Michael Allen Vice President 1 st Light Energy Michael Allen began his career in Solar energy in 2004 while studying the European Renewable Energy Markets. Upon returning to the US he moved directly into the heart of the Solar industry in Northern California. After experiencing small scale solar project design and sales aspects he moved into a position with BP Solar experiencing the corporate and large scale project design and system implementation process. During the fall of 2008 he joined 1st Light Energy with a focus on increasing their residential pentration and commercial pressence in the North East. Since, 1st Light Energy has expanded their sales and installation capacity to NY, and CT with both residential, not for profit, and commercial installation.
Paula Durand Senior Venture Officer for the Technology & Life Sciences Division NJ Economic Development Authority Paula Durand is a Senior Venture Officer for the Technology & Life Sciences Division of the NJ Economic Development Authority (EDA). Ms. Durand focuses on financing early stage clean technology companies under the Edison Innovation Fund and delivering a suite of clean energy solutions. Prior to joining the EDA, Ms. Durand was at HSBC where she managed a global portfolio of over one hundred public and government sector clients and structured financing for select corporate banking clients. She also worked at Chase in relationship banking and corporate finance focusing on middlemarket clients, and in accounting positions at two-major Fortune 500 technology companies. Ms. Durand serves on the Senior Advisory Committee and is a Voting Member of the Capital Markets Credit Analysts Society, the Board of Directors of the NJ Raritan Valley chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants, and is a member of the Financial Women s Association. Ms. Durand is a Certified Management Accountant and received herba degree in Economics from Northwestern University and her MBA degree in Finance from New York University.
Claus Habermeier Director Germany Trade and Invest Mr. Habermeier first studied Physics at the University of California Santa Barbara, and then completed a Masters in Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University, while working at Seagate Technology. After completion of his education, Claus Habermeier joined Accenture where he worked first as a consultant and then for three years as the Innovation Workshop Lead at the Accenture Technology Labs, which researches and develops applications for new and emerging technologies. In 2005 he joined the Industrial Investment Council, an agency of the German government promoting foreign direct investment in Eastern Germany. Following subsequent mergers with related government agencies, Claus Habermeier now works for the newly formed Germany Trade & Invest.
Dr. Krish Krishnamurthy Energy Innovation Council Manager Linde North America In his current role as Energy Innovation Council Manager in Linde, Dr. Krish Krishnamurthy works closely with the Energy Council members and the business units to move forward initiatives in the field of energy. Krish joined BOC (now part of the Linde Group) in 1985 and held several progressive positions in the R&D and Engineering organizations. He has won several company awards recognizing his contributions for moving technical ideas to commercial application. Krish s technical expertise is in the areas of separation process development and cryogenic distillation. He is an inventor on about 35 U.S. Patents, a co-author on over 30 professional publications and has a significant number of technical presentations to his credit. Krishhas served several positions in professional organizations including the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and, the International Institute of Refrigeration. Krishobtained his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering from Clarkson University, Potsdam, New York and his B.Tech. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Madras, India. Krishis a registered P.E. (professional engineer) in the State of New Jersey in the USA.
Michael Kruklinski Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy Siemens Corporation Michael Kruklinski is Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy at Siemens Corporation. His responsibilities include developing and deploying strategic initiatives, portfolio management, as well as tracking and advising on trends and economic forces impacting Siemens business in the U.S. Michael was Senior Director of Market Intelligence & Competitive analysis at Siemens Corporation from 2005-2007. From 1996 to 2004, Michael held two positions outside of Siemens as Senior Principal at the consulting firm of A.T. Kearney working in the financial institutions group and the high tech practice as well as at First American Corporation where he was SVP and Director of Business Process Innovations and Finance. Since beginning his career at Siemens in 1987, Michael has had a succession of increasing responsibilities in Germany and the United States in business administration, MIS, procurement and business process consulting.
Chris Neidl Advocacy Coordinator Solar One Chris Neidl is the advocacy coordinator for Solar One, a green energy, arts and education center serving the five boroughs of New York City. Since joining Solar One s staff in 2005, Chris has initiated a number of outreach and education programs that have built community interest and engagement in local renewable energy development, including Citysol, a solar powered music and advocacy festival; the Green Renter lecture series; and a photovoltaicsinstallation training course for high school students. In the spring of 2007, Chris launched the I Heart PV advocacy campaign, a grassroots effort to drive citizen feedback to local legislators in support of pro-solar policies for New York State. Raised in Albany, New York, Chris earned his BA in Urban Geography from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Chris career in clean energy began in 2004 at the Solar Living Institute in Hopland, California, where he studied and worked in the field of photovoltaic installation. Chris is currently completing his MA at NYU s Gallatin School of Individualized Studies, where he is focusing his research on the development of interactive, participant-centered strategies for public policy education and advocacy.
Alison Taylor Vice President Sustainability for the Americas Siemens Corporation Alison Taylor is Vice President, Sustainability for the Americas. In this position, she is responsible for driving the sustainability program for the Americas and acting as a resource for sustainability initiatives across Siemens business sectors. Prior to joining Siemens, Ms. Taylor was Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works for five years, and counsel to the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce for six years. Ms. Taylor has been a member of the U.S. delegation to United Nations conferences on Climate Change, Biodiversity, Sustainability and Ozone Layer Depletion. Prior toher service on Capitol Hill, Ms. Taylor was an equity partner in the Denver-based law firm Davis, Graham and Stubbs, LLC where she specialized in water law, mining law and environmental law. She clerked for several Denver firms and completed an internship during law school for the Honorable John L. Kane, Jr. on the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. She has contributed to numerous environmental publications and has been a frequent speaker for American Bar Association courses on environmental subjects. Ms. Taylor graduated from Duke University with an undergraduate degree in biology, and the University of Denver with a jurisdoctorate degree. She was Managing Editor of the Denver University Law Review. Ms. Taylor is admitted to the practice of law in the District ofcolumbia and Colorado.