Event

Glen Wright

JPAC Chair

Evan Lloyd

Acting Executive Director of the CEC

Craig Sabine

Manager Energy and Climate
ICF International

Craig Sabine is a manager in ICF International’s Electric Power and Carbon Markets division. He provides qualitative and quantitative analysis of energy and environmental markets, with unique expertise on Canadian power markets. Mr. Sabine has been analyzing emissions from power plants and large industries for more than eight years and has aided clients and policy makers in mitigation efforts through innovative policies and business strategies. Mr. Sabine has worked with many of Canada’s power generators, including TransCanada, Manitoba Hydro, Bruce Power, OPG, TransAlta, ATCO and the Canadian Electricity Association, in evaluating the risks and opportunities of new regulation, new investments, and dynamic energy and commodities markets.

On the public policy side, his work has driven air pollution policy development, standard-offer programs and infrastructure investment. Mr. Sabine has developed much of the Canadian portion of ICF’s power markets projection model, the IPM®, and has led numerous Canadian energy market studies and due diligence efforts for generators, ministries, regulators and large institutional investors.

Using the IPM® modeling framework, Mr. Sabine has been involved in a wide range of projects analyzing the Ontario and Alberta deregulated electricity markets, valuing assets, and determining the impacts of policies and business strategies for a variety of public and private sector clients. To compliment his energy market work, Mr. Sabine works with utilities, generators, ministries and oil and gas companies to quantify their GHG emission portfolios, provide support on mitigation strategies, and develop business and response strategies to climate change.

Miguel Breceda Lapeyre

Coordinator, Energy Program, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de la Ciudad de México (UACM)

Miguel G. Breceda-Lapeyre studied mathematics at the University of Maryland and then did postgraduate work in economics at the Colegio de México and the University of Grenoble. His work in academics, the public sector and consulting lies especially in energy economics and various environmental issues.

In the Mexican public sector, he was Assistant Manager of Economic Studies at Pemex-Refinación, National Liaison Director for Technical and Scientific Cooperation at the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores), Strategic Planning Coordinator at the National Energy Savings Commission (Comisión Nacional para el Ahorro de Energía-Conae) under the Secretariat of Energy (Secretaría de Energía), and later a CONAE consultant. As a consultant, he also participated in various projects with Canadian companies and worked closely with the CEC for several years. At the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, he worked on a project studying the life cycles of energy-consuming equipment in the public sector and prepared various studies on the integration of state energy savings programs for CONAE.

He has also worked with the Universidad Autónoma de la Ciudad de México (UACM) as founder and coordinator of the Energy Program and recently has developed projects for the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Secretaría de Medio Ambiente de México-Semarnat), including the Special Climate Change Program, and for the Government of Mexico City, the Climate Action Program, Green Building, and the Energy Inventory for the Mexico City Transportation Sector.

Jan Hamrin

Secretary General, Environmental Tracking Network of North America (ETNA)

Dr. Jan Hamrin is CEO of HMW International, a consulting firm specializing in implementation of sustainable energy policies.  She also serves as Secretary General of the Environmental Tracking Network of North America (ETNNA).

Jan recently retired as President of the Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) that she founded and headed for eleven years.  Her work has provided policy and technical support for the implementation of renewable energy, energy efficiency and climate programs throughout North America and globally. Jan has a Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of California Davis, with emphasis on public policy evaluation of environmental and energy programs.

Marlo Raynolds

Executive Director, Pembina Institute

Dr. Marlo Raynolds is Executive Director at the Pembina Institute, a non-profit environmental think-tank focused on energy and environment issues. He has worked with the Institute since 1995 in the development and practical application of triple-bottomline decision-making tools, strategies for sustainability, and policy research and advocacy.

Dr. Raynolds has worked with a wide range of clients and stakeholders, including many of the large Canadian energy companies. He holds a PhD in mechanical engineering (University of Alberta), a BSc in systems design engineering (University of Waterloo), and a masters in management and leadership for the voluntary sector (McGill University). Dr. Raynolds is also an adjunct assistant professor of sustainable development at the Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary and was recognized as one of Canada’s “Top 40 Under 40” for 2008.

Jan Hamrin

Secretary General, Environmental Tracking Network of North America (ETNNA)

Dr. Jan Hamrin is CEO of HMW International, a consulting firm specializing in implementation of sustainable energy policies.  She also serves as Secretary General of the Environmental Tracking Network of North America (ETNNA).

Jan recently retired as President of the Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) that she founded and headed for eleven years.  Her work has provided policy and technical support for the implementation of renewable energy, energy efficiency and climate programs throughout North America and globally. Jan has a Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of California Davis, with emphasis on public policy evaluation of environmental and energy programs.

Paul Weiringa

Executive Director, Alternative Energy Branch, Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources

Executive Director, Alternative Energy Branch
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources

Paul Wieringa is responsible for energy efficiency and conservation, bioenergy, and new technologies within the Electricity and Alternative Energy Division in his position as Executive Director of the Alternative Energy Branch of the British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources.

Mr. Wieringa was part of a team that developed the “2007 Energy Plan: A Vision for Clean Energy Leadership,” particularly the oil and gas component.

Activities of the Alternative Energy Branch include responsibility for renewable and low-carbon fuels, energy efficiency and conservation programs, bioenergy, and innovative clean energy technology policies.

In 1990, Paul joined the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. He has held various policy and managerial positions within the ministry, the Ministry of Finance and Crown Agencies Secretariat. In 2002 he returned to the Ministry of Energy and Mines as Director of Electricity Policy, focused on developing and implementing the Province’s 2002 Energy Plan. Paul holds a masters degree of economics from the University of Groningen, The Netherlands.

Donald McInnes

Vice Chair and CEO, Plutonic Power

Vice-Chair and CEO
Plutonic Power Corporation

Donald McInnes is the founder, vice chair and CEO of Plutonic Power Corporation, a British Columbia-based renewable power development company with a broad portfolio of clean energy projects. Mr. McInnes currently serves as a director of the Independent Power Producers’ Association of British Columbia, Prostate Cancer Canada, the Powell River Economic Development Society and is a Governor of the British Columbia Business Council. He was a finalist for the 2008 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and was bestowed a doctor of technology honoris causa from the BC Institute of Technology in 2009. Mr. McInnes is a frequent public speaker and contributor to the debate on public policy and the integration and value of clean power.

About Plutonic Power Corporation

British Columbia based Plutonic Power is a Canadian leader in clean energy development. Its vision is to create a legacy through the development of renewable, reliable, clean energy projects. Construction is currently underway on 340 megawatts of hydro and wind projects. In 2010 commercial operations will start at the $660 million, 196-megawatt East Toba River and Montrose Creek run-of-river hydroelectric project. Active construction is also underway on the $225 million, 144 MW Dokie Wind Project, diversifying Plutonic Power’s clean energy portfolio.

Plutonic Power is committed to working in partnership with First Nations, stakeholder groups and local communities in the development of all of its projects. By developing its suite of projects, Plutonic Power will help British Columbia realize its goal of becoming electricity-self-sufficient by 2016, utilizing 90% clean domestic generation sources, which will create employment opportunities and play a significant role in the fight against climate change.

Lawrence Pitt

Associate Director, Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions

Associate Director
Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions

Dr. Lawrence Pitt earned his B.Sc. in applied physics, an M.Sc. in electrical engineering from the University of Alberta, and a PhD in plasma physics from the University of Victoria. Following a period of service as a Combat Systems Engineer in the Navy, Dr. Pitt has been involved in energy system related research ranging from fusion energy and combustion systems, hydrogen and fuel cells, and integration of large-scale renewable energy to grids.

Most recently, Dr. Pitt was the associate director for the University of Victoria’s Institute for Integrated Energy Systems. He joined the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions on January 1, 2009, and has been an associate director since September.

Robert Wright

Senior Advisor
US Department of Energy

Dr. Wright is a Senior Advisor for Planning and Environmental Analysis at the Office of Fossil Energy, US Department of Energy, and a member of the Maryland Governor’s Strategic Energy Investment Fund Advisory Board. Dr. Wright has forty years of experience in energy technologies and electrical power generation, including fossil fuels, nuclear energy and renewable energy. Currently, he advises senior management at the Department of Energy on programs and policies to address climate change, alternative fuels and carbon capture and storage. Dr. Wright has represented both the Department and the United States in discussions with domestic organizations and foreign countries regarding climate change and climate change technology.

In 2007, he served as a Congressional Fellow in the US House of Representatives and, in 2008, as a Legislative Fellow in the US Senate. Both times he provided advice and counsel regarding issues on energy and climate change technology. Currently, he is extensively involved in international collaboration with Canada and Mexico on carbon capture and storage activities, including the development of a North American Carbon Storage Atlas, under the framework of clean energy.

U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20585
Email: robert.wright@hq.doe.gov
Telephone: 202-586-0429

Werner Kurz

Senior Research Scientist
Natural Resources Canada

Holder of a Ph.D. in forest ecology from the University of British Columbia, Dr. Kurz is a Senior Research Scientist at the Canadian Forest Service (Natural Resources Canada) in Victoria, BC. He leads the development of Canada’s National Forest Carbon Monitoring, Accounting and Reporting System and the development of the Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector (CBM-CFS3). His research focuses on the impacts of natural disturbances, forest management and land-use change on forest carbon budgets.

Dr. Kurz authored five reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), including the chapter on Forestry Mitigation Options in the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (Working Group 3). He is the Coordinator of the Carbon Task Force of the International Union of Forest Research Organisations (IUFRO) and serves as adjunct professor at both the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University. He received an honorary doctorate from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in 2009.

José Miguel González-Santaló

Director, Mechanical Systems
Instituto de Investigaciones Eléctricas

An electromechanical engineer with degrees in mechanical engineering from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), specializing in heat and energy transfer, José Miguel González Santaló began his professional career in 1972 working on nuclear reactors for GE in California. Back in Mexico, he began his academic career as Director of the Basic Sciences and Engineering Division at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM)-Azcapotzalco. He then joined the Institute of Electrical Research (Instituto de Investigaciones Eléctricas-IIE), where he directed the development of Latin America’s first generating plant simulator.

Dr. González Santaló has been a private consultant in the fields of energy and environment in Mexico, Spain, and the United States. He currently heads the IIE division responsible for conventional-source generation.

He has fostered carbon capture and sequestration projects, an area where the IIE heads various working groups in Mexico. He also represents Mexico on behalf of the Secretariat of Energy (Secretaría de Energía-Sener) at the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum (CSLF) and the North American Energy Working Group on the development of the Regional CO₂ Atlas, a joint project of Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Dale Friesen

Vice President, Aboriginal Relations
Health and Safety, ATCO Group

Aboriginal Relations
Health and Safety
Environment
ATCO Group
Utilities

Dale Friesen serves as Vice President for Aboriginal Relations, Health and Safety, and Environment at ATCO Group Utilities. He is responsible for developing the Group-wide strategic approach and overall framework for aboriginal community relations and establishing Group-wide objectives and goals for ATCO’s Health, Safety and Environmental stewardship programs.

Prior to his current role, Mr. Friesen had been appointed in 2008 as Vice President for Environmental Projects at ATCO Power and ATCO Energy Solutions.

Mr. Friesen joined ATCO in 1988 as an engineer in training with ATCO Electric (Alberta Power Limited). From 1992 to 2000, he held various roles within ATCO Power, including managing the Bulwer Island Cogeneration plant in Australia. In 2007 he was appointed Manager for Regulatory Affairs in ATCO Power’s corporate head office in Calgary, responsible for Commercial and Regulatory Issues, including emissions trading and climate change initiatives. He also led the development of ATCO Power’s 2007 Sustainability Report and the ATCO Group 2008 Sustainability Report.