Amory Lovins
Rocky Mountain Institute
Energy Innovation as Economic Success

Imagine a world where the United States economy is not dependent on foreign oil. Alternative energy - solar, biomass, cellulosic ethanol and wind resources for example - can compete with coal and oil in the future. The automobile industry can be redesigned to become cleaner. Greener and more efficient buildings are possible. Can we retool our world so that we do not have to choose between oil dependence and revitalized cities and towns, between energy efficiency and economic growth? What does an energy policy look like that encourages our own energy sources and enhances our environment, instead of causing climate change and foreign wars?

More about Amory Lovins and The Rocky Mountain Institute

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Thomas L. Friedman
The New York Times
New Policy, New Politics

The United States must face up to its energy challenges. Our reliance on foreign oil  is a threat to our national security.  Climate change is a threat to our national well-being. Millions of new consumers in developing countries will place competing demands on existing sources of energy, driving up prices. We have an unprecedented opportunity to make clean energy the next great global industry. Where will we find the broad, sustained, leadership required for the United States to address this multigenerational problem?

The Power of Green video | article

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Jeff Immelt
General Electric Corporation
Turning Green into Green

Jeff Immelt knows that protecting the environment and finding alternative sources of energy is good for business.  General Electric, a multi-billion dollar company, has profited handsomely from products such as wind turbines, aircraft engines and energy conservation technologies. General Electric is in the clean energy business because it makes money. The demand for green products and services has exceeded the company’s expectations, proving that being an environmental steward is a competitive advantage. How has General Electric profited from the demand for clean technology? How does going green positively affect the bottom line?

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Rajendra Pachauri
Nobel Prize Winner,Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
A Crisis of Global Proportions

Scientists agree that global climate change is a reality. North Carolina’s coastal regions are particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels and to increases in the frequency and strength of hurricanes. Beyond coastal areas, climate change could have a variety of negative effects on the agricultural and forestry industries. The environmental damage from coal-fired plants and motor vehicles will only increase as North Carolina’s population grows. More emissions will lower air visibility levels in the state’s mountains and push up smog levels. In turn, this will increase healthcare costs to businesses and society at large. Dr. Pachauri, a NC State University alum and Chairman of the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), will talk about the science of global climate change and the threat to human health and the environment. How does climate change threaten to disrupt economic activity and social stability across the world? How can we better understand the connections between social justice and environmental justice and craft a global response to a global challenge? Why should we as a state care about this issue?

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Richard Burr
U.S. Senator, State of North Carolina
Leadership at the Federal Level

Richard Burr, elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004, previously represented North Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives for ten years. As a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Burr is an expert on the recently passed Energy Independence and Security Act. The Act, deemed by many as the most sweeping overhaul in energy policy since the 1970s, will have important implications for North Carolina. Burr's experience in federal energy policy makes him an authority on the vast opportunities facing our state in terms of realizing a secure and sustainable energy future.

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John Felmy
American Petroleum Institute
Petroleum: Yesterday's Fuel?

Felmy, who is responsible for overseeing economic, statistical and policy analysis for the American Petroleum Institute, has over twenty-five years experience in energy, economic and environmental issues. Having provided Congressional testimony and appeared in numerous media outlets, Felmy is the leading expert on the future of the oil industry. His extensive analysis leads to the likelihood of a sustainable energy future that relies on a balanced mix of petroleum and renewable energy sources.

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Majora Carter
Sustainable South Bronx
Investing in Individuals and Communities

Born and raised in the South Bronx, Carter travels the world in pursuit of resources to improve the quality of life in her community. She founded Sustainable South Bronx in 2001 and works tirelessly to make the community more environmentally healthy for its residents while also seeding the community with a skilled green-collar workforce that has both a personal and economic stake in its urban environment. Carter is using her drive and experience to help other cities unlock their own green-collar economic potential by using their assets in ways that alleviate concerns of a deteriorating environment, slow economic growth and increased poverty.

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Governor Michael F. Easley
State of North Carolina
Addressing North Carolina's Future Energy Challenges Today

Governor Easley made headlines last August when he signed into law a bill to enact a Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard (REPS), making North Carolina the first state in the Southeast to do so. The historic legislation addresses the need for safe, reliable and environmentally sound electricity in the midst of external pressures such as growing demand and higher energy prices.

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Ken Lewis
Bank of America Corporation
Investing in Our Energy Future

As CEO of Bank of America since 2001, Lewis leads one of the world's largest financial institutions and the fifth most profitable company in the world in 2006. Serving more than 55 million consumers and business clients worldwide and headquartered in Charlotte, Bank of America has realized the importance of supporting our emerging green economy by developing environmentally sustainable business practices through lending, investing and other financial services. North Carolina is at a critical crossroads in terms of creating a sustainable energy future. Lewis will lead Bank of America toward this future by continuing to support and capitalize on the new energy economy.

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Chuck Swoboda
Cree, Inc.

With more than a decade of experience in LED lighting, Swoboda leads Cree, one of North Carolina’s best examples of technology transfer that has bolstered our state’s emerging energy economy.  As a North Carolina State University spin-off company, Cree is a market-leader in LED lighting, a revolutionary energy-efficient alternative to traditional light bulbs.  Under Swoboda’s leadership, Cree continues to surpass its own energy-efficient ratings with leading R&D in LED technology.

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Thomas Nagy
Novozymes, Inc.

Nagy recently assumed the position of Executive Vice President for Stakeholder Relations in Novozymes’ headquarters in Denmark.  Prior to moving to Denmark, Nagy led Novozymes’ North American operation at its stateside headquarters in Franklinton, N.C. Under Nagy’s leadership, the North Carolina plant produced more than half of the enzymes for ethanol production in the United States and has gained widespread recognition as a leader in bio-innovation. According to Nagy, industrial biotechnology is a viable business for North Carolina today and not simply an option for the future.

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Jim Rogers
Duke Energy Corporation

Currently the head of Duke Energy, Rogers has more than 19 years of experience as a chief executive officer in the electric utility industry. Under his leadership, Duke Energy has introduced a major initiative to reduce energy consumption through widespread efficiency measures. The initiative, called Save-A-Watt, sets an important example that energy efficiency and profitability are not mutually exclusive for the utility industry.

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Bill Johnson
Progress Energy, Inc.

Johnson has been with Progress Energy in a number of roles since 1992 but he assumed the company’s top position as chairman and CEO in 2007.   His experience serving within one of the state’s top two utilities for nearly two decades makes him the ideal person to discuss the realities Progress Energy faces as it explores moving toward a business model based on distributed generation.

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David Greene
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Center for Transportation Analysis

A Corporate Fellow in Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Engineering Science and Technology Division, Greene has spent 30 years researching transportation energy and environmental policy issues for the federal government. Given the growing VMT rates in North Carolina, we know that our transportation and land use patterns are not sustainable over the long-run. Greene, with extensive expertise in measuring the sustainability of transportation systems, can share his thoughts on our best options given the unique set of circumstances we face in North Carolina.

Therese Langer
American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy

Langer is actively involved in national policy debates on vehicle fuel economy standards, tax incentives for advanced technology vehicles, and climate policy for the transportation sector. Her work in other states for example, she recently conducted the transportation sector analysis for the Utah Energy Efficiency Strategy makes her an expert on best practices for efficient and clean transportation strategies.

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Victoria M. Holt
PPG Industries

Holt has led PPG’s Glass and Fiber Glass division since 2003. PPG, a multi-national company with three locations in North Carolina, has recreated its niche in the new energy economy. Holt’s experience with the Department of Energy’s energy star initiative and as head of PPG’s energy security and climate change initiative and her awareness of the urgency surrounding our need for a clean, sustainable future, will further propel PPG into the forefront of companies leading the way in the new energy economy.

J. Christopher Clemens
MegaWatt Solar

Clemens is a professional astrophysicist and co-founder of MegaWatt Solar. MegaWatt Solar is a product of the effective transfer of university-born innovations to the marketplace Achieving energy security requires diversifying our state’s energy supply by introducing options like solar energy. Clemens is dedicated to the development of cost-competitive solar power generation and co-founded MegaWatt Solar in pursuit of that goal.

Dennis Quaintance
Proximity Hotel

Dennis Quaintance began his hospitality career in 1973. Shortly after, a business venture brought him from Montana to Greensboro, North Carolina where he has since opened several restaurants and hotels in the area. Quaintance’s awareness of the value of conserving energy coupled with his success in the hospitality sector led him to build the Proximity Hotel in Greensboro, a green hotel which was designed and constructed to maximize sustainability and minimize environmental impact. The success of the Proximity Hotel makes Quaintance a leader and expert in greening traditional businesses.

David Bennert
Innova Homes

In 2003, Bennert co-founded Innova Homes, a small company that specializes in modular homes. After identifying a niche in the market and receiving training in green building, Bennert now builds green modular homes in the Asheville area that meet or exceed Energy Star standards. His homes are affordable and therefore offer the option of green living to middle and low-income consumers. Not only is Bennert increasing the green options available to home buyers, but he and his company are enjoying increased profits in this new energy economy.

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Bob McMahan
North Carolina Board of Science and Technology

Under Robert McMahan's leadership, the North Carolina Board of Science and Technology has been responsible for the creation of a number of internationally recognized initiatives to catalyze the transformation of the North Carolina economy by leveraging university research, science, entrepreneurship, and technology based economic development. As an advisor to North Carolina's legislative and executive branches on these issues, McMahan is an expert in identifying and encouraging economic development opportunities for North Carolina as they relate to the new energy economy.

James Y. Kerr, II
North Carolina Utilities Commission

Governor Easley appointed Kerr to the North Carolina Utilities Commission in 2001 for an eight-year term. He has been asked to testify before Committees of the United States Senate and North Carolina General Assembly as well as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. As power companies in North Carolina face both market and environmental challenges, Kerr's expertise will help North Carolina utilities outline some options in terms of the future regulation of energy transmission.

Terry Bellamy
Mayor of Asheville, North Carolina

When elected in 2005, Bellamy was the youngest mayor in North Carolina and the first African-American to serve as mayor of Asheville. Since her election, Mayor Bellamy has shared her vision for a unified community that works together to address challenges and take advantage of opportunities, including those related to our energy future. Under her leadership, Asheville is becoming a model green community offering a healthy balance of green buildings and green spaces.

Scott Ralls
North Carolina Community College System

Scott Ralls has served as president of Craven Community College for the past five years and recently was chosen to succeed President Martin Lancaster as head of the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS), a post he will begin this summer. As North Carolina experiences economic growth relating to new energy markets, a prepared workforce is critical to sustain this growth. Under Ralls’ leadership, the NCCCS has a key role to play in the preparation of our workforce to fill the green-collar job market.

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