Board of Advisors
Jeff Anderson, Executive Director, Clean Economy Network (CEN)
Josh Becker, General Partner, New Cycle Capital
Jeff Brothers, Chief Executive Officer, Sol Orchard
John Geesman,Former California Energy Commissioner (2002-2008) and Co-Chair, American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE)
Patricia Glaza, Executive Director, Clean Technology & Sustainable Industries (CTSI)
Dr. Dan Kammen, Distinguished Professor of Energy, University of California, Berkeley
L. Hunter Lovins, President, Natural Capitalism Solutions
Terry Tamminen, Former Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency and Special Advisor to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Jim Weldon, Chief Executive Officer, Solar Junction Corporation
R. James Woolsey, Venture Partner, VantagePoint Venture Partners and Former Director Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Jeff Anderson, Executive Director, Clean Economy Network
Jeff was the co-founder and Campaign Manager of Cleantech and Green Business for Obama (CT4-O), a national constituency group that organized the cleantech and green business community and raised over $1.6 million in support of the Obama campaign. After the election, Jeff worked with the Obama transition team on policy, appointment, and messaging matters. Prior to the campaign, Jeff was the President and CEO of CleanTech Bay a trade association that was in development to represent the clean technology sector in the San Francisco Bay Area. Jeff was a Founder and Principal of Ignition Point LLC, a strategic consulting and coaching firm for small and medium size businesses. He was also CFO and Senior Vice President of Informania, Inc, an e-learning company, which he successfully merged with Viviance, Inc, a European e-learning company. He began his professional career as the Environmental Director for Building Diagnostics Ltd, an environmental and engineering consulting firm. Jeff holds a Masters in Business Administration (M.B.A.) from Columbia University, a Master of Laws degree in Environmental and Energy law (LL.M.) from Pace University School of Law, and a law degree (J.D.) from Thomas M. Cooley School of Law. As an undergraduate, Jeff attended Michigan State University, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree (B.A.) in International Relations.
Josh Becker, General Partner, New Cycle Capital
Josh Becker is a Founder and General Partner of New Cycle Capital, a clean energy early-stage venture firm. New Cycle Capital has invested in cutting-edge companies such as: Renewable Funding, People Power, Opower, Cool Earth Solar, and TerraPass. He started his career at ICF International, a DC-based environmental consulting and engineering firm. There he helped launch the first Clean Air Marketplace conference back in 1992 and consulted on energy strategy for companies like General Electric. Josh co-founded IntraACTIVE a pioneering groupware company in 1994 and was also one of the first employees at EarthWeb Inc, which went public in 1998.
After joint degrees from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and Stanford Law School, Becker joined Brentwood Venture Capital and then joined Brentwood's technology partners in founding Redpoint Ventures.
He was co-founder of Cleantech for Obama (CT4O), which organized the leaders in the clean tech business community behind Obama, raised $1.6M, and ran a media and messaging operation. He is a co-founder of the Clean Economy Network (Cleaneconomy.net), organizing many of those same leaders to fight for effective policies. Becker is the Founder and Chair of The Full Circle Fund, www.fullcirclefund.org, and a project lead for the group’s Energy/Environment Circle. He is also on the Advisory Board for the Clean Tech Open. Josh is a Co-Founder of the Freedom Prize Foundation (www.freedomprize.org), which will soon be giving out $5M in prizes with DOE.
Jeff Brothers, CEO, Sol Orchard
Jeff Brothers has been a lifelong entrepreneur, successfully growing two agricultural related companies into multi-million dollar leaders in their industry. Currently, Mr. Brothers is the Managing Director of Sol Orchard, a micro utility solar power project development firm with over 71 MWs in wholesale distributed generation projects in its pipeline. Sol Orchard develops solar power projects in California and Arizona, and has active projects in Monterey, Fresno, Stanislaus, Riverside, San Bernardino, Imperial, Kern, Sierra, Merced and Plumas counties, as well as in Yuma and Benson Arizona.
Prior to selecting solar power project development as his fulltime occupation, Mr. Brothers advised several firms in their analysis of renewables. Mr. Brothers has a deep understanding of cellulosic ethanol, geothermal, biofuels, biomass, gasification, fuel cells, energy crops, carbon credits, energy storage and wind.
While still pursuing interests related to renewable energy, Mr. Brothers formed Spatial Ops, a geospatial analysis company, on the NASA Ames Research Park campus. Spatial Ops spearheaded the effort (along with World Vision, other NGOs and several Silicon Valley high tech companies) to utilize NASA assets, in particular satellites, super computers and incredibly gifted human assets, to effectively coordinate and respond to disasters around the world in a way that would share information and best practices—saving billions of dollars annually, and countless lives. That effort is ongoing.
In 2006, Mr. Brothers created 1st Capital Bank, a de novo community bank in Monterey County, California. Mr. Brothers acted as Chairman of the bank while it was in formation for 8 months, and personally selected each board member, and hired the executive staff. He raised the seed capital, and later assisted in the IPO – raising over $30 million in equity. The bank recently completed its third year of operation and does not have a single loan in default to date. Mr. Brothers left the chairmanship of 1st Capital Bank to become fully engaged in the renewable energy space.
Mr. Brothers has been a member of the Golden Gate chapter of Young Presidents' Organization (YPO) since 1999, and is currently the proposed co-chair for the newly forming Golden Gate chapter of the World Presidents' Organization (WPO), the organization for the alumni of the YPO. Mr. Brothers attended Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, CA, where he attained a BA degree in Economics and Political Science, with a minor in accounting. Mr. Brothers also served for six years in the California Army National Guard as an officer in the 1st of the 149 Armor Battalion, and went inactive as a captain.
John Geesman, Former California Energy Commissioner (2002-2008) and Co-Chair, American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE)
John Geesman is the Co-Chair of the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) and was the presiding member of the California Energy Commission’s Renewables Committee from 2002 to 2008. His first service in government was as Executive Director of the California Energy Commission from 1979 to 1983, where aggressive implementation of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policy Act created the first model for feed-in tariffs. He was the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the California Power Exchange during the tumultuous electricity market restructuring in the late 1990s, and also served on the Board of the California Independent System Operator. An attorney by training, he worked as an investment banker in the bond markets for nearly 20 years.
From January to June of this year, he was a major voice against Proposition 16 on the California ballot – PG&E’s effort to lock its business advantage into the State Constitution. His recent electronic book about that campaign, 21 Machetes, is expected to be available free from most e-book distributors in September.
Patricia Glaza, Executive Director / CEO, Clean Technology & Sustainable Industries Organization
Ms. Patricia (Patti) Glaza is the Executive Director/CEO of the Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization. Her background includes extensive work in emerging technologies, business development, and strategic consulting. Prior to joining CTSI, Ms. Glaza was the Vice President and Group Publisher of Small Times, the leading global media group focused on micro, MEMS, and nanotechnology commercialization. Ms. Glaza served as the Chief Executive Officer prior to the company’s acquisition by PennWell Corporation in late 2005.
Before Small Times Media, Ms. Glaza was Director of Business Development, Marketing and Client Services at HealthMedia, a fast-growing technology and health management start-up company. Ms. Glaza also worked at Avalon Investments, a venture capital company focused on technology company financing.
Ms. Glaza started her career as a consulting professional and manager in the logistics, business services and retail industry groups for Andersen Consulting (now Accenture).
Ms. Glaza is a graduate of Michigan State University from the James Madison and Honor’s Colleges with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations and Economics. She earned a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Dr. Dan Kammen, Distinguished Professor of Energy, University of California, Berkeley
Kammen brings to the analysis of national and international energy policy an understanding of the technology as well as of the economics and the policy landscape. He sees value in greater emphasis on renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power and biomass, not only because it is better for the environment, but also because it would improve our nation's security by lessening reliance on imported oil. Renewables also would produce more jobs than an equivalent investment in fossil fuel energy sources, according to a recent study by Kammen. He also argues that renewables are a better investment than highly touted but uncertain exotic new technologies such as hydrogen fuel.
He has testified before U. S. House and Senate committees on energy and environmental issues. He has advised the New Apollo Energy Project, an initiative spearheaded by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., to replace the energy bill now languishing in Congress with a new bill emphasizing energy independence and weaning the country from a reliance on imported fossil fuels by 2010.
Kammen has been a guest on National Public Radio's Science Friday and has been interviewed by CNN and numerous local television and radio stations on energy, environmental and risk policy issues, and current events. He is very comfortable in front of the camera, and recently was interviewed by Alan Alda for an upcoming Scientific American Frontiers program called Future Car, set to air in May 2004.
Kammen advises the United States and Swedish Agencies for International Development, the World Bank, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the African Academy of Sciences and the President’s Committee on Science and Technology, and is a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
L. Hunter Lovins, President, Natural Capitalism Solutions
L. Hunter Lovins is President and founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions (NCS) (www.natcapsolutions.org). NCS educates senior decision-makers in business, government and civil society to restore and enhance the natural and human capital while increasing prosperity and quality of life. In partnership with leading thinkers and Implementers, NCS creates innovative, practical tools and strategies to enable companies, communities, and countries to become more sustainable.
Trained as a sociologist and lawyer (JD), Hunter co-founded the California Conservation Project (Tree People), and Rocky Mountain Institute, which she led for 20 years.
Lovins has consulted for scores of industries and governments worldwide. She has consulted with large and small companies including the International Finance Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell, Interface, Clif Bar, and Wal-Mart. Governmental clients include the Pentagon, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and other agencies, numerous cities, and the governments of Jamaica, Australia, and the U.S. She has also served an advisor to the Energy Minister of the Government of Afghanistan.
Recipient of such honors as the Right Livelihood Award, Lindbergh Award and Leadership in Business, she was named Time Magazine 2000 Hero of the Planet and in 2009 Newsweek dubbed her a “Green Business Icon.” She has co-authored nine books and hundreds of papers, including the 1999 book, Natural Capitalism, 2006 e-book Climate Protection Manual for Cities, and the 2009 Transforming Industry in Asia. She has served on the boards of governments, non- and for profit companies.
Hunter’s areas of expertise include Natural Capitalism, sustainable development, globalization, energy and resource policy, economic development, climate change, land management, and fire rescue and emergency medicine. She developed the Economic Renewal Project and helped write many of its manuals on sustainable community economic development. She is currently a founding Professor of Business at Presidio Graduate School, one of the first accredited programs offering an MBA in Sustainable Management.
Terry Tamminen, Former Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency and Special Advisor to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
From his youth in Australia to career experiences in Europe, Africa and all parts of the United States, Terry has developed expertise in business, farming, education, non-profit, the environment, the arts, and government.
A United States Coast Guard-licensed ship captain, Terry has long been drawn to the undersea world, starting in the 1960s with a family-run tropical fish breeding business in Australia and continuing with studies on conch depletion in the Bahamas, manatee populations in Florida coastal waters, and mariculture in the Gulf States with Texas A&M University.
On land, Terry managed the largest sheep ranch east of the Mississippi, assisting the University of Minnesota in developing new methods of livestock disease control. Terry also managed a multi-million dollar real estate company, owned/operated a successful recreational services business, and assisted the west African nation of Nigeria with the creation of their first solid waste recycling program.
An accomplished author, Terry’s latest book, Lives Per Gallon: The True Cost of Our Oil Addiction (Island Press), is a timely examination of our dependence on oil and a strategy to evolve to more sustainable energy sources. He has also authored a series of best-selling “Ultimate Guides” to pools and spas (McGraw-Hill) and several theatrical works on the life of William Shakespeare. Terry is an avid airplane and helicopter pilot and speaks German, Dutch and Spanish.
In 1993, Terry founded the Santa Monica BayKeeper and served as its Executive Director for six years. He co-founded Waterkeeper programs in San Diego, Orange County, Ventura, and Santa Barbara. He also served for five years as Executive Director of the Environment Now Foundation in Santa Monica, CA and co-founded the Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic at the School of Law, University of California Los Angeles.
In the summer of 2003, Terry helped Arnold Schwarzenegger win the historic recall election and become Governor of California. He was appointed as the Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency in November, 2003, and Cabinet Secretary, the Chief Policy Advisor to the Governor, in December, 2004. He continues to advise the Governor on energy and environmental policy. In April, 2007, he was named the Cullman Senior Fellow and Director of the Climate Policy Program of The New America Foundation, a non-profit, post-partisan, public policy institute. In September, 2007, he was appointed as an Operating Advisor to Pegasus Capital Advisors. Pegasus Capital Advisors, L.P., is a private equity fund manager that provides capital to middle market companies across a wide variety of industries.
Terry currently travels throughout the United States and the world, lecturing and providing private consulting services to a variety of clients, including several Governors and Canadian Premiers on climate and energy policy.
Jim Weldon, CEO, Solar Junction Corporation
Jim Weldon brings over 29 years of technology management and expertise to Solar Junction. Before leading the founding team through funding rounds, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Translucent, Inc. of Palo Alto, CA, a materials research company. Prior to Translucent, Jim was Vice President of the Advanced Products Division at Epion Corporation and Vice President of Business Development and Technology at Veeco Instruments for 25 years. Veeco Instruments is a Semiconductor Process and Metrology Equipment company. While at Veeco, he held many senior and executive management positions within Sales, Operations, Technology, Business Development and Corporate Development. He ran West Coast operations and the Veeco Technology Center for 10 years. His technical background assisted him in driving business, as well as merger and acquisitions activities. Jim executed due diligence on numerous major acquisitions for Veeco. Throughout his career, his main focus is to drive new technology into the market place. As a seasoned veteran, Jim has served on several Technical Advisory Boards, Executive Steering Committees and is on the Board of Directors for Solar Junction and Alliphant. He holds a B.S. in Chemistry from Merrimack College and graduate studies in Biomedical Engineering.
R. James Woolsey, Venture Partner, VantagePoint Venture Partners, Former Director Central Intelligence (1993-1995)
Jim joined VantagePoint as a Venture Partner in 2008 after serving as a member of VantagePoint’s Advisory Council for the prior two years. He is the Annenberg Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institute at Stanford University, and is also a Senior Executive Advisor at Booz Allen Hamilton, where he was previously a Vice President. He has served four times in the federal government for a total of 12 years, holding Presidential appointments in two Democratic and two Republican administrations, including as Under Secretary of the Navy (1977–79) and Director of Central Intelligence (1993–95), among others. Jim is a graduate of Stanford University (AB), Oxford University (MA), where he was a Rhodes Scholar, and Yale Law School (LLB).
