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COLUMBIA GLOBAL
ENERGY SUMMIT 2024

Navigating Global Challenges to Accelerate the Energy Transition
APRIL 16, 2024 | New York City

COLUMBIA GLOBAL
ENERGY SUMMIT 2024

Past Event

April 16, 2024
7:30 am - 5:00 pm

Lerner Hall
Columbia University

See Location on the Map

Overview

This event will be hosted in-person, by invitation and for Columbia University affiliates. If you would like to attend in person and you hold a valid Columbia University ID, please register here. You must register using your Columbia University email address and present valid Columbia University ID at event check-in. The event will also be streamed live for the general public.

The Columbia Global Energy Summit 2024, hosted by the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University SIPA, is an annual event dedicated to thought-provoking discussions around the critical energy and climate challenges facing the global community. 

This year’s day-long Summit will address myriad issues at the heart of today’s complex geopolitical, environmental and economic landscape, including the impact of climate change and the energy transition on geopolitics and security; the outlook for clean energy deployment in the face of growing policy support, as well as challenges such as interest rates, permitting reform and trade conflict; pathways to mobilize finance for clean energy in emerging and developing economies; energy justice imperatives; and the impact for energy and climate policy in key elections around the world in 2024.

The Summit will also be livestreamed and virtually accessible to all. In addition to the formal program, the Summit also offers opportunities for participants and attendees to network and develop partnerships and relationships.

Driving the Dialogue on Critical Conversations facing the Global Energy Community

Past Summit programs have highlighted timely and impactful issues, and every year the Summit focuses on the most pressing issues facing the global energy community. In past years this has included the geopolitics of energy transition, financing the energy transition, mobilizing climate action, and the realities of today’s energy needs in emerging economies. Experts at the 2024 Summit will discuss critical topics of-the-day, such as the impact of climate on peace and security, achieving sustainable and equitable growth in the critical minerals supply chain and global marketplace, addressing energy inequality in the United States, and much more.

Speakers &
Moderators

Henrik Andersen

CEO, Vestas

Panel
Navigating Turbulence in the Energy Sector
2:10 p.m.

Danish nationality. Born in 1967.

Current position: Group President and CEO, Vestas Wind Systems A/S.

Previous positions: Group President and CEO, Hempel A/S from 2016 to July 2019. Spent more than 15 years with ISS A/S, a global leader in facility services, holding leadership positions in UK and Denmark, including Group CFO and COO EMEA.

Current key positions of trust: Board member of H. Lundbeck A/S (DK), member of the investment committee of Maj Invest Equity 4 & 5 K/S (DK).

Education: Holds a Graduate Diploma in International Business, Aarhus School of Business, Master of law from University of Aarhus and has completed studies at IMD.

Henrik lives north of Copenhagen, Denmark, together with his wife and two daughters.

Shalanda H. Baker

Director of the Office of Energy Justice and Equity, U.S. Department of Energy

Panel
Addressing Energy Insecurity at Home
11:15 a.m.

Shalanda H. Baker is the Director of the Office of Energy Justice and Equity at the U.S. Department of Energy. Prior to her appointment, she was a Professor of Law, Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Northeastern University. She was the co-founder and co-director of the Initiative for Energy Justice, which provides technical law and policy support to communities on the front lines of climate change. Baker served as an Air Force officer prior to her honorable discharge pursuant to the then existing “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy, and became a vocal advocate for repeal of the policy. She earned a B.S. in Political Science from the U.S. Air Force Academy, a J.D. from Northeastern University, and L.L.M. from the University of Wisconsin.

William J. Berger

CEO, Sunnova Energy International, Inc.

Panel
Where Energy Infrastructure, Trade, and Industrial Policy Meet
3:05 p.m.

Mr. Berger founded Sunnova in 2012 and has since then served as Chief Executive Officer, President and Chairman of the Board. With more than two decades of experience in the electric power industry, Mr. Berger is an energy entrepreneur who has always supported free market competition, consumer choice and the advancement of energy technology to power energy independence. Before Sunnova, Mr. Berger served as Founder and Chief Executive Officer at SunCap Financial, a residential solar service provider. He also founded Standard Renewable Energy, a provider and installer of renewable energy and energy-efficient products and services. Mr. Berger received his Masters of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and graduated cum laude from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering.

Sarah Bianchi

Senior Managing Director and Chief Strategist of International Political Affairs and Public Policy, Evercore

Panel
Where Energy Infrastructure, Trade, and Industrial Policy Meet
3:05 p.m.

Jason Bordoff

Founding Director, Center on Global Energy Policy; Professor, Columbia SIPA; Professor and Co-Founding Dean Emeritus, Columbia Climate School

Panels
Fireside Chat with Thomas E. Donilon
10:05 a.m.
Fireside Chat with John Podesta
1:40 p.m.

Jason Bordoff is the Founding Director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, where he is a Professor of Professional Practice. He is also on the faculty of the Columbia Climate School, where he is Co-Founding Dean Emeritus.

He previously served as Special Assistant to President Barack Obama and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change on the Staff of the National Security Council. Prior to that appointment, he held senior policy positions on the White House’s National Economic Council and Council on Environmental Quality. Earlier in his career, he was a scholar at the Brookings Institution, served in the Treasury Department during the Clinton Administration, and was a consultant with McKinsey & Company.
One of the world’s leading energy and climate policy experts, Bordoff’s research and policy interests lie at the intersection of economics, energy, environment, and national security. As a member of the Columbia SIPA faculty since 2013, he teaches and mentors the world’s future energy and climate leaders in government, business and civil society.

In 2013, Bordoff created the Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP), which is now widely recognized as among the world’s leading energy policy research institutes, advancing evidence-based and actionable energy and climate solutions through research, dialogue, and education. (Learn more here.) In addition to serving as CGEP’s Founding Director, Bordoff co-led and created the nation’s first graduate school devoted to tackling climate change, the Columbia Climate School, from 2021 to 2023. Bordoff is a columnist for Foreign Policy Magazine and has authored numerous essays and articles for Foreign Affairs. He frequently publishes articles in leading outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Economist, and appears on NPR, CNN, NBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, CBS, and the BBC as a commentator.His Foreign Affairs article with Meghan O’Sullivan, "Green Upheaval: The New Geopolitics of Energy," was selected as one of the "Top Ten" print articles published in that journal in 2022.

Bordoff also has extensive experience advising the private sector and non-profit organizations. He is a Senior Advisor at Macro Advisory Partners, a geostrategic advisory firm. He chairs the Aspen Institute-Columbia Global Energy Forum and serves on numerous advisory boards and leadership councils, including Sustainable Energy for All at the United Nations, The Nature Conservancy of New York, Foreign Policy 4 America, the New York Energy Forum, and the World Economic Forum’s "Future of Energy Stewardship" and "Mobilizing Investment for Clean Energy in Emerging Economies" programs. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Trilateral Commission, the Oxford Energy Club, and the National Petroleum Council (a federally chartered advisory committee to the Secretary of Energy).

Bordoff graduated with honors from Harvard Law School, where he was Treasurer of the Harvard Law Review, and clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He also holds an MLitt degree from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar, and a BA magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Brown University.

For all media inquiries please email [email protected].

Thomas E. Donilon

Chairman, BlackRock Investment Institute; Former US National Security Advisor

Panel
Fireside Chat with Thomas E. Donilon
10:05 a.m.

Thomas E. Donilon is Chairman of the BlackRock Investment Institute. He served as  National Security Advisor to President Barack Obama. In that capacity Mr. Donilon  oversaw the U.S. National Security Council staff, chaired the cabinet level National  Security Principals Committee, provided the president’s daily national security briefing,  and was responsible for the coordination and integration of the administration’s foreign policy, intelligence, and military efforts. Mr. Donilon also oversaw the White House’s  cybersecurity and international energy efforts. Mr. Donilon served as the President’s  personal emissary to a number of world leaders.

Mr. Donilon previously served as Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy  National Security Advisor. In that role, he was responsible for managing the U.S.  government’s national security policy development and crisis management process.  Mr. Donilon chaired the Obama-Biden transition at the U.S. Department of State. During  the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, Mr. Donilon headed President Obama’s general  election debate preparation effort.

Mr. Donilon chaired the Presidential Commission to Enhance National Cybersecurity.  Mr. Donilon is a distinguished fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a non resident senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and  International Affairs. He is a member of the Center on Global Energy Policy Advisory  Board at Columbia University, the Aspen Strategy Group, the Brookings Institution Board  of Trustees, and the Trilateral Commission. He has participated in and led numerous  policy groups including Co-Chairing with Governor Mitch Daniels the Council on Foreign  Relations Independent Task Force on Noncommunicable Diseases.

Mr. Donilon has worked with and advised three U.S. presidents since his first position at  the White House in 1977, working with President Carter. He served as assistant  secretary of state and chief of staff at the U.S. Department of State during the Clinton  administration. In this capacity, Mr. Donilon was responsible for the development and  implementation of the department’s major policy initiatives, including NATO expansion,  the Dayton Peace Accords, and the Middle East peace process. Mr. Donilon has  received the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the National Intelligence  Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished  Public Service, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joint Distinguished Civilian  Service Award, and the CIA’s Director’s Award.

Mr. Donilon received his undergraduate degree from Catholic University and his law  degree from the University of Virginia. He lives in Washington, DC, with his wife,  Ambassador Cathy Russell. Ambassador Russell was U.S. Ambassador for Global  Women’s Issues at the State Department from 2013-2017 and currently serves as  UNICEF’s Executive Director.

Kate R. Finn

Executive Director, First Peoples Worldwide

Panel
Addressing Energy Insecurity at Home
11:15 a.m.

Kate R. Finn is Executive Director of First Peoples Worldwide, an organization whose mission is to work from a foundation of Indigenous values to achieve a sustainable future for all. Ms. Finn leads the organization, situated within the University of Colorado at Boulder, to build corporate accountability to the rights of Indigenous Peoples at the intersection of law, finance, and business.

Ms. Finn’s areas of focus and research expertise include Indigenous Peoples law and policy, federal Indian law, preventing violence against women, sustainable finance, and business and human rights. Her recent work focuses on articulating the impacts of development in Indigenous communities as business and financial risks to forecast the materiality and opportunity of embedding respect for Indigenous Peoples into routine business operations.

Among several papers and articles, she has authored or co-authored Indigenizing Catalytic Capital, Harnessing Private Equity for Indigenous Peoples, The Business Case for Indigenous Rights, Indigenous Rights as a Central Value in Investing in Net Zero Investing, Supply Chains & Sovereignty Native-Led Food Systems Solutions, Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights as a Minimum Standard for Corporate Practice, Social Cost and Material Loss: The Dakota Access Pipeline, and Responsible Resource Development and Prevention of Sex Trafficking: Safeguarding Native Women and Children on the Fort Berthold Reservation.

Ms. Finn holds a J.D. and a Masters in Public Administration from the University of Colorado, and a B.A. from Princeton University. She was the inaugural American Indian Law Program Fellow at the University of Colorado Law, where she worked directly with Tribes and Native communities. She serves on the boards of First Nations Community Financial, Unified Solutions Tribal Community Development Group, Cultural Survival, and on the Stewardship Circle of Adasina Social Capital. Ms. Finn is an enrolled citizen of the Osage Nation.

David Foley

Senior Managing Director in the Private Equity Group and Global Head of Blackstone Energy Partners, Blackstone

Panel
Financing a Clean Energy Future with Public and Private Capital
10:35 a.m.

David I. Foley is a Senior Managing Director in the Private Equity Group and Global Head of Blackstone Energy Partners. Mr. Foley is based in New York and is responsible for overseeing Blackstone’s private equity investment activities in the energy sector on a global basis. Since joining Blackstone in 1995, Mr. Foley has been responsible for building the Blackstone energy practice and has played an integral role in every energy-related private equity deal that the firm has made. Mr. Foley actively leads our investment activities and provides guidance and support to the other BEP senior investment professionals, who each have primary responsibility for specific sectors. Before joining Blackstone, Mr. Foley worked with AEA Investors and prior to that he worked as a management consultant for Monitor Company. Mr. Foley serves as a member of the Board of Directors for several BEP investments, including Beacon Offshore Energy, Geosyntec, Kinetik, Olympus Energy, Rover and Transmission Developers, Inc. He also serves as the Chairman of the Columbia University Medical Center Ophthalmology Board of Advisors. Mr. Foley received a B.A. and M.A. in Economics, with honors, Phi Beta Kappa, from Northwestern University and received an M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard Business School.

Lynn Good

Chair and Chief Executive Officer, Duke Energy

Panel
Fireside Chat with Lynn Good
8:40 a.m.

Lynn Good is chair and chief executive officer of Duke Energy, one of America’s largest energy holding companies. Under her leadership, Duke Energy is delivering one of the nation’s largest clean energy transitions while maintaining the reliability and affordability customers depend on.

Good is focused on Duke Energy executing an aggressive clean energy strategy to achieve its ambitious climate goals – at least a 50% carbon reduction by 2030, 80% by 2040 and net-zero by 2050 for electricity generation. The company expanded its net-zero emissions goal to include Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 emissions. Since 2005, the company has reduced carbon emissions by 44%.

The company is accelerating the transition to cleaner energy by adding significant amounts of renewables and energy storage to its portfolio, extending the life of its nuclear plants, modernizing the energy grid, advocating for new dispatchable clean energy technologies, and collaborating with stakeholders and policymakers to advance supportive energy policy. This transformation will deliver value for the company’s customers, communities and shareholders.

Fortune magazine lists Good among the “Most Powerful Women in Business,” and Forbes magazine calls her one of “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.”

Duke Energy has paid a quarterly cash dividend on its common stock for 98 consecutive years. The company has also been named to the Forbes list of “America’s Best Employers” and recognized by Fortune as one of the “World’s Most Admired Companies” in the electric and gas utilities industry.

Before becoming CEO in 2013, Good served as Duke Energy’s chief financial officer and earlier led the company’s commercial energy businesses during its initial development of renewable energy projects. She began her utility career in 2003 with Cincinnati-based Cinergy, which merged with Duke Energy three years later. Prior to 2003, she was a partner at two international accounting firms, including a long career with Arthur Andersen.

Good currently serves on the boards of directors for Boeing, the Business Roundtable, the Edison Electric Institute, Foundation For The Carolinas, the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations, the World Association of Nuclear Operators, myFutureNC, and New York City Ballet. She also serves on the Department of Homeland Security Advisory Council, the Charlotte Executive Leadership Council, and Bechtler Museum of Modern Art Advisory Council. Good holds Bachelor of Science degrees in systems analysis and accounting from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. She and her husband, Brian, live in Charlotte.

Amy Harder

Executive Editor, Cipher

Panel
Financing a Clean Energy Future with Public and Private Capital
10:35 a.m.

Amy Harder is executive editor of Cipher by Breakthrough Energy. Amy is one of the top national energy and climate change reporters in the country, having built up a reputation of being a uniquely balanced and influential journalist with respect across the spectrum. She joined Breakthrough Energy in early 2021 to help launch Cipher, a publication covering the opportunities and challenges of the energy transition.

Before joining Breakthrough, Amy was with Axios full time since shortly after it launched in 2017, based in Washington DC. In that role, Amy reported on trends and exclusive scoops, while also distilling into understandable formats complex energy and climate issues. Harder has interviewed some of the most well-known leaders in this space, and at the same time bridges the gap between what leaders say and what everyday people care about.

She was the inaugural journalism fellow for the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute for the 2018-2019 school year, where she moderated events and took part in other university initiatives. Previously, she covered similar issues for The Wall Street Journal, based out of its Washington, DC, bureau. Earlier in her career, she wrote for National Journal, also in Washington DC.

She has appeared on PBS' NewsHour, CSPAN, MSNBC, CBS, and NPR, among many other media outlets. She is regularly sought out to speak and participate in events, including moderating and participating in panel discussions, and giving speeches around the country and world.

Amy is originally from Washington State and moved back in 2020, after a dozen years in the other Washington. She received a BA in journalism with honors from Western Washington University. She loves running and cross-country skiing the Pacific Northwest’s best trails.

Matthew Harris

Founding Partner, Global Infrastructure Partners, Board Chair, CGEP Advisory Board

Panel
Where Energy Infrastructure, Trade, and Industrial Policy Meet
3:05 p.m.

Matt Harris is a founding partner of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), recognized as one of the world’s leading infrastructure investment firms, investing globally in the energy, transportation, water, and waste and digital infrastructure sectors and combining deep industry expertise and relationships with best practice operational management.

During his fifteen years as part of GIP’s leadership team, Mr. Harris has transformed the company into a market leader, managing more than $80 billion for its investors in high-quality infrastructure assets in OECD and select emerging market countries. GIP’s portfolio companies boast combined annual revenues of greater than $43 billion and employ 52,000 people worldwide. He has championed GIP’s forward-leaning approach to growth and innovation, and led the firm’s entry into new markets, including infrastructure in developing countries and renewable energy, as well as focus on the energy transition. Mr. Harris is a member of the executive committee of GIP as well as its Investment and Portfolio Valuation Committees.

He is the founder of Bedari, an impact company innovating at the intersection of investment, philanthropy, and sustainability. Bedari’s portfolio is comprised of operating companies, issue-focused investments, and philanthropic projects catalyzing change in consciousness and energy and the environment. Mr. Harris is also a partner in the Bridge Builders Collaborative, a venture capital fund that invests in start-up companies committed to mental, social, and spiritual well-being.

He serves as chairman of the advisory board of Columbia University’s Center for Global Energy Policy, is a member of Hess Midstream Partners, LLC and of the UCLA College of Social Sciences Dean’s advisory board, and is a member of the board of directors of the Whole Health Institute and the World Wildlife Fund.

He holds a BA in political science cum laude from UCLA.

Doreen Harris

President and CEO, NYSERDA

Panel
Addressing Energy Insecurity at Home
11:15 a.m.

Doreen M. Harris is the president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), a public benefit corporation that advances innovative energy solutions to improve New York State’s economy and environment.
Ms. Harris has held public and private sector leadership roles advancing clean energy projects and engineering companies for more than 20 years.
During her 10 years of public service, she has held executive, technical, and policy positions at NYSERDA. Most recently, as Vice President of Large-Scale Renewables, she oversaw the State’s nation-leading advancement of renewable resources under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, including the development of offshore wind. Before embarking on a career in public service, Ms. Harris spent more than a decade in the energy sector, serving in management and engineering roles.
Ms. Harris earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Rochester and a Master of Business Administration from the University at Albany.

Selwin Hart

Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Climate Action and Just Transition

Panel
The Diplomacy and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition
1:30 p.m.

The Special Adviser ensures delivery of the Secretary-General’s priorities on climate change, from enhanced nationally determined contributions, fossil fuel and coal phase-out, ensuring public and private finance shifts and the transitions necessary to shift the world’s energy, transportation, land and natural systems in alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.
Before his appointment, Selwin Hart served as the Executive Director for the Caribbean region at the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). He was previously the Ambassador to the United States and the Organization of American States for Barbados and Director of the Secretary-General’s Climate Change Support Team, leading the team’s delivery of the 2014 Climate Summit and the Secretary-General’s engagement in the process leading to the signing of the Paris Agreement on climate change.
Throughout his career, Mr. Hart has served in several climate action leadership positions,
including as a Climate Adviser for the Caribbean Development Bank, Chief Climate Change
Negotiator for Barbados, as well as the Coordinator and Lead Negotiator on Finance for the
Alliance of Small Island Developing States, a coalition of 43 islands and low-lying coastal States in the Caribbean, Pacific, Africa, Indian Ocean and South China Sea. He was a member of the Kyoto Protocol Adaptation Fund Board from 2009 to 2010 and was elected by the United Nations General Assembly to serve as Vice-Chair of the Second Committee of the United Nations General Assembly (Economic and Financial) during its sixtieth Session.

Karen Karniol-Tambour

Co-Chief Investment Officer, Bridgewater Associates

Panel
Financing a Clean Energy Future with Public and Private Capital
10:35 a.m.

Karen Karniol-Tambour is Co-Chief Investment Officer at Bridgewater Associates, responsible for managing the company’s investment process. Karen oversees the systemization of Bridgewater’s research into trading strategies, manages the development of proprietary investment management models, directs the design and implementation of client investment strategies, and publishes timely market understanding to clients and global policy makers via Bridgewater’s Daily Observations. She also co-leads the firm’s Sustainable Investing efforts, overseeing the design of new investment solutions with both financial and sustainability objectives. Karen joined Bridgewater in 2006 after graduating from Princeton University. She serves on the boards of Search for Common Ground and Seeds of Peace. Karen is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, was included in Fortune’s "40 Under 40" most influential leaders in business in 2019, and has been named to Barron's list of "Most Influential Women in US Finance" for three years in a row.

Sarah Ladislaw

Special Assistant to the President, NSC Senior Director for Climate and Energy

Panel
Financing a Clean Energy Future with Public and Private Capital
10:35 a.m.

Senior Director Sarah Ladislaw leads the U.S. National Security Council’s (NSC) Climate and Energy Directorate, responsible for coordinating national security policy on issues including the climate crisis, energy security, stability and reliability, and strengthening environmental sustainability.
Sarah previously was a Managing Director at RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute), where she led the US Program. She also worked on other global initiatives including the Mission Possible Partnership to reduce industrial-sector emissions and supports the development of green banks.
Prior to RMI, Sarah was Senior Vice President and Director of the Energy Security and Climate Change Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). At CSIS, Sarah led the think tank’s work in energy policy, geopolitics, and technology analysis. She spearheaded new work at CSIS on climate change and foreign policy, deep decarbonization, and just transitions.
Before CSIS, Sarah worked in the Office of the Americas in the US Department of Energy’s Office of Policy and International Affairs, where she covered a range of economic, political, and energy issues in the Western Hemisphere. In addition, she spent a short time working at Statoil as its senior director for international affairs in the Washington office.
Sarah holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs/East Asian Studies and Japanese Language and a Masters in International Affairs/International Security from The George Washington University.

Hon. Mary Landrieu

Senior Policy Advisor, Van Ness Feldman, LLP

Panel
Navigating Turbulence in the Energy Sector
2:10 p.m.

Senator Mary Landrieu served in the United States Senate for three terms, from 1997-2015. During her 18 years in the Senate, she chaired the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, the Homeland Security Appropriations Committee, and was the first Democratic woman to serve on the Armed Services Committee. She is credited with the passage of several important pieces of legislation: most notably, the landmark Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA); the Israel American Energy Alliance; and the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act (RESTORE Act) – the single largest environmental investment in the Gulf Coast in US history.
During her time in the Senate, Landrieu was known for her bipartisan approach to addressing national challenges and for her passionate advocacy for her home state of Louisiana, particularly in the aftermaths of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Prior to serving in the Senate, she was elected twice to the Louisiana State Legislature from 1979 – 1987. For eight years, she successfully championed causes related to women and children, flood protection, and education reform. In 1987, she was elected State Treasurer and served with distinction for two terms. Strong fiscal management, pension fund diversification, debt limitation, and the creation of the first-ever municipal investment fund (now valued at over $2 billion) are some of her noteworthy accomplishments.
Since leaving the Senate, Landrieu served on the Board of Directors for CenturyLink (Lumen) (November 2015 - May 2020) and Tyler Technologies (January 2020 – February 2024). She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Evergy. She has been a leader in the public-school reform movement for decades and is a co-founder of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), which represents over 150 Members of Congress who work on bipartisan policies and funding initiatives to support the notion that every child has the right to a safe, stable, and nurturing family. In addition, Landrieu serves on the board of Resources for the Future, and on the National Academy of Sciences’ Gulf Research Program Advisory Board.
She earned her BS degree from Louisiana State University and is married to Frank Snellings, an attorney and real estate broker. They reside in Washington, DC, and have two grown children and one grandchild.

Sir Stephen Lovegrove

Former National Security Adviser, United Kingdom

Panel
The Diplomacy and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition
1:30 p.m.

Sir Stephen Lovegrove was the UK’s National Security Adviser until late 2022, during which time he was responsible for the UK’s national response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the drawdown from Afghanistan, as well as overseeing AUKUS. Before his role as NSA he was the Permanent Secretary for the Ministry Defence for five years (2016-2021), a role he also performed at the Department for Energy and Climate Change (2013-2016). Sir Stephen joined the UK’s civil service in 2004, after a career in investment banking.

Luis Alberto Moreno

Former President, Inter-American Development Bank

Panel
Where Energy Infrastructure, Trade, and Industrial Policy Meet
3:05 p.m.

Luis Alberto Moreno is the former president of the Inter-American Development Bank, having served from October 2005 to October 2020.
 
Mr. Moreno served as Colombia’s ambassador to the United States for seven years, in which he oversaw the improvement in Colombian-U.S. relations and built bipartisan support in the U.S. Congress for $4+ billion in assistance programs for Colombia. Ambassador Moreno was also instrumental in the renewal and extension of the Andean Trade Preferences Act, and one of the leading negotiators on the Colombia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement.
He served as representative for the Andean Region of WestSphere Capital, a private equity firm focusing on investment in Latin America. Mr. Moreno also served as senior advisor to the Luis Carlos Sarmiento Organization, Colombia’s leading banking and financial group. 

He was president of the Colombian government’s industrial finance corporation, and before then, minister of economic development. Upon leaving the Ministry, he was tapped to chair Andrés Pastrana’s presidential campaign.
Previously, Mr. Moreno was executive producer of TV Hoy, a news program which received the Spanish language equivalent of a Pulitzer during his tenure. He has also received distinctions, including the “Orden de Boyacá en el Grado de Gran Cruz” awarded by the President of Colombia.

Mr. Moreno obtained bachelor's degrees in business administration and economics from Florida Atlantic University, and an MBA from Thunderbird University’s American Graduate School of International Management. In the field of journalism, he was awarded a Neiman Fellowship by Harvard University.
 

Jennifer Morgan

State Secretary and Special Representative for International Climate Action Federal Foreign Office of Germany

Panel
The Diplomacy and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition
1:30 p.m.

Jennifer Morgan has been State Secretary and Special Representative for International Climate Policy at the Federal Foreign Office since March 2022. Born April 21, 1966 in Ridgewood, New Jersey, she studied Political Science and International Relations at Indiana University, Bloomington and received her Master’s Degree in International Affairs at The American University in Washington, D.C.

In her professional career, Jennifer Morgan held various leadership positions, including Director of the Global Climate Campaign of WWF International and Director of the Climate Program of the think tank World Resources Institute (WRI). She was also a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and the Council for Sustainable Development of the Federal Government. Before her assignment to the Federal Foreign Office, from 2016 to 2022 she was Managing Director of the environmental organization Greenpeace International (GPI). Jennifer Morgan lives in Berlin and has the German citizenship.

Damilola Ogunbiyi

CEO of Sustainable Energy for All , Special Representative, UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, and Co-Chair, UN-Energy

Panel
Driving the Energy Transition in Emerging and Developing Countries
9:10 a.m.

Damilola Ogunbiyi is CEO of Sustainable Energy for All, special representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All, and co-chair of UN-Energy.

Previously, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female managing director of the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency and was responsible for successfully negotiating the Nigerian Electrification Project, a $550 million facility to rapidly construct solar mini-grids and deploy solar home systems across Nigeria. She was also responsible for the Energizing Education Programme, which will provide uninterrupted electricity to 37 federal universities and seven teaching hospitals through off-grid captive power.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi conceptualized the Energizing Economies Initiative, which provides sustainable and affordable off-grid power solutions to economic clusters in Nigeria and drove gender inclusion activities in the REA and energy sectors. Previously, she was senior special assistant to the president on power and head of the advisory power team in the Office of the Vice President, where she was also responsible for the Power Sector Recovery Programme.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi was the first female to be appointed as the general manager of the Lagos State Electricity Board. She entered public service as the senior special assistant to the Lagos State Governor on public-private partnerships. Prior to her appointment, Mrs. Ogunbiyi was a consultant for the United Kingdom Department for International Development on public-private partnerships.

She created the Lagos State Energy Academy to build the capacity of young people in renewable energy technology.

Mrs. Ogunbiyi is a commissioner for the Global Commission to End Energy Poverty.

Shannon K. O'Neil

Vice President, Deputy Director of Studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies, Council on Foreign Relations

Panel
Where Energy Infrastructure, Trade, and Industrial Policy Meet
3:05 p.m.

Shannon K. O'Neil is the vice president, deputy director of studies, and Nelson and David Rockefeller senior fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. She is an expert on global trade, supply chains, Mexico, Latin America, and democracy.

Dr. O’Neil is the author of The Globalization Myth: Why Regions Matter, which chronicles the rise of three main global manufacturing and supply chain hubs and what they mean for U.S. economic competitiveness. She also wrote Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead, which analyzes the political, economic, and social transformations Mexico has undergone over the last three decades and why they matter for the United States. She is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion, and a frequent guest on national broadcast news and radio programs. Dr. O’Neil has often testified before Congress, and regularly speaks at global academic, business, and policy conferences.

Dr. O’Neil has lived and worked in Mexico and Argentina. She was a Fulbright scholar and a Justice, Welfare, and Economics fellow at Harvard University, and has taught Latin American politics at Columbia University. Before turning to policy, Dr. O'Neil worked in the private sector as an equity analyst at Indosuez Capital and Credit Lyonnais Securities. She holds a BA from Yale University, an MA in international relations from Yale University, and a PhD in government from Harvard University. She is the chair of the board of directors of the Tinker Foundation.

Carlos Pascual

Sr. Vice President Geopolitics and International Affairs, S&P Global Commodity Insights

Panel
The Diplomacy and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition
1:30 p.m.

Ambassador Carlos Pascual is a non-resident Fellow at the Center on Global Energy Policy. He is currently a Senior Vice President at IHS. Pascual served as U.S. Ambassador in Mexico (2009-2011) and Ukraine (2000-2003). As Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs, Pascual established and directed (2011-2014) the State Department’s Energy Resources Bureau and was the senior advisor to the Secretary of State on global energy diplomacy.

At the Brookings Institution (2006-2009), Pascual was both Vice President and Director of Foreign Policy Studies and launched the Brookings Energy Security Initiative. Pascual created the position of Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization (2004-2005), establishing the State Department’s first civilian response capacity to conflicts.  He was the State Department’s Coordinator for U.S. Assistance to Europe and Eurasia (2003-2004). Pascual served as Special Assistant to the President and successively as Director and then Senior Director for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia at the National Security Council (1995-2000).

Pascual held leadership roles at the U.S. Agency for international Development (1983-1995), including as Deputy Assistant Administrator for Europe and Eurasia, Chief of Policy and Strategy for Africa, and in field postings in Mozambique, South Africa and Sudan.  Pascual received his M.P.P. from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University (1982) and his B.A. from Stanford University (1980). His book, Power and Responsibility, won a 2009 award for the best political science book published by an independent publisher.

Mari Elka Pangestu

Former Minister of Trade, Former Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Indonesia

Panel
The Diplomacy and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition
1:30 p.m.

Mari Pangestu was the World Bank Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships, March 2020-2023. Prior to joining the Bank Mari Pangestu served as Indonesia’s Minister of Trade from 2004 to 2011 and as Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy from 2011 to 2014.
She has had vast experience of over 30 years in academia, second track processes, international organizations and government working in areas related to international trade, investment and development in multilateral, regional and national setting.
Most recently, Ms Pangestu was a Senior Fellow at Columbia School of International and Public Affairs, as well as Professor of International Economics at the University of Indonesia, honorary professor at the Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University and a Board Member of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Jakarta.
Ms. Pangestu is highly regarded as an international expert on a range of global issues and has served on a number of boards and task forces such as, the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington D.C and commissioner for the Low Carbon Development Initiative of Indonesia as well as an executive board member of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). She has also served on the board of a number of private sector companies.
She obtained her bachelor’s and master’s degree in economics from the Australian National University, and her doctorate in economics from the University of California at Davis.

Avinash Persaud

Special Advisor on Climate Change to the President, Inter-American Development Bank

Panel
Driving the Energy Transition in Emerging and Developing Countries
9:10 a.m.

Avinash Persaud is the newly appointed Special Advisor on Climate Change to the President of the Inter-American Development Bank. Persaud has over 30 years of experience in finance, public policy, and academia. Prior to this appointment, he was Special Climate Envoy to the Prime Minister of Barbados and an architect of the 'Bridgetown Initiative that has played an instrumental role in helping to set the international financial reform agenda in recent years.

Persaud is a member of the High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance of the COP26, 27 and 28 Presidencies and Board nominee of the new Climate Loss and Damage Fund. He previously served as Chairman of the Caribbean Community's Commission on the Economy and Commissioner of the UN Commission on Financial Reform. Prior to his public policy roles, Persaud was a senior executive at several major banks including J. P. Morgan, State Street and UBS.

Persaud has authored multiple academic publications with particular emphasis on financial policy. An Emeritus Professor of Gresham College in the UK, he is 2024 Perry World Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania and winner of the Jacques de Larosiere Award in Global Finance for his work on financial risk management and systemic crises.

Pedro Pizarro

President and CEO, Edison International

Panel
Decarbonizing Electricity in an Era of Rising Demand
3:45 p.m.

Pedro J. Pizarro is president and chief executive officer of Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison (SCE), one of the nation’s largest electric utilities. Edison International is also the parent company of Edison Energy, a portfolio of competitive businesses providing commercial and industrial customers with energy management and procurement services. He is a member of Edison International’s board of directors.

Pizarro served as president of SCE from October 2014 through May 2016, when he was elected president of Edison International. He was elected chief executive officer in October 2016. Previously, Pizarro was president of Edison Mission Energy (EME) and chaired its board of directors from 2011 until the sale of its assets to NRG Energy in April 2014. EME, a subsidiary of Edison International at the time, was an independent power producer that owned, leased, operated and sold energy and capacity from electric power generation facilities and engaged in hedging and energy trading activities in competitive power markets. Pizarro joined Edison International in 1999, moved to SCE in 2001 and progressed
through several leadership roles before joining EME.

Before his work at Edison International and SCE, Pizarro was a senior engagement manager with McKinsey & Company in Los Angeles, providing management consulting services to energy, technology, engineering services and banking clients. There, he developed corporate strategy, handled mergers and acquisitions and oversaw operational and organizational engagements.

Pizarro earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and held National Science Foundation and Department of Defense graduate fellowships. He earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Harvard University.

Pizarro was elected as chair for the Edison Electric Institute in June 2023 and serves on the boards of Caltech and 3M. He also co-chairs the Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council, which is the principal liaison between the federal government and the electric power industry to prepare for and respond to national-level disasters or threats to critical infrastructure.

Pizarro previously served on the boards of the Electric Power Research Institute, Analysis and Resilience Center for Systemic Risk, Argonne National Laboratory, Electric Power Supply Association, California Power Exchange, Colburn School, House Research Institute, Southern California Leadership Council and Western Energy Institute. He also represented the electric industry on the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB), co-chaired the SEAB Innovation Working Group, and served on California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery.

John Podesta

Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy

Panel
Fireside Chat with John Podesta
1:40 p.m.

John Podesta is the Senior Advisor to President Biden for International Climate Policy at the White House. He initially joined the White House in September 2022 as the Senior Advisor to President Biden for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation (OCEII) to lead the rollout of clean energy provisions under the Inflation Reduction Act. John manages both an international and domestic portfolio through his new role from the White House. He works in coordination with the strong team at SPEC to represent the U.S. as a fierce champion of bold climate action, as well as continuing to oversee the team implementing the Inflation Reduction Act. In this role, John engages with international, domestic, and private sector partners to harness the clean energy transition to create more prosperous, equitable, and resilient communities across the world.
Podesta served as counselor to President Barack Obama, where he was responsible for coordinating the administration’s climate policy and initiatives. In 2008, he served as co-chair of President Obama’s transition team. He was a member of the U.N. Secretary General’s High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda.
Podesta notably served as White House chief of staff to President William J. Clinton during the second administration. He chaired Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president in 2016.
Outside of his roles in several White House administrations, he is the Founder and former Chair for the Washington, D.C- based think tank Center for American Progress and a Founder and former Chair of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth.
A Chicago native, Podesta is a graduate of Knox College and the Georgetown University Law Center, where he is currently a visiting professor of law.

Maria Pope

President and CEO, Portland General Electric

Panel
Decarbonizing Electricity in an Era of Rising Demand
3:45 p.m.

Maria Pope is president and chief executive officer of Portland General Electric.

Pope leads PGE in delivering safe, reliable and affordable energy for Oregonians. Under her leadership, PGE has accelerated the transition to a clean energy future by adding new wind, solar and battery storage, strengthening the energy grid by integrating new technologies, and working with community stakeholders, customers and policymakers to advance collaborative solutions and build vibrant communities.

Pope joined PGE in 2009 as chief financial officer and treasurer. She led PGE’s power generation facilities, wholesale power marketing and long-term resource strategy as senior vice president of Power Supply, Operations and Resource Strategy.

Prior to PGE, Pope was CFO of Mentor Graphics Corporation. She has held senior operating and finance positions in the technology, forest products and consumer products industries. She began her career in banking with Morgan Stanley.

Pope serves on the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. She is the chair of the Oregon Business Council and co-chair of the Oregon Semiconductor Competitiveness Task Force. She is currently the vice chair of the Edison Electric Institute and the chair of the Electric Power Research Institute.

Pope is a graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business and Georgetown University.

Akshat Rathi

Senior Climate Reporter, Bloomberg

Panel
Driving the Energy Transition in Emerging and Developing Countries
9:10 a.m.

Akshat Rathi is an award-winning senior climate reporter for Bloomberg News. He is the author of Climate Capitalism, host of Zero, a weekly climate podcast for Bloomberg Green, and writes a weekly newsletter on climate solutions.

He has a PhD in chemistry from the University of Oxford, and a BTech in chemical engineering from the Institute of Chemical Technology in Mumbai. He has worked for Quartz and The Economist.

Somini Sengupta

International Climate Reporter, The New York Times

Panel
Addressing Energy Insecurity at Home
11:15 a.m.

Scott D. Sheffield

CEO, Pioneer Natural Resources

Panel
Navigating Turbulence in the Energy Sector
2:10 p.m.

Scott D. Sheffield is an energy industry leader who played significant roles in the American shale revolution and lifting of the U.S. crude oil export ban. He recently retired as CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources, the company he helped found in 1997 and grew into what is today the largest crude producer in Texas.

The son of an ARCO executive, Sheffield attended high school in Tehran, Iran. After
graduating from the University of Texas, he began his career as a reservoir engineer with Amoco Production Co. In 1979, Sheffield became the fifth employee of Parker & Parsley Petroleum Co. in Midland, Texas. By 1985, he was CEO of Parker & Parsley and became its chairman in 1991.

Under Sheffield’s leadership, Parker & Parsley merged with MESA, Inc. in 1997 to form
Pioneer Natural Resources Co. He became the company’s founding CEO and assumed the position of chairman of the board in August 1999. Sheffield retired from the company in 2016, but he returned as President and CEO in 2019 and continues to serve on the board. Pioneer announced a sale to ExxonMobil in October 2023 for $65 billion. The company grew from $32 million in 1985 to $65 billion under his leadership.

Sheffield also serves as a director of The Williams Companies, Inc., a provider of large-scale infrastructure for natural gas and natural gas products, on the advisory board of the Center for Global Energy Policy at Columbia University and on the Energy Council of CSL Capital Management, LLC, a private equity firm.

The Permian Basin Petroleum Association recently honored Sheffield as the recipient of its prestigious Top Hand award, which recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership within the oil and gas industry and the Permian Basin community.

He is also a 2013 inductee into the Permian Basin Petroleum Museum Hall of Fame, memorializing those whose achievements and outstanding contributions to the industry helped build the Permian Basin. Sheffield also received the Texas Oil & Gas Association’s Distinguished Service Award, the ADL’s Henry Cohn Humanitarian Award in Dallas, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Hope Award in Midland and the Frank Pitts Award for Energy Leadership from SMU.

He and his wife, Kimberley, are dedicating their time and funds to building a $15 million, state-of-the-art tennis facility for First Serve New Mexico to teach the children of Santa Fe tennis, life skills and tutoring. Sheffield is a distinguished graduate of the University of Texas with a bachelor of science degree in petroleum engineering.

Lorenzo Simonelli

Chairman and CEO, Baker Hughes

Panel
Navigating Turbulence in the Energy Sector
2:10 p.m.

Lorenzo Simonelli is Chairman and CEO of Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR). Baker Hughes is an energy technology company that combines innovation, expertise and scale to provide solutions for energy and industrial customers worldwide.

Simonelli was named Chairman of the Board in October 2017 and has been President and CEO since the Company’s creation in 2017, where he oversaw the successful merger of GE Oil & Gas with Baker Hughes Inc. Since 2013, he served as President and CEO of GE Oil & Gas.

Previously, Simonelli served as President and CEO of GE Transportation, a global transportation leader in the rail, mining, marine and energy storage industries. During his five-year tenure, he expanded and diversified GE Transportation by focusing on advanced technology manufacturing, intelligent control systems, and a diverse approach to new propulsion solutions.

He has also served as CFO Americas for GE Consumer & Industrial, as well as General Manager, Product Management for GE Appliances, Lighting, Electrical Distribution and Motors.

Simonelli joined GE’s Financial Management Program in 1994, where he worked on assignments in GE International, GE Shared Services, GE Oil & Gas, and Consolidated Financial Insurance.

He currently serves on the Board of Iveco Group N.V. He served on the Board of C3.ai, Inc. from 2020-2021 and on the Board of CNH Industrial N.V. from 2019-2021.

Originally from Tuscany, Italy, Simonelli is a Business & Economics Graduate from Cardiff University in South Wales. He is married and resides in Houston.

Sumant Sinha

Founder, Chairman and CEO, ReNew

Panel
Decarbonizing Electricity in an Era of Rising Demand
3:45 p.m.

A leading first-generation entrepreneur, Sumant Sinha is the Chairman and CEO of ReNew Power – one of India’s largest clean energy companies. Sumant founded ReNew Power in January 2011, with a vision to transform the way energy is produced and consumed in India. Since then, under his leadership, the company has grown exponentially and is today one of India’s premier renewable energy companies with an aggregate portfolio of more than 13 GW spread over more than 140+ sites.

ReNew has been funded by marquee investors including Goldman Sachs, CPPIB (largest Canadian pension fund), ADIA (sovereign wealth fund in the Middle East) and JERA (leading Japanese utility), and has raised more than USD 7.3 billion of capital, both in equity and debt. In August 2021, ReNew became the first Indian renewable energy company to list on NASDAQ (NASDAQ: RNW). ReNew’s current enterprise value is US$10 billion and the company has emerged as one of the leading asset creators in the country over the last 5 years. It now generates nearly 1.8% of India’s total electricity annually and in doing so helps mitigate half a percent of India’s carbon emissions in a year.

Sumant is a passionate advocate for solutions related to climate change and sustainable development and has spoken at various thought leadership platforms, such as World Economic Forum at Davos, COP Summits, Climate Week NYC, CERA Week, and other forums organized by Financial Times, ORF as well as leading global universities. He has written more than 150 opinion articles in leading global and Indian publications on the pressing issues of climate change, renewable energy and sustainable economic growth. Sumant has recently written a book – Fossil Free: Reimagining Clean Energy in a Carbon-Constrained World, which is about the past, present and future of the world’s energy systems in the context of the world’s changing climate and spells out a playbook to create a carbon light future for India. Recently, Fossil Free was featured in the Tata Literature Live Business Book Award 2021 shortlist. Former US Vice President Al Gore describes the book as “a compelling roadmap to a better, cleaner future for India—and other developing regions of the world”.

Sumant is Co-Chair of the Electricity Governor’s Group, and member of the Stewardship Board on Shaping the Future of Energy and Alliance of CEO Climate Leaders, at the World Economic Forum. He was recently elected as Co- Chair of the Alliance of CEO Climate Action Leaders India. Sumant also serves as the President of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM). He serves on the Board of Directors of the US India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) and the Rocky Mountain Institute.

Sumant has been instrumental in ReNew joining as a founding member of the First Movers Coalition (The First Movers Coalition is a public-private partnership between the US State Department, through Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, and the World Economic Forum). Sumant also serves on the Singapore Government’s International Advisory Panel on Energy, and member - Advisory Committee of India Climate Collaborative- a platform promoting policy advocacy and thought leadership on climate change. He is on the Board of Governors of IIM Calcutta, IIT Delhi and Columbia
University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE). Sumant is an Energy Transitions Commissioner (UK), and chair of the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) India. Sumant is also one of the founding members of the CFA Society India that today has more than 3200 members across India consisting of portfolio managers, investment advisors, and other finance professionals.
For his achievements in entrepreneurship and clean energy, Sumant has won several awards and recognitions including 2022 USISPF Global Leadership Award; S&P Global Platts ‘Trailblazer of the Year 2021’; ‘Chairman Of The Year’ at the Stevie International Business Awards 2020; Columbia SIPA ‘Distinguished Alumni Award 2022’; ‘ET Energy’s Chief Executive of the Year 2022’; The Entrepreneur India’s Entrepreneur of the Year award, 2019; Distinguished Alumnus Award – IIM Calcutta 2019; the coveted ‘Economic Times Entrepreneur of the Year Award’ 2018, Distinguished Alumnus Award – IIT Delhi, 2018; ‘EY Entrepreneur of the Year’, 2017’ and ‘Outstanding Start-up of the Year’- Forbes India Leadership Awards 2017. Sumant has also been recognized as an SDG Pioneer by the United Nations Global Compact, a first for any Indian business leader, for his work in the areas of energy transition and gender equality.

After starting his career in the Tata Administrative Service, Sumant worked as an investment banker with Citicorp and ING Barings in the US and UK, before heading finance in one of India’s largest conglomerates, the Aditya Birla Group. He was also COO of Suzlon, India’s largest wind turbine company. Sumant has a Master’s degree in International Affairs from Columbia University, a diploma in business management from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta and a B. Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.

Vera Songwe

Chair and Founder of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility

Panel
Financing a Clean Energy Future with Public and Private Capital
10:35 a.m.

Vera Songwe (Chair and Founder of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility; Co-chair of the Independent High level expert group on Finance for climate action; Visiting senior fellow at the Brookings Institution)

Vera Songwe is Chair and Founder of the Liquidity and Sustainability Facility, a visiting senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Co-Chair of the Independent High Level Expert Panel on Climate Finance nominated by the government of the UK and Egypt for COP27 and also for the Egypt and the UAE under COP28 alongside Lord Nick Stern. Under these COP presidencies they wrote the Songwe- Stern report on Climate finance as well the report on Accelerating implementation of Climate Finance. She also co-authored the report Financing nature: a Transformative agenda launched at COP28. Dr. Songwe is a Co-Chair of the Food System Economics Commission, an independent interdisciplinary academic commission that equips political and economic decision makers with tools and evidence to shift food and land use systems. She is the former United Nations Under-Secretary General and the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

Songwe has led numerous efforts to bring greater prosperity to Africa. She has worked with African heads of government, Ministers of Finance and Central Bank governors, international organizations and the private sector on macroeconomic stability, monetary policy, financial innovation and inclusion growth, economic integration and trade, and private sector development. She is a leader recognized and respected globally and has contributed policy advice to many continental leaders and institutional leaders globally.

Previously, Songwe was the Regional Director of the International Finance Corporation, covering West and Central Africa. She oversaw a multi-billion dollar portfolio of investments in energy, transportation, manufacturing and technology.
Prior to this, she held a number of roles at the World Bank, including serving as Country Director, Adviser to the Managing Director for Africa, Europe and Central and South Asia. She spent 10 years of her career working and living in Asia. She joined the World Bank as a Young Professional. Prior to joining the Bank, she was a Visiting Researcher at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minnesota and at the University of Southern California. Songwe was named African Icon of the year in 2022 by the African Bankers Association for her work on SDRs, Inflation, debt management and domestic resource mobilization. She was named one of the ‘100 Most Influential Africans’ by Jeune Afrique in 2021 as well the top 50 most influential African Women by Forbes Magazine in 2019 and by the Financial Times as among 25 Africans to watch.

She holds a PhD in Mathematical Economics from the Center for Operations Research and Econometrics, a Master of Arts in Law and Economics and a Diplôme d’études approfondies in Economic Science and Politics from Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium. She also was presented with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in December of 2022 and holds a B.A. in Economics and Political science, both from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Scott Strazik

CEO, GE Vernova

Panel
Decarbonizing Electricity in an Era of Rising Demand
3:45 p.m.

Scott Strazik is chief executive officer (CEO) of GE Vernova, a purpose-built company focused on accelerating the energy transition and advancing sustainability. Under Scott’s leadership, GE Vernova is working alongside customers to electrify and decarbonize the electric power sector while delivering reliable, affordable, and sustainable electricity to the world.

Scott has more than 20 years of finance, operations and leadership experience with GE, including more than eight years in the company’s power businesses. Prior to joining GE Power, he served for two years as chief financial officer (CFO) of GE Aviation’s Commercial Engine Operations organization.

Scott also served as CFO of Gas Power Systems for three years before taking on the role of sales and commercial operations leader during the launch of GE’s HA gas turbine —one of GE’s most successful new product introductions.

He was named an officer of the General Electric Company in 2015 and President and CEO of GE’s Power Services business in 2017. Scott was named CEO of Gas Power in 2018 and expanded his role to leading the GE Power businesses in 2021.

Scott holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Industrial Labor Relations from Cornell University, as well as a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs with a focus on Economics and Public Policy.

Vijay Vaitheeswaran

Global Energy & Climate Innovation Editor, The Economist

Panel
Navigating Turbulence in the Energy Sector
2:10 p.m.

Vijay is the Global Energy & Climate Innovation Editor of The Economist and host of its podcast on climate change, “To a Lesser Degree.” His editorial responsibilities range from business and finance to technology and innovation, and he has produced numerous cover stories and won awards for his reporting. He is also the author of three well-received books and an accomplished public speaker. The Financial Times has declared him to be “a writer to whom it is worth paying attention.”

From 2017 to 2021, he served as the New York-based US Business Editor. He opened the magazine’s first Shanghai bureau in 2012, and served as its China Business Editor until mid-2017. He led the editorial team that launched Economist Global Business Review, a successful app that is the first bilingual product offered by The Economist in its 180-year history.

Vijay joined the editorial staff of The Economist in 1992 as its London-based Latin America correspondent, and opened its first regional bureau in Mexico City in 1994. From 1998 to 2006, he covered the politics, economics, business and technology of energy and the environment. From 2007 to 2011 his portfolio encompassed innovation, global health, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.

His latest book is “Need, Speed and Greed: How the New Rules of Innovation Can Transform Businesses, Propel Nations to Greatness, and Tame the World’s Most Wicked Problems". Kirkus Reviews declares it to be “a perfect primer for the post-industrial age” and Amazon named it a Selection of the Month. His previous books have also created a stir, with accolades ranging from lengthy reviews in The New Yorker to shortlisting for the McKinsey/ Financial Times Business Book of the Year prize.

Vijay is a Life Member at America’s Council on Foreign Relations and a Member of the Economic Club of New York. He is currently a Visiting Lecturer at Northwestern University. Previously, he created and taught the first interdisciplinary class on energy & environment offered at NYU Stern School of Business. He has also served as an advisor on sustainability and innovation to the World Economic Forum/Davos.

His opinion pieces have appeared in leading publications including The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The New York Times and Foreign Policy, and he is a seasoned commentator on such broadcast outlets as CNBC, Bloomberg, MSNBC, BBC and NPR. He has addressed groups ranging from the US National Governors’ Association and the UN General Assembly to the TED and Aspen Ideas conferences. He also serves as chairman of a provocative series of Innovation Summits organised by The Economist, held annually in Chicago, Hong Kong and London.

Vijay is an alumnus of Harvard Business School, where he was elected a class officer and valedictory speaker. He is also a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he had the honor of receiving a Harry S. Truman Presidential Scholarship from the American Congress.

Justin Worland

Senior Climate Correspondent, TIME

Panel
Decarbonizing Electricity in an Era of Rising Demand
3:45 p.m.

Justin Worland is a senior correspondent at TIME where he writes about climate change and energy. For the last decade, his stories have explored how climate change—both its effects and the response to it—are reshaping the world around us. Justin has received a variety of awards for his journalism. In 2022, Worland was named the inaugural Climate Journalist of the Year by Covering Climate Now, a non-profit founded to advance climate journalism. Justin serves as a founding board member at the Uproot Project, a non-profit that works to diversify environmental journalism. He is the journalism fellow at the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute. Justin graduated from Harvard College where he studied history.

Keren Yarhi-Milo

Dean, Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs

Keren Yarhi-Milo is the dean of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and the Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of International Relations. An expert in international security, crisis decision-making, and political psychology, Dean Yarhi-Milo is also an award-winning scholar with an extensive record of leadership and service at SIPA and Columbia, where she holds a professorship of political science and public and international affairs.

Before becoming dean in July 2022, Yarhi-Milo served for two years as director of SIPA’s Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies and as Arnold A. Saltzman Professor of War and Peace Studies. In that role, she launched several ambitious initiatives to elevate the School’s academic offerings and engagement with the world’s most pressing challenges. Among them is Emerging Voices in National Security and Intelligence, a program to attract and support students from underrepresented backgrounds interested in pursuing careers in those fields.

As a scholar and teacher, Yarhi-Milo bridges the academic and policy worlds, focusing predominantly on how leaders make foreign-policy decisions regarding the use of force. Her work draws on cutting-edge insights from psychology, organizational theory, and behavioral economics to explore the complicated contexts that surround decision-making, signaling, and perception in international relations. Yarhi-Milo’s research also delves into the complexities of intelligence, the role of secrecy and deception in foreign policy, and the use of face-to-face diplomacy. All of her scholarship is grounded in an ongoing dialogue with policymakers, in which ideas and approaches are challenged and refined.

In 2022, Yarhi-Milo won the International Studies Association’s Emerging Scholar Award, which recognizes “scholars who have made through their body of publications the most significant contribution to the field of security studies.” Her most recent book, Who Fights for Reputation: The Psychology of Leaders in International Conflict (Princeton, 2018) was recognized by the American Political Science Association as best book in foreign policy and by the ISA as outstanding book in foreign policy. Her previous book, Knowing the Adversary: Leaders, Intelligence, and Assessment of Intentions in International Relations (Princeton, 2014), received the Mershon Center for International Security’s Furnnis Award, given annually to an author whose first book makes an exceptional contribution to the study of national and international security, and was also co-winner of the ISA’s biennial book award in diplomatic studies.

Yarhi-Milo is a series editor of Princeton Studies in International History and Politics from Princeton University Press. She has also published extensively in academic journals, receiving honors from the American Political Science Association, the International Studies Association, and the Journal of Conflict Resolution. In 2010, her doctoral dissertation earned APSA’s Kenneth Waltz Award as best in the field of international security and arms control.

Yarhi-Milo joined the Columbia faculty in 2019 after a decade at Princeton University. She earned her PhD at the University of Pennsylvania and a BA, summa cum laude, from Columbia’s School of General Studies.

Education

  • Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania
  • B.A., summa cum laude, in Political Science from Columbia University

Honors and Awards

  • 2022 International Studies Association’s Emerging Scholar Award
  • 2016 Furnnis Award
  • Co-Winner of the 2016 DPLST Book Prize

Daniel Yergin

Vice Chairman, S&P Global

Panel
Fireside Chat with Lynn Good
8:40 a.m.

Daniel Yergin is a highly respected authority on energy, international politics, and economics, and a Pulitzer Prize winner. He is Vice Chairman of S&P Global and Chairman of S&P’s CERAWeek conference, which CNBC has called "the Super Bowl of world energy". He has oversight for the Commodity Insight research at S&P.

Time Magazine said, "If there is one man whose opinion matters more than any other on global energy markets, it’s Daniel Yergin." The New York Times described Daniel Yergin as "America’s most influential energy pundit."

Dr. Yergin's new book The New Map: Energy, Climate and the Clash of Nations is described by NPR as "a master class on how the world works", in The Washington Post as "a tour de force of geopolitical understanding," and by The London Sunday Times as "a wonderful book". It has been translated into 14 languages.

A Pulitzer Prize winner, Dr. Yergin is the author of the bestseller The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World. The Quest, which The New York Times said it is "necessary reading for C.E.O.'s, conservationists, lawmakers, generals, spies, tech geeks (and) thriller writers." Bill Gates summed up his review of The Quest by saying, "This is a fantastic book."

Dr. Yergin is known around the world for his book The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil Money and Power, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize. It became a number one New York Times best seller and has been translated into 20 languages.

Of Dr. Yergin’s book Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy, which has been translated into 13 languages, The Wall Street Journal said, "No one could ask for a better account of the world’s political and economic destiny since World War II." Both The Prize and Commanding Heights were made into award- winning television documentaries for PBS and BBC, which Dr. Yergin co-produced, co-wrote, and narrated.

Dr. Yergin is a member of the board of directors of the Council on Foreign Relations and a senior trustee of the Brookings Institution. He is a member of the Energy Advisory Council of the Dallas Federal Reserve. Dr. Yergin served on the U.S. Secretary of Energy Advisory Board under four U.S. presidents.

Among his honors, the Prime Minister of India presented Dr. Yergin with a "Lifetime Achievement Award" and the U.S. Department of Energy awarded him the first "James Schlesinger Medal for Energy Security." The University of Pennsylvania
presented him with the first Carnot Prize for "distinguished contributions to energy policy." Dr. Yergin was awarded the Gold Medal of the President of the Republic of Italy for combining "an understanding of the dynamics of the market with a broad view of the forces of geopolitics as he seeks to point the way to the positive outcomes for the world community."

Dr. Yergin is a member of the advisory board for the Columbia University Center on Global Energy policy. He is also member of the Indian Government’s Energy Think Tank and the advisory board of the MIT Energy Initiative.

Dr. Yergin holds a BA from Yale University and a Ph.D. from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar.

Samaila Zubairu

President and CEO, Africa Finance Corporation

Panel
Driving the Energy Transition in Emerging and Developing Countries
9:10 a.m.

A champion for African value capture, job creation and industrialisation, Mr. Zubairu has efficiently channeled billions of dollars into transformative infrastructure over three decades of leadership. In his five years as President & CEO of the Africa Finance Corporation, Africa’s leading infrastructure solutions provider has almost tripled investments to $12.7 billion— including the biggest renewable energy acquisition on the continent— and doubled membership to 42 African nations, winning AFC the accolades of Local Impact Champion at the Africa CEO Forum Awards, Equity Deal of the Year for the Infinity Energy Equity Investment and Lekela Power Acquisition at the African Banker Awards and DFI of the Year for Europe and Africa at the IJ Global Awards. Mr. Zubairu was honoured as the African CEO of the Year at the recent AsiaOne Magazine Awards, recognizing his contribution to driving growth and positively impacting communities across Africa through his visionary leadership.

As the pioneer CFO for Dangote Cement Plc, Mr. Zubairu launched Africa’s largest syndicated project finance facility for a local corporation and managed the watershed unbundling of Dangote Industries Limited to listed subsidiaries on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Most recently, as CEO of Africapital Management Limited, Mr. Zubairu partnered with Old Mutual’s African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM) to develop the Nigerian Infrastructure Investment Fund1 to drive private equity investment into infrastructure projects across West Africa.

Mr. Zubairu is an Eisenhower Fellow and sits on the Board of Trustees for the fellowship.

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