BIOCYCLE REFOR19 CONFERENCE 1

Speaker Biographies

Updated 10.17

Kurt Adams, Summit Utilities, Inc.Kurt Adams has served as President and Chief Executive Officer for Summit Utilities, Inc. since October 2015, and a Director of Summit Utilities, Inc. from 2014 to present. Kurt holds a B.A. in Government from Skidmore College, an MA in International Affairs from George Washington University and J.D. from the University of Maine Law School.

Nadeem Afghan, BIOFerm Energy SystemsNadeem Afghan has extensive experience in develop-ment of renewable energy projects. Under Mr. Afghan’s leadership, BIOFerm quickly became a leading provid-er of turnkey biogas technologies in North America. During his tenure, BIOFerm has commissioned the first commercial-scale AD technology system, and the first turnkey two-stage PSA system in the United States. He received his Bachelors and Masters in Electrical

Engineering from San Diego State University.

Paul Baker, Guild Associates, Inc.Paul Baker is manager of Business Development for Guild Associates, Inc. He serves as the primary contact for new projects including out-reach, compiling the project requirements, and finalizes the proposal and contract. Mr. Baker has been with Guild Associates for nine years, is a registered Professional Engineer in Ohio, and holds a MSEE from Wright State University.

Hon. Mandela Barnes, Wisconsin Lieutenant GovernorMandela Barnes serves as Wisconsin’s 45th Lieutenant Governor. He was elected on November 8, 2018 and sworn into office on January 7, 2019. He is the first African-American to serve as a Lieutenant Governor in Wisconsin, and the second African-American to ever hold statewide office. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Lt. Gov. Barnes is the son of a public-school teacher and a United Auto Workers member, to whom he credits

much of his success. In 2012, at the age of 25, Lt. Gov. Barnes was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, where he served two two-year terms. His tenure in the State Assembly included serving as Chair of the Legislature’s Black and Latino Caucus and becoming a recognized leader on progres-sive economic policies and gun violence prevention legislation.

In his current role, Lt. Gov. Barnes uses a platform of sustainability and equity to fight for solutions that invest in opportunities and fairness for every child, person, and family in Wisconsin, regardless of zip code. Lt. Gov. Barnes is an alumnus of Alabama A&M University.

Timothy Baye, University of WisconsinTim Baye is a Professor of Business Development and Energy Finance with the University of Wisconsin. Baye serves as a State Energy specialist. His research and educational efforts serve business, professional and policy leaders in the pursuit of energy, alternative ener-gy and clean technology projects. Baye has developed, taught and managed business education and research programs serving executives, professionals and policy

leaders throughout Wisconsin, and beyond.

Vijay Bharthi, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Govern-ment of India Vijay Bharthi is with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India, Vijay has been working with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy as a Scientist ‘B’ in the field of waste-to-energy since 2016. Previously, he worked with various private sector companies in the solar energy sector, focusing mainly on solar photovoltaic project engineering.

Tanya Bogoslowski, GHDTanya Bogoslowski is a senior solid waste engineer with GHD and has an Environmental Engineering degree from the University of Guelph, Ontario. Tanya’s project experience incorporates innovative solid waste design, construction oversight, and contract administration of projects related to organic composting, anaerobic digestion, codigestion, landfill gas to energy, and other alternative waste management facilities.

Michele Braas, Xylem Inc. Ms. Braas is an Environmental Engineer with Xylem’s Flygt Mixer Group. While she currently focuses on mixers and mixing applications, she has more than 20 years of experience in designing wastewater and biosolids handling, treatment, and storage systems, including anaerobic systems. Her work has included food waste to biogas studies and evaluations.

Joseph Cantwell, Focus on Energy/Leidos Engineering, LLC Mr. Cantwell P.E., with Leidos Engineering LLC, is leader of the large en-ergy user water/wastewater segment for Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy pro-gram. He has over 40 years of water/wastewater engineering experience, including assessments of numerous WWTF’s and water systems. He was the primary author of Energy Best Practices in Water and Wastewater for Focus on Energy and a contributing author for WEF’s Manual of Practice No. 32 and The Energy Roadmap and for AWWA’s Energy Management Handbook.

Ryan Cooper, Rubicon Global Ryan Cooper is a Waste Diversion Manager and Global Organics Recycling Lead at Rubicon Global, a technol-ogy company that provides waste, recycling, and smart city solutions to businesses and governments world-wide. Ryan joined Rubicon in 2015, and is responsible for designing, implementing and managing organics recycling programs for small and large customers across North America. Ryan earned his BA in Globalization

from Hampshire College and his Master of Science in Regenerative Studies at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where his thesis focused on municipal anaerobic digestion and composting.

Walter Cuculic, AVANA CapitalWalter Cuculic has been working in the renewable energy, energy storage and green building industries for almost 20 years. Currently, Walter is the Senior Vice President for Renewable Energy at AVANA Capital. AVANA Capital is a private commercial lender focused on financing renewable energy projects (solar and bio-gas). Walter has a MBA from UCLA with a focus on strategy and finance and dual Bachelors’ degrees from

Northern Arizona University in Environmental Engineering and Spanish.

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Speaker BiographiesJohn Dannan, Generate Capital, Inc.

Mr. Dannan serves as a Vice President leading the Waste-to-Value team at Generate Capital. He has over 15 years of financial markets experience, including 10 years of lending and asset management experience in the energy and infrastructure sectors. Prior to joining Generate Capital, Mr. Dannan founded Energy & Infrastructure Capital, LLC (“EIC”), a Stamford based asset manager focused on debt investments. During this

time EIC invested approximately $200 million in US energy and infra-structure debt on behalf of US and international investors. Prior to EIC, Mr. Dannan worked at Deutsche Bank, Aladdin Capital Management’s Infrastructure Debt business, and Dresdner Kleinwort’s infrastructure financing, M&A and loan workout teams. Mr. Dannan received a Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Economics with Accounting from Loughborough University, England.

Avijit Dasgupta, Enviro Associates International Dr. Dasgupta is an environmental consulting engineer with over 25 years of extensive experience in industrial waste treatment, pollution prevention, cleaner pro-duction, waste to energy, and ISO 14001 EMS systems. In addition to working as a senior engineer in several leading consulting engineering firms in the USA, he has provided services as a consultant to major inter-national funding agencies for projects in USA, Europe,

the Middle East, South America, Africa, and Asia. He is vice president at Enviro Associates International in New York.

Sunil Dhingra, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), India Sunil Dhingra is Senior Fellow & Associate Director, with Renewable Energy Technologies Division, The Energy and Resources Institute. Sunil specializes in the field of renewable energy, biowaste utilization, waste-to-energy technologies, and rural energy aspects. He has 30 years of experience in research, technology development and dissemination, and policy and business model development. Sunil is an expert group member of various National and State committees in the area of renewable energy and biofuels applications.

Sara Drescher, Forest County Potawatomi Sara M. Drescher is the Forest County Potawatomi Community’s in-house environmental and energy attorney working out of the Tribe’s Milwaukee office. Drescher’s energy related work for the Tribe includes developing green energy policy, implementing green energy projects, and commenting on energy policy.

Jim Dunbar, LystekJames Dunbar, P.E., MBA – GM/Business Development Manager, Western U.S.A. Mr. Dunbar is a Professional Engineer (in six U.S. states) with more than 25 years experience in the management of solid waste and treatment of liquid wastes in the U.S. and Europe. Jim has worked within the regulatory levels at the federal, state, and local levels dealing with permitting and en-vironmental compliance. His professional experience

includes several years of design, construction and operations of solid waste management facilities in the U.S. and Europe. Jim is an active mem-ber in the California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) and the Northwest Biosolids Management Association.

Tom Dunder, TRC Tom Dunder is Technical Director in the Air Management Services Division at TRC Companies in Raleigh, North Carolina where he performs and man-ages air pollutant testing programs. He has degrees in Chemistry from Columbia (A.B.), Rutgers (M.S.) and the University of North Carolina (Ph.D.). Tom has 27 years of experience in gaseous pollutant emissions measurements at a wide variety of industries (refiner-

ies, chemical plants, power plants, paper mills, etc.) with recent work in biomass/biogas processes.

Andy Dvoracek, Amp Americas Andy Dvoracek is the Vice President of Business Development at Amp Americas. Prior to joining Amp, Andy was a VP of Development at Camco. He has also held similar roles at Element Markets, Greenhouse Gas Service and EcoSecurities. Andy holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Environmental Science from Saint John’s University (MN) and a Masters of Public Administration in Environmental Policy and

Management from Columbia University’s School for International and Public Affairs (SIPA).

Nick Elger, U.S. EPA AgSTAR Program Nick is the Program Manager for EPA’s AgSTAR Program and Agriculture Lead with the Global Methane Initiative. Nick works with the U.S. livestock industry, state and federal agencies, and biogas industry stakeholders to advance the deployment of digesters and biogas system. While supporting the Global Methane Initiative, Nick helps advance anaerobic digestion of organic feedstocks globally for methane mitigation and energy production.

Tim Farnan, Minnesota, EPATim Farnan serves in the Sustainable Materials Management Unit at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). He has been with the MPCA for over 12 years. His time at the agency has been spent working on waste prevention, recycling and composting. He currently leads the agency’s efforts to promote expanded organics recycling. Tim also serves on the board of directors for the Minnesota Composting Council.

Stephanie Fevig, The Water Research Foundation Stephanie Fevig P.E. is a research manager with WRF. She manages WRF’s focused research area on source separated organics co-digestion and has over 14 years experience in the water/wastewater sector.

Casey Furlong, InSinkErator / Grind2Energy At my position with InSinkErator, I monitor activities associated with wastewater treatment, composting, and management of solid waste as it relates to food scraps. I provide regulatory and technical support for product marketing and new product development for residential and commercial food scrap management. I previously worked as a Landfill Engineer with responsibilities for a large-scale composting facility and am a Registered

P.E. with a M.S. in Environmental Engineering and a B.S Construction Management.

BIOCYCLE REFOR19 CONFERENCE 3Updated 10.17

Speaker Biographies

Michael Gifford, EI, EMITMike is the Commercial Efficiency and Innovation Lead at Vermont Gas (VGS). He is responsible for helping customers reduce carbon emissions through innova-tive projects such as renewable natural gas and energy efficiency. He has been a member of the VGS team since 2013, where he has held several different roles in efficiency, construction and engineering. Mike holds a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Vermont.

Matt Hamilton, Environment and Climate Change CanadaMatt Hamilton is Manager of Waste and Greenhouse Gas Emissions with Environment and Climate Change Canada. He has over 20 years of engineering and man-agement experience, focused mainly on municipal solid waste management. Matt has been with Environment and Climate Change Canada for 11 years, leading pro-grams related to waste management, greenhouse gas reduction, and pollution prevention. Prior to that, he

worked for the City of Ottawa, Canada, and as a consultant in Canada and the U.S. He serves as a co-chair of the Biogas Subcommittee for the Global Methane Initiative.

Keith Henn, Tetra Tech, Inc. Mr. Keith Henn has more than 25 years of experience and serves as Vice President for Bioenergy for Tetra Tech, Inc. In this role, Mr. Henn manages bioenergy, AD/bio-gas, landfill gas to energy (LFGTE), Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), biomass, waste-to-energy, and energy management business lines. Mr. Henn has managed and executed projects up to $50M and on programs up to $500M. Relevant work experience includes conceptual

planning, feasibility study, design, construction management, operation, troubleshooting, and owner’s representative services experience convert-ing organics of all types and other waste products into energy, fuels, and other salable products, Mr. Henn manages bioenergy, AD/biogas, LFG, RNG, waste to energy projects for private, public, federal and state/pro-vincial clients across North America and the world.

Rep. Dianne Hesselbein, Wisconsin State AssemblyRep. Hesselbein represents the 79th District, which includes all or part of Middleton, Cross Plains, Verona, Springfield, Waunakee, Westport, Vienna, Burke, Windsor and Berry. She was elected to the Assembly in 2012. Leadership positions: Assistant Minority Leader 2019, 2017. Committee assignments, 2018: Assembly Organization; Colleges and Universities; Sporting Heritage; Rules; Insurance; Financial

Institutions; Veterans and Military Affairs; Joint Committee on Legislative Organization; Joint Legislative Council. Rep. Dianne Hesselbein possesses a rich background of public service beginning with her 2005 election to the Middleton Cross Plains Area School District Board of Education. In 2008 she was elected to the Dane County Board of Supervisors and served 3 terms. Born and raised in Dane County, Hesselbein graduated from the UW-Oshkosh, and completed a Master’s Degree in Religious Studies at Edgewood College.

Jorge Hilbert, National Agricultural Technology InstituteJorge Hilbert is a Professional Consultant of International Innovation Management with National Agricultural Technology Institute in Argentina. He is also a member of the Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) of IINAS, a participant of IEA & Biogasdoneright ini-tiative, and Co-chair of Biogas Subcommittee of the Global Methane Initiative. Jorge is responsible for work packages in focused European Union projects.

Mark Hill, DTE Biomass EnergyMark Hill is responsible for managing DTE Biomass Energy’s eight Dairy RNG projects. Previously, he was the VP of Landfill Gas Operations, responsible for 21 landfill gas projects. He has been on the DTE team since 2006 and has worked in the cement and coal industries as well as serving as an army cavalry troop commander in Iraq. Mark received his MBA from the University of Michigan and his BA in Economics from Dartmouth College.

Thomas Hubbard, Illinois Environmental Protection AgencyThomas Hubbard has been employed by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency since 1999, and has been Manager of the Disposal Alternatives Unit since September 2018. His unit issues permits for both haz-ardous and non-hazardous waste storage, treatment, processing, and recycling (STPRs), composting, and PIMW facilities and makes beneficial use determina-tions (BUDs) for reuse of waste materials. Mr. Hubbard

has been a Licensed Professional Engineer since 2003. He has a BS in Civil Engineering from Bradley University and a MS in Environmental Engineering from Virginia Tech.

John Jaimez, Hennepin County Environment & Energy Depart-ment John is an Organics & Recycling Specialist with the Hennepin County Department of Environment & Energy where he has been developing and growing organics recycling programs since 2002. John’s work includes: providing outreach and technical assistance; developing new policies and programs, ensuring ade-quate composting capacity; and exploring additional

organics processing opportunities, such as anaerobic digestion. John has a B.S. in Environmental Studies from Northland College and an M.A. in Environmental Policy from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

Brian Jerose, Agrilab Technologies Inc Brian Jerose is President/Co-founder of Agrilab Technologies Inc. (AGT) based in Enosburg Falls, Vermont. AGT provides services and equipment in-cluding compost aeration and heat recovery (CAHR) systems for farms and commercial/municipal com-posters. AGT has implemented CAHR systems in five states and provided technical assistance and consulting on local, regional and international projects. Brian

holds BA Political Science from SUNY Geneseo and MS Environmental and Resource Engineering from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Alan Johnson, quasar energy group Johnson joined quasar in 2009 and has been instrumental in the develop-ment, management and engineering of all 18 digester projects throughout his tenure. He has more than 40 years of experience in manufacturing and business start-ups. He is a registered engineer in 13 states and holds an M.B.A. from Lake Erie College and a Bachelor in Industrial Engineering from the Fenn College of Engineering of Cleveland State University.

Bryan Johnson, City of Madison Streets Division Bryan Johnson is the recycling coordinator and public information officer for the City of Madison Streets Division. He has been in this position since 2016.

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Speaker BiographiesBryan Johnson, Energy Tech Innovations, LLC

Bryan is a professional engineer with more than 30 years of experience in the biogas industry working for private industry and as a consultant. Bryan’s company, Energy Tech Innovations, LLC (ETI) has developed a new low-cost biogas water-based upgrading system that operates at relatively low pressure and is capable of producing renewable natural gas (RNG). ETI is currently piloting this new gas upgrading system at the

Jones Island wastewater treatment facility in Milwaukee. Education: Bryan attended the University of Wisconsin Madison where he earned his Civil/Environmental Engineering Bachelor Degree.

Carol Jones, Environmental Law InstituteCarol Adaire Jones, an environmental economist, co-leads the Environmental Law Institute’s Food Waste Initiative, which conducts research to inform the de-sign of public policies and public-private initiatives to promote the reduction and reuse of wasted food, and recycling of food waste. She has served on the faculties of the University of Michigan and INCAE (Costa Rica), and as research director in programs at USDA and

NOAA. Jones received her Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.

Michael Keleman, InSinkErator Mr. Keleman is Manager of Environmental Engineering for InSinkErator. He has a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University in Environmental Health Science and a Master of Science in Environmental Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering. He is certified in water and wastewater treatment and is a Registered Environmental Health Specialist. He over-sees research projects and serves as the co-facilitator of

the Greater Racine Zero Waste Initiative.

Jay Kemp, Black & Veatch Jay Kemp is Process Engineer in Black & Veatch’s Water Technology Group. Jay has over 30 years of experience in wastewater treatment design and operations, with a specialized emphasis in solids processing, anaerobic digestion and biogas utilization. He holds a BS degree from the University of Illinois and earned a Master’s Degree from Marquette University. A Board-certified Environmental Engineer, Jay is active with the WEF

Residuals and Biosolids Committee and biofuels task force.

Jon Koch, City of Muscatine, IA Jon Koch is the Water & Resource Recovery Facility Director for the City of Muscatine, Iowa. A State of Iowa licensed Grade 4 Treatment Operator, he has over 19 years of experience operating and managing water, wastewater and industrial wastewater treatment facili-ties in Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico and Iowa. He is also the city’s Stormwater Department Director and is currently serving as Past-President of the Iowa Water

Environment Association. He is a graduate of Iowa State University.

Casey Lamensky, Wisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesCasey Lamensky has worked for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Waste and Material’s Management Program for six years and is currently the Solid Waste Coordinator. In this role, she works on policy and guidance for a wide range of waste streams, and facilities, including solid waste anaerobic digestors and compost facilities. Casey is also a mem-ber of the Associated Recyclers of Wisconsin Organics

Committee. She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a de-gree in Environmental Science, Policy and Management.

Renie Langan, USDA Rural Development Renie Langan, an Energy Programs Specialist at USDA Rural Development for the last five years, has merged her 25+ years of experience in project development, banking, and process management with energy inno-vation and research to support the growth of renewable energy in rural America. Renie has implemented mar-keting strategies and educational tools to promote the advancement of renewable energy, energy efficiency,

and emerging commercial technologies. She holds a BSA in Accountancy from Villanova University.

Erik Larson, Vaughan Company, Inc Erik Larson is a Senior Engineer with Vaughan Co, working with Rotamix mechanical hydraulic mixing. He has spent the last 7 years working in the Wastewater Industry and holds a Bachelors Degree in Civil Engineering from Washington State University. He has a passion for efficient reuse of biosolids and in his spare time serves as the mayor of Aberdeen, WA.

Chris Lenzendorf, Lenzendorf Winters & AssociatesChris Lenzendorf is a Biogas and Agriculture consul-tant. Previously, he was President of Aqua Innovations, a Wisconsin-based environmental engineering com-pany that designs and builds water treatment systems for agricultural and industrial industries. Chris led the early commercialization of AQUA Innovations’ NuWay system, which reclaims water from raw cow manure. He has become an expert in the emerging market of nutri-

ent concentration and how it relates to the resurgence of the anaerobic digester industry. Prior to his position at AQUA Innovations, Chris served in the policy department of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.

Robert Levine, Digested OrganicsRobert Levine (Bobby) is the Co-Founder and CEO of Digested Organics, a Michigan-based company that specializes in advanced filtration solutions for waste-water treatment and water reclamation. He completed his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at the University of Michigan and prior to Digested Organics co-founded and sold a company that developed algae-based im-mune-support ingredients for animal feeds and human

nutrition. He lives in Ann Arbor with his wife Debra, their son Daniel, and their dog Summit.

BIOCYCLE REFOR19 CONFERENCE 5Updated 10.17

Speaker BiographiesMegan Levy, Wisconsin Office of Energy Innovation

Megan Levy is Local Energy Programs Manager & Energy Assurance Coordinator with the WI Office of Energy Innovation. She also oversees the Energy Independent Communities program, which counts more than 147 communities as members. Megan designed and is manager of the Municipal Energy Efficiency Technical Assistance Program (MEETAP) in which the Energy Office provides expertise to municipalities, tribes, and

schools across the state to facilitate successful energy efficiency projects. She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Jessica Linville-LeRoy, Mendota Agri-Products Jessica Linville-LeRoy, Ph.D., E.I. has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Florida and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering from the University of Tennessee. She has worked at both Oak Ridge and Argonne National Laboratories. She has col-laborated on 14 peer-reviewed journal articles. Her ex-perience ranges from lab-scale anaerobic digestion op-timization studies to full-scale operations. She owned

Nullam Consulting, LLC before she joined Mendota Agri-Products full time in November of 2017.

Jandra Lubovich, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated Jandra Lubovich is Managing Director of Public Finance Investment Banking for Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Mr. Lubovich originates and structures bonds and loans for invest-ment grade and high yield financings. Mr. Lubovich has experience with project finance and public private partnerships for digester facilities, water/wastewater and mixed waste recovery facilities. Mr. Lubovich holds

an MBA with a concentration in Finance from the University of Saint Thomas, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Coryanne Mansell, Center for EcoTechnology Coryanne Mansell is a Strategic Services Representative at the Center for EcoTechnology. Cory works with businesses, institutions, and government agencies to implement wasted food solutions. Cory also coordi-nated CET’s partnership with Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic to develop the Organic Waste Ban Toolkit for states and cities interested in organic waste bans.

David Maxwell, Sustainable Develoment Capital LLP (SDCL)SDCL develops and invests in organic waste to energy, distributed energy generation and energy efficiency projects globally, for clients including Citigroup, Santander, the UK’s National Health Service, Panasonic, Tesco and the Huntsman Corporation. As Managing Director of SDCL’s US business, David is responsible for sourcing and structuring new invest-ment opportunities in the biogas space, in partnership with key project stakeholders including developers, landowners, equipment vendors. David has been with SDCL for 13 years.

Norma McDonald, Organic Waste Systems, Inc.Norma McDonald is North American Sales Manager at Organic Waste Systems, Inc. Her employment history began with the United States Marine Corps where she served as a Public Affairs Officer-Captain, and contin-ued on to the private sector where she held top manage-ment positions at Procter & Gamble, Co. and founded Phase 3 Renewables, LLC, an anaerobic digestion com-pany. Ms. McDonald has served as a Board Member of

the American Biogas Council since 2010.

Michael Mitariten, Air LiquideMichael Mitariten a Senior Director at Air Liquide, supporting membrane technology for the biogas and natural gas markets. Mike has over 35 years of experience in gas separation and has been responsible for hundreds of systems including the membranes, adsorption, amine and physical solvent scrubbing. Mike holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from Manhattan College, has been awarded 20 patents, has published numerous papers, and is a Professional Engineer in the State of New York.

Kelly Murillo, SoCalGasKelly Murillo is a project manager for the SoCalGas Market Development department. Current respon-sibilities are to promote and facilitate the growth of underdeveloped markets in support of company, local, state, and federal policy for natural gas and renewable natural gas (RNG). Mr. Murillo provides outreach and education to customers, developers, and public agencies on the benefits of RNG. He holds a BS in Construction

Engineering from Purdue University.

Jessica Niekrasz, Clean Fuel Partners Jessica Niekrasz, Clean Fuel Partners’ Vice President, oversees day-to-day operations, develops and imple-ments CFP’s strategic plan, and provides instructional leadership to the entire team. She ensures that CFP’s endeavors are rooted in the core principles of the com-pany; Performance, Innovation and Advocacy. She is the driving force behind the Wisconsin Biomass Energy Coalition (WBEC), bringing stakeholders together and

initiating conversation on nutrient management while advocating for policy change.

Steve Nieland, Faith TechnologiesSteve Nieland is Director of Energy for Faith Technologies, responsible for the vision, development, growth and execution of Faith’s energy strategy. His efforts help clients understand and optimize energy as an ingredient, achieving operational improvement through data driven pro-cesses. During his 30-year career, Steve has led multiple efforts in product development, automation, operational transformation, sustainability, lean, quality system development, and renewable energy across a variety of industries. He holds degrees in electronics and chemistry as well as having additional studies in paper science, computer science and electrical engineering.

Lars Ravn Nielsen, Gemidan Ecogi A/S CEO of Gemidan Ecogi and responsible for the overall business activities including the worldwide sales activities. Education: BSc - Mechanical Engineering & Business Administration. Has more than 30 years of working experience with international business. Since 2016, working with pre-treatment of organic waste as responsible for the Ecogi Technology.

Paul Niznik, Argus Consulting Services Paul Niznik has two decades of experience in biofuels and alternative fuel development. He applies his broad knowledge of biofuel economics –- including RINs and LCFS markets –- to assist refiners, biofuels producers, financial institutions, automakers and government agencies with strategic planning in alternative fuels markets and policy compliance. His due diligence work and credit price forecasts have been used in the

financing of the some of the most capital-intensive biofuels projects in the nation. Paul has a degree in astrophysics from Yale University.

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Speaker BiographiesTom Nowakowski, Wisconsin Office of Energy Innovation

Tom Nowakowski is Energy Innovations Manager with the WI Office of Energy Innovation. He studied meteo-rology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with an interest in regional air quality issues. That interest grew into a career computer modeling and protecting the environment, and eventually working with a wide spec-trum of businesses to help them develop a “business case” to embrace energy efficiency, energy production

and environmental performance. A number of those facilities represent the agriculture and food processing industries. With his position at Office of Energy Innovation, Tom works to establish and promote relationships with Wisconsin’s energy stakeholders.

Gabriela Gomes Prol Otero, Brazilian Association of Sanitation & Special Waste Companies Gabriela Gomes Prol Otero is Senior Technical Coordinator, Brazilian Association of Sanitation & Special Waste Companies (ABRELPE). She is responsi-ble for coordination of all ABRELPE’s publications, and is a representative in working groups and technical fo-rums promoted by public and private sectors. Gabriela also serves as a lecturer on issues related to management

of municipal solid waste and its impact on climate change.

Charles Opferman, FCPC Renewable Generation Charles Opferman is the Vice President of Operations for FCPC Renewable Generation, LLC, the ownership and operating entity for the Tribe’s biodigester. He is a Wisconsin licensed architect.

Joe Parisi, Dane County, WI Joe Parisi was first elected as County Executive, the chief elected leader of Dane County, in 2011 after 6 years in the State Assembly and 8 years as Dane County Clerk. He has called Dane County home his entire life, and sought out public service as a way to give back to a community that has given so much to him. Mr. Parisi’s priority is to ensure that everyone in the community has access to the opportunity to succeed. He believes

investing in people pays big dividends, having learned this first-hand as a teenager when he dropped out of high school. Mr. Parisi was encouraged to return to education through a community program by people who believed in him, earning his GED, going on to MATC (now Madison College) and graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in sociology. As Dane County Executive, Mr. Parisi has led the effort to clean up the county’s lakes and protect its environment, increased funding for affordable housing and balanced Dane County’s budget and created a $30 million rainy day fund.

Fred Petok, USDA Fred Petok works at USDA in Rural Development. He is an energy technology and loan specialist and is interested in technology, values, climate, and recycling .

Brad Pleima, EcoEngineers Mr. Brad Pleima is a Senior Engineer and Regulatory Consultant at EcoEngineers and has over 15 years of consulting and engineering design experience in water, wastewater, and renewable energy project work. Mr. Pleima has a civil engineering degree from Iowa State University and is a licensed professional engineer in 13 states. Mr. Pleima leads the 360 Biogas Solutions efforts for EcoEngineers and has extensive experience working

with municipalities and industrial operations on anaerobic digestion, biogas utilization assessments and biogas upgrading projects at facilities located throughout the United States..

Bob Powell, Brightmark Energy, LLCMr. Powell has over 28 years of industry experience, he is passionate about finding and implementing solutions to profound waste problems that have energy application. He believes that we can tackle our global environmental issues with economic solutions that have a positive environmental impact. He has customer and technology experience in waste, renewables, clean generation technologies, as well as efficiency measures.

His experiences include being the CEO of a solar developer, an innovator in financing energy projects, the CFO of a large utility, the North America President of the largest worldwide renewable company and a Partner at Andersen and PWC’s energy practices.

Betsy Powers, SCS Engineers Betsy is a senior project manager/civil engineer with over 20 years of consulting experience. She has exten-sive experience in the solid waste field, and is currently managing the pipeline permitting and design for two RNG projects. Her experience includes design, per-mitting, and construction of municipal and industrial solid waste landfills, recycling and composting facilities. She managed the civil site design for Wisconsin’s first

utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) system on a closed industrial landfill.

Tanja Rauch-Williams, Carollo Dr. Tanja Rauch-Williams serves as Carollo’s Wastewater Innovation Lead and Principal Technologist with more than 20 years of experience in wastewater treatment, water reuse and applied research. Her work focuses on wastewater treatment optimization for biological nutrient removal and resource recovery, energy opti-mization, and co-digestion.

Maria Redmond, Wisconsin Office of Energy InnovationRedmond currently serves as the Director of the Wisconsin Office of Energy Innovation. She is responsi-ble for management of the Office of Energy Innovation, and works with her teams to direct federally funded grant and loan programs, as well as the Focus on Energy program. Redmond is a Certified Public Manager and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and a Certificate in African Studies all from the University of

Wisconsin – Madison.

BIOCYCLE REFOR19 CONFERENCE 7Updated 10.17

Speaker BiographiesMark J. Reidy, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP

Mark J. Riedy is a Partner at Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP in Washington, DC and Co-Heads its Energy, Project Finance & Clean Technologies Practice of more than 80 attorneys. He has focused his practice on complex project development and finance, private placement, M&A, investment fund structuring and related investments, and regulatory and legislative compliance representation in more than 60 countries

worldwide. Mr. Riedy received his J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center and graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Summa cum laude from the University of Michigan with a B.A.

Julie Schilf, U.S. EPA Region 5 Julie Schilf is an Environmental Scientist with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 5 office. Julie joined the EPA in 2005 performing GIS mapping and analysis. She is currently the regional coordinator for EPA’s Sustainable Management of Food program, providing technical assistance to businesses and orga-nizations looking to quantify and improve food waste management practices. Julie has a BA in Environmental

Policy, is GIS Certified, and holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Roosevelt University.

Matt Seib, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District Matt Seib is the process and research engineer at the Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District in Madison, WI. In this role Matt leads research efforts and assists with facility operations, allowing him to bridge the worlds of innovation and daily operational challenges. Matt is currently involved in several research focus areas including side-stream impacts of co-digestion, biosol-ids quality, energy utilization, and resource recovery,

and also partners with several faculty at the University of Wisconsin.

Patrick Serfass, American Biogas CouncilPatrick Serfass has led the American Biogas Council (ABC) since early 2010 when he helped 22 companies come together to form the only trade association rep-resenting the entire biogas industry in the U.S. Today, the ABC represents over 200 organizations and has a network of more than 14,000 stakeholders in the biogas industry. Patrick is also a Director on the Board of the World Biogas Association. Beyond biogas, he has over

17 years’ experience growing other clean energy industries, like solar, hydrogen and fuel cells, through the company that manages the ABC, Technology Transition Corporation. In Patrick’s early career he was a physical oceanographer, architectural engineer and designed unmanned, deep-ocean vehicles. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Engineering Sciences from Dartmouth College.

Gus Simmons, P.E. Director of Bioenergy Gus Simmons, Jr., P.E. is the Director of Bioenergy and a partner at Cavanaugh & Associates. Gus Simmons is a passionate advocate for the development of our plan-et’s bioenergy resources, particularly the utilization of organic wastes as feedstock for the development of bio-fuels, such as anaerobic digester biogas. Gus’s efforts to promote and place into operation systems that harvest the carbon from organic wastes and use it to displace

our dependency on fossil fuels are a prime example of Cavanaugh’s com-mitment to cultivating the stewardship of our natural resources through innovation. Gus graduated from North Carolina State University with a degree in Biological & Agricultural Engineering, with a concentration in biological waste treatment.

Jason Stringer, SlipstreamJason Stringer is a Director of Clean Energy Finance at Energy Finance Solutions (EFS), a division of Slipstream. In this role, he serves as a project finance expert with a successful track record of creating value in the clean energy finance and commercial real es-tate development industries. Jason leads initiatives to stimulate broader availability of clean energy finance products for building owners, contractors, capital pro-

viders, and developers, such as on-bill recovery and Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE). He has a BS in Urban and Regional Planning from Michigan State University, and an MS in Real Estate and Urban Land Economics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Mark Suchan, quasar energy group Mark Suchan has been with quasar for more than a decade. He manages the planning, coordination and execution of all supply chain matters. In his time with quasar, Mark has served as manager for departments in-cluding Operations, Biomass, Effluent, Logistics, and the Laboratory. He has also worked in quasar’s Project Development department. Mark has degrees from Ohio Northern University in Management and Accounting and is a member of OWEA Young Professionals.

Robin Szmidt, Target Renewables ltd Robin is a Founding Director of Target Renewables Ltd, advising the AD and composting sector in the UK and increasingly in the US. He has car-ried out numerous project assessments both for investors and operators but also in cases of civil and criminal litigation in the European organics’ industry. He participated in various UK Government-level committees and standard-setting for organic waste policy. More recently he is involved in asset assessment and investor due diligence including a number of hotly disputed projects. Personally he prefers cold water and is a registered Masters Swimmer for Portland, Oregon.

Mark Vanderbeken, DRYCAKEMark Vanderbeken is the chairman and founder of Drycake. Mark is a subject matter expert on separation process technologies with over 25 years experience in the field of centrifugation, filtration and sedimenta-tion. He is the inventor of the innovative Twister Depackager.

Max Vernier, Live Oak Bank Max Vernier is the Vice President-Head of Bioenergy Finance in the Energy & Infrastructure division at Live Oak Bank, based in Wilmington, North Carolina. His team provides project level debt for biogas developers across the country, ranging from small-scale on-farm anaerobic digestion, to large-scale community di-gesters and landfill gas. Over the last three years, the Energy & Infrastructure team has funded over $800

million in project finance. Max joined Live Oak in 2013 after graduating from Washington and Lee University with a B.A., double majoring in Economics and Spanish.

8 BIOCYCLE REFOR19 CONFERENCE Updated 10.17

Speaker BiographiesTanja Vujic, Duke University

Tatjana (Tanja) Vujic is Director of Biogas Strategy for Duke University. In that role, Tanja reports to Duke’s Executive Vice President to create a supply of biogas to fuel Duke’s campus steam plants and help the University meet its 2024 Climate Neutrality Goal. Tanja has been involved for nearly two decades in various aspects of bio-gas development, particularly as it relates to animal waste management, carbon reductions and renewable energy

production. In 2010, as the founding director of the Duke Carbon Offsets Initiative, she leveraged state and federal funding to develop the Loyd Ray Farms swine waste-to-energy system with Duke Energy and Google. Using lessons from the Loyd Ray Farms project — the first project in the state to generate renewable energy certificates from swine waste and registered carbon offsets from the destruction of livestock-sourced methane — Tanja then led a comprehensive analysis of a Directed Biogas approach to elec-tricity generation from swine waste to accelerate compliance with North Carolina’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard’s swine set aside. Tanja has been active on other energy and environmental fronts, including work with former Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers to help establish an Energy Access Project at Duke, an endeavor now running out of the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions. The Project aims to accelerate clean energy access to rural populations around the globe. This summer, Tanja received an adjunct faculty appointment at the Nicholas School of the Environment and joined the Board of Advisors of SustainRNG. Tanja is currently collaborating on a research effort with Research Triangle international, Duke University and East Carolina University to determine the extent of North Carolina’s biogas potential and the best ways to deploy those biogas resources. Tanja also teaches on topics related to climate change mitigation, clean energy access and energy equity, and mechanisms for funding climate and natural resiliency projects as part of storm recovery efforts. She holds dual degrees in Geology and Geophysics and Studies in the Environment from Yale University and earned her law degree from The George Washington University.

Maureen Walsh, American Biogas CouncilMaureen Walsh serves as the Director of Federal Policy for the American Biogas Council. She has spent the last two decades serving as a senior legislative, regulatory and government relations advisor to a wide range of nonprofit and corporate clients. She uses her comprehensive knowledge of Congress and the Administration to advance mission critical client objectives on a wide array of issues including clean tech, energy, biofuels, the environment, appropriations, transportation, agriculture and high technology. Her diverse group of current and former clients includes re-newable energy companies, start-ups, high technology companies, trade groups and venture capitalists. Ms. Walsh has been working with the ABC since early 2011. She has a B.A. in History and Art History from James

Madison University and her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

John Welch, Dane CountyJohn Welch is the Director of the Dane County Department of Waste & Renewables. He has a BS from UW Madison in Civil & Environmental Engineering and is a registered PE in Wisconsin. He and his staff oversee operations of one active and two closed landfills; a C&D MRF; year-round HHW facility; a landfill gas-to-energy system; and a landfill gas to CNG facility. Recent projects include a community manure digester, a food digester feasibility study and numerous biogas utilization projects.

Andy Zikeil, Air Liquide Andy is a senior biogas project specialist with over 8 years of biogas to renewable natural gas project experi-ence and over 25 years of consulting experience in envi-ronmental compliance and permitting. He has extensive experience in RNG project development, plant design, permitting and commissioning, and is currently man-aging pipeline installation for two Wisconsin RNG proj-ects. He has been with Air Liquide since January 2015.