Devinn Lambert
Deputy Director of Crosscuts and Energy Earthshots™, Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, U.S Department of Energy.

Devinn Lambert is the deputy director of Crosscuts and Energy Earthshots™ within the Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Devinn’s experience spans research and technology development, interagency coordination, workforce development, and community engagement. She also helped design and launch the Energy Earthshots Initiative.

Devinn has served in various offices within the DOE, including as a senior advisor in the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management and as a bioenergy technology manager within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. She has also detailed to the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Her background is in biotechnology. She has masters' degrees from the University of Cambridge and from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and a bachelor's degree from Rutgers University. Devinn is the recipient of several prestigious awards including: Forbes 30 Under 30, the Presidential Management Fellowship, the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, and the Goldwater Scholarship.

Christopher Davis
Chief of Staff, U.S. Department of Energy

Christopher Davis is the chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Energy, effective as of April 4, 2022. Davis most recently served as a senior advisor to Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm. Previously, Davis served all eight years of the Obama Administration—first in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs and then in several senior roles at the Department of Energy.

Prior to that, he worked for the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform and the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce. More recently, Davis worked with Co-Equal, a non-profit organization providing expertise and knowledge to Congress on oversight and legislation.

Ali Zaidi
Assistant to the President and National Climate Advisor, The White House

Ali Zaidi serves as assistant to the president and national climate advisor. In this role, he leads the White House Climate Policy Office, which coordinates policy development and President Biden’s all-of-government approach to tackle the climate crisis, create good-paying, union jobs, and advance environmental justice. Zaidi is a longtime advisor to President Biden, having provided counsel and leadership on climate policy development, legislation, and executive action from day one of the administration and on the Biden presidential transition and campaign. Before his current role, he served as deputy national climate advisor.  

During his time in the Biden-Harris Administration, Zaidi has led on efforts to re-establish U.S. climate leadership, set a national target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50-52 percent by 2030; deliver robust executive actions, including regulatory, investment, and procurement-based initiatives; and secure the largest legislative wins on climate in U.S. history, through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. Together these efforts have advanced the largest annual deployment of solar, wind, and batteries; brought together the U.S. auto sector around an all-electric future; tackled super-pollutants like methane and HFCs; bolstered domestic adaptation and resilience; and centered U.S. climate action around workers and communities, prioritizing good-paying union jobs and the critical work of environmental justice. 

Zaidi joined the Biden-Harris Administration after serving as the state of New York’s deputy secretary for energy and environment and chairman of climate policy and finance, where he led the state's efforts on climate change—driving investment into infrastructure and innovation, empowering workers and communities, and boosting economic and environmental resilience. Zaidi also taught graduate courses on technology policy and studied the fiscal and financial impacts of climate change as an adjunct professor at Stanford University. During that time, Zaidi also co-founded Lawyers for a Sustainable Economy, a Stanford-coordinated initiative that equips sustainability-focused startups with pro bono legal services.

Zaidi brings the cross-sector and multi-disciplinary experience needed to deliver a whole-of-government response to the climate crisis. During the Obama-Biden Administration, Zaidi served as associate director for natural resources, energy, and science for the Office of Management and Budget and as deputy director of energy policy for the Domestic Policy Council—helping to design and implement a wide range of domestic and international policies. Zaidi has advised non-profits, including as a trustee of the Natural Resources Defense Council, and counseled the private sector, as an attorney who helped launch a sustainable investment practice.

Zaidi emigrated from Pakistan and grew up outside Erie, Pennsylvania. He received an A.B. from Harvard University and J.D. from Georgetown University.

Geraldine Richmond
Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, U.S. Department of Energy

Geraldine (Geri) Richmond is the under secretary for science and innovation at the U.S. Department of Energy. In this role, she oversees the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, the nation’s largest federal sponsor of basic research in the physical sciences, the U.S. Department of Energy’s applied R&D areas of nuclear, fossil, and renewable energy, and energy system integrity, and 14 the U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories and their facilities. 

She is currently on leave from the University of Oregon, where she holds the presidential chair in science and is a professor of chemistry. She is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been honored by numerous awards including the National Medal of Science (2016), the Priestley Medal from the American Chemical Society (2018), and the Linus Pauling Medal Award (2018). 

Lauren Boyd
Acting Office Director, Geothermal Technologies Office, U.S. Department of Energy

Lauren Boyd currently serves as the acting office director of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO). In her acting director role, Lauren manages GTO efforts to improve performance, lower costs, and accelerate deployment of all geothermal technologies.

Prior to her acting director role, Lauren was GTO's Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) program manager, responsible for all EGS-related activities, including strategic planning, budget formulation, and project execution of a broad portfolio. This portfolio included EGS research, development, and demonstration projects and new technology initiatives such as the DOE’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE). Lauren also manages DOE’s international portfolio on geothermal and represents the United States on several international steering committees.  

Governor Jared Polis
Colorado

Governor Jared Polis is an entrepreneur, education leader, public servant, and Colorado native. After launching several successful companies, including one out of his college dorm room, Polis committed himself to making sure other Coloradans had the opportunity to pursue their dreams. Polis founded schools for at-risk students and new immigrants and started nonprofits to help veterans and entrepreneurs. 

Prior to serving as governor, Polis served on the State Board of Education where he worked to raise pay for teachers and reduce class size for students, and represented Colorado's 2nd Congressional District, where he was rated the most effective member of the Colorado delegation. 

As governor, Polis has focused on saving Coloradans money, keeping our economy strong, and preserving our Colorado way of life. Polis delivered universal free full-day kindergarten, signed a number of bills to save families money on health care, and made significant progress towards the goal of 100% renewable energy by 2040, all while cutting taxes for small businesses and investing in affordable housing and transportation. His efforts to expand health care access to medically underserved communities and to ensure that equity and justice remain central to building a Colorado for All have produced impactful legislation and made progress toward his administration’s bold vision. 

Christine Harada

Executive Director, Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council

Biden-Harris Administration Presidential appointee Christine Harada serves as the Executive Director of the Permitting Council. As Executive Director, Harada assists Permitting Council member agencies in managing a portfolio of nearly $100 billion in large-scale infrastructure projects—most of which are renewable energy, coastal restoration, and electricity transmission projects. She assists Federal agencies in developing and implementing comprehensive, project-specific timetables for all required infrastructure permitting reviews and authorizations for FAST-41 covered infrastructure projects, advancing the administration's infrastructure agenda to rebuild the economy.

Harada brings more than 25 years of leadership experience in the public and private sectors to the Permitting Council. Harada was most recently the Vice President for Government Affairs at Heliogen, a California-based renewable energy technology company. Previously, she served as the President of i(x) investments, a company focused on impact-driven investments in critical areas such as renewable energy, green real estate development, and accessible smart and sustainable housing. She was a Partner with Ridge-Lane Limited Partners, an advisory firm of experts in private sector innovation, investment capital, and government policy that works with companies pursuing social and environmental impact, along with financial performance.
 
As the former Federal Chief Sustainability Officer under President Barack Obama, Harada oversaw all federal sustainability-related initiatives in energy, vehicle fleets, and acquisitions. She also served as the Acting Chief of Staff, the Associate Administrator of Government-wide Policy, and Chief Acquisition Officer at the U.S. General Services Administration.
 
Harada has worked as a Senior Systems Engineer at Lockheed Martin and as a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group and Booz Allen Hamilton. She holds a master's degree in international studies from the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) and an MBA in finance from the Wharton School at Penn. Additionally, she has a master's degree from Stanford University and a bachelor's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in aeronautics and astronautics.

Jesse D. Jenkins
Assistant Professor and Macro-scale Energy Systems Engineer, Princeton University

Jesse D. Jenkins is an assistant professor and macro-scale energy systems engineer at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and Environment. He leads the Princeton ZERO Lab, which focuses on improving and applying optimization-based energy systems models to evaluate and optimize low-carbon energy technologies, guide investment and research in innovative energy technologies, and generate insights to improve energy and climate policy and planning decisions.

Dr. Jenkins earned a PhD and SM from MIT, worked previously as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and spent six years as an energy and climate policy analyst prior to embarking on his academic career. Dr. Jenkins recently served on the National Academies of Science Engineering and Medicine expert committee on Accelerating Decarbonization of the U.S. Energy System, was a principal investigator and lead author of Princeton's landmark Net-Zero America study, and leads the REPEAT Project, which provides regular, timely, and independent environmental and economic evaluation of federal energy and climate policies as they’re proposed and enacted.

Dr. Jenkins regularly provides technical analysis and policy advice for non-profit organizations, policy makers, investors, and early-stage technology ventures working to accelerate the deployment of clean energy. He is currently an advisor to Rondo Energy, Eavor Technologies, MUUS Climate Partners, Energy Impact Partners, and Clean Air Task Force and is a partner with DeSolve, LLC, which provides decision support, analytics, and policy advisory services.

Lauren Boyd
Acting Office Director, Geothermal Technologies Office, U.S. Department of Energy

Lauren Boyd currently serves as the acting office director of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO). In her acting director role, Lauren manages GTO efforts to improve performance, lower costs, and accelerate deployment of all geothermal technologies.

Prior to her acting director role, Lauren was GTO's Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) program manager, responsible for all EGS-related activities, including strategic planning, budget formulation, and project execution of a broad portfolio. This portfolio included EGS research, development, and demonstration projects and new technology initiatives such as the DOE’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE). Lauren also manages DOE’s international portfolio on geothermal and represents the United States on several international steering committees.  

Shalanda H. Baker
Director, Office of Economic Impact and Diversity and Secretarial Advisor on Equity, U.S. Department of Energy

The Honorable Shalanda H. Baker is the director of the Office of Economic Impact and Diversity at the U.S. Department of Energy and Secretarial Advisor on Equity. Prior to her Senate confirmation, she served as the nation's first-ever deputy director for energy justice. Before joining the Biden-Harris Administration, she was a professor of law, public policy and urban affairs at Northeastern University.

She has spent over a decade conducting research on the equity dimensions of the global transition away from fossil fuel energy to cleaner energy resources. She is the author of over a dozen articles, book chapters, and essays on renewable energy law, energy justice, energy policy, and renewable energy development. In 2016, she received a Fulbright-Garcia-Robles research fellowship to study climate change, energy policy, and indigenous rights in Mexico.

She is the co-founder and former co-director of the Initiative for Energy Justice, an organization committed to providing technical law and policy support to communities on the frontlines of climate change. Her book, Revolutionary Power: An Activist’s Guide to the Energy Transition (Island Press 2021), argues that the technical terrain of energy policy should be the next domain to advance civil rights. She received her BS from the United States Air Force Academy and JD from Northeastern University School of Law. She obtained her LLM while serving as a William H. Hastie Fellow at the University of Wisconsin School of Law.

Kelly Crawford
Senior Advisor of Energy Equity and Environmental Justice, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy

Kelly Crawford is senior advisor of energy equity and environmental justice at the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). Crawford is an award-winning subject matter expert with more than a decade of technical experience in environmental science and engineering, energy policy, climate change, emergency management and response, and environmental justice and equity.

Before joining EERE, Crawford worked at the Department of Energy and Environment in Washington, D.C. as associate director of the Air Quality Division and state air pollution control officer. In 2019, she assumed leadership of the department’s equity committee, where she developed and implemented racial equity framework, built a racial equity impact tool, and conducted environmental justice and racial equity training within the department. 

Sonrisa Lucero
Special Advisor for Stakeholder Engagement, Office of Economic Impact and Diversity, U.S. Department of Energy

Sonrisa Lucero is a special advisor for stakeholder engagement in the Office of Economic Impact and Diversity. Sonrisa was most recently the equitable buildings decarbonization manager at RMI, where she led the efforts to integrate equity into carbon free buildings policy and advocacy. Previously, she worked to advance equitable sustainability and climate policy at the City and County of Denver in the Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency.

A lifelong activist for social justice, Sonrisa is skilled at building coalitions and guiding diverse stakeholders to equitably advance sustainability and combat climate change. Sonrisa was born and raised in Denver, Colorado, and graduated from Stanford University with an individually designed major in environmental systems engineering.

Commissioner Tammy Pearson
Beaver County, Utah

Commissioner Tammy Pearson is currently serving her third term in Beaver County, Utah. Commissioner Pearson has been very active on state and federal committees addressing concerns of public lands management. She is serving as the chairman of the National Association of Counties' Public Lands Management committee and serves on the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management's National Wild Horse & Burro Advisory Board. 

Commissioner Pearson also is the owner and operator of Pearson Ranch, home of 600 head of beef that graze on private and public lands, 800 acres of irrigated farm land, and leases private property for renewable energy production solar farms.

Beaver County is the heart of renewable energy with production hydro, wind, solar, geothermal and BoGas. Commissioner Pearson has been very involved and supportive of all of these diversified industries.

Christopher Katis
Marketing and Communications Specialist, Utah Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE)

Christopher Katis is a marketing and communications specialist at the Utah Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE). He is responsible for maintaining community and media relations, stakeholder engagement, and fostering communications with elected official and their staff.

Katis has spent his career in corporate communications and public relations, and is an award-winner author. He pens a monthly column for a local magazine and he is a regular contributor to a national parenting publication. He holds BA degrees in Russian language and political science from the University of Utah and an MA in international policy from the Monterey Institute of International Studies.

Elisabet Metcalfe
Communications and Stakeholder Engagement Lead, Geothermal Technologies Office, U.S. Department of Energy

Elisabet Metcalfe is a physical scientist and the communications and stakeholder engagement Lead with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO). She has been with GTO for nearly 13 years, and in that time has directed and developed research, design, and development portfolios; served as a funding opportunity manager; and established core science communications efforts.

Currently, Elisabet leads GTO efforts to strategically engage and inform diverse stakeholders about GTO program updates and funding opportunities. Her team consults with stakeholders for public comment, organizes events to share office news, manages competitions, facilitates collaboration in support of geothermal deployment and a clean energy transition, and more.

Prior to her time at GTO, Elisabet was a geographic information system analyst at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and a teaching and research assistant at the University of Maine. Elisabet holds a Bachelor of Science in geology and geophysics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a Master of Science in earth science and climate change policy from the University of Maine. 

Bryce Carter
Emerging Markets Program Manager for Geothermal Energy, Colorado Energy Office

Bryce Carter is the emerging markets program manager for geothermal at the Colorado Energy Office. He is an experienced program director and community advocate for environmental initiatives; his efforts include fostering a grassroots movement for 100% renewable energy commitments in Colorado, facilitating over 2 MW of rooftop solar installations across the state while pursuing opportunities for growing energy equity, implementing successful campaigns defending net metering policies, and orchestrating a Flood Recovery Weekend with hundreds of participants to support clean-up efforts in the aftermath of the 2013 Colorado floods.

Bryce’s community engagement has also been extensive, from hosting statewide conferences with hundreds of attendees in Virginia, North Dakota, and Colorado to serving on local boards such as Denver Mayor Michael Hancock's Sustainability Advisory Council.

While serving with the Public Interest Research Group’s Green Corps program, Bryce engaged with stakeholders on issues varying from livestock marketing in North Dakota, defending California’s global warming legislation, elevating concerns around the Keystone XL pipeline in Houston, and leading canvassing in Pennsylvania to protect local streams. While on staff with the Sierra Club, Bryce created community mapping and analysis tools used nationally by the organization that were leveraged to deploy the successful Colorado Ready for 100 Campaign. 

Betony Jones
Director, Office of Energy Jobs, U.S. Department of Energy

Betony Jones is the director of the Office of Energy Jobs, where she oversees jobs and workforce development strategies across the department as well as engagement with organized labor and other stakeholders to ensure that DOE’s policies and program implementation result in high-quality jobs and economic equity.

Prior to joining the Office of Energy Jobs, Jones was a senior advisor on workforce for DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Jones began her career working on climate science in the White House Office of Science and Technology policy in the Clinton Administration, where she saw the complex economy-wide nature of climate change as both a challenge and an opportunity. From there, she spent 20 years directing implementation and conducting policy research to demonstrate the employment and economic impacts and opportunities associated with climate action, including as associate director of the Green Economy program at the University of California Labor Center and as founder and CEO of Inclusive Economics, a national strategy firm working at the intersection of labor, workforce, and clean energy. She has published dozens of papers and reports on these topics, and is a nationally-recognized expert in labor-climate issues.

Jones earned her master's degree from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan. 

Marc Poulos
Associate General Counsel, International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 

Marc Poulos is the executive director of the Indiana, Illinois and Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting. After spending several years in the trades while attending night school, he graduated from Northeastern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Arts in political science. He went on to receive his Juris Doctor and a certificate in labor and employment law from Chicago-Kent College of Law. While in law school, he clerked for the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150 Legal Department and later became IUOE Local 150's associate general counsel.

Marc is a proud Local 150 member and sits on the board of directors for the Illinois Prevailing Wage Council, the National Alliance for Fair Contracting and Midwest Operating Engineers Information Technologies. Marc is admitted to practice law in the State of Illinois, Washington D.C. Court of Appeals, United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. He is a member of the American Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association and Chicago Bar Association.

John Murphy
International Representative, United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada

John J. Murphy was initiated into the membership of the former Plumbers Local Union No. 2, the home Local of George Meany, in January 1984. He is a fourth generation Union Plumber in the city of New York. After completing his apprenticeship, John worked in various capacities of the plumbing industry in both the private and public sectors.

In 1996 at the age of 32, John was elected as recording secretary and has since been elected as a business agent, financial secretary-treasurer and business manager, a position that he held until his election as a UA international representative. John is a vice president of the New York City Central Labor Council and the New York State Building and Construction Trades Council. He also serves on the board of NYS Helmets to Hardhats, Climate Jobs NY and the Climate Jobs National Resource Center, the Workers Institute Advisory Council at Cornell ILR and the Climate Jobs Advisory Board.

John has also served as a board member of both the Edward J. Malloy Construction Skills Initiative and Nontraditional Employment for Women.

Rob Klenner
Director of Geothermal Technologies and Innovation, Baker Hughes

Rob Klenner is the director of geothermal technologies and Innovation for Baker Hughes and has 15 years of experience in subsurface technology development for geothermal, oil and gas, and CCUS. Currently, he provides strategy and thought leadership to enable growth opportunities in the geothermal market and the commercialization of new geothermal technologies. He also serves as the executive director of the Wells2Watts Geothermal Consortium with major oil and gas operators.

Prior to joining Baker Hughes, he served in various managerial and technical at Baker Hughes, General Electric, EERC-University of North Dakota, and The Geysers at Calpine. Mr. Klenner received a B.S. and M.S. from the Harold Hamm School of Geology at the University of North Dakota, has authored or co-authored over 25 publications and filed over 12 U.S. and worldwide patents in energy development and digital solutions.

John Boden
Vice President, Information and Membership Services, Society of Petroleum Engineers  

John Boden joined the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) in 2014 and is responsible for SPE’s information technology (IT), member services, technical activities, professional activities and data governance.  

Prior to SPE, he was vice president of product innovation and carrier relations at SaskTel, and CTO and senior vice president of corporate development at Movius. Additionally, he held several other executive level roles leading strategy, innovation, R&D, corporate and business development in the telecommunications and tech industries. 

Boden graduated from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, with a B.Eng. degree in engineering physics. 

Josh Nordquist
Vice President of Drilling and Wellfield, Ormat Technologies, Inc. 

As vice president of drilling and wellfield for Ormat, Josh oversees the performance and sustainability of the companies drilling activities and operating geothermal resources. Through his 15-year term in the company, he has assumed a number of roles focused on the development of geothermal projects around the world. Josh remains involved in the U.S. geothermal industry, serving on a number of industry organizations such as Geothermal Rising, Nevada Commission on Mineral Resources, Geothermal Energy Association, Nevada Geothermal Council, and the Nevada New Energy Industry Task Force.   

Josh hails from Potter County, Pennsylvania; received a BS in mechanical engineering from Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York, and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Davis. 

Devinn Lambert
Deputy Director of Crosscuts and Energy Earthshots™, Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, U.S Department of Energy.

Devinn Lambert is the deputy director of Crosscuts and Energy Earthshots™ within the Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Devinn’s experience spans research and technology development, interagency coordination, workforce development, and community engagement. She also helped design and launch the Energy Earthshots Initiative.

Devinn has served in various offices within the DOE, including as a senior advisor in the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management and as a bioenergy technology manager within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. She has also detailed to the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Her background is in biotechnology. She has masters' degrees from the University of Cambridge and from Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and a bachelor's degree from Rutgers University. Devinn is the recipient of several prestigious awards including: Forbes 30 Under 30, the Presidential Management Fellowship, the Gates Cambridge Scholarship, the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, and the Goldwater Scholarship.

Dr. Andrew Schwartz
Division Director for Materials Sciences and Engineering, Basic Energy Sciences Program, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy

Dr. Andrew Schwartz has served as division director for Materials Sciences and Engineering within the DOE Office of Science's Basic Energy Sciences (BES) Program since 2022, after serving as acting division director since July 2020. From 2013 to 2022, he served as senior technical advisor for Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRCs), leading the team of BES Program Managers and support staff in management of the EFRC program.

From 2008 to 2013, Dr. Schwartz was program manager for the BES Experimental Condensed Matter Physics program, one of the largest core research areas in BES, supporting a diverse research portfolio with major emphasis on topics such as superconductivity, magnetism, spin physics, and low-dimensional systems.

Prior to joining BES, Dr. Schwartz spent seven years in industry leading a multi-disciplinary scientific and engineering team in the research and development of a new technology for semiconductor metrology. In this role, he was actively involved in project planning, strategic planning, budgeting, project execution, and business development.

Dr. Schwartz received a B.A. in physics from Amherst College and an M.S. and Ph.D. in physics from the University of California Los Angeles.

Darin Damiani
Senior Program Manager Carbon Storage, Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management, U.S. Department of Energy

Darin manages the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management (FECM) Carbon Transport and Storage (CTS) base R&D program that supports a portfolio of geologic CO₂ storage technology development projects and initiatives to advance commercial deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and storage-based carbon dioxide removal.

Darin has over a decade of experience in overseeing FECM-supported CTS technology development projects. He leads CTS base program planning and roadmapping and manages program execution with NETL, which includes engaging with international partners and key stakeholders to inform about FECM's carbon management mission and to help define ways FECM can provide technical assistance.

Darin joined FECM in 2015 after serving as a federal project manager at DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory for 8 years. While at NETL, Darin managed a variety of technology development projects including the Midwest Geological Sequestration Consortium, which was one of the seven Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships that successfully advanced carbon storage technologies and infrastructure needed to implement large-scale CCS projects in different regions and geologic formations of North America.

Dr. Isik C. Kizilyalli
Associate Director for Technology, Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy, Department of Energy

Dr. Isik C. Kizilyalli currently serves as the associate director for technology at the Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy (ARPA-E). In this role, Dr. Kizilyalli supports the oversight of all technology issues relating to ARPA-E’s programs, program development, program director and fellow recruitment, and coordinating project management across the Agency.

Prior to joining ARPA-E, Kizilyalli served as founder and CEO/CTO of Avogy Inc. and Zolt Inc., venture backed start-ups focused on power electronics. Previously, he was with Bell Laboratories, followed by Nitronex Corporation, and solar PV startup Alta Devices. Kizilyalli was elected a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in 2007 for his contributions to Integrated Circuit Technology.

Kizilyalli holds his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He has published more than 100 papers and holds 127 issued U.S. patents. 

Dr. Ceren Susut
Director of Computational Scientific Research & Partnership Division and the Acting Associate Director in the Advanced Scientific Computing Research Program Office, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy

Ceren Susut is the director of computational scientific research and partnership division and the acting associate director in the Advanced Scientific Computing Research program office, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy. She joined the Office of Science in 2011 and previously served as a program manager in Advanced Scientific Computing Research for multiple programs, including Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing (SciDAC), the Exascale Computing Project (ECP) and the National Quantum Information Science (QIS) Research Centers. As an early advocate for QIS within the Office of Science, she led the development of a cross-program strategy and the establishment of the National QIS Research Centers.

Ceren is a chemist with over a decade of research experience in heterogeneous catalysis and plasma polymerization for biomedical applications. She received her Ph.D. in chemistry from Georgetown University and worked at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) as a National Research Council research associate.

Senator Martin Heinrich
New Mexico

Elected in 2012, Martin Heinrich is a United States Senator for New Mexico. Heinrich serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources, Appropriations, Intelligence, and Joint Economic Committees. With a background in engineering, Heinrich brings a unique perspective to the Senate, where he is focused on creating the jobs of the future and confronting the climate crisis. He is a strong advocate for working families, a staunch ally of Indian Country, and a champion for New Mexico’s public lands and growing clean energy economy.

With its abundance of renewable energy resources and energy research hubs, New Mexico can lead the way in combating the devastating effects of climate change and modernizing our nation’s electrical grid. In 2015, Heinrich helped negotiate the long-term extension of renewable energy tax credits that support New Mexico’s growing clean energy industries. Heinrich introduced legislation to prepare New Mexico’s workforce for good-paying clean energy jobs. He has also supported the development of renewable energy projects on public and tribal lands, the adoption of innovative energy storage and battery technologies, and improvement to the security of our nation’s energy infrastructure.

Prior to being elected to the U.S. Senate, Heinrich served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Before he was elected to Congress, Heinrich served four years as an Albuquerque City Councilor and was elected as City Council President. He also served as New Mexico’s Natural Resources Trustee, working to conserve the state’s outdoor heritage. After completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Missouri, Heinrich and his wife, Julie, moved to Albuquerque where he began his career as a contractor working on directed energy technology at Phillips Laboratories, which is now Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base. Heinrich later served in AmeriCorps for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and was the Executive Director of the Cottonwood Gulch Foundation. He also led the Coalition for New Mexico Wilderness and founded a small public affairs consulting firm.

Kevin Jones

Acting Program Manager for the Enhanced Geothermal Systems Subprogram, Geothermal Technologies Office, U.S. Department of Energy

Kevin Jones is a Technology Manager at the U.S. Department of Energy's Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) and has served as the Acting Program Manager for the Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) Subprogram. He joined GTO in 2021 as the DOE Manager and Strategy Lead for the flagship EGS demonstration project, the Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE). Prior to his time at GTO, Kevin worked for ExxonMobil where he gained experience in every phase of the oil and gas asset life cycle, from research and exploration, through development, to late field life production. His industry experience includes research on geochemical indicators of hydrocarbon migration, disposal well permitting and modeling, geologic model construction, reservoir simulation, well placement and infrastructure optimization, well planning and execution, and more. Kevin graduated with a BS in geology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a MA and PhD in Geochemistry from Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory. 

Dr. Eric van Oort
Professor of Petroleum Engineering and J.J. King Chair in Engineering, University of Texas at Austin

Dr. Eric van Oort became professor in Petroleum Engineering and J.J. King Chair in Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin in 2012, after a 20-year industry career with Shell. He holds a PhD degree in chemical physics from the University of Amsterdam.

He has (co-)authored more than 200 technical papers, holds 20 patents, is a former SPE Distinguished Lecturer, a SPE Distinguished Member, and the 2017 winner of the international SPE Drilling Engineering Award. He is the director of the RAPID industry consortium at UT Austin with 20 industry members, dedicated to drilling automation and optimization, sensor technology and associated data analytics using machine learning and AI, modeling and digital twinning, robotics, and sustainability issues such as geothermal and CCS/CCUS well construction, well integrity and well repurposing, ARO reduction, zonal isolation and permanent well P&A.

In addition, he is the CEO of his own consulting company, EVO Energy Consulting, and co-founder of SPYDR Automation, dedicated to drilling automation; and Ultradeep Energy Company, dedicated to optimized deep (geothermal) drilling using dual gradient drilling technology.

Dr. Jonathan Ajo-Franklin
Professor of Geophysics, Rice University

Dr. Jonathan Ajo-Franklin is a professor of geophysics at Rice University’s Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences (EEPS) and a visiting Faculty Scientist in the Energy Geosciences Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).

Jonathan is an applied geophysicist working on problems in the environmental and energy domains including geothermal energy production, geological carbon storage, and near-surface hydrogeophysics. His group specializes in new acquisition and processing strategies for timelapse seismology including distributed acoustic sensing (DAS), permanent seismic source development, and high-resolution ambient noise approaches. He is also interested in the microscale physics and chemistry of geomaterials relevant to interpreting geophysical datasets, particularly the properties of fractures and mechanical alterations during reactive flow.

He led the recently completed Imperial Valley Dark Fiber Project (DOE GTO) which explored approaches for geothermal exploration using DAS deployed on telecom fiber and is currently the PI of FOGMORE@Utah FORGE, an R&D project exploring integrated fiber-optic sensing for geothermal reservoir monitoring.

Jonathan received his BA in computer science and history at Rice University (1998), followed by an MS (2003) and PhD (2005) in geophysics at Stanford University. After his postdoctoral studies at MIT’s Earth Resources Laboratory (2005-2007), he spent 12 years on the staff at LBNL before joining the faculty at Rice EEPS in 2019. 

Dr. Joe Morris
Associate Program Leader, Energy Security Program Subsurface Energy Portfolio, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Joe Morris is the associate program leader for the Energy Security Program's Subsurface Energy portfolio at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). He came to LLNL for a postdoc and stayed to perform research on the effects of explosions on underground facilities. Several years later, Morris moved to the private sector, where he could apply his abilities to providing technological solutions to a large commercial enterprise in the energy sector. After working for Schlumberger for five years, Joe checked back with LLNL, which was beginning to apply its expertise in high-performance computing (HPC) to challenges in the oil and gas industry.

His work includes collaborating with industry to address their needs in improving the extraction of resources, and modeling geothermal systems using HPC. Morris also leads national security-related research and serves as the associate program leader for nuclear effects research and development in the Nuclear Emergency Support Team program at LLNL.

Tim Latimer
CEO, Fervo Energy

Tim Latimer is the CEO of Fervo Energy. Fervo delivers 24/7 carbon free energy through development of next-generation geothermal power. Fervo's technology incorporates proven, cost-effective technologies, such as horizontal drilling and distributed fiber optic sensing, to unlock the potential of geothermal energy. Fervo is supported through Activate, Elemental Excelerator, the Department of Energy, Stanford University, and Breakthrough Energy Ventures.

Tim began his career as a drilling engineer with BHP Billiton where he worked in the Permian and Eagle Ford basins. With a growing appreciation of the urgency and importance of climate change, Tim left the oil and gas industry in 2015 to pursue an MBA and an MS in environment and resources from Stanford University and learn how to best contribute to the clean energy transition. Tim has also worked as a consultant for the Boston Consulting Group and as a consultant for startups Biota Technology and McClure Geomechanics. Tim is a fellow at Activate and the Clean Energy Leadership Institute. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tulsa.

Dr. Sam Noynaert
Associate Professor, Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering, Texas A&M University

Dr. Sam Noynaert is an associate professor of practice in the Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering at Texas A&M University. Prior to joining Texas A&M, he worked for BP and EOG Resources in field and engineering operations roles. 

Dr. Noynaert’s research is focused on drilling with an emphasis on practical solutions that improve drilling performance. The applied drilling research program uses a physics-based limiter redesign process which has resulted in significant gains (20% or more) in drilling performance for both highly technical experienced operators as well as smaller, less-experienced companies in the oil and gas industry. 

In 2019, he received DOE funding to bring this approach to the geothermal industry. Through this project, and by applying the same process and techniques as before, Texas A&M worked with the FORGE geothermal project to reduce their on-bottom drilling time by 80% over three wells. 

Lauren Boyd
Acting Office Director, Geothermal Technologies Office, U.S. Department of Energy

Lauren Boyd currently serves as the acting office director of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO). In her acting director role, Lauren manages GTO efforts to improve performance, lower costs, and accelerate deployment of all geothermal technologies.

Prior to her acting director role, Lauren was GTO's Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) program manager, responsible for all EGS-related activities, including strategic planning, budget formulation, and project execution of a broad portfolio. This portfolio included EGS research, development, and demonstration projects and new technology initiatives such as the DOE’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE). Lauren also manages DOE’s international portfolio on geothermal and represents the United States on several international steering committees.