Welcome to Xendee University Week 2026

Gregory
Hand

Product Manager Power Systems Controls
Eaton

POWER SYSTEM EXPERIENCE: LV and MV Distribution Automation Quotation, Engineering and Programming of Complex Multi-Source Power Systems Controls Engineering Manager PLC PROGRAMMING EXPERIENCE: > Eaton - XC-203, XC-303, ELC (Software: CoDeSys, ELCSoft, ECISoft) > Schneider - Modicon Premium, M340, Momentum, M580 (Software: Unity, Concept) > Rockwell Allen Bradley - ControlLogix, CompactLogix (Software: RSLogix5000, Studio5000) > Schweitzer - RTAC, 3xx, 5xx, 7xx (Software: AcSELerator RTAC, QuickSet, Architect) HMI PROGRAMMING EXPERIENCE: > Eaton - XP and XV Series, HMi Series (Software: VisualDesigner, HMiSoft) > Rockwell Allen Bradley - PanelView (Software: FactoryTalk View) > Schweitzer - Diagram Builder (Software: AcSELerator Diagram Builder) OTHER PROGRAMMING EXPERIENCE: MATLAB, C, JAVA, VBA (AutoCAD), Visual-LISP (AutoCAD), Atmel 8-bit AVR Assembly, Microchip PIC18 Series, etc. SWITCHGEAR EXPERIENCE: Quotation/Sales, Engineering, Programming, Project Management, Manufacturing, Troubleshooting, Factory Acceptance Testing, Startup, Site Acceptance Testing. ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Professional Engineer, Ironman, Senior Design Contest Award, Eagle Scout, National Honor Society

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Davis
Plunkett

Development Manager
Siemens

Creative individual committed to finding solutions to the world's growing energy needs. Experienced utility-scale and behind-the-meter solar + storage developer with a passion for renewable energy.

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Thomas
Losinger

Senior Manager Strategic Data Modeling
Solar Edge

Thomas is part of the Enterprise Services Group within SolarEdge for more than three years. For over a decade in the energy industry he successfully builds virtual power plants in Europe and Australia. In his presentation, he will explain what effects the establishment of a microgrid can have on the early development stage of a logistics hub.

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Steve
Lobo

Senior Engineer
Buro Happold

I am an Electrical and Energy Infrastructure Systems engineering professional with expertise in the planning and design of power and civil infrastructure systems for cities and urban developments in the US and the Middle East. Through academia and work experience, I've developed excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to lead and manage urban and energy transition plans, civil systems design, and construction program deliverables while working with multi-disciplinary teams. I support clients with thought leadership and the development of energy and infrastructure system plans for campuses, cities and utility companies. I am passionate about sustainable energy and civil systems for cities with a strong focus on energy transition, climate resilience and climate change adaptation.

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Kevin
O'Connell

Advanced Energy Systems Manager
MacAllister CAT

Kevin O'Connell, based in Detroit, MI, US, is currently a Advanced Energy Systems Manager at Michigan CAT. Kevin O'Connell brings experience from previous roles at Oakland Energy & Water Ventures, Stage 2 Innovations/Clear Sky Power Generation, Michigan CAT and Aggreko. Kevin O'Connell holds a 2004 - 2007 MBA in Business Administration @ Walsh College. With a robust skill set that includes Power Generation, Gas, Generators, Natural Gas, Sales and more.

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Stet
Sanborn

VP - Director of Climate Impact
Smithgroup

An award-winning engineer-architect, Stet Sanborn serves as SmithGroup's Director of Climate IMPACT, a national trans disciplinary team focused on Performance Analytics, Sustainability, Climate Resilience planning, decarbonization, and infrastructure engineering. He is a passionate advocate for distributed energy resources, and zero-carbon grid planning. Stet is a leading voice in statewide decarbonization efforts and building electrification; recently supporting the City of Berkeley, San Francisco, and San Jose on their electrification ordinance development along with supporting the recent launch of San Francisco’s Climate Action Plan. Along with leading the design and engineering of ZNE buildings, he currently sits on the San Francisco Mayors Building Decarbonization Taskforce for New Construction. Nationally, Stet serves on ASHRAE's Decarbonization Taskforce's Executive Committee. In addition, he is a co-author of the recently released ASHRAE Advanced Energy Design Guide for Zero Energy multi-family buildings, as well as the joint DOE/ASHRAE Decarbonizing Thermal Systems: Guide to Heatpump and Beyond. Stet is an active member of BuildingGreen’s Sustainable Design Leaders’ working group on electrification retrofits of existing buildings and represents SmithGroup as part of the US Department of Energy Better Buildings Design and Construction Allies Working Group focused on rapid scaling of low and zero-carbon buildings. Stet earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Kettering University and a Master of Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley with a focus on building science. He frequently returns to Berkeley to serve as a guest faculty member in the Department of Architecture. In addition, he serves as Principal Investigator on several US Department of Energy, US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and California Energy Commission funded research projects focused on decarbonization and development of enabling technologies.

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Markus
Virta

Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Cascadia Renewables

I am the co-founder and Managing Partner of Cascadia Renewables and Sulis Energy. Through Cascadia Renewables, I lead feasibility, planning, program design, and project development work for community-scale solar, battery energy storage, and microgrid projects across the United States. Through Sulis Energy we carry complex community energy infrastructure projects through delivery as a microgrid-focused EPC/Construction Management firm.

Our work focuses on the integration of distributed energy resources with emergency management, climate resilience planning, and distribution system utilization. This includes supporting resilience hub development, microgrid feasibility studies, and technical assistance programs that help communities move from early concepts to construction-ready projects.

I’ve been involved in the solar and storage industry since 2010, working across installation, system design, development, and policy advocacy. I previously served on the board of the Washington Solar Energy Industries Association (WASEIA) from 2017 to 2023, including three years as President where I focused on supporting emerging frameworks for BESS and microgrid adoption in the PNW.

I’m particularly interested in how distributed energy systems can strengthen communities, modernize the grid, and create a more resilient and equitable energy future.

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Jon
La Follett

Director of Engineering
Mayfield Renewables

Strategy, market intelligence, product development and optimization for integrated distributed energy solutions including solar, gas generation, energy storage, and economic optimization of operations.

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John
Cordi

Director of Demand Flexibility and VPP
New York Power Authority

John is a leader in energy markets and demand flexibility, with over two decades of expertise spanning both regulatory and operational spheres. As Director of Demand Flexibility & Virtual Power Plants at the New York Power Authority (NYPA), John spearheads strategies to enhance grid resilience and optimize distributed energy resources. His career includes senior positions at NYISO and executive leadership positions across government and industry, reflecting a deep commitment to advancing sustainable energy solutions through innovation and strategic oversight.

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Amir
Kiani

Senior Technical Project Manager
Amazon Web Services

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Colman
Hands

Sustainable Energy Programmes Manager
ABHA Foundation

Colman Hands is the Sustainable Energy Programmes Manager at the Al-Attiyah Foundation for Energy and Sustainable Development, based in Doha, Qatar. Since joining the Foundation in 2016, he has been responsible for managing and overseeing all Sustainable Development Programmes. His role includes the production of conferences, forums, policy recommendations, and research papers related to sustainable energy. In addition to his role at the Foundation, Colman currently serves as Co-Chair of the ICC Qatar Environment & Energy Commission, where he leads the Commission’s work in guiding policy development on global environmental issues and engages with key stakeholders, including international organizations and United Nations bodies. Prior to his current position, Colman served as the Corporate Sustainability Coordinator for Qatar Rail, where he managed all environmental and sustainability aspects of the Doha Metro Project. He also held the role of Corporate Environmental and Sustainability Manager at the Murphy Group in London, where he led a team of over 30 professionals in developing and implementing the company’s sustainability strategy. Colman holds an MSc in Environmental and Sustainability Systems and a BSc in Project Management from Galway Mayo Institute of Technology. His extensive experience and academic background have positioned him as a key figure in the development and implementation of sustainable energy policies at the Al-Attiyah Foundation.

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Alan
Escoriza

Grid Innovation Engineer
Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E)

Alan Escoriza is an Expert Grid Innovation Engineer with Pacific Gas and Electric Company, supporting the Microgrid Design and Delivery team. He has over fourteen years of experience spanning the electric utility, distributed energy resource, and energy efficiency domains and is a licensed Professional Engineer as well as a certified Project Management Professional. His work focuses on advancing PG&E’s community microgrid portfolio and delivering resilient energy solutions for critical facilities and communities across the PG&E service territory.

In his current role, Alan provides technical leadership and program support for community microgrid projects, including those funded through the Microgrid Incentive Program. His responsibilities include technical consultations with local communities, coordination with third‑party developers, and close collaboration with internal PG&E teams spanning planning, interconnection, system protection, and operations.

Alan is actively involved in the development and application of standardized microgrid design guidelines, technical requirements, and evaluation frameworks intended to support consistent project development and execution. His work emphasizes translating program objectives and technical considerations into implementable projects that can move efficiently from concept through construction and long‑term operation while meeting utility, regulatory, and community needs.

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Jake
Rudesill

Business Dev. Manager
Hyliion

Commercializing the KARNO linear generator at Hyliion to deliver cheap, flexible, and clean on-site electricity - independent of the grid. Joined Hyliion during our electric semi-truck era. Led the integration of the 2022 KARNO acquisition from GE Aerospace. Today, I work closely with customers and partners to deploy KARNO Power Modules across some of the highest-impact industries in the world - Datacenter, Military, Oil & Gas, Commercial & Industrial, and more. ex-American Airlines | former scratch golfer | occasional music producer

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Justin
Lenoff

Group Applications Manager - Microgrids
Clarke Energy

Senior energy systems leader with 15+ years driving innovation across microgrids, distributed generation, and energy storage. I bridge technical execution with business strategy, lead global cross-functional teams, and shape how hybrid power systems get designed, financed, and deployed at scale. At Clarke Energy, I lead global microgrid strategy — integrating gas engines, CHP, energy storage, and renewables for industrial, utility, and AI data center applications. I've developed over 500 MW of hybrid energy projects across the US, UK, Australia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, secured a $52M DOE grant for a long-duration solar-storage microgrid in Casa Grande, AZ, and directed feasibility and pre-sales modeling for more than $1B in global pipeline opportunities. My current focus is on the architecture and procurement challenges of powering volatile, high-density compute loads — where conventional generation assumptions break down and inverter-led hybrid designs become essential. I write and speak regularly on hybrid energy systems for AI infrastructure and microgrid controls — recent venues include AEE World 2025, AEE West 2026, EUEC 2025, and IEEE Phoenix Tech Talks. I'm a DOE Data Center Energy Practitioner (Generalist + Electrical Specialist), an Allen Bradley ControlLogix Level 1 & 2 certified controls engineer, and a USAF veteran with prior program management experience at the Air Force Research Laboratory. Always open to conversations about hybrid power architecture, energy storage strategy, microgrid controls, and the energy transition.

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Adib
Nasle

Co-Founder & CEO
Xendee

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Erich
Buss

Microgrid and VPP Infrastructure Manager
TruCurrent

As a Microgrid and VPP Infrastructure Manager at trucurrent, I deliver integrated grid-edge energy solutions by working with large enterprises to deploy dynamic on-site energy systems such as integrated microgrids, organize demand response programs, and plan and deploy battery electric energy storage systems. I have more than 14 years of experience in strategic planning and execution with key decision makers to define, engineer, build, and operate renewable energy technology projects that optimize grid services and EV, DER, and Microgrid operations. I hold a PMP certification from the Project Management Institute and a master's degree in Engineering Management from Old Dominion University. I have a strong background in applying the principles and practices of solution development, data analysis, quality assurance, and risk management to deliver successful outcomes for my clients and stakeholders. I am passionate about advancing the adoption and integration of renewable energy and contributing to a more sustainable and resilient energy future.

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Michael
Stadler

Co-Founder & CTO
Xendee

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James
Dodenhoff

Principal
Silent Running

James Dodenhoff is a leading expert in clean energy, decarbonization, and sustainability with over 25 years of experience reshaping the energy sector. with particular focus on the Western U.S. Jim has previous stints in the clean energy space with Southern California Edison, DNV GL Energy, and S&C Electric. He currently runs his own firm, Silent Running Energy, an Energy Advisory firm for commercial and industrial businesses. Jim has an M.B.A in Strategy/Finance from the UCLA Anderson Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Energy Studies/Mechanical Engineering from Brown University.

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Elisa Wood

Editor, Publisher and Founder 
Energy Changemakers

Elisa Wood is an award-winning writer and editor who specializes in the energy industry. She is the founder, editor, and publisher of EnergyChangemakers.com and its magazine, Decentralized Grid. She also leads the company's content services division. She co-founded Microgrid Knowledge and was editor-in-chief and co-host of the publication's popular conference series from 2014 to 2023. In addition, she co-founded RealEnergyWriters.com, where she led a team of energy writers who produced content for energy companies and advocacy organizations for two decades. She has been writing about energy for more than three decades and is published widely. Her work can be found in prominent energy business journals and mainstream publications. She has been quoted by NPR, the Wall Street Journal and other notable media outlets. "For an especially readable voice in the industry, the most consistent interpreter across these years has been the energy journalist Elisa Wood, whose Microgrid Knowledge (and conference) has aggregated more stories better than any other feed of its time," wrote Malcolm McCullough, in the book, Downtime on the Microgrid, published by MIT Press in 2020. Elisa's specialties include distributed energy resources, electrification, grid modernization, smart grid, energy efficiency, electric transmission, competitive wholesale and retail power markets, investor-owned and public power utilities, renewable energy, energy policy and economics, and other topics related to the electric power industry. She wrote for S&P Global/Platts for more than two decades. Her work can also be found on several energy news sites, among them Renewable Energy World, Power Engineering International, GreenBiz, Public Power Magazine and Utility Dive.

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Bikash
Poudel

Research Scientist, Power and Energy Systems Department
Idaho National Laboratory

Dr. Bikash Poudel is a researcher in the Power and Energy Systems Department at Idaho National Laboratory (INL), with expertise in small nuclear reactors, integrated energy systems, and microgrids. Since joining INL in 2021, he has contributed to several projects funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, including work on nuclear-integrated system digital twins, nuclear hydrogen production, microgrid solutions for coastal and wildfire-resilient communities, and infrastructure modernization for rural utilities. His technical expertise encompasses dynamic process modeling, control system design, transient simulation, hardware-in-the-loop tests, load flow and contingency analysis, optimization, and resilience analysis. Dr. Poudel holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Tribhuvan University, Nepal.

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Tim
Cali

Co-Founder
Power Equity Group

With 20+ years of field construction, photovoltaics, commercial lighting, and financing experience, Tim Cali is recognized as a leader in the industry. Tim’s varied successes include working with marquee clients such as the New Jersey Transit Authority and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Tim’s career path led him to the residential mortgage industry where he has served as a loan officer and a wholesale loan representative for almost a decade. Being drawn into the renewable energy field, Tim is able to directly apply his industrial technology degree and commercial lighting research and finance background to the development and financing of projects of all sizes. During his tenure at SolarCity, Tim was responsible directly and indirectly for 702 installations that yielded 3.8 MW of PV at a value of over $21,000,000.00 Combining his passion for renewable energy and his experience with finance, Tim has been leading the effort as the Manger of Commercial Sales for Renew Financial, a PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) finance company. Tim has now become an industry expert in HVAC and PV financing and is a reliable resource as it pertains to financing sustainable energy projects.

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Dr. Nathan
Johnson

Director of The Polytechnic School
Arizona State University

Dr. Nathan Johnson leads numerous efforts at Arizona State University to accelerate energy sector development through innovation in stakeholder value propositions, technology, business models, and policy. In this, Dr. Johnson builds public-private partnerships in the US and internationally that deliver clean, resilient, and equitable energy for all. His at the Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions (https://leaps.asu.edu) and partners have led over $400M of research, development, and implementation across 20 countries in North America, Pacific, Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East, and Latin America. This work is complemented by thought leadership in over 80 publications, and by providing training and workforce development to over 1000 people per year in the energy sector, which together advance economic development and job creation. Outside of the office, Dr. Johnson enjoys competing in endurance running and regularly tours the countryside by bicycle with his family of five.

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Michael
Zellinger

Chief Executive Officer
Autonomize Gmbh

Ing. Michael Zellinger, MSc is CEO of autonomize GmbH, an Austrian energy service provider and planning partner for holistic energy solutions. He supports companies in analyzing energy demand, identifying efficiency potential, and developing integrated concepts for sustainable heat and energy supply. His work focuses on the practical decarbonization of energy systems, combining structured planning, implementation support, and renewable heat solutions such as solar thermal energy for commercial, industrial, and district heating applications.

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Govinda
Hira

Commercial Manager
Mainspring Energy

Nic
Bustamante

Chief Data Center Officer
Exowatt

Nic Bustamante is Chief Data Center Officer and GM of ExoRise. Nic has more than 25 years of global hyperscale data center development experience in over 100 markets. He's responsible for all aspects of development, operations, and business globally. Nic's background includes leadership positions at Corscale Data Centers, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Rackspace. He holds numerous industry certifications and has co-authored an array of industry standards. 

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Lisa Martine Jenkins

Editor
Latitude Media

Lisa Martine Jenkins is Latitude Media’s editor. She was previously a reporter for Protocol and Morning Consult, and her work has appeared in Heatmap, The Guardian, and Civil Eats, among others. In 2017, she was the Overseas Press Club Foundation’s Stan Swinton Fellow, placed at The Associated Press in Mexico City. Earlier in her career, she worked in production for both the Marketplace Morning Report radio program and San Francisco’s Commonwealth Club.

Lisa has an M.A. from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, where she studied energy and environmental policy. While there, she conducted research on both rural electrification in Myanmar and the impact of sea level rise on nuclear spent fuel storage; the latter was published in Energy Policy. She has a B.A. from UC Berkeley.

She lives in Brooklyn, and is originally from the Bay Area. You can find more of her work at lisamartinejenkins.com.

Get in touch with Lisa at lisa@latitudemedia.com, or securely on Signal at lmj.5709.

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Hemma Bieser

Managing Partner
avantsmart

Hemma Bieser, MSc is the founder and managing director of avantsmart, an
innovation company. Since 2011, she and her team have been developing new
business models for the energy market and helping to shape the energy
transition.

Hemma Bieser currently supports companies in their digital transformation and uses business design
methods to open up the business areas of the future for her clients. Her clients include Austrian
energy and industrial companies, medium-sized companies and hidden champions, start-ups with a
focus on energy and IT, as well as organizations and the public sector.

Hemma Bieser is a founding member of the OurPower Energy Cooperative and was Deputy
Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board from October 2018 to May 2022. Hemma Bieser has been a
member of the Management Board since June 2022. With her experience and expertise, she is
responsible for innovation, transformation and OurPower's growth trajectory.

Research and political strategies:
Hemma Bieser has been involved in several climate and energy strategy processes. Together with
her research partners FH Technikum Wien, TU Wien and Montanuniversität Leoben, she is already
thinking further into the future and designing models that should make an energy supply purely from
renewable sources possible. She also develops innovative event formats (Innovation Day at Smart
Grids Week on behalf of the BMVIT, Digital Lunchbox in cooperation with Austrian Lotteries), where
new ideas and development partnerships are created in a creative atmosphere. Hemma has an
excellent network in the renewable energy sector (political decision-makers, companies, research).

Teaching:
Working with young people is particularly close to Hemma Bieser's heart. In order to pass on her
knowledge, she gives lectures on business design, entrepreneurship and innovation at the
Technikum Wien (University of Applied Sciences and Academy) and the Vienna University of
Technology.

Education and awards:
Hemma Bieser studied Technical Physics at the Vienna University of Technology and completed an
MSc in Management & Environment. Ongoing training in design thinking, business design and lean
startup strategies, coupled with her expertise in the energy market, make her a leading expert in this
field.
Before Hemma Bieser became an entrepreneur, she worked for the Climate and Energy Fund and
for the international management consultancy Accenture.
In 2015, Hemma Bieser was awarded the ÖGUT Environmental Prize and in April 2017 she was
named FemTech Expert of the BMVIT.

Selection of customer references:
Siemens AG Austria, Energie Steiermark, Kelag, Kärnten Netz, W&H Dentalwerke, Federal Ministry
for Transport, Innovation and Technology, Climate and Energy Fund, Lower Austrian Chamber of
Commerce, Energy and Environment Agency of Lower Austria, University of Applied Sciences
Technikum Wien, Federal Ministry for Climate Protection.

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Tristan
Bannon

Chief Commercial Officer
CellCube

CellCube is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of non-lithium, grid-scale energy storage systems, specializing in hashtag#vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs)—the most mature electrochemical solution for long-duration storage. These systems have been in commercial operation for over 15 years, helping clients reduce costs and build resilience.

I first worked with CellCube during my time at Leidos, deploying a 5 MWh system at a United States Marine Corps base in California for the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). That installation enables the base to operate completely off-grid for 10 hours—and even longer when paired with on-site solar and backup  generation.

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Reynaldo
Guerrero

Principal Engineer
Xendee

Reynaldo C. Guerrero Jr. is a Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical and Electronics Engineering (University of the Philippines, Diliman 2019), Master of Science in Electronics Engineering (Ateneo de Manila University 2011), Bachelor of Science in Electronics and Communications Engineering (Ateneo de Manila University 2007) and cofounder and board member at SolarSolutions, Inc.

Previously, Reynaldo worked at SunPower Corporation as a Senior Staff Device Engineer and at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory as an affiliate implementing multi-period investments in DER modeling and sizing.

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Michael
Niederkofler

Head of Innovation
Enlion

Specialities:
7 years of working experience in China, 3 years in Kazakhstan, 1 year in Venezuela
Experience in establishing and developping companies in foreign countries
Experience in developping green field and brown field projects
Management, Project Management, Business Development, Technical and Technological Development, Engineering, Manufacturing, Innovation Management, Open Innovation, Renewable Energies

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Jim
Reilly

Principal
Reilly Associates

Jim is an independent consultant focused on advanced microgrid concepts that support energy security, grid reliability and resilience. Among his clients are the US DOE Microgrid Program and NEDO in Japan. He is the author of multiple reports, standards and guides for microgrids and virtual power plants. He is a co-author of the Advanced Microgrid report, developer of modeling and analysis tools for planning studies for distributed energy resources, including SMR, for AI/Datacenters. He is a lifetime member of the IEEE PES and recipient of the IEEE SA Emerging Technology Award for 2024.

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Herbert
Saurugg

President
Society for Crisis Preparedness

Since 2011, Herbert Saurugg has focused on the increasing interconnectedness and complexity of our society. His primary focus lies on vital (critical) infrastructures—known as KRITIS—and their interdependencies. Central themes in his work include the European power supply system and the highly realistic scenario of a Europe-wide power and infrastructure failure (a "blackout"). He assists municipalities, businesses, and other organizations in preparing for such blackout events.

His professional background includes a career as a commissioned officer in the Austrian Armed Forces (Major, retired), where he served in the field of ICT and cybersecurity until 2012. Furthermore, he was active for many years as a volunteer firefighter and as an emergency medical technician with the Red Cross. His expertise is further rounded out by his certification as a Crisis and Emergency Manager (BdSI). Additionally, he has acquired extensive knowledge in the fields of systems science and complexity science, and has contributed to various national research projects.

Today, he is recognized far beyond Austria’s borders as a visionary "thought leader," keynote speaker, and expert on blackouts. He also maintains a comprehensive specialist blog dedicated to this subject (www.saurugg.net).

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Herbert
Saurugg

Senior Researcher
Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies (BEST)

Dr. Daniel Muschick is a scientific researcher at BEST – Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies in Graz, Austria, where he specializes in automation, control systems, and optimization-based energy management for hybrid energy systems. His work focuses on modeling, simulation, and control of thermal and energy networks, including district heating systems and renewable-integrated infrastructure. He has contributed extensively to the development of MILP-based energy management frameworks and advanced control strategies for complex, multi-energy systems.

Dr. Muschick earned his Ph.D. in Control Engineering from Graz University of Technology with distinction, following a master’s degree in Telematics with a focus on automation and control. His academic and professional work includes research on parameter identification for electrical machines, distributed optimization, and smart control of interconnected energy networks. He is a published author in leading journals such as Applied Energy and Energy Systems, and continues to advance practical solutions for scalable, efficient, and sustainable energy systems.

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Melanie
Johnson

Team Lead
U.S. Army Engineer R&D Center

Melanie D. Johnson is an electrical engineering researcher in the Energy Branch of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL). Melanie joined the Energy Branch at ERDC-CERL in 2008 and focuses on improving energy resiliency for DoD installations with microgrids and other advanced electrical distribution technology.

This work includes incorporating diverse distributed generation portfolios into microgrids and microgrid project lifecycle planning. She was the Assistant Technical Manager for the JCTD SPIDERS program, a key technical lead for the Tactical Microgrids Standards Consortium, and currently leads CERL’s Resilient Energy and Advanced Distribution Innovation Team.

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Sopitsuda
Tongsopit

Senior Strategic Business Planner
SMUD

A change catalyst with a track record of leading and supervising international teams of researchers, working to achieve zero carbon goals through solar, energy storage, microgrids, and electric vehicles. Strong research professional with a B.A. from Dartmouth College (Chemistry) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) focused on distributed generation from University of California, Santa Cruz.

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Tim
Grunloh

Principal Research Scientist
University of Illinois Urbana Champaign

 Dr. Timothy Grunloh is a principal research scientist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.) in the department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering and associate director of the Illinois Nuclear Power Institute (INPI). At U. of I. and INPI, Dr. Grunloh contributes to multi-disciplinary research, particularly at the intersection of computational science and advanced nuclear reactors. Through the Illinois Microreactor RD&D Center, Dr. Grunloh’s work is also focused on enabling and expanding safe, peaceful uses of nuclear power. Current research activities in this Center include microreactor modeling and simulation, siting analysis, market analysis, instrumentation, operations and reactor control, licensing, and policy. The Center’s flagship project is the ongoing collaboration with Nano Nuclear Energy to deploy a KRONOS Micro Modular Reactor (MMR) on the university campus as a Research Reactor. Prior to U. of I., Dr. Grunloh worked in the advanced reactor design industry. 

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Matthias
Ries

CEO & Co-Founder
EneRies

Matthias W. Ries is the CEO and Founder of EneRies GmbH, an Austrian-based company. He brings experience in energy, project management, and IT services, previously working with firms like Brovestment Beteiligungs GmbH and SmartSite Power.

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Guillermo
Gomez

Senior Technical Project Manager
Veregy

Greg
Vallery, PE

U.S. Army Brigade Engineer
U.S. Army

PE involved in Energy and Water Sustainability/Resilience Initiatives. Experience includes implementation of Microgrids with CHP and Renewable DERs at Military installations.

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Jim
Walsh

General Manager
General Electric (GE) Vernova

Jim Walsh is General Manager, GE Vernova's Consulting Services business, which provides innovative solutions across the entire spectrum of power generation, delivery, and utilization. With our cross-company resources, we are able to serve a diverse global client base with a strong local presence.  

Previously, Jim was the General Manager of GE Digital’s Grid Software Solutions. In this role, Jim led a team of talented professionals focused on providing mission-critical information systems that help ensure reliable, efficient and safe delivery of electricity, water, and fuels for utilities around the world. This business serves the electrical Transmission & Distribution, Oil & Gas and Telecommunications segments. As such, Jim has had a front row seat to the Energy transition and has been directly involved in shaping GE’s approach to it.

Jim’s career is marked by a long history of software experience and expertise. He joined GE in 2008 as GM, Global Professional Services for GE’s Intelligent Platforms Software and Services business, after spending 19 years with 3M in various software leadership roles. In 2011, Jim’s role was expanded to Global Business Leader overseeing automation, manufacturing and industrial data intelligence software along with global professional services. Jim was promoted to GM, Software and Services in August 2012. In 2014, he assumed the role of GM, Intelligent Platforms with responsibilities for all Global Commercial facets including Sales, Marketing and Services. In early 2015, Jim was promoted to President and General Manager of GE’s Intelligent Platforms Software business, leading Product Management, Technology, Services and Support for the Digital portfolio. Prior to moving to GE Digital, Jim served as President and CEO of GE’s Automation and Controls business. Jim has played a key role in advancing GE’s software monitoring and analytics capabilities and transforming the businesses he’s led into profitable and growing entities. 

Jim attended the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota and graduated with a B.S. degree in Finance.
He resides in Charlotte with his wife and two daughters.

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