Smart Energy Systems Summit - April 4th, 2007
Colorado State University-Pueblo Campus

Occhiato Ballroom

2200 Bonforte Blvd

Pueblo, CO  81001

“Smart Energy” describes an intelligent energy production and consumption system. Distributed energy production from the sun and wind, an energy grid designed to allow energy to flow to where it is needed, and design of buildings and consumer products to reduce energy consumption will combine to significantly lessen dependence on nonrenewable energy sources.

The topics in the forum are structured to move from problems to solutions and to move from thinking globally to acting locally.  

9:00am	Welcome, coffee and tea will be available before the first session.
9:15am	Keynote Speaker: Carol Tombari - Manager, Stakeholder Relations, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO. Carol will discuss a description of today’s energy situation and challenges, followed by an overview of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies and their potential roles in addressing those challenges.  Prior to joining NREL’s Public Relations office, she served in NREL’s Technology Applications Center and directed the laboratory’s State and Local Initiatives office. Ms. Tombari previously was self-employed as president of Mountain Energy Consultation LLC, a small Colorado firm specializing in public policy and programs related to energy efficiency, renewable energy, and the environmental impacts of energy use.  The firm’s practice was both domestic and international.   In this capacity, Ms. Tombari led three delegations of American State Energy Officials to the People’s Republic of China, to discuss public policies that facilitate the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency.  Ms. Tombari has specialized in energy and environmental policy and programs for more than twenty-five years.   She directed the State of Texas’ energy efficiency and renewable energy programs for a decade.  She worked for two Texas governors, served as an electric utility regulator, and was natural resources advisor to the lieutenant governor.   Carol was a founder of the National Association of State Energy Officials and was appointed by DOE Secretary James Watkins to chair a Congressional advisory committee on the subject of renewable energy joint ventures.   She was appointed to DOE’s State Energy Advisory Board by DOE Secretary Bill Richardson. Ms. Tombari’s educational credentials include a master’s degree in public affairs and an undergraduate degree in geography.
10:15am	The Smart eCONOMY. Why do we need Smart Energy? What are the problems and challenges? How are emerging economic and market realties changing the face of the dumb energy grid? How could the market exploit these new opportunities and encourage their development into real-world solutions? How can we change the ways we do business today and how will we need to prepare for future developments? How can Pueblo position itself in the global economy? What is the role of the energy system in the future economy? Karl K. Jonietz, PhD, Program Manager, Science Program Office - Alternative Energy & Infrastructure Institute for Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Research, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM Karl has been the CEO of a technology company, the president of a college, and a consultant in strategic planning. He has selected factory and research sites, built laboratories, factories and offices in the US, France, Ireland, Belgium, and England. His academic background includes an MBA from Boston University and an MPA from Harvard.     Christopher Juniper, Sustainability Team, Fort Carson Mountain Post, Colorado Springs, CO.  Chris has been a member of the Sustainability Team at Fort Carson Mountain Post since 2002.  He is Vice-president of Natural Capitalism Solutions, a Colorado non-profit led by L. Hunter Lovins,  where he develops tools and implements sustainability solutions for organizations and governments.  His is an economist by training and economic development manager, small business developer and consultant by profession.  HIs "firsts" include the first major city in the US to adopt sustainable development in its economic development strategy as Policy Manager for the City of Portland, OR (1994); first US implementation of a sustainability-integrated environmental management system (1998) and first global corporate sustainability performance life-cycle assessment (Clif Bar & Co., 2006).  For the past ten years he has served Rocky Mountain Institute, The Catamount Institute and Natural Capitalism Solutions as a sustainability consultant and speaker, and served his alma mater The Colorado College as a visiting professor of ecological economics.  Fort Carson is a US Army installation of more than 20,000 Soldiers and civilians that is a leader f or the Department of Defense in integration of sustainability - both into its internal management systems and through partnerships around the region for training, planning, and adoption of sustainability performance and indicators.  He is also a founding co-director of the Sustainability Leadership Institute, a member of the board of directors of CORE - Connected Organizations for a Responsible Economy, and is a member of the Technical Advisory Group of Colorado Springs Utilities in Colorado Springs. David Christensen, Technology Transfer, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO.  David has a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Michigan and a Masters in City Planning from Harvard.  After a brief stint with Exxon and the US Army, he spent 19 years with Pacific Gas and Electric in San Francisco leading its air, water and land use planning activities, and managing its R&D activities on energy efficiency.  He has spent the last 13 years with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the Tech Transfer Department negotiating licenses and partnerships with companies interested in NREL’s technologies and other capabilities
11:45am	LUNCH and keynote presentation - Michael Bowman  25x'25 Michael is a fifth-generation native of Colorado. Throughout his adult life he has been active in the development of his home community of Wray, CO (pop. 2000).  He serves on the National Steering Committee for “25x’25” and on the National Council of Advisors for the Heartland Center for Leadership Development and Holistic Management International.   Michael was a member of the 2005 Trans-Atlantic Dialogue on Climate Change, served as Summit Chair for the 2006 Intermountain Harvesting Energy Network Conference and is a steering committee member for the Colorado Apollo Alliance; he also served as co-chair of Colorado Governor Bill Ritter’s Energy Transition Team after the November ’06 election. He is a graduate of the Colorado Agriculture and Rural Leadership program and is a Bighorn Fellow
12:45pm	The ePOWERED Community. Consumers become power producers, “Microgrids” facilitate greater localized control and experimentation, and enriched information streams and educational services are exchanged between and directly delivered to the home, office or individual person. High performance buildings reduce energy demand. Craig Eliot, Sustainable Building Concepts, Pueblo, CO Originally from Seattle, Washington, Craig has lived and worked in Pueblo since 1995. He has served on the boards of several different non-profit organizations and has spent more than 500 afternoons visiting and talking to local school children about the importance of science and education. Craig's background is in meteorology and atmospheric science. his includes the study of architectural meteorology, which emphasizes how the weather can help or hinder a buildings performance. Craig is a board member of the Southeastern Colorado Renewable Energy Society, a member of the United States Green Building Council and is pursuing becoming a LEED Accredited Professional. He is a strong proponent of the value and benefits of what he calls smart construction. In 2003, along with Cruzco Inc., he designed and built the Colorado "Built Green Home of the Year". The home, which serves as a model for energy and money-saving green design, was selected for the award out of 6000 homes in the competition. Craig is also a founding member's of SBC, one of the states only renewable energy and green building consulting firms: SBCGreenTeam. craig@sbcgreenteam.com Shannon Koonce, Wal-Mart, Aurora, CO - Shannon Koonce is an Assistant Manager at Wal-Mart Supercenter store in in Aurora, Colorado. This is one of two experimental stores Wal-Mart opened in 2005. The other is in McKinney, Texas. He has been at the experimental store since the late stages of construction, through new store set-up, and grand opening, on November 9, 2005. Shannon has been an Assistant Manager with Wal-Mart for six years, all of those in the Aurora area at various stores. Before joining Wal-Mart, he was a district manager with Coastal Mart Convenience Stores for ten years in several states and the island of Aruba. Shannon is married with two children and lives in Parker, Colorado. Judy Fosdick is President of Tierra Concrete Homes, Fowler, CO. She has completed education in Designing Low Energy Buildings with SBIC (Sustainable Buildings Industries Council) and is accredited with LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) by the U.S. Green Building Council. She is a licensed building contractor in Colorado and California. Conservation and passive solar energy strategies have been long-term avocations for Judy. The opportunity to lead the construction industry in a sustainable building technique was welcomed. She is past president of the Pueblo Association of Home Builders and is chairman of the Green Builder Committee; currently she serves on the Board of Directors of SBIC. Her responsibilities within Tierra Concrete Homes include management, sales and marketing, passive solar designs, and public relations. She is presently a trainer for Designing Low Energy Buildings Using the Energy-10 computer analysis program produced by U.S. Department of Energy.   Steve Meier, City Planning Department, City of Pueblo, Pueblo, CO - Steve moved to Pueblo in July 1886 and worked for Pueblo County as a Landscape Architect / Planner designing projects associated with the County’s buildings and parks. In 1995 he began working for the City of Pueblo as the Landscape Architect responsible for the City Parks, Trails and Open Space. Under general direction of the Director of Community Planning,  Steve manages a wide range of public projects. He has developed and administer site planning and landscape architectural designs for public facilities including trails, neighborhood parks, Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo, police building, municipal complex, I-25 realignment, zoo exhibits, skateboard park, entry signs, renovations to historic structures and other related public improvements. All projects typically included a process of the following steps - developing the design, coordinating funds, public presentations, cost estimating, development construction documents, bidding process, and construction management. Mr. Meier also coordinates the City’s interest with a wide variety of different downtown and community groups, such as HARP Authority, HARP Foundation, Urban Renewal Authority, and Police Department. He reviews master plans and land use issues being proposed for development within the City. He has coordinated the acquisition of approximately 2,100 acres of open space land from private landowners and public entities. He has also developed a long-range plan for the City’s trial system, an inventory of the City’s Park system, and a City and County wide “Pueblo Strategic Natural Resource and Environmental Education Plan”. Vickie Massam, Smart Growth Associates (SGA) - along with daughter Alexandra and English husband, Paul, are recent transplants to Pueblo after 9 moves, living and working in 6 countries.  In 2002, with Loraine Torres, Vickie co-founded Smart Growth Advocates, a non profit dedicated to quality of life issues.  SGA’s most recent collaboration is with CSU Pueblo, EcoSol/EcoStruct and TC Associates on an 8 KWh solar photovoltaic installation now underway at CSU Pueblo.   She runs her own business, and consults for an international corporate services company based in New York.
2:15pm	The ePOD. Designing, installing, servicing, managing and using plug-and-play, distributed, interactive, intelligent technologies which can produce or consume power and communicate with other devices and systems. Speakers will describe the exciting innovations that are already happening. Smart Energy is now. Angela Crooks, Colorado Governor’s Office of Energy Management and Conservation Angela manages programs to promote and utilize wind and geothermal technologies. She also provides advice on the use of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) as a financing tool for state and private sector projects. Prior to her work at OEMC, Ms. Crooks implemented programs to certify and market RECs from woody biomass in Colorado and Washington. Ms. Crooks has also written numerous feasibility studies for renewable energy projects. She wrote The Handbook on Renewable Energy Financing for Rural Colorado, available at http://www.state.co.us/oemc/.  While living in Washington, D.C., Ms. Crooks worked for the Agency for International Development on pollution prevention funds, industrial energy efficiency and the establishment of a carbon trading office for the country of Kazakhstan. Ms. Crooks completed an MBA at the University of Maryland, an MA in Russian Studies at Georgetown University and a BA at the University of Pennsylvania. Beth Hart, Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association, Florence, CO Beth Hart is President of Colorado Solar Energy Industries Association, which represents and serves energy professionals and renewable energy users.  COSEIA promotes the use of solar energy and conservation to improve the environment and create a sustainable future. Beth is also the VP of AC Solar, Inc.  She has be installing and designing solar and wind systems for over eight years.    Tom Wenzl - Aquila Senior Distribution Engineer Tom started his career with Missouri Public Service in Raytown, MO in 1986. He transitioned to Colorado in 1995 where he has held various operations and engineering positions with Aquila, where he currently holds the position of senior distribution engineer. Tom is a registered professional engineer in Colorado and Missouri. He received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Kansas State University in 1986 and his master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri in 1994. Tom has been involved in Aquila’s solar rebate program for several months. He enjoys the beautiful Colorado scenery that accompanies the site inspections of customer photovoltaic systems throughout Aquila’s electric service territory. Tim Oliver - has been a member of the Colorado Renewable Energy Society since 2001 and is a board member of the Southeaster Chapter (SECRES).  SECRES is the chapter that basically covers the Arkansas River drainage area.  He is a consultant to renewable energy companies and has worked with clients involved in anaerobic digesters, photovoltaic systems, solar thermal systems and wind turbine development.  In 2003 –2004 he served as the Coordinator for the Colorado Springs Clean Cities Coalition advocating the use of vehicle fuels that are alternatives to petroleum. Michelle Edwards - Chief of Staff, Customer and Enterprise Solutions for Xcel Energy.  She manages environmental communication and relationship strategies concerning major projects and issues, corporate performance, policies and regulation; pursues environmentally related business opportunities and manages environmental philanthropy.  She also manages Xcel Energy’s corporate social responsibility reporting.  She has worked for Xcel Energy and predecessor companies for 18 years, providing communications support for energy supply, renewable energy and environmental services, and she served as assistant to the Chairman and CEO of Public Service Co. of Colorado.  Previously, she worked in television news.  She holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Oregon and a master’s degree in Communication from the University of Denver.  She serves on the Pollution Prevention Advisory Board for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and is a member of the Downtown Denver Partnership Leadership Development Program. Debbie Rose, Board of Directors, San Isabel Electric Association, Pueblo West, CO. Debbie Rose is also the owner-operator of the Beulah General Store for the last 22 years. During that time, the business has been a successful employer in the Beulah area. She is presently serving on the San Isabel Board of Directors representing District 1 and serves on the Policy and Member and Public Relations Committees. She has attended several educational classes about leadership and the electric industry. Rose and her husband Mike have three children. She and her husband have delivered mail in the Pueblo West community for 21 years through a postal contract. The initial contract covered the area from McCulloch Blvd. to Swallows Road. Rose was elected to the Pueblo School District 70 Board of Education in 1997 and was re-elected in 2001, when she served as president. During her tenure, the district’s debt was eliminated, improvements were made to existing facilities and new facilities and new facilities were built to address overcrowding. As a school board member, she developed a leadership program which received a national award and was invited to Oxford, England, to present the program. She is a member of Rotary 43. She also serves as a consultant to the Colorado Department of Education, working with low performing schools. Rose has previously served on the CSU Advisory Council, Gear Up Council, Pueblo Council of Governments, and the Colorado Association of School Boards. At the state level, she has served as chairwomen of the Governor’s Child Care Advisory Committee and was an active member of the Colorado High School Activities Association. Rose has also served on the Sangre De Cristo Arts Center Board and as a 4-H Leader.
4:00pm	The Way Forward – Pueblo Technology  Alliance panel members. Are you willing to change? How do we use this information to make our environment better?  Help the Pueblo Technology Alliance reinforce its role in raising awareness of technology and serving as a clearinghouse for technology information in southern Colorado.
The Vendor Exhibit will be set up for the entire day in Hearthwell Lounge. Many thanks to Dawn DiPrince of DiPrince Design for her exceptional design effort on this year's conference brochures. ------------------------------------------------- The Pueblo Technology Alliance is a non-profit association made up of community activists, business owners and professionals, government employees, officials and educators who are dedicated to promoting the use of technology responsibly throughout southern Colorado using educational forums, materials, and conferences.