2025 conference speaker Bios

Dr. William Acker

Dr. William Acker is a well-known and highly-regarded scientist, business leader and entrepreneur in the field of energy. He currently serves as the first Executive Director of NY-BEST, the New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium.  Under his leadership, NY-BEST has grown its membership to more than 175 companies, created the BEST Test and Commercialization Center and new battery prototyping capabilities, and has performed pioneering work in advancing markets, policy, technology and product development. Dr. Acker is an active and influential voice for energy storage industry in New York State’s implementation of a zero emission grid and clean transportation.

Dr. Acker’s more than 30-year career in energy includes management and leadership roles with Optiwind, MTI and MTI MicroFuel Cells, Plug Power and Texaco. He serves on the Advisory Boards of the Center for Future Energy Systems at RPI, the RIT Battery Development Center, the Southern Tier Clean Energy Incubator, the Upstate NY Energy Storage Engine, and on the NYS Energy Policy Planning Advisory Council. He received a Ph.D, in Applied Physics and Engineering from Yale University and a B.S. in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic University.

Anntonette Zembrzuska Alberti

Anntonette is experienced in all aspects of energy project development and operations. She has a broad network that includes investors, financiers, IPPs, utility executives, consultants, scientists, engineers, constructors, media, environmental non-profits and industry organizations.

Specialties: Clean energy and demand-side management; energy project and program strategic planning; integrating environmental and engineering considerations to permit constructable, economic projects; regulatory permitting, licensing, and compliance issues; navigating environmental issues; training

Bruce Bailey, Ph.D.

Dr. Bruce Bailey began his career in the renewable energy field while working as a research associate at UAlbany’s Atmospheric Sciences Research Center. He then founded and led AWS Truepower, a meteorological and engineering consulting firm serving the renewables industry for over 30 years before the firm was acquired by UL. At UL, Bruce became the VP of Renewables. He has since retired from UL and remains active in the field, maintaining valuable interactions with UAlbany and industry.

 Dr. Bailey has also established an Endowed Fellowship at UAlbany that provides perpetual support for a doctoral fellow. The Followship encourages interdisciplinary research aimed at enabling effective deployment of renewable energy on the electric grid using innovative insights from the atmospheric sciences and other fields. Research will focus on topics such as: advanced resource assessment in a changing climate; large-scale integration of renewable energy on the grid; economic assessment of renewable energy deployments; renewable energy public policy and education; and energy infrastructure resiliency maximization.

DR. Nick Bassill

Dr. Nick Bassill is an atmospheric scientist with a background in numerical weather prediction, forecasting, data science/analysis, data visualization and a desire to apply those skills to emergency management and other public-sector uses of weather. His current position requires a significant amount of public outreach to organizations such as state agencies, utilities, educational entities, and others to engage them on how weather affects their operations and their stakeholders. In 2014, he joined the NYS Mesonet before they began deploying a $30M weather observing network. Afterward, Nick moved to the UAlbany Center of Excellence, where he conducted a series of research and product development projects with area utilities. Nick pushed for the creation of a publicly funded NY State Weather Risk Communication Center. This Center was successfully created in 2023, and Nick currently serves as the director while continuing his role at the Center of Excellence.

C. Kyle Bentley

C. Kyle Bentley is the Vice President of New York Transmission & Distribution, Electric Operations, for National Grid leading an organization of more than 2,000 internal management and union employees and over 1,000 external employees responsible for electric utility operations, construction, maintenance, and emergency response activities associated with serving 1.6 million customers across 25,000 square miles in Upstate New York. Mr. Bentley has held various managerial and operations positions of increasing responsibility within National Grid since 2007. He has led many catastrophic storm restoration efforts as State Incident Commander. In addition, Mr. Bentley has a strong track record of leadership in operational roles such as Electric Witness in a rate case filing, State Incident Commander for contingency planning, and conceptually developing and supporting digital tools to aid field employees. Mr. Bentley holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Energy Management from Bismarck State College and a Master of Business Administration from Clarkson University. Mr. Bentley has a strong history of raising money for to support research to find cures for childhood cancers through the St. Baldricks Foundation and chairs the WISER IUIRC. Mr. Bentley lives in Saratoga Springs NY, with his wife and two sons and his primary work location is based in the company’s Albany, NY office.

Matt Cote

Matt Cote is the Director of Forecasting, Grid Solutions for UL Solutions.

Philip Court

Philip is CTO and co-founder of Ecosuite.io, a SaaS company focused on eliminating data silos leveraging open technology while delivering increases in efficiency and human collaboration throughout the DER industry.

As well as solutions for the finance, design, build and operate aspects of the industry, there is also an ongoing drive to improve the integration between DERs and the grid.  This includes technology and ideas for improved interconnection processes, as well as empowering DER owners to offer valuable grid services to system operators for increased grid resilience and reliability. 

Philip is personally focused on the big picture and is always hunting for strategies which will best serve long term results on a global scale.  Unprecedented technological and social change is creating opportunity throughout the world. He is passionate about fully embracing these opportunities and delivering both technical and business results.

Jeff Freedman

As part of the Boundary Layer Meteorology and Renewable Energy Groups at ASRC, my main research focus is on renewable energy and atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) processes. This includes work on improving wind and solar power production forecasting, outage prediction modeling applications, developing instrumentation and improving modeling approaches for offshore wind energy, and using ASRC modeling and observational assets to better understand weather and climate influences on our renewable energy resource. A principal tool for my observational work is a Leosphere Windcube 100S scanning LiDAR. Of great value for my research is continuing collaboration with colleagues at ASRC, the New York State Mesonet, the Center of Excellence for Weather and Climate Analytics, and working with a very talented group of graduate students.

My previous work in the private sector (with Atmospheric Information Services and Envirolaw, companies I founded, and AWS Truepower, as Lead Research Scientist) included serving as a lead Principal Investigator for the first Wind Forecasting Improvement Project (WFIP), a three-year Department of Energy (DOE)/National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) study to demonstrate the value of additional atmospheric observations and model enhancements on wind energy production forecasts, the development of the Solar Wind Integrated Forecast Tool (SWIFT), a state-of-the-art forecasting service for Hawaii´s electric utilities, and a LiDAR-based study of the 3D wind field over Cranberry Lake in New York’s Adirondack Mountains, and developing an early roadmap for the legal and regulatory review of offshore wind energy projects in US coastal waters.

Elena Garuc

Elena Garuc is the Executive Director of FuzeHub, New York State’s premier organization championing the manufacturing and innovation ecosystem. For two decades, Elena has led the implementation of technology-led economic development initiatives resulting in private sector job growth and competitiveness gains. Elena leads FuzeHub’s operations and works closely with its Board of Directors to realize strategic goals. As a FuzeHub founder, she guided the organization from inception while growing its team to fourteen staff members and securing federal and state grants, including designation as the statewide New York Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) center. Before becoming Executive Director, Elena shaped FuzeHub’s marketing and brand strategy, and its nationally-recognized web-based portal and marketing programs.

Prior to her role at FuzeHub, Elena spent a decade as Director of Marketing at the Center for Economic Growth in Albany, and had the privilege of leading or supporting programs such as an upstate venture capital forum, a biotechnology network, and a technology roadmap portal.

Dr. Jeffery Goldmeer

Dr. Jeffrey Goldmeer is a Senior Director of Technology Strategy within GE Vernova’s corporate Strategy & Innovation organization. His primary focus is leading cross business teams to deliver investment recommendations for a variety of technologies including hydrogen and e-fuels. Dr. Goldmeer is also co-creator and co-host of GE Vernova’s award-winning decarbonization podcast, Cutting Carbon, which has over 130,000 downloads in 155 countries.

Dr. Goldmeer is an expert on topics related to the energy transition as well as low carbon fuels and combustion. He led multiple first of a kind projects demonstrating operation of both aeroderivative and heavy-duty gas turbines on blends of hydrogen and natural gas.

Dr. Goldmeer has been invited to policy discussions, technical meetings, and webinars with multiple government, non-government policy/advocacy organizations, universities, and investment firms. These include the US Department of Energy, the US Department of State, the US National Academy of Sciences, the Business Council of Australia, Princeton University, the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Bank of America, and multiple non-US energy ministries.

Prior to joining GE Vernova, Dr. Goldmeer was a Senior Research Scientist at Southwest Sciences, and a National Research Council Post-Doctorate Research Associate at NASA. Dr. Goldmeer holds a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Case Western Reserve University, and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He has 13 patents, over 100 conference papers/presentations, and contributed to three recent books on hydrogen and renewable fuels.

Jorge G0nzalez-Cruz

Profossor González is the Professor of Empire Innovation at the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center (ASRC). Before joining ASRC, Prof. González was the director of The CCNY Initiative to Promote Academic Success in STEM (CiPASS), lead scientist of the Coastal-Urban Environmental Research Group (CUERG), and The City College of New York Presidential Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the City College of New York (CCNY).

Professor González holds several patents in solar energy equipment, aerosol detection, and energy forecasting for buildings, and was recognized as a prominent young researcher by the National Science Foundation with a prestigious CAREER Award.  He has authored or co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications, has delivered 100s of conference presentations, and his research has attracted more than $40M in external funding.

He is a Fellow Member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME), and Former Vice-Chairman of the American Meteorological Society Board on the Urban Environment.  He was appointed in 2015 by the Mayor of the City as Member of the Climate Change Panel for the City of New York, and more recently as Senior Visiting Scientist of the Beijing Institute of Urban Meteorology and of Brookhaven National Laboratory. He is the coeditor of the ASME Handbook of Integrated and Sustainable Buildings Equipment and Systems, and was named this year 2019 as the Founding Editor of the newest ASME Journal of Engineering for Sustainable Buildings and Cities. 

Rob GramLich

Rob Gramlich is Founder and President of Grid Strategies LLC, a Washington DC-based consultancy focused on transmission and power markets for a reliable, affordable, and sustainable power system.  He co-founded Americans for a Clean Energy Grid, Working for Advanced Transmission Technologies (WATT Coalition), Advancing Modern Powerlines (AMP Coalition), the Macro Grid Initiative, the Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Coalition, RENEW Northeast, and the Future Power Markets Forum. Rob and Grid Strategies have appeared recently as experts in national news stories in the Washington Post, Fox Business, New York Times, NPR, C-SPAN, and the Wall Street Journal. Rob was formerly SVP and Interim CEO, American Wind Energy Association, Economic Advisor to FERC Chairman Pat Wood III, and Senior Economist at PJM Interconnection LLC. Rob has a BA with honors in Economics from Colby College and a Master of Public Policy degree from UC Berkeley.

Daniel Kirk-Davidoff

Daniel Kirk-Davidoff is an atmospheric scientist who works at the intersection of energy, weather and climate change.  He has researched climate change impacts on on the electrical grid in the context of the transition to renewable generation,  wind and solar energy impacts on climates, and developed systems to forecast electrical load and renewable generation for power companies and grid operators.  He is a Senior Technical Leader in the Energy Systems and Climate Analysis Group at EPRI, and an Adjunct Associate Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at the University of Maryland.

Moncef KraRti, PhD

Moncef Krarti is Professor and Coordinator of Building Systems Program, Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering Department at the University of Colorado. He serves currently as the Executive Director for the Building Energy Smart Technologies (BEST) center that fosters research collaborations between industry representatives and university researchers to advance the knowledge in smart buildings, cities, and grids. He is the co-founder and the editor of Journal of Engineering for Sustainable Buildings and Cities (JESBC). Prof. Krarti has a vast experience in designing, testing, and assessing innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies applied to buildings. He has directed several projects in designing energy efficient buildings with integrated renewable energy systems. Prof. Krarti has published over 400 technical journals and handbook chapters in various fields related to energy efficiency, distribution generation, and demand side management for the built environment. Moreover, he has published several books on building energy efficient systems. Due to his dedication to disseminate knowledge, Prof. Krarti is a Fellow member to the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the largest international professional society. Moreover, Prof. Krarti has taught several different courses related to building energy systems for over 30 years in the US and abroad. As part of his activities as a professor at the University of Colorado, Prof. Krarti has been managing the research activities of an energy management center at the University of Colorado with an emphasis of testing and evaluating the performance of mechanical and electrical systems for residential and commercial buildings. He has also helped the development of similar energy efficiency centers in other countries including Brazil, Mexico, and Tunisia. In addition, Prof. Krarti has an extensive experience in promoting building energy technologies and policies overseas, including the establishment of energy research centers, the development of building energy codes, and the delivery of energy training programs in several countries.

Pramila s. Nirbhavane

Power Systems Engineer with expertise in transmission planning and interconnection studies. Skilled in steady-state and dynamic system analysis, including load flow, contingency analysis, short circuit, and transient stability studies. Proficient in industry-standard tools such as PSS/E, MUST, ASPEN, NEPLAN, MiPower, PowerWorld Simulator, SynerGEE, PROMOD IV, PSSMOD, MFB, and ASPEN OneLiner. Strong knowledge of power market structures and operational features.

Pavel Ozhogin

Pavel Ozhogin is a Director of Data Science at National Grid, where he leads a team that focuses on solving business problems through data-driven approaches. Pavel’s passion for finding actionable insights from data has led him to study and utilize statistics, predictive analytics, AI/machine learning, and process improvement. He applies all these techniques daily to support the transformational changes currently facing the utility industry. While analyzing satellite data and working on his Ph.D. dissertation in Atmospheric Physics at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, Pavel developed and validated a new model of electron densities in the Earth’s plasmasphere.

Richard Perez

Richard Perez holds a doctoral degree in atmospheric sciences from the State University of New York. After an extensive senior faculty tenure spearheading solar energy research at the University at Albany’s Atmospheric Sciences Research Center, Richard Perez now serves as Consulting Scientist to the renewable energy industry, leading a multi-country task force focused on firm renewable power generation under the aegis of International Energy Agency.

Recognized with international accolades, including a US Department of Energy's Certificate for Outstanding Research and the American Solar Energy Society’s Charles Greeley Abbot Award, Perez continues to receive honors for his visionary contributions, include a Visionary Scientist Distinction from the Clean Tech Business Club, jointly with his son Marc with whom he actively collaborates at Clean Power Research, and a Solar Champion Award from the New York Solar Energy Industry Association, acknowledging his foundational research in advancing solar energy.

Lyle RawlinGs

Lyle Rawlins "Solar industry leader with over 40 years of experience and more than 25 years in energy policy. Founder of Advanced Solar Products and Solstice Manufacturing, and President of the Mid-Atlantic Solar & Storage Industries Association. A professional engineer recognized for designing innovative systems in solar, energy storage, microgrids, and beyond. Serves as a Board Member and owner of the Amicus Solar Cooperative, helping drive collaborative clean energy solutions nationwide. Known for combining technical expertise with policy leadership to advance the renewable energy transition and build resilient, sustainable infrastructure across the Mid-Atlantic and beyond."

Ryan Silva

Ryan M. Silva has served as Executive Director of the New York State Economic Development Council (NYSEDC) since August of 2017. Ryan has helped NYSEDC achieve several landmark policy development wins including passage of The New York State Green Chips Act and the Federal CHIPs and Science Act, the creation of the Fast NY (Shovel Ready) Program, reauthorization of $250 Million for the RESTORE New York Program, the development of the $100 Million New York Forward Program, and creation of an emergency loan/grant program for Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) during the pandemic. Under his leadership, the NYSEDC has increase operational revenue by 120%, doubled its staff, launched several new educational programs, and positioned the organization to help coordinate and lead New York’s industry attraction efforts.

Prior to joining the NYSEDC, Ryan served as Vice President of Regional Economic Development for Empire State Development (ESD) and Deputy Director of the Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) Initiative for Governor Andrew Cuomo. He oversaw and helped develop several economic development policies and programs including the Upstate Revitalization Initiative (URI) and the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI). During his tenure at ESD, the REDCs awarded over $2.5 billion to more than 2,000 projects. Ryan began his professional career at the Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce, growing membership and launching several new initiatives, including the Economic Development Partnership (EDP).

Ryan has been recognized for his professional achievements throughout his career, most recently being appointed to the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Board of Directors in September of 2022. He was also appointed to Governor Kathy Hochul’s Prison Redevelopment Commission in May of 2022. Ryan was recognized by Development Counsellors International (DCI) as a Top 40 under 40 awardee and City and State’s Upstate Power 100 in 2021. He was also recognized as a City and State 40 under 40 Rising Star in 2018, an Albany Business Review 40 under 40 honoree, and the recipient of the Capital District YMCAs Presidents Award, in 2016. Ryan was appointed to Governor Andrew M. Cuomo's Health Benefit Exchange Regional Advisory Committee in 2012. He has been honored with the American Chamber of Commerce Executives Lifetime Achievement Award, receiving the Gold Level in 2010, Silver Level in 2007, and the Bronze Level in 2006 for membership growth and development. Ryan currently serves as co-chair for the New York State Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) Board of Advisors.

An active and involved community member, currently serves on the Greenbush Youth Soccer Club Board of Directors and the Greenbush YMCA Board of Advisors. He has served on the Capital District YMCA Board of Directors and was Board Chair of the Troy YMCA from 2014-2016. He was a member of The College of Saint Rose Board of Associates and the Huether School of Business Advisory Board.

Ryan graduated from The College of Saint Rose with a major in public communications in 2003. He resides in East Greenbush, N.Y. with his wife, Sandra and their three children.

Derek Stenclik

Derek Stenclik is a Founding Partner of Telos Energy, an analytics and engineering firm specializing in renewable integration, grid planning, and power system reliability. Mr. Stenclik is a recognized expert on wind, solar, and battery integration, resource adequacy, and power markets. Prior to founding Telos Energy, Derek spent eight years in GE Power’s Energy Consulting department as the Senior Manager of Power System Strategy and holds a master’s degree in Applied Economics from Cornell University.

Cole Swain

 With over a decade of experience in climate, tech, and strategy, Cole drives impactful partnerships by blending innovation, integration, and value-focused initiatives. His leadership empowers global organizations to operationalize Tomorrow.io’s capabilities for measurable, scalable, and sustainable success together.

Christopher D. Thorncroft

My research is mainly focused on improving our understanding of the West African monsoon and how it impacts Atlantic tropical cyclone variability. The research spans a wide range of timescales from diurnal to multidecadal. At the weather scale, my research is focused on understanding the physical processed that impact the nature and variability of African easterly waves (AEWs). This includes a special emphasis on how AEWs interact with the ubiquitous mesoscale convective systems and ultimately how this affects the probability that AEWs will help spawn tropical cyclones. Recent work at the weather scale has also emphasized the role of convectively coupled equatorial waves on the West African monsoon and Atlantic tropical cyclogenesis frequency. At the climate scale, I am interested in better understanding the annual cycle of the West African monsoon as well as the processes that impact interannual to decadal variability and predictability of Sahel rainfall.

Luke Wentlent

Experienced R&D manager and materials engineer with expertise in hydrogen technologies, cryogenics, renewable energy, and strategic technology development. Skilled in creating technical roadmaps, evaluating emerging technologies, and leading multidisciplinary teams through complex challenges. Background includes mechanical engineering, materials science, project management, and effective communication across technical and non-technical audiences. Former roles as engineer, professor, and coach have shaped a collaborative, adaptable leadership style focused on innovation and results. Passionate about clean energy and advancing sustainable solutions through rigorous engineering and strategic planning. Known for tackling difficult problems with persistence, creativity, and a commitment to excellence in every project.

David Whipple

David Whipple leads Empire State Development’s efforts to grow the supply chain for energy manufacturing. To advance the critical push for energy security and domestic job creation, David provides site selection and incentive assistance to manufacturers seeking to establish new facilities or expand in New York.

David also drives economic growth with strategic investments in infrastructure.  He led the team that developed and implemented the FAST NY Shovel Ready Grant Program which has improved over 4000 acres of industrial property across every region of upstate NY.  David remains committed using infrastructure to overcome the other hurdles that exist in the growth of the NY manufacturing sector and pushed for new tools to support the large power needs of new and expanded factories. He is actively shaping the POWER UP program, designed in partnership with the NY Department of Public Service to drive economic growth with investments in electrical infrastructure for industry.

David is regular collaborator with economic development organizations (EDOs), industry groups and energy authorities. He works closely with regional and county level EDOs on site selection and site development. David is on the board of Directors for New York Battery Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST) and is active in using his position to advance energy storage R&D and manufacturing in New York.  He is also a frequent collaborator with state energy authorities including NYSERDA, the New York Power Authority, and the Department of Public Service.

In his spare time David enjoys skiing, camping, hiking, and kayaking with his family. He has an MBA from Clarkson University and a BS in Business Administration from SUNY Brockport.

Jan Woodcock

Jan is the Director of Operations for the NYS Weather and Climate Analytics Center of Excellence.  Mr. Woodcock has deep experience driving innovation and transformation in High Tech Industries.  He was a senior partner at Deloitte Consulting, Global Partner at Wipro Technologies, and Transformation Executive at Cognizant. His industry experience encompasses the Fortune 100, the small business sector, and Venture Funded start-ups. He specializes in the areas of strategy and operations, with experience spanning analytics, financial management, customer and product strategy, and digital transformation. His Reverse Innovation research paper drove a CEO panel at the Davos World Economic Forum.