Due to inclement weather, the UNC Clean Tech Conference will begin at 10:45 on Friday, February 21. The updated schedule is accessible via the event app and on our event website. The Career Fair remains scheduled today from 3:00 – 5:00 pm.
*Online registration is closed. There is limited onsite registration available.
Special Plenary Panel, Climate Considerations for Future Prosperity and Security
Tom Darden
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Cherokee
Pavel Molchanov
Senior Vice President and Equity Research Analyst
Raymond James & Associates
View the agenda for all panels, times and keynotes.
About the 2020 Summit
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will host the seventh annual UNC Clean Tech Summit on Thursday, February 20, 2020 – Friday, February 21, 2020 at UNC’s Friday Center.
The event convenes more than 1,000 students, business professionals, international speakers, policy members, and academics for two days of engagement to foster leadership, share new ideas, and bring growth opportunities to the Southeast’s clean tech economy. The Summit is co-hosted by the UNC Institute for the Environment and the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School.
This year’s theme, “Innovating to a Clean Economy” will feature keynote speakers, panels, workshops and TedTalk-style engagement opportunities for the following topics.
UNC Clean Tech Summit 2020 themes will include:
View admission fees on our registration page.
Keynotes and Featured Speakers
Ryan Decker
Electric Vehicle Operations Lead
Audi of America
Russell Gold
Author, Award-winning Investigative Journalist
The Wall Street Journal
Mark Huang
Co-Founder and Managing Director
SeaAhead
Jeff Juger
Director of Business Development
JinkoSolar
Michael Piehler
Director, UNC Institute for the Environment, Professor of Marine Sciences and Environmental Sciences and Engineering
UNC Chapel Hill
John Preyer
Co-Founder, President and COO
Restoration Systems
Saskia Visser
Head of Programme Circulair and Climate Neutral Society
Wageningen Environmental Research
Panelists
Olachi Anaemereibe
Project Manager, Commercial Construction Superintendent
The Daniele Company
Keith Aniol
Vice President, Energy & Sustainability
Brookfield Properties
Jerry Barnes
Marine Planner, Aids to Navigation Program Manager
U.S. Coast Guard Fifth District
Justin Baumann
SPIRE Postdoctoral Fellow
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Robert H. Beach
Fellow, Agricultural, Resource & Energy Economics and Policy Program
RTI International
Brian Bednar
President and Founder
Birdseye Renewable Energy
Keith Benjamin
Director, Department of Traffic and Transportation
City of Charleston, South Carolina
Philip R. Berke
Research Professor in the Department of City & Regional Planning
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
Liliana Bettolo
Associate
Tin Shed Ventures, Patagonia's Corporate Venture Capital Fund
George Bonner
Director, NC Renewable Ocean Energy Program
Coastal Studies Institute
Kathy Boomer
Scientific Program Director, Sustainable Water Management
Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research
Allison Carr
Clean Transportation Specialist
NC Clean Energy Technology Center
Jennifer Chen
Senior Counsel, Federal Energy Policy
Nicholas Institute, Duke University
Kit Chope
Vice President, Sustainability
The Port of Virginia
Tab Combs
Research Associate, Transportation Planning
Carolina Planning
Tom Darden
Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Cherokee
Matt DiLeo
Director, Scientific Operations
Elo Life Systems
John Dittmar
Director, Safety and Security
North Carolina State Ports Authority
Bret Estep
Senior Director, Renewable Advisory Services
Tenaska Power Services Co.
Tom Fenimore
Business Development Manager, Distributed Energy Technologies
Duke Energy
Hayes Framme
Government Relations and Communications Manager, Southeast
Ørsted
Gabriela Garrison
Eastern Piedmont Habitat Conservation Coordinator
NC Wildlife Resources Commission
Miyuki Hino
Assistant Professor, Department of City and Regional Planning
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Jeff Hinshaw
Professor, Extension Specialist, Department of Applied Ecology
North Carolina State University
Jinsong Huang
Professor, Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering
Huang Group at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Iqbal Husain
Director
FREEDM NSF Engineering Center at NC State University
Wendy Johnson
Director Public Policy and Public Affairs
Nestlé Corporate Affairs
Liz Kalies
Director of Science
The Nature Conservancy, North Carolina Chapter
Noah Kittner
Assistant Professor, Dept of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Jan Lambert
President
First Fiber Corporation Of America
Anne Lebo
Community Studio Project Architect
Little Diversified Architectural Consulting
Niels Lindquist
Joint Professor, IMS and Department of Marine Sciences
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
Brian Lips
Senior Project Manager, Policy
NC Clean Energy Technology Center
Jay Lucas
Electric Division, Public Staff
NC Utilities Commission
Andre Mazzoleni
Director, Engineering Mechanics and Space Systems Laboratory (EMSSL)
North Carolina State University
Ryan Miller
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
North Carolina Building Performance Association
Alex Miller
Founder and Principal
Alex Miller Government Affairs
Sara Mills
Director of Projects and Policy
Able Grid Energy Solutions
Pavel Molchanov
Senior Vice President and Equity Research Analyst
Raymond James & Associates
Bonnie Monteleone
Director of Science, Research and Academic Partnerships
Plastic Ocean Project
Brian O’Hara
Senior Vice President Strategy and Government Affairs
Strata Solar
Paul B. Olsen
Colonel (Retired), Executive Director of Programs and Partnerships, Office of Research
Old Dominion University
James Poch
Electric Transportation Manager
Duke Energy
Blair Pollock
Solid Waste Planner
Orange County Solid Waste Management
Freda Porter
Tribal Administrator
Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina
Austin Poulter
Conservation Technology Manager
Land O'Lakes Sustain, Truterra
John Preyer
Co-Founder, President and COO
Restoration Systems
Daniel Raizman
Senior Risk Consultant, Global Resilience
AIR Worldwide
Benjamin Reading
Assistant Professor, Department of Applied Ecology
North Carolina State University
Nick Reale
Senior Project Development Manager
Tesla
Casey Reeves
Project Coordinator, Office of Renewable Energy Programs
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Jeff Rosichan
Director, Crops of the Future Collaborative
Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR)
Matt Russell
Executive Director
Iowa Interfaith Power and Light
Jaap Schut
Director, Americas
PACE Business Partners
Sheetal Shah
Principal Consultant
Food Systems Innovation Consulting
Lisa Shpritz
Senior Vice President, Environmental Business & Engagement Executive, Global Environmental Group
Bank of America
Gus Simmons
Vice President, Director of Bioenergy
Cavanaugh & Associates
Raynor Smith
VP and Chief Operating Officer
Building Clarity
Luis Suau
Technical Leader, IoT Business Unit
Cisco
John Szoka
Conference Leader
N.C. House of Representatives
Maha Tahiri
CEO and Founder
Nutrition and Sustainability Strategies
Allie Thomas
Department of City and Regional Planning
UNC-Chapel Hill
Eric Thumma
Director, Policy and Development, Offshore Wind
Avangrid Renewables
Adie Tomer
Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program
The Brookings Institution
Léda Van Doren
Assistant Professor
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
Daniel Weekley
Vice President, Innovation Policy and Development Services
Dominion Energy
Alyson West
Junior Research Associate
University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center
Brandi Williams
Community Affairs Manager, Solid Waste Services
City of Charlotte
Lincoln Wood
Electrification Policy Manager
Southern Company
David Yates
Retired President
Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition
Lili E. Zay
Morehead-Cain Scholar, Class of 2020
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
Click the image below to watch a short highlight video from the most recent Clean Tech Summit 2019!
View more UNC Clean Tech videos
ENGAGED DISCUSSIONS FOR GROWTH
- Keynote Addresses: Thought-provoking addresses by clean tech industry leaders and key government officials.
- Panel Discussions: Presentations, discussions and Q & A with experts from industry, government, agriculture, communities and academia.
- Workshops: Interactive and engaging sessions to explore, learn and collaborate.
CAREER FAIR + MENTORSHIP
- The Summit Mentor Program offers students an invaluable opportunity to meet with a professional throughout the Summit.
- The Career Fair offers students and representatives from a wide variety of clean tech companies the chance to meet and make connections.
Contributions and sponsorships make it possible for us to bring together attendees and speakers to explore key issues in the Southeast’s clean tech industry.
Support the Summit
In accordance with the UNC Institute for the Environment’s commitment to sustainability, the UNC Clean Tech Summit is proud to be a Carolina Green event.
