Richard Carter
Richard Carter has been involved in the renewable energy arena for four years, focusing nearly entirely on Feed-In Tariff adoption at the state level. He has worked with legislators in four states, and continues to offer services, knowledge, data, and support to others in the industry who are advocates and supporters of Feed-In Tariffs.
Richard’s perspective on Renewable Energy Growth, especially Feed-In Tariffs, comes from a progressive business perspective. Having turned-around two failing businesses by introducing progressive, positive, and growth-oriented methods, culture, and training, his perspectives address a number of the business and tax arguments presented by opposing entities.
Previously, Richard owned an Information Technology consulting group for sixteen years, after holding positions of Vice President of Sales and Sales Director in medium to large computer and hardware manufacturing companies. It is his business insights on how to grow business in an emerging technology, combined with his hands-on knowledge of renewable energy markets, that provides his value and fresh perspectives, as well as creates the benefits his actionable steps can provide.
Richard is available for public and private speaking events, as well as consulting services.
Paul Gipe
Paul Gipe has written extensively about renewable energy for both the popular and trade press. He has also lectured widely on wind energy and how to minimize its impact on the environment and the communities of which it is a part. For his efforts, Gipe has received numerous awards.
His most recent book, Wind Energy Basics: A Guide to Home- and Community-scale Wind Energy Systems was published by Chelsea Green in May, 2009.
Gipe’s book, Wind Power: Renewable Energy for Home, Farm, & Business is available in both hardback and paperback and is published in French as Le Grand Livre de l’Eolien by les éditions du Moniteur.
In 2004, Gipe served as the acting executive director of the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association where he created, managed, and implemented a provincial campaign for Advanced Renewable Tariffs. The campaign sought to adapt electricity feed laws to the North American market and was instrumental in placing the European concept on the political agenda in Canada and the United States.
Gipe first publicly called for a feed law in the US in his campaign for the board of directors of the American Wind Energy Association in 1998.
Pegeen Hanrahan, P.E.
A native and lifelong resident of Gainesville, Florida, Pegeen Hanrahan recently completed her twelfth year of elective service, and her second term as Gainesville’s Mayor (term limited in May, 2010). She is a registered Professional Engineer, and a consultant to the Trust for Public Land’s Conservation Finance Program. In this capacity, she helps other local governments develop and fund land conservation and recreational programs in Florida. With TPL, Mayor Hanrahan has worked on successful bond or sales tax initiatives for the Town of Davie (2005), Martin County (2006), North Bay Village, St. Augustine Beach, Flagler County, Alachua County, Hillsborough County (2008) and Ormond Beach (2010). With the support of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, she assists communities considering adoption of feed-in-tariffs, as Gainesville is the first city in the U.S. to implement a European-style solar FIT.
Mayor Hanrahan has over twenty years of experience in environmental remediation, public participation, grant writing, land conservation, and local government finance. She has authored and managed successful grants to the Florida Communities Trust, the USEPA Environmental Justice Program, the USEPA Sustainable Communities Program, the USEPA Brownfields Program and numerous private foundations including the Beldon Fund, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and the Elizabeth-Ordway Dunn Foundation. She served as an Engineer and Hazardous Materials Program Manager for the Alachua County Environmental Protection Department for over five years, served as Senior Vice President of Terra-Com Environmental Consulting for five years, and as Executive Director of Alachua Conservation Trust, one of Florida’s most accomplished land trusts, for three years. She has been the Engineer of Record on numerous remediation projects to remove hazardous contaminants from soil and groundwater, and has completed work in the fields of landfill design, stormwater management, hazardous waste management, climate change, sustainability, and energy conservation. She has managed or consulted to four different environmental non-profit agencies in Florida, and has completed projects for over thirty different cities, counties, water management districts, state agencies and private clients.
Mayor Hanrahan is the immediate past President of the Florida League of Mayors, immediate past Chair of the Alachua County Library District, and serves on the boards of Florida State University’s LeRoy Collins Institute, the University of Florida’s Reubin O’D. Askew Institute, the Mayors’ Innovation Project, ICLEI-USA: Local Governments for Sustainability, the Children’s Campaign of Florida, Alachua Conservation Trust and the Alachua County Children’s Alliance. Mayor Hanrahan was appointed by Governor Charlie Crist to serve on Florida’s 2010 Census Complete Count Committee. She has received numerous honors, including being named a “Woman Who Makes a Difference” by the Gateway Girl Scout Council, a “Woman of Distinction” by Santa Fe College, a “Voice for Equality” by Equality Florida, and three times being named “The Female Democratic Elected Official of the Year” by the Alachua County Democratic Executive Committee. She holds Master’s (1992) and Bachelor’s (1989) degrees from the University of Florida in Environmental Engineering, and a B.A. in Sociology (1989), also from U.F.
Craig Lewis
Craig Lewis is the Executive Director of the FIT Coalition, an organization focused on implementing best practices for scaling cost-effective, clean, renewable energy throughout the United States. Mr. Lewis is a leading Smart Energy strategist and advocate with over 20 years of experience in the renewables, wireless, and semiconductor industries. He has been working since 2005 to achieve Smart Energy outcomes via legislation, regulation, and public funding. Among many other campaigns at the national level and throughout the country, the FIT Coalition is leading the legislative effort in California to implement a statewide Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) that, if implemented, will increase California’s clean energy market by a factor of ten. Mr. Lewis spearheaded energy policy development for Steve Westly’s 2006 gubernatorial campaign in California and was VP of Government Relations for GreenVolts, a solar technology company before he founded the FIT Coalition in January 2009. He navigated the first successful solar project through California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) solicitation process and has been involved in more than two dozen RPS projects. Mr. Lewis has held senior government relations, corporate development, and marketing positions at wireless and semiconductor companies, including Qualcomm, Ericsson, and LinCom Wireless. He received a MBA and MSEE from the University of Southern California, and a BSEE from UC Berkeley.
