Kerry-Ann Adamson

Global Strategic Advisor, Hydrogen
Worley

Dr. Kerry-Ann Adamson has been working in the hydrogen and fuel cell sectors for over twenty years. She has seen it evolve from a small group on first-name terms into a potential core plank of the global energy ecosystem. Kerry-Ann works at the front end of the industry in strategy, policy, and finance and increasingly on the digital front. She got her Ph.D. from Imperial College a long time ago. 

Emily A. Carter

Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mathematics
Senior Strategic Advisor for Sustainability Science at Princeton Plasma Physics Lab (PPPL) Princeton University

Emily A. Carter returned to Princeton University in January 2022 as the Gerhard R. Andlinger Professor in Energy and the Environment, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE), the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment (ACEE), and the Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics (PACM), and as Senior Strategic Advisor for Sustainability Science at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. She first rose through faculty ranks as a physical chemist at UCLA (1988-2004) before joining Princeton’s MAE and PACM, and holding Arthur W. Marks ’19 and Gerhard R. Andlinger Professorships (2004-19). She was ACEE’s Founding Director (2010-16) and Princeton’s Dean of Engineering and Applied Science (2016-19) before becoming UCLA’s Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost, and Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (2019-21). Among other honors, she was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and European Academy of Sciences.

Christopher Chen

Sustainability Project Engineer
New Jersey Natural Gas Co.

Chris received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University.  He started his career as an Electrical Engineer at an EPC working in petrochemical refineries owned by the likes of ExxonMobil, BP, and Citgo.  He then went on to work for Rolls Royce Energy Systems, packaging aero-derivative gas turbines into compressors and generators.

As renewable power started taking off, Chris took a role with NJR Clean Energy Ventures, NJNG’s sister company, to help build New Jersey’s largest solar portfolio at over 350MW.  He transferred to NJNG as a Sustainability Project Engineer to work on low- and zero-carbon fuels like Renewable Natural Gas and Green Hydrogen, and served as the lead on the Power-to-Gas Green Hydrogen project responsible for its development, engineering, permitting, construction, and now, its operation.

Upendra J. Chivukula

Commissioner
New Jersey Board of Public Utilities

Upendra J. Chivukula was nominated by Governor Christopher J. Christie as a Commissioner to the N.J. Board of Public Utilities on September 18, 2014, and confirmed by the Senate on September 22, 2014

Prior to his nomination, Mr. Chivukula served in the New Jersey Assembly representing the 17th legislative district, where he served as chair of the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee. He also had the honor of serving as Vice Chair of Homeland Security and State Preparedness, Commerce and Economic Development, and Environment and Solid Waste. Mr. Chivukula was also a founding member and Co-Chair of the NJ Science & Technology Legislative Caucus and the NJ World Languages & International Studies Legislative Caucus. He was a member of the Commission on Science and Technology, and the Health Information Technology Commissions.

Before becoming a state legislator, Mr. Chivukula served as Mayor of Franklin Township for a year and on Town Council for another seven years. He also served on the National Council of State Legislatures and on the Council of State Governments.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Chivukula worked as an engineer for AT&T and as a project engineer for Leeds & Northrup building waste treatment plant control. He currently serves on the Telecommunication and International Relations Committees of National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC); a member of Mid-Atlantic Conference of Regulatory Utilities Commissioners (MACRUC); he served on the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC); Communications, Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Committee V (CSRIC V) Advisory Committee, as well as NARUC’s Telecommunications Act Modernization (TeAM) Task Force.  He also serves on the Einstein Alley Advisory Council.

Mr. Chivukula received a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the College of Engineering, Chennai, India, and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from City College, New York, and took graduate courses in Electrical Engineering at Rutgers University.

David B. Graves

Associate Lab Director, Princeton Plasma Physics Lab (PPPL)
Princeton University

David B. Graves joined the University of California at Berkeley Department of Chemical Engineering in 1986 after receiving his Ph.D. (Chemical Engineering) from the University of Minnesota. He retired from UCB in May 2020 and joined the Princeton Plasma Physics Lab as Associate Lab Director. He also has an appointment as a Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University. His research interests are in the principles and applications of non-equilibrium plasma. His most recent research focuses on plasma applications in semiconductor and quantum device nanofabrication and sustainability applications in industry and agriculture

Yiguang Ju

Robert Porter Patterson Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Princeton University

Yiguang Ju is the Robert Porter Patterson Professor at Princeton University. He received his bachelor’s degree from Tsinghua University in 1986, and his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Tohoku University in 1994.  He was appointed as an Assistant and Associate Professor at Tohoku University from 1995 to 1999, and as a Chang-Jiang Professor and the Director of the Thermo-physics Institute at Tsinghua University in 2000. He joined Princeton University in 2001. Ju’s research interests include combustion, fuels, propulsion, plasma, and energy materials for low carbon energy conversion and chemical manufacturing. He has published more than 250 journal articles. He is an ASME Fellow and an inaugural Fellow of the Combustion Institute. He served as the chair of US Sections of the Combustion Institute and is a Board of Director of the Combustion Institute, the NASA rocket study committee, and the NAS steering committee for NASA decadal survey on biological and physical sciences research in space. He received the Bessel Research Award from von Humboldt Foundation, NASA Director’s appreciation award, and the AIAA 2021 Propellants and Combustion Award, and was a plenary speaker at the 38^th International Symposium on Combustion.

Bruce E. Koel

Professor, Chemical and Biological Engineering
Princeton University

Bruce E. Koel is a Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University and Associated Faculty in Chemistry, MAE, PRISM, ACEE, and HMEI. He is a NSTX-U and LTX-b Collaborator at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. His research involves surface and interfacial processes and probes, focusing on the surface science of catalysis and plasma-materials interactions. He is a Fellow of the AAAS, APS, and AVS. He received the George A. Olah Award in Hydrocarbon or Petroleum Chemistry from the ACS in 2007. He has held faculty and administrative positions at CU Boulder, USC, and Lehigh University, and served as a member of the Science Advisory Committee of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials at Brookhaven National Laboratory and a member of the Governing Board of the Council for Chemical Research. In 2019 he co-founded Princeton NuEnergy Inc., which is developing direct recycling technology for lithium-ion batteries.

Eric D. Larson

Senior Research Engineer, Energy Systems Analysis Group, Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
Princeton University

Larson heads the Andlinger Center’s Energy Systems Analysis Group. He also has affiliations with the Center for Policy Research on Energy and Environment in the School of Public and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute. He holds an appointment as a senior scientist with Climate Central. He co-led Princeton’s Net-Zero America project and is active in other Rapid Switch projects. Originally trained in mechanical engineering, his research intersects engineering, environmental science, economics, and public policy. His research aims to identify sustainable, engineering-based solutions to major energy-related problems, especially climate change, and to inform public policy and private-sector decision-making. He has done extensive work on the design and assessment of advanced systems for the production of clean transportation fuels and electricity from biomass and fossil fuels with CO2 capture and storage, among other topics. He holds a BSE from Washington University (St. Louis) and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis).

Kara Moore

Senior Advisor, Sector Development
New Jersey Economic Development Authority

Strategic Sector Development team’s mission is to accelerate the growth of New Jersey’s economy by conceiving and implementing initiatives that enhance the State’s long-term economic competitiveness and establish New Jersey as an innovation leader within key strategic sectors, including life sciences and technology, transportation and logistics, clean energy, offshore wind, financial services and advanced manufacturing. Kara Moore joined the NJEDA Sector Development Team recently and is focused on early stage innovation/entrepreneurs in the state of New Jersey. Prior to the NJEDA, she led efforts connecting corporate partners to researchers at Rutgers University and Northwestern University.

Kyle Nolan

Vice President, Strategy
South Jersey Industries

Kyle Nolan is the Vice President, Strategy, for South Jersey Industries where he oversees the strategic planning for the organization in addition to strategic initiatives focused on the decarbonization and operational excellence goals of SJI. Kyle started with SJI as an operational analyst within South Jersey Gas (2012). After a few years, he moved into financial planning and progressed through leadership positions; ultimately leading the group until launching the newly formed Organizational Effectiveness department (now Innovation & Business Improvement). In his current role, he is focused on the strategic execution of the organization and driving performance through process improvement and transformation initiatives. Kyle holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Biology from Saint Joseph’s University (PA) and an MBA in Finance, from Rowan University (NJ). Kyle is the executive sponsor of SJI’s Green Team and serves on the Dean’s Executive Advisory Board of Stockton University for the School of Business.

Catherine Peters

George J. Magee Professor, Geosciences and Geological Engineering
Chair, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Director, Undergraduate Geological Engineering Program
Princeton University

Catherine Peters is the George J. Magee Professor of Geosciences and Geological Engineering, Chair of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, and director of the undergraduate Geological Engineering Program at Princeton University. Dr. Peters is an expert in environmental chemistry and geochemistry, known for her leadership in sustainable energy technologies. She is a Fellow of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP) and served as president in 2002. In 2020 she was awarded Honorary Board Certification by Eminence in AAEES and received a Distinguished Alumnus Award of CEE at Carnegie Mellon University. She is Editor-in-Chief of Environmental Engineering Science. She earned her Ph.D. in civil engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and her BSE in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan. She teaches courses in environmental chemistry, energy and the environment, and sustainable design.

Robert Pohlman

Vice President, Strategy, Communications, Government Relations and Policy
New Jersey Resources

Mr. Pohlman joined NJR in 2011. As Vice President-Strategy, Communications, Government Relations and Policy, he is responsible for driving business and growth opportunities across NJR, while overseeing public policy, government relations and communications. Prior to being named Vice President, Mr. Pohlman served as Managing Director-Innovation and Strategic Initiatives, Chief of Staff to the President and CEO and Director of Business Development for NJR Clean Energy Ventures, NJR’s renewable energy subsidiary.

Before joining NJR, he worked as Vice President at Citadel and Assistant Vice President at Credit Suisse Energy LLC and Barclays Capital. Mr. Pohlman earned his bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from Marist College.

Z. Jason Ren

Associate Director for Research
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
Princeton University

Z. Jason Ren is a professor of civil and environmental engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment at Princeton University. He serves as the center’s associate director for research and was the acting director from 2020-2021. His research focuses on the water-energy nexus, especially in the areas of energy and resource recovery during environmental processes such as wastewater treatment and reuse, water desalination, remediation, and decarbonization. He has received various awards and most recently received the 2020 ASCE Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize and the 2021 Paul L. Busch Award from the Water Research Foundation. Ren received his Ph.D. in environmental engineering from Penn State University.

Neha Rustagi

Technology Manager, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office
U.S. Department of Energy

Neha Rustagi leads the Systems Analysis portfolio within the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO) in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. In this role, she manages analysis projects that characterize the benefits and market potential of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, to inform Office RD&D priorities. Previously, she has held positions in oil and gas market analysis, and engineering and environmental compliance at power generators.  She received her B.S. from the University of Maryland, College Park and her M.S. from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Sunita Satyapal

Director, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office
U.S. Department of Energy

Dr. Sunita Satyapal is the Director for the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office and coordinates activities across offices for the U.S. DOE Hydrogen Program. She is responsible for more than $150 million per year in hydrogen and fuel cell research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities. She has two and a half decades of experience across industry, academia, and government, including at United Technologies managing research and business development, and as a visiting professor. She also coordinates across international hydrogen activities and is currently Vice-Chair of the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy, a partnership among over 20 countries to accelerate progress in hydrogen, and she serves as co-lead for hydrogen efforts within the Clean Energy Ministerial and Mission Innovation.  She received her Ph.D. from Columbia University and did postdoctoral work in Applied and Engineering Physics at Cornell University.

She has numerous publications, including in Scientific American, 10 patents, and a number of recognitions including a Presidential Rank Award.

Keith Wipke

Laboratory Program Manager, Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies Program
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)

Mr. Wipke has been the Laboratory Program Manager for the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies program at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory for the last 9 years, where he has worked since 1993.  The program covers all aspects of hydrogen and fuel cells, from hydrogen production with renewables to end-use applications envisioned in the H2@Scale “bubble-chart.”  Prior to this role, Mr. Wipke worked in the area of advanced vehicles for almost 20 years.  For 9 of those years, he led NREL’s participation in the Controlled Hydrogen Fleet and Infrastructure Demonstration and Validation Project (aka the Learning Demo).  This technology validation activity was later expanded to evaluate fuel cell technology in other applications.  He received his master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University, is NREL’s senior representative at the California Fuel Cell Partnership, sat on the Board of Directors of the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA) for 6 years, and actively participates in the Colorado Hydrogen Network.