2022 Agenda Details
September 21, 2021
8:00 am – 12:00 noon
Energy Delivery System
The first in a three-part series of interactive workshops, Decarbonizing The Energy Delivery System will focus on the policies and emerging technologies for electric and gas infrastructure to enable greenhouse gas emission reductions and to reinforce resiliency.
Kick-off Presentation
Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor, Princeton University
Jesse Jenkins is an assistant professor at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and Environment and courtesy appointments at the School of Public and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute. He is a macro-scale energy systems engineer with a focus on the rapidly evolving electricity sector. Jesse leads the Princeton ZERO Lab (Zero-carbon Energy systems Research and Optimization Laboratory), which improves and applies optimization-based energy systems models to evaluate low-carbon energy technologies and generate insights to guide policy and planning decisions. Jesse earned a PhD and SM from MIT and a BS from the University of Oregon. Jesse worked previously as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and spent six years as an energy and climate policy analyst prior to embarking on his academic career, including as an analyst at Renewable Northwest.
Oregon’s Path to Decarbonization
With recent legislation, Oregon has set in motion an ambitious plan to be carbon-free by 2040. Join our panel of thought leaders for an overview and update of the state’s primary drivers for decarbonization. Panelists will share their insights into potential barriers, costs, economic and environmental benefits, as well as how Oregon’s path to decarbonization must ensure benefits flow to communities most adversely affected by climate change.
Moderator:
John Cornwell, Senior Energy Policy Analyst, Oregon Dept. of Energy
Speakers:
Kristen Sheeran, Energy, Climate, and Transportation Policy Advisor, Governor Kate Brown’s Office, State of Oregon
Sunny Radcliffe, Director, Government Affairs & Environmental Policy, Portland General Electric
Bob Jenks, Executive Director, Oregon Citizens’ Utility Board of Oregon
Nick Johnson, Executive Director, Lake County Resources Initiative
Resilience and Climate Adaptation
Climate change hazards—such as extreme heat, more variable precipitation, and more frequent and intense wildfires—are expected to affect several dimensions of Oregon’s energy sector—from power planning, transmission and distribution of electricity, to the storage and distribution of home-heating and transportation fuels. This moderated panel will discuss how various energy systems are affected by climate hazards and their adaptive capacity—the ability to adjust and respond to climate-induced risk.
Moderator:
Maya Buchanan, Senior Climate Energy Policy Analyst, Oregon Department of Energy
Speakers:
James Gall, IRP Manager, Avista
Allen Fore, Vice President, Public Affairs, Kinder Morgan
Dr. Hal Nelson, Associate Professor, Department of Public Administration. Portland State University
Rodney Price, Assistant General Manager, Eugene Water & Electric Board
Energy System of The Future: Case Studies of New and Transformative Technologies
Evolving and transformative technologies will be needed to fully decarbonize the energy delivery systems of today while maintaining the core values of safe, affordable, reliable and resilient energy. This panel will present examples of the technologies being studied and deployed to achieve those objectives.
Moderator:
Adam Schultz, Lead, Electricity & Markets Policy Group, Oregon Dept. of Energy
Speakers:
Chris Kroeker, Emerging Technology Program Manager, NW Natural
Jeffrey Preece, Senior Program Manager, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
Jeff Navin, Director of External Affairs, TerraPower
Darren Murtaugh, Senior Manager, Grid Edge Solutions, Portland General Electric
Closing Thoughts
Melissa Powers
Jeffrey Bain Faculty Scholar and Professor of Law; Director, Green Energy Institute
Lewis & Clark Law School
Melissa Powers is a Jeffrey Bain Faculty Scholar and Professor of Law at Lewis & Clark Law School, and she was a Fulbright-Schuman Scholar in 2014-2015 researching Denmark and Spain’s renewable energy laws. Melissa is also the founder and faculty director of the Green Energy Institute at Lewis & Clark Law School, an organization that designs strategies to a transition to a zero-carbon energy system. She was a public interest environmental litigator for seven years. Melissa teaches international and U.S. climate change law, electricity regulation, renewable energy law, the Clean Air Act, and administrative law.
November 18, 2021
8:00 am – 12:00 noon
Transportation
The second in a three-part series of interactive workshops, Transportation will focus on the bold steps our region is taking to advance electric and smart mobility to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, foster social equity and inclusion, and strengthen resiliency on Oregon’s path to decarbonization and a clean energy future.
Kick-off Presentation
Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor, Princeton University
Jesse Jenkins is an assistant professor at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and Environment and courtesy appointments at the School of Public and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute. He is a macro-scale energy systems engineer with a focus on the rapidly evolving electricity sector. Jesse leads the Princeton ZERO Lab (Zero-carbon Energy systems Research and Optimization Laboratory), which improves and applies optimization-based energy systems models to evaluate low-carbon energy technologies and generate insights to guide policy and planning decisions. Jesse earned a PhD and SM from MIT and a BS from the University of Oregon. Jesse worked previously as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and spent six years as an energy and climate policy analyst prior to embarking on his academic career, including as an analyst at Renewable Northwest.
Oregon: Transportation Decarbonation and Lay of the Land
This session will dig into the transportation sector greenhouse gas footprint and progress towards decarbonization to date.
Moderator:
Brien Flanagan, Shareholder, Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt PC
Panelists:
Meredith Connolly, Oregon Director, Climate Solutions
Kate Hawley, Electric Vehicle Senior Product Manager, PacifiCorp
Matt Leasure, Director of Pacific Northwest, Policy Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Chairman Peter A. DeFazio
The Next Phase of EV Charging: Needs, Policies, and Opportunities
This panel will examine Oregon’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure needs, discuss what’s working in other states, and consider opportunities for Oregon to achieve broad electric vehicle charger deployment.
Moderator:
Jessica Reichers, Energy Technology & Policy Manager, Oregon Department of Energy
Speakers:
Mary Brazell, Transportation Electrification Program Manager, Climate Office, Oregon Department of Transportation
Sarah McKearnan, Senior Manager, Clean Transportation, Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM)
Adam Mohabbat, Market Development Manager, EVgo
Stefanie Reiter, Senior Product Portfolio Manager, PGE
Beyond Transportation Electrification: Alternative Fuels for Decarbonization
Alternative fuels like renewable diesel and renewable natural gas are playing a critical role in decarbonizing Oregon’s transportation sector today. Looking forward, we can expect that renewable alternative fuels like renewable propane and renewable hydrogen will take on a larger role. This panel will discuss the current landscape of alternative fuel use in Oregon and what we can expect in the future.
Moderator:
Michael Graham, Deputy Director, Columbia-Willamette Clean Cities
Speakers:
Keith Wilson, President & CEO, Titan Freight Systems
Kate Lyman, Manager, Service Planning and Development, TriMet
Gregg Thompson, Maintenance Manager, Cherriots
Cory Ann Wind, Oregon Clean Fuels Program Manager, Oregon Dept. of Environmental Quality
Closing Thoughts
Coming soon.
Moderator:
Coming soon.
Panelists:
Coming soon.
April 6, 2022
8:00 am – 12:00 non
Buildings
The third in a three-part series of interactive workshops, Buildings will focus on the holistic transformation of our built environment and how the transformation is being stimulated through political support, societal behavior, and emerging technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create more sustainable and resilient communities.
Kick-off Presentation
Jesse Jenkins, Assistant Professor, Princeton University
Jesse Jenkins is an assistant professor at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and Environment and courtesy appointments at the School of Public and International Affairs and the High Meadows Environmental Institute. He is a macro-scale energy systems engineer with a focus on the rapidly evolving electricity sector. Jesse leads the Princeton ZERO Lab (Zero-carbon Energy systems Research and Optimization Laboratory), which improves and applies optimization-based energy systems models to evaluate low-carbon energy technologies and generate insights to guide policy and planning decisions. Jesse earned a PhD and SM from MIT and a BS from the University of Oregon. Jesse worked previously as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, and spent six years as an energy and climate policy analyst prior to embarking on his academic career, including as an analyst at Renewable Northwest.
The Future of Buildings
The Future of Buildings. What will commercial and residential buildings look like in the coming decades, and what will their energy use – or production – look like? Hear thoughts from New Building Institute, PGE, Northwest Natural, and Green Hammer.
Moderator:
Shelly Carlton, Senior Program Manager – Commercial, Energy Trust of Oregon
Speakers:
Webly Bowles, Senior Project Manager, New Buildings Institute
Erica Dunn, Director of Design, Green Hammer
Angela Long, Manager Strategy & Planning, Distributed Resource Planning, PGE
Mary Moerlins, Director of Environmental Policy and Corporate Responsibility, NW Natural
Innovation & Technology: District Scale Solutions
Meeting 2050 decarb goals will require significant transformation – both to our energy systems and ways of thinking. This session will explore the scale at which various system infrastructure is optimized and provide examples of district solutions for both power and thermal delivery.
Moderator:
Kellye Dundon, Environmental Policy & Programs Manager, NW Natural
Presenters:
Clark Brockman, Principal at SERA Architects, will provide analysis studying the optimal scales for multiple district-scale infrastructure systems: energy, waste and water, exploring how strategic district infrastructure systems can improve the sustainability performance of urban areas, and share how this approach can be applied in Portland-area development.
Audrey Schulman, Co-Executive Director at HEET, will explain the geothermal district approach as an alternative for thermal energy delivery while still leveraging the assets of natural gas utilities.
Tim Treadwell, Manager of Customer Technology Development, PGE, will share their Smart Grid Asset Load Management & Optimized Neighborhood (SALMON) project, funded through a US DOE Connected Communities grant, to help transform 580 homes and buildings in North Portland.
Oregon Building Energy Policy – Landscape, Trends, and Impacts
This session will provide an overview of Oregon’s energy decarbonization policy that aims to address energy use and greenhouse gas emissions from Oregon’s built environment. Within the framework of Oregon’s broader climate protection policy, building codes, and energy efficiency programs, speakers will provide their perspectives on what this means for building owners and utility energy efficiency programs, and will provide a look at the landscape of other building energy policy elements trending on the national scale.
Moderator:
Maya Buchanan, PhD, Senior Climate Policy Analyst, Oregon Department of Energy
Panelists:
Kim Cheslak, Director of Codes, New Buildings Institute (NBI)
Hal T. Nelson, Associate Professor in the Department of Public Administration, Portland State University; Founder and CEO, Res-Intel
Kelly Ross, Executive Director, NAIOP