ELECTRIC AUTO - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Policy Manager for Plug in America
Alexia is currently Policy Manager for Plug In America. She brings a diverse set of experiences across clean energy and transportation, climate change mitigation, campaign management, and corporate engagement. Most recently, Alexia led strategic communications and engagement for a global electric vehicle corporate initiative that requires companies to transition their fleets to electric or install charging to build out the EV charging network. She received her B.A. with a focus on sustainability and economics at Brown University. Alexia is a long-time car and outdoor enthusiast.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Program Director at ClimateWorks Foundation
Anthony Eggert is a program director at ClimateWorks Foundation which mobilizes philanthropy to solve the climate crisis and ensure a prosperous future. Anthony comes to ClimateWorks with 20 years of public and private sector experience working on clean energy technologies and policies. Prior to ClimateWorks, Anthony served as the founding director of the UC Davis Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy dedicated to leveraging university expertise to inform better policy. Anthony public sector experience includes serving as an appointee of Governors Jerry Brown and Arnold Schwarzenegger including as Senior Advisor to the Chair of the California Air Resources Board, Commissioner of the California Energy Commission and Deputy Secretary of California Environmental Protection Agency where he helped implement California's landmark clean energy and climate policies. Anthony's started his career as an automotive engineer and program manager at Ford Motor Company working on regulatory compliance and advanced vehicle technology development. Anthony received a bachelor degree in mechanical engineering at University of Wisconsin-Madison and master degree in transportation technology and policy at UC Davis.
Job Titles:
- Treasurer
- Treasurer of the Board
- Director of Electric Vehicle Innovation for ReVision Energy
As Director of Electric Vehicle Innovation for ReVision Energy, Barry provides sales, marketing and business development expertise to assist companies and consumers in making the right decisions when it comes to charging infrastructure and related energy technology. ReVision is a B-certified Corporation and 100% employee owned entity that offers siloed design, engineering and installation expertise for a variety of clean energy technologies. To date it has installed hundreds of level two EV chargers and several large DCFC placements throughout New England, resulting from diverse partnerships with ChargePoint, Greenlots, EVgo, Flo and Tesla. Barry is a director on the board with Plug In America, the only independent US-based non-profit who is the voice of EV drivers. Barry drives a Chevy Bolt with 60k miles on it and lives in midcoast Maine.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
- Managing Director of Rocky Mountain Institute
Britta Gross is the Managing Director of Rocky Mountain Institute's (RMI) mobility practice area, focused on the market-driven strategies and technologies required to accelerate towards carbon-free mobility solutions. Ms. Gross was formerly the Director of Advanced Vehicle Commercialization at General Motors, responsible for the energy strategies, partnerships, and policies required to enable the commercialization of battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles. Britta is also currently a Commissioner for the Orlando Utility Commission, Orlando's electric and water utility.
Britta began her career with Hughes Space & Communications in Los Angeles, leading Mission Design and Systems Engineering teams developing communication and weather satellite programs, then spent the 90's bringing aerospace program management practices into the automotive industry, leading a joint project in Germany that involved Hughes, GM, and Opel vehicle design engineers.
She has an Electrical Engineering degree from LSU and studied language arts at the University of Wurzburg in Germany. She holds and has held numerous board seats, including MobilityData, the Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) and the Alliance for Transportation Electrification (ATE), and served as a Governor appointee on both the Massachusetts Zero Emission Vehicle Commission and the Maryland Electric Vehicle and Infrastructure Commission. Ms. Gross has received numerous industry awards including Automotive News' "Electrifying 100", the GreenBiz "Verge 25" award, has testified to the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and speaks regularly to national audiences on topics related to alternative fuels in transportation.
Brittany Swinson is an Inglewood, CA native whose passion for event planning led her to a tenured career in higher education at California State University Northridge (CSUN). As an advisor, mentor, and student advocate. She prides herself on being logistics orientated and a team player. Her keen enthusiasm to build community and guide students' voices has allowed her to make an impact on not only her students. But her campus partners and colleagues. As the events manager for Plug In America, Brittany's goal is to leave a mark in the electric vehicle industry and bring more community-based engagements to fruition. That continues to bridge the gap of curious consumers to become electric vehicle owners. Brittany's vast experience in events management will allow her to bring fresh ideas to the conversation and consider different perspectives.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
- Partner at Kirsch Kohn
Carisa Ferrer is a Partner at Kirsch Kohn and Bridge LLP. She joined the firm in 2006 and has over 20 years of experience in public accounting. She began her career with Arthur Andersen as a CPA, then became a foreign exchange trader with a multinational bank before transitioning back to pubic accounting.
Carisa enjoys relationships with her clients and provides solutions to address their financial and tax matters. She firmly believes in a work-life balance.
Carisa earned her bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of the Philippines. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
- Transportation Manager
Cedric Daniels is the Electric Transportation Manager for Alabama Power Company, a Southern Company. During his 40 years with Southern Company, Cedric worked in power generation, human resources, external affairs, customer services, and marketing. Since 1999, he has managed ways customers receive economy, efficiency, and environmental benefits using electricity as their transportation (On-Road and Off-Road) fuel. Cedric has served as an advisor or officer or board member of Electric Power Research Institute's Electric Transportation Program, Alabama Clean Cities, CalStart and Edison Electric Institute contributing to implementations of Electric Transportation developments.
Chelsea is a development and marketing professional with a decade of experience in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors. She loves bringing together ideas from every division to help everyone achieve their goals. Whether it's new partnerships, new revenue opportunities, or new ideas for constituent engagement, she's excited to join our team and be a part of our mission. Chelsea's dedicated to development, as well as our shared sense of purpose and mission.
Chris directed the documentary features Revenge of the Electric Car (2011) for Independent Lens and Who Killed the Electric Car? which premiered at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival before it's release by Sony Pictures Classics. His work as executive producer includes the independent documentaries Bikes vs Cars (2015) which premiered at SxSW, Charge, Faster and William Gibson: No Maps for These Territories. Earlier directing and producing projects include MTV/Initial Film's Buzz, Mailman (Sundance Film Festival, 1995), Trillion Cubic Feet, Zoo Life with Jack Hanna, and Return to the Philippines. He assisted writer/director Michael Tolkin on the feature films The Player and The New Age. Chris studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse and documentary film at Stanford University. He graduated from Colgate University in 1983.
Daniel serves as the Program Manager for GEVA, the Global EV Alliance, in addition to supporting the work of the policy team at Plug In America. Previously, Daniel spent over a decade working in the community nonprofit sector on programming and outreach, as well as in higher education development and engagement. A longtime electrified transportation enthusiast, Daniel can be found navigating the convoluted streets of Boston in his Nissan LEAF. Originally from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Daniel holds a B.A. in anthropology from the University of Alberta, as well as an M.B.A in Social Impact from Brandeis University.
Dean Taylor has over 25 years of experience in the electric transportation area with a focus on regulatory and legislative affairs, external engagement and business and strategy development. He has chaired many coalitions including the California EV Task Force and the coalitions that created federal EV tax credits, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and California's AB 118 incentives and HOV lane access incentive. He has project managed dozens of technical and business planning studies covering over 30 electric drive technologies, including non-road EVs, high-speed rail, and heavy duty EVs. Dean currently is a principal advisor for Southern California Edison working in Regulatory Affairs on transportation electrification issues.
Job Titles:
- Communications Associate
- Associate for Plug in America
Derrick is a Communications Associate for Plug In America. Previously, he worked at a dealership as the lead EV/Hybrid Product Specialist, and most recently for Rivian as an Event Specialist on the first tour of their R1T truck. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Communication with a minor in Psychology. He recently moved to Los Angeles where he works to craft social media posts and newsletter entries. You'll typically find him dancing in his seat to music on his headphones while he's working, or at the beach soaking up the sun.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Executive Director of the California Electric Transportation Coalition
Eileen is the executive director of the California Electric Transportation Coalition. Prior, she worked in California State government for over 15 years, which included serving as Deputy Secretary for the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA). Prior to her time at Cal/EPA, Eileen worked for the California Air Resources Board, an agency within Cal/EPA. In her ten years at the Air Resources Board, Eileen helped develop regulations and programs that have placed the State of California at the forefront of environmental protection.
Ellie is currently a Policy Assistant for Plug in America. She comes to the organization with an array of different experiences including campaign development and execution, marine research, grassroots advocacy, communications, permaculture farming, and digital media creation. In her most recent job, Ellie worked on communications strategy and execution for a global coalition of subnational governments committed to climate action. When it comes to addressing the climate crisis, Ellie will throw herself at anything that moves the needle in a sustainable and just way and is very excited to do so at Plug In America. Ellie attended UC Berkeley where she received her B.A. in Cognitive Science and B.S in a self-designed major called The Cognitive Psychology of Conservation. Ellie likes to fill her free time with art, music, surfing, climbing, backpacking, yoga, trying new things, and community.
Job Titles:
- Director of Finance & Administration
Errol is responsible for the day-to-day finances and administration of Plug In America. Errol comes to PIA with over 15 years of nonprofit experience. He was most recently the Director of Finance & HR for Advanced Digital Services, Inc., a full-service post-production and distribution facility catering to motion picture studios and television producers in Hollywood. Prior to working at ADS, Inc., Errol was the Director of Finance & HR for Shalhevet High School, a Modern Orthodox Jewish High School in the Mid-Wilshire area of Los Angeles. Errol received his Bachelor's of Science Degree from California State University - Dominguez Hills with concentrations in Finance and Accounting.
Job Titles:
- Dealer Relations Specialist
- Dealer Relations Specialist for Plug in America
Don is currently the dealer relations specialist for Plug In America which focuses on PlugStar's programs and policies. He has extensive experience in automotive sales primarily as a fleet manager. He earned a Bachelor's Degree in Business and Marketing which focused on Social Responsibility from De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines. Don has consistently promoted the benefits and importance of renewable energy and has a strong passion for environmental justice. A resident of Los Angeles, he is also an advocate for wellness and plant-based nutrition.
Fran Pavley served 29 years in elected office. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Pavley was elected the first mayor of Agoura Hills in 1982, and served 14 years in the California Assembly and the State Senate. Former State Senator Pavley authored landmark climate policies (AB 1493, AB 32, SB 32, and others) that have created a market for innovation and investment in clean energy and vehicles, which have helped clean up our air, grow the economy, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As chair of the Senate's Natural Resources and Water Committee, she was able to pass the state's first sustainable Groundwater Management Act, promote policies to protect our ocean and watersheds, and adopt measures to create more sustainable local water supplies.
She is working as the Environmental Policy Director for the USC Schwarzenegger Institute, and serves on several state and local advisory boards and committees.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Policy Advisor
- CEO of Gridchange
Jay is CEO of Gridchange, LLC, a clean-tech consultancy with deep expertise in electric vehicles and EV infrastructure. Jay has over 35 years of experience managing a wide variety of technical, policy, educational, and business development programs. As the former legislative director of Plug In America, Jay worked with Congress, consumers, and industry and environmental leaders to drive the inclusion of more than $14 billion in US government funding for plug-in vehicles as part of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. He is a leading advocate for EV consumer protection legislation across the country and has worked to breakthrough key issues around EV charging in multifamily housing. A self-described serial entrepreneur, he has built successful companies, as well as developed key industry alliances between organizations both large and small. He has owned and driven fully electric vehicles over 150,000 miles in the last 20 years.
Jeff has been a sustainability advocate by using technology to do more with less since the 1960's. His passion for electric vehicles took physical form just two weeks after 9/11 when he took delivery of his family's 2002 Toyota Prius. Just six years later, he found himself apprenticed to Seattle's master EV builder, Dave Cloud, for the conversion of a 2000 Chevy Metro into Jeff's beloved Volt Runner EV. Jeff made his last purchase of gasoline for driving in the Seattle Metro area in April 2008.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
Jennifer is the executive director of Earthworks, working to reduce the destructive impacts of mineral and energy extraction. Before joining Earthworks, Jennifer worked at Rainforest Action Network, campaigning to protect forests and pressure banks to stop financing climate change-causing industries. Together with the co-founders of Plug In America, Jennifer helped to successfully convince Ford Motor Company to save its Th!nk and Ranger EVs and eventually to design and build a new generation of plug in vehicles.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Executive Director of Plug in America
Joel is a leading advocate for electric vehicles, clean energy and effective climate policies. As executive director of Plug In America, he is focused on continuing to build it as the national consumer voice for electric vehicles in the United States. He is chair of the Global EV Drivers' Alliance, which links together EV driver associations around the world. He is also a member of the Los Angeles Metro Sustainability Council. Prior to joining Plug In America, he served as vice president for business development at the Climate Action Reserve, the state-chartered nonprofit that runs North America's largest carbon offset registry. He has an MBA from UC Berkeley and an MA in international economics from the Johns Hopkins University. He drives a Nissan LEAF and mostly charges at home on a Clipper Creek HCS-50 charging station.
Kathryn A. Lynch had over twenty years of advocacy experience operating her lobbying practice, Lynch and Associates, in Sacramento, California. Her expertise covered a wide range of issues in education, business, and state regulatory matters as well as public relations and media outreach. Ms. Lynch specialized in transportation and environmental issues. She advanced public policy in California for the solar industry for many years and guided the landmark legislation creating the "net metering" law in California. Ms. Lynch represented Plug In America since 2007 in California and was at the forefront of numerous bills and funding to develop the necessary development of infrastructure and deployment of electric vehicles.
Prior to entering the government-related field, Ms. Lynch obtained business experience working in human resources for a New York-based Fortune 500 company where she specialized in multi-faceted personnel functions and labor relations administration. Ms. Lynch received a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Science degree in Labor and Industrial Relations from Iowa State University.
Kathryn is currently the Senior Program Director for Plug In America's EV consumer and dealer engagement programs. She has extensive experience focusing on the confluence of transportation policies, environmental policies, and adoption of renewable energy technologies. Previously Kathryn was the Low Emission Vehicle Network Director for C40 Cities, connecting some of the largest cities worldwide on transportation priorities to reduce GHG emissions. She also has worked for former Vice President Al Gore's nonprofit Climate Reality Project (previously the Alliance for Climate Protection) on the Political Program Team. Born and raised in the Los Angeles area, Kathryn has a Masters of Public Policy from the University of Southern California and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California Santa Barbara.
Linda is an environmental activist, a long-time electric car driver, cofounder and past president of Plug In America. Linda currently drives a Tesla Model S while also continuing to drive her historical 2001 Toyota RAV4 EV. Linda was featured in the film documentaries, Who Killed the Electric Car? and What is the Electric Car? She was the first resident in the city of Anaheim to install a roof-top solar system to power her home and her electric car in the year 2000.
Linda worked in corporate America for several decades before moving to the California Central Coast and becoming a literal treehugger. She was the secretary and treasurer of the environmental nonprofit Ecologistics. Linda now lives in Oregon where she continues to pursue her mission to live more lightly on Earth and to persuade everyone else to do the same. Linda is the founder of Green Groundswell, a website, and blog, where she writes as the Unlikely Environmentalist.
Job Titles:
- President / CEO of Carter Myers Automotive
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
The mission of Carter Myers Automotive is to Move Lives Forward for customers, associates, and the community. Under Liza's leadership, CMA has lived this mission through progressive changes in the customer experience, innovative benefit programs and employee ownership, a commitment to sustainability, and through the many non-profit partnerships.
Liza serves on the Executive Committee of Virginia Auto Dealers Association Board of Directors and was appointed by the Governor as a member of the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board as well as several manufacturer advisory boards, specifically focused on future product and the commitment to alternative fuel vehicles.
Job Titles:
- Vice President
- Vice President of the Board
Marc is an advocate and writer in the area of public and corporate policy related to electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and related source energy. Marc was a co-founder of Plug In America. Marc is Vice Chair of the Electric Auto Association and co-founder of the Golden Gate Electric Vehicle Association. Marc has owned and driven all electric vehicles over 150,000 miles since 2001.
Mellisa Park holds a B.S. in Business Administration with Option in Accounting from California State University, Los Angeles. She has over three years of experience at one of the Big Four accounting firms, has worked on investment clients such as Goldman Sachs and Oaktree, and has analyzed business economic losses for claims against BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill. She is excited to contribute her number sense-making and trends analysis skills to help our program team and the world make a positive impact toward air quality through the upward trend of driving EVs.
Job Titles:
- Advisory Council
- Director
- Member of the Board
- Los Angeles Department of Water & Power 's Chief Sustainability Officer
Nancy Sutley is the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power's Chief Sustainability Officer, reporting directly to the General Manager. In this role, Ms. Sutley oversees the Department's energy efficiency goals, environmental affairs, sustainability initiatives, and the electrification of transportation network. She initiated LADWP's corporate sustainability programs including Green Team and the commissioning of its headquarters, The John Ferraro Building, as a LEED Gold facility.
Prior to joining LADWP in 2014, Ms. Sutley served as Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Under her leadership, the Council played a central role in shepherding the Obama Administration's signature environmental projects and was one of the chief architects of President Obama's 2013 Climate Action Plan.
Sutley has an extensive background in public service that includes posts as Deputy Mayor for Energy and Environment for the City of Los Angeles, Board Member of the Metropolitan Water District, Member of the California State Water Resources Control Board, Energy Advisor for California Governor Gray Davis, Deputy Secretary for Policy and Intergovernmental Relations at the California Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Senior Policy Advisor for the US EPA during the Clinton Administration.
Sutley received her bachelor's degree from Cornell University and her Master in Public Policy from Harvard University.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
- Chief Executive Officer ( CEO ) of ChargEVC - NJ
- Vice President of Gabel Associates
Pamela Frank, Vice President of Gabel Associates, has over 25 years of experience in sustainability issues and the renewable energy industry. She supports the firm's efforts related to electric vehicle (EV) growth and the development of renewable energy, advanced technologies, and energy efficiency projects. She also supports regulatory, policy, and analytical activities for these markets.
Ms. Frank serves as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ChargEVC-NJ and ChargEVC-PA, separate non-profit coalitions promoting the sustainable growth of the EV market in New Jersey and Pennsylvania respectively. Gabel Associates provides management services for these innovative groups, made up of utilities, automotive dealers, technology companies, equity, environmental and consumer advocates.
On behalf of ChargEVC, she was recently actively involved in New Jersey's comprehensive EV bill, signed into law by Governor Murphy on January 17, 2020 and considered to be one of the most progressive EV laws in the nation. Recently, she was appointed to the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee of the Governor's Restart and Recovery Advisory Council, which brings together leaders from diverse industry groups and community organizations throughout New Jersey to advise state leadership on economic matters impacted by COVID-19.
Ms. Frank is a frequent invited speaker at state, regional and national conferences on EV market development, coalition building, the role of utilities as a necessary partner in EV infrastructure development, solar market development and solar financing.
Prior to joining Gabel Associates, Ms. Frank spent more than a decade designing, marketing, selling, and financing products to a diverse set of clients in the solar energy marketplace. Prior to her work in the solar market, Ms. Frank served as the Founding Executive Director for the not-for-profit organization, GreenFaith. This organization, the first of its type in the nation, continues to inspire, educate and mobilize people of diverse religious backgrounds for environmental leadership.
One of Ms. Frank's greatest strengths is her ability to bring together leaders from diverse sectors to advance issues related to sustainability. In forging strategic relationships, she has created not-for profit and private sector partnerships to promote new markets for environmental products, with a sensitivity to the roles, responsibilities and goals unique to each partner.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Dean Taylor
Paul, a lifelong environmental advocate, co-founded Plug In America in 2005 to galvanize support and advocate for the manufacture of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids to reduce America's dependence on petroleum, boost America's economy and improve the global environment. Paul helped create DontCrush.com, Plug In America's predecessor, a grassroots group that single-handedly prevented some 1,000 production EVs from being destroyed by the auto companies that manufactured them. His work with both groups has included campaign strategy, research, planning and execution. He is among the key figures featured in Who Killed the Electric Car? the 2006 documentary distributed by Sony Pictures Classics, and consulted for the follow up, Revenge of the Electric Car.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm recently announced the creation of a national EV charging network with $5 billion in funding to be distributed to states. The network will prioritize charging stations along highways, giving EV drivers the ability to travel long distances without worrying about access…
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Senior Policy Advisor
Pete Chipman recently served as the Senior Policy Director for Plug In America before becoming the Senior Policy Advisor to the Board of PIA. Prior to Pete's tenure as PIA's Senior Policy Director where he led PIA's Federal and multi-state EV policy efforts, Mr. Chipman came from a background of nearly two decades of experience and leadership in the Federal government at the United States Department of Transportation and in the Obama White House. At USDOT, Pete served under the research arm of the Secretary of Transportation as well as an earlier career at the Federal Transit Administration. At the White House, he worked on clean transportation initiatives for the Office of Science and Technology Policy, Council on Environmental Quality, and the Office of the Vice President (detailed from CEQ) where he was the transportation lead for the President's Detroit Federal Working Group. After departing the Federal government in 2019, Mr. Chipman served the Biden for President campaign where he helped develop positions on climate-related transportation issues.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Senior Program Advisor