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Speakers

Ammi Amarnath

Principal Technical Executive, Electrification & Sustainable Energy Strategy Sector
Electric Power Research Institute

Ammi Amarnath is a Principal Technical Executive in EPRI’s Electrification & Sustainable Energy Strategy Sector. He works with a team of engineers and scientists in the research, development, and deployment of energy-efficient and demand-responsive technologies. These include advancements in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, the energy-water nexus, and related end-use smart technologies that integrate with the modern grid. He also focuses on demand flexibility strategies to ensure the reliability and resiliency of the grid. Amarnath has a Bachelor of Engineering (India) and a Master of Science (UC Santa Barbara) in Chemical Engineering and has an MBA from the University of Houston.

 

Jeff Barnes

Emerging Technologies Project Manager
San Diego Gas and Electric

Jeff Barnes is an Emerging Technologies Project Manager for SDG&E, with over 18 years of experience managing utility customer programs. He previously managed water efficiency programs at Helix Water District, a retail water agency in San Diego County. Barnes’ current role at SDG&E is focused on assessing new technologies for demand response programs; enhancing the market integration of distributed energy resources such as storage and EVs; and facilitating the technology transfer of demand response research.

 

Jan Berman

Director of Energy Strategy & Innovation
Pacific Gas & Electric

Jan Berman is Director of Energy Strategy and Innovation at PG&E. Since joining, she has held many roles, including Director of Grid Innovation and Senior Director of Energy Efficiency. An ACEEE board member, she has served as board chair of CEE, on the NBI board, and on the E Source DSM Executive Council. Berman has a Bachelor’s in Mathematics from Whitman College, a Master’s in Operations Research from Stanford University, and an MBA from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.

 

Megan Ching

Senior Program Manager
Association for Energy Affordability

Megan Ching is a Senior Program Manager at the Association for Energy Affordability and is dedicated to promoting energy efficiency and electrification initiatives within the multifamily sector. She has worked extensively with statewide and local energy efficiency programs, as well as pilot programs that advance decarbonization goals.

 

John Clint

Director, Distributed Energy Resources
Alternative Energy Systems Consulting, Inc.

John Clint is a Director at AESC working directly with utility-Integrated Demand Side Management (IDSM) programs and government agencies assisting with the design, implementation, system development, and technical assessment of projects and programs. Clint recently led a large-scale Distributed Energy Resource (DER) demonstration pilot in Southern California that tested intelligent DER control and advanced tariff design. He currently leads a DOE Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEBs) project in Southern California Edison’s territory and a Virtual Power Plant project in San Diego Gas & Electric’s territory.

 

Adam Cornelius

Senior Program Manager
Consortium for Energy Efficiency

Adam Cornelius leads the Emerging Technologies Collaborative at CEE, a sponsored project consisting of program managers and emerging technologies teams at utilities across the United States and Canada. He works with sponsors to identify and explore timely and relevant emerging technologies and innovative program approaches across a range of applications and market sectors. He also works to share information about members’ program portfolios and emerging technologies efforts and to build relationships between utilities and manufacturers, national laboratories, trade associations, and other relevant industry partners that align the research and development efforts of industry partners with sponsors’ program goals. Cornelius graduated from Presidio Graduate School in 2008 with an MBA in Sustainable Management.

 

James Linwood Haile, P.E.

Senior Engineer
Frontier Energy

James Haile is a licensed Professional Engineer with a passion for reducing energy use and costs for all without sacrificing comfort and utility. He has worked at Frontier Energy for seven years on research and demonstration projects for ZNE new construction and retrofit strategies, emerging technologies, multi-function heat pumps, hydronic systems, domestic water heating, and other components of the built environment.

 

Nicholas Houchois

Founder & CEO
Hearth Labs

Nicholas Houchois is the CEO of Hearth Labs, a VC-backed climatetech company working to decarbonize real estate. Previously, Houchois was a researcher in the Andlinger Center for Energy & the Environment at Princeton University. His academic work focused on advanced sensors for characterizing thermal performance in the built environment.

 

Antonio Huizar

Principal
kW Engineering

Antonio Huizar is a Principal at kW Engineering. He has experience in many areas including energy efficiency, demand response, emerging technologies, commissioning, HVAC system design, valuation, measurement & verification, sustainability planning, energy audits, normalized metering energy consumption, electrification, decarbonization, and incentive/grant funding. Huizar is an industry leader in Statewide Regulatory Advisory Support and Utility Program Support/Design. He currently leads our business development efforts and manages our portfolio of offerings in Southern California.

 

Aanchal Kohli

Staff Air Pollution Specialist
California Air Resources Board (CARB)

Dr. Aanchal Kohli is a Staff Air Pollution Specialist at CARB. She develops policies and regulations to reduce emissions of F-gas from the refrigeration and air-conditioning sector. Kohli works with local governments and environmental nonprofits on issues such as air pollution, climate change, and renewable energy and developed an app to increase air pollution awareness and public health protection. Kohli has a Doctorate in Environmental Science & Engineering and a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from UCLA.

 

Graham Lierley

Senior Engineer
kW Engineering

Graham Lierley is a Senior Engineer at kW Engineering. He has over 13 years of engineering experience providing services in energy efficiency and renewable energy. His expertise includes energy audits, energy modeling, energy savings measurement and verification (M&V), building retro-commissioning (RCx), and renewable energy design and inspection. Lierley is a Technical Lead for PG&E’s CoolSave Grocery Incentive Program and he facilitates kW’s internal grocery refrigeration working group. Graham is passionate about saving energy and loves working closely with clients to meet their energy goals.

 

John Lin

Expert Product Manager
Pacific Gas and Electric

John Lin is an Expert Product Manager with PG&E, responsible for data access products. He has had extensive experience in successful seed and VC fund raising for industries including smart energy and demand response. At PG&E, he led development of many products including Share My Data (PG&E’s implementation of Green Button Connect), Stream My Data (SmartMeter’s HAN wireless device connections), and more. Previous to PG&E, he was involved in solution delivery of products based on OpenADR 2.0b, ZigBee Smart Energy, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies.

 

Jawaad Malik

Vice President, Strategy & Sustainability and Chief Environmental Officer
Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas)

Jawaad Malik is Vice President of Strategy and Sustainability and Chief Environmental Officer for SoCalGas, a Sempra-regulated California utility. Malik is responsible for the development of a comprehensive strategy and sustainability plan to position SoCalGas as a long-term leader enabling California’s clean energy future, focusing on the vital role the gas grid provides to support California’s energy system objectives.

 

Yvonne McIntyre

Vice President, Federal Affairs
Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation

Yvonne McIntyre is Vice President of Federal Affairs for PG&E Corporation (the parent of PG&E). She is a seasoned government affairs professional with a longtime career advocating for federal power sector policies. She has long-term experience advocating on a breadth of issues before Congress, the Administration, and regulatory agencies. She has worked extensively on issues relating to national energy policy, climate change, the Clean Air Act, tax, and other issues related to renewable energy technologies. McIntyre also actively participates in several professional and community organizations and serves on the boards of the DC chapter of the Women’s Energy Network and the Washington Government Relations Group Foundation.

 

Keshmira McVey

Program Manager, Energy Efficiency Emerging Technology
Bonneville Power Administration and Advanced Water Heating Initiative (AWHI)

Keshmira McVey is the BPA’s Energy Efficiency Emerging Technology Program Manager and the AWHI's Commercial Water Heating Initiative Lead. At BPA, she oversees a multimillion-dollar energy efficiency research portfolio. Her team uses an emerging technologies framework to "fill the pipeline" with commercially available energy efficiency strategies and technologies for the future. She holds a Bachelor of Science in conservation resources from UC Berkeley and a Juris Doctorate in Environmental Law from Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon.

 

Ram Narayanamurthy

Emerging Technologies Program Director, Buildings R&D
U.S. Department of Energy

Ram Narayanamurthy is the Program Director of the Emerging Technologies Program at the U.S. DOE. He has more than two decades of experience in development and deployment of building technologies. His research work extends to identification of technologies that overcome infrastructure and cost barriers to decarbonization retrofits, such as low power heat pumps and heat pump water heaters that can help scale deployments. Narayanamurthy has also worked extensively with the CEC, New York State Energy Research & Development Authority, and cities to advance building decarbonization. He works with many large homebuilders, affordable housing developers, HVAC manufacturers, and utilities to assist in scaling emerging technologies and holds 27 patents.

 

Mary Ann Piette

Director, Building Technology & Urban Systems Division
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Mary Ann Piette is a Senior Scientist, Director of the Building Technology & Urban Systems Division, and Senior Science Advisor to the Associate Lab Director of Energy Technologies Area at LBNL, where she oversees building energy research activities with the U.S. DOE and over 25 other R&D sponsors. She has a MS in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley and a Licentiate in Building Services Engineering from the Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden.

 

David Rivers

Technical Advisor
Southern California Edison

David Rivers is a Technical Advisor for SCE’s Emerging Products & Technologies team. He’s spent 35 years in product design and program development for energy efficient technologies and brings perspectives and insights garnered from diverse technical field and management experience within the energy industry, with a focus on engineering and new product market opportunities. He is also working to pursue opportunities in the next generation of emerging and cost-effective Demand Side Management resources for commercial, government and institutional sectors and residential markets.

 

Kenny Seeton

Central Plant/Energy Manager
Cal State University, Dominguez Hills

Kenny Seeton is the Central Plant/Energy Manager for CSUDH. He currently manages a team responsible for the heating, cooling, and maintenance of approximately 1.5 million square feet of classroom and office space on campus, as well as Central Plant equipment. As the Campus Energy Manager, he also oversees sustainability, lighting retrofits, MBCx on buildings, and HVAC optimization and controls for the campus. Prior to joining CSUDH, he worked for Hostess Twinkies as an Assistant Chief Engineer overseeing repairing, fabricating, and building customized hi-speed production and packaging equipment for the bakery.

 

Don Shirey

Senior Project Manager
Electric Power Research Institute

Don Shirey is a Senior Project Manager with the EPRI Customer Technologies program, evaluating a range of end-use technologies for residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. He manages research focusing on technology applications for energy efficiency, electrification, demand response, and grid flexibility. Shirey and his team evaluate space conditioning heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, refrigeration equipment, dehumidification systems, and other technologies through computer simulation, lab testing, and field deployments.

 

Jonah Steinbuck

Director of the Energy Research & Development Division
California Energy Commission

Jonah Steinbuck serves as the Director of the California Energy Commission’s Energy Research and Development Division. The division manages technology innovation and deployment programs that accelerate progress towards a clean energy economy. He previously managed the division’s Energy Generation Research Office, leading technology R&D activities in renewable energy and sustainable transportation, as well as advancements in energy-related environmental research. This includes the Electric Program Investment Charge program and the Natural Gas Research and Development Program.

 

Micah Sweeney

Senior Research Engineer
Electric Power Research Institute

Micah Sweeney is a Senior Research Engineer at EPRI, where he is a member of Research Program 170 on Customer Technologies. His primary research expertise includes the evaluation of emerging technologies for energy efficiency, demand response, and electrification in data centers, HVAC, and water heating through assessment of these technologies in the laboratory and field settings. Micah is a member of ASHRAE and completed his B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

 

Aaron Tam

Engineer/Scientist
Electric Power Research Institute

Aaron Tam is an Engineer Scientist at EPRI. He is a part of the Customer Technologies Program, which focuses on understanding emerging end-use devices and how they can integrate into a cleaner and more flexible electrical grid. His primary research focus is on evaluating thermal systems for energy efficiency, demand flexibility, and overall environmental impact. Prior to EPRI, Aaron received his Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University.

 

Leuwam Tesfai

Deputy Executive Director for Energy & Climate Policy
California Public Utilities Commission

Leuwam Tesfai is the CPUC’s Deputy Executive Director for Energy & Climate Policy. She previously served as Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma’s Chief of Staff and Legal Advisor. She has worked at the CPUC in several roles including as an Advisor to former Commissioner Liane M. Randolph and in the CPUC’s Legal, Energy and Administrative Law Judge Divisions. Tesfai’s private sector experience includes renewable energy markets, siting and permitting generation facilities, and commercialization of clean energy technologies. Tesfai is a graduate of Emory University and the University of San Francisco School of Law.

 

Bach Tsan, P.E.

Senior Mechanical Engineer, Building Standards Branch
California Energy Commission

Bach Tsan is a Senior Mechanical Engineer in CEC's Buildings Standards Office, focusing on the topics of heat pumps, refrigeration, and refrigerants. Previously, Tsan spent 10 years working for Statewide Programs for Southern California Edison’s Codes & Standards and Emerging Technologies programs. Tsan holds a Mechanical Engineering Degree from California Polytechnic University, Pomona, is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of California, and is accredited as a LEED AP.

 

Dr. Brian Walker

Technology Manager, Building-to-Grid &Controls
U.S. Department of Energy

Dr. Brian Walker is a Technology Manager for the U.S. DOE. He has worked for more than 15 years advancing sustainability through technology and policy, and he is the manager for grid modernization and controls. He manages initiatives such as Grid-integrated Efficient Buildings (GEB) and Connected Communities. Prior to these roles, Walker managed a portfolio of analysis projects in EERE's Office of Strategic Programs and served as the U.S. representative to the Energy Efficiency Working Party at the International Energy Agency.

 

Stefanie Wayland

Load Management Standards Lead
California Energy Commission

Stefanie Wayland is the Load Management Standards Lead for the CEC. She has been working in energy efficiency, demand response, and demand flexibility since 2006. Her education is in physics and applied statistics. Before joining the CEC, she worked primarily as an evaluator, creating experimental designs and performing quantitative evaluations for utilities across the U.S. She joined the CEC at the beginning of 2022 to work toward the adoption of updated load management standards in California.

Moderators

Paul Delaney

Facilitator
Emerging Technologies Coordinating Council

Paul Delaney is a Facilitator for ETCC. He has 44 years of experience in energy and environmental engineering and is knowledgeable in a wide range of areas including energy efficiency, Direct Access, demand management and global warming issues. Delaney has been responsible for over 160 projects during the last ten years to assess new/emerging technologies and provide incentives for utility customers. He’s also a subject matter expert in low global warming potential refrigeration and understanding end-user needs regarding energy and the environment.

 

Raphael Friedmann

Facilitator
Emerging Technologies Coordinating Council

Rafael Friedmann’s over-45-year career has spanned solar energy, energy efficiency, and DERs; primarily in the USA and Latin America. He has a PhD from the Energy & Resources Group at UC Berkeley, Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Technion, and a Bachelor’s degree in Energy Resources Engineering from UAM-Mexico. He currently mostly consults in the cleaner energy transition space.

 

Edwin Hornquist

Senior Emerging Technologies Program Manager
Southern California Edison

Edwin Hornquist manages the California Statewide Electric Emerging Technologies Program, which aims to support increased energy-efficiency-technology market demand and technology supply by contributing to the development and deployment of new and underutilized energy-efficiency technologies. He began his career working for public and investor-owned utilities focusing on energy efficiency, demand-side management, supply-side resource planning, and advanced meter data acquisition systems and held key positions managing retail commodity operations for several prominent energy service providers. Hornquist is a Mechanical Engineer with a Master’s Degree in Business Administration.

 

Martin Vu, Esq.

Principal Engineer
RMS Energy Consulting, LLC

Martin is a Licensed Intellectual Property Attorney and Principal Engineer at RMS Energy Consulting, LLC. He has over 18 years of utility operations and supervisory experience spanning across interdisciplinary competencies including engineering, law, energy policies, and higher education. Martin serves on the California Technical Forum and has extensive knowledge in successfully transitioning emerging technologies into California’s EE statewide incentive programs.

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The ETCC is funded in part by ratepayer dollars and the California Statewide Emerging Technologies Program under the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission. The municipal portion of this program is funded and administered by Sacramento Municipal Utility District and Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.