurisdictional committees in the US Congress and members of the President’s cabinet. Prior to joining RMI, Jon was a partner with McKinsey and Company for 11 years where he helped found McKinsey’s Sustainability and Resource Productivity Practice. He served clients extensively on issues related to operations, capital productivity, environmental management, and growth, focusing primarily on the energy, industrial, and technology sectors. During his time at McKinsey, he also co-authored the groundbreaking survey Reducing US Greenhouse Gas Emissions: How Much at What Cost? which popularized the use of the cost curve as a means to visualize the economics of reducing carbon emissions. He was a principal author of that report’s sequel, Unlocking Energy Efficiency in the U.S. Economy, which explored the barriers and solutions to unlocking energy efficiency’s potential at-scale. Prior to joining McKinsey, Jon worked in both the power and aerospace industries. He is an alumnus of Lockheed Martin’s renowned Skunk Works design facility. He received a Ph.D. in mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley where his research focused on the environmental optimization of industrial systems. |
 Dr. Mehrdad Ehsani |
Currently, professor of sustainable energy engineering at Texas A&M University. He is the holder of Robert M. Kennedy Endowed Professorship as well as other professorships, at Texas A&M University, University of Hong Kong, and other universities. He has won numerous US and international honors and awards, is listed in Who’s Who in American Education, Who’s Who in Science and Engineering, Who’s Who in Finance and Business, Who’s Who in South and Southwest, Who’s Who in America, International Who’s Who of Professionals, and Who’s Who in the 21st Century. He is the Distinguished Lecturer of several professional societies. He is the co-author of 16 books, over 350 publications, over 20 patents, and has given numerous invited talks around world on energy systems and social aspects of technology, over the past three decades. He is a Fellow of IEEE, a Fellow of Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE, an IEEE Industrial Electronics Society, Vehicular Technology Society, Industry Applications Society, and Power Engineering Society Distinguished Lecturer. In 2001 he received the IEEE-VTS Avant Garde Award for “Contributions to the theory and design of hybrid electric vehicles.” |
 Dr. Juris Kalejs |
Currently, Chief Technology Officer at American Capital Energy. a commercial utility-scale Photovoltaic (PV) systems integrator. In this role, Dr. Kalejs ensures that the company is employing the most efficient and effective solar technologies and installation techniques for its clients. He has more than 35 years of experience in pioneering PV industry technology development, which includes R&D, manufacturing, and marketing. In his career in PV, he has held positions as research scientist, project leader, VP of Engineering and Chief Scientific Officer for international PV industry leaders. He has had multiple successes in obtaining funding for company R&D projects from U.S. DOE (NREL) and U.S. Department of Commerce (ATP/NIST) programs. Dr. Kalejs has also been a contributing author to over 100 scientific journal articles and book chapters, an invited scientific conference speaker, and a member of the US PV Roadmap Committee. He has participated as a member of national and international organizing committees for professional society meetings, and is the holder of eight patents. Dr. Kalejs holds a PhD in Physics from Brown University. |
Dr. Charles Kutscher |
Currently, Acting Director of the NREL Electricity, Resources, and Building Systems Integration Center and Manager of the Thermal Systems Group. Chuck joined NREL in 1978 and is a Principal Engineer and Group Manager of the Thermal Systems Group in the Center for Electricity, Resources, and Building Systems Integration. His projects have included the design and construction of a solar cooling test laboratory; production of NREL’s solar industrial process heat design handbook; modeling of advanced power cycles and cooling systems for geothermal power plants; and development of transpired solar air collectors, which won an R&D 100 Award and a Popular Science “Best of What’s New” award. He currently leads NREL’s parabolic trough R&D activities. He served as Chair of the American Solar Energy Society (ASES) during 2000–2001 and was General Chair of the SOLAR 2006 national solar energy conference. He is editor of the 200-page ASES report, Tackling Climate Change in the U.S., and writes a monthly column on climate change for SOLAR TODAY magazine. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he recently developed and taught a course entitled, “Climate Change Solutions.” He received the 2006 Charles Greeley Abbot Award, the highest honor given by ASES, for “outstanding contributions in the research and development of solar thermal technologies.” He recently received the 2008 Colorado Governor’s Excellence in Renewable Energy Individual Award. He has published more than 70 papers and chapters in several books and has served as an Associate Editor for the journal Solar Energy. |
Mr. George Roe |
Currently, Senior Manager, Platform Subsystems Technology – Energy Management at Boeing Research & Technology. Mr. Roe has worked at Boeing since 1977. His experience has focused on research and development for a range of technologies (e.g., air-breathing propulsion, thermal management, vehicle subsystems, crew protection, energy harvesting, alternative energy) and their integration with products sold by Boeing. He has served in both engineering and management capacities on multiple company, industry and government-funded endeavors. Mr. Roe’s current responsibilities address technology maturation in the areas of energy management systems for aircraft. He holds Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Washington. |
 Ms. Wanda Reder |
Currently, Vice President of Power Systems Services, S&C Electric Company, Chicago, and Chair of IEEE Smart Grid Taskforce. As Vice President of Power Systems Services, Ms. Reder offers engineering, procurement, project management and field service capabilities to utilities, developers, and industrial customers throughout North America. Prior to S&C, Ms. Reder held numerous leadership positions at Exelon and Northern States Power (now Xcel), where she has had responsibility for asset investment strategy, standards, engineering, system planning, reliability and work management, unregulated business start-ups, distribution automation, automated meter reading, and development of conservation and load management initiatives. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Engineering from South Dakota State University in 1986 and a Master’s of Business Administration from the College of St. Thomas in 1990. |
 Mr. Steven Saylors |
Currently, Senior Specialist Electrical Engineer by Vestas Americas, a division of Vestas Wind Systems. In this capacity he serves as internal subject-matter-expert on electrical power generation systems, wind turbine, design and transmission system interconnection & integration issues. Previously while working for the Bechtel Power Corporation in San Francisco, and Portland General Electric he was assigned to the design, construction and operation of electrical power plants, mostly nuclear and coal-fired; as well as power transmission & distribution projects. Additionally, Steve is on the Adjunct Faculty of Portland Community College and the Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT), and is also an instructor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Extension Learning Program. Steven is licensed as an Electrical Engineer in Oregon, California, and Washington State; as well as a Control Systems Engineer in Oregon. He is a Senior Member of IEEE, and was a recipient of the IEEE Millennium Medal in 2000 for service to the Oregon Section. He is also a member of the Order of Engineering. |
