International Policy Leaders Dialogue Keynote Speakers

The International Policy Leaders Dialogue will feature keynote addresses from leaders of award winning organizations. The following speakers will provide their varied perspectives and share their work to implement energy efficiency as a means of achieving carbon reductions while insuring adequate supplies of energy and a sound world economy:

• Mr. Nobuo Tanaka, Executive Director, International Energy Agency
  IEA’s globally supported analysis of energy efficiency earned them a Star of EE Award in 2007. IEA’s G8 Gleneagles Programme focuses on climate change, clean energy, and sustainable development, providing a framework for action on energy efficiency at every level in countries around the world. In 2006 and 2007 alone, IEA presented a total of 16 recommendations, representing a potential 6,279 million metric tons of saved carbon dioxide per year, to the G8 Summit.
• Mr. Hank Courtright, Senior Vice President of Member Services, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
  EPRI is an award-winning independent scientific research organization focusing on the global electric utility sector. In 2008, EPRI developed the technical foundation and analytical framework for increasing transmission and distribution system efficiency to reduce the electric utility industry’s overall greenhouse gas footprint. The program is helping utilities prepare for operating in a carbon-constrained business environment and dealing with related impacts on transmission and distribution (T&D) system operation, maintenance, and planning.
• The Honorable Jackalyne Pfannenstiel, Chair, California Energy Commission
  The CEC and its leadership have been recognized through receipt of numerous Alliance awards for their aggressive and forward-thinking energy policies and programs, including their Interim Opinion on Greenhouse Strategies, which is a proposed regulatory framework for meeting the state's California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. The framework follows California’s “loading order” which puts energy efficiency as the top priority.
• The Honorable Jon Wellinghoff, Commissioner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
  The Alliance is proud to present Commissioner Wellinghoff the 2008 Charles H. Percy Award for decades of public service and leadership on energy efficiency, including the creation of a FERC Energy Innovations Sector that implements, promotes, and manages activities in areas including energy efficiency, demand response, and distributed generation.
• The Honorable Chuck Hagel, (R-NE), U.S. Senate
  As a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel (R) champions strong U.S. leadership in climate policy as the most effective approach to improve the world’s economic, energy, environmental and security policies. Senator Hagel is an original co-sponsor of legislation to develop an International Clean Technology Deployment Fund, which would assist in confronting the challenge of increasing energy demand worldwide by aiding developing countries’ efforts to tackle climate change and promoting international deployment of U.S. clean energy technology. Serving his second term in the U.S. Senate, Senator Hagel also is a member of the Senate Banking Committee, the Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and the Intelligence and Rules Committee.
• Mr. David E. Rodgers, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy
  The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is dedicated to strengthening America's energy security, environmental quality, and economic vitality in public-private partnerships. Deputy Assistant Secretary David Rodgers helps manage EERE’s portfolio of energy efficiency programs, including industrial, buildings and vehicle technologies. DOE activities related to building codes, modernization of the ENERGY STAR program, the Zero Energy Commercial Buildings Initiative, and international efforts to encourage greater energy efficiency through the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC) will be addressed during this portion of the program.
• Mr. Hiroyasu Naito, President, Rinnai Corporation
  Mr. Hiroyasu Naito, President, Rinnai Corporation Rinnai is being presented with a 2008 Star of Energy Efficiency Award for their role in revolutionizing the residential and commercial water heater industries with their innovative gas appliance technologies. Water heating represents between 13 and 17 percent of residential energy consumption, making it the third largest energy end use in homes. Rinnai’s line of high-output, high-efficiency tankless water heaters are up to 30 percent more energy efficient than a traditional natural gas water heater and up to 50 percent more efficient than an electric water heater, making them another great example of the role technology can play in reducing energy consumption and resulting CO2 emissions.
• Mr. Ernesto Heinzelmann, President, Embraco
  The 2008 International Star of EE Award Winner, Embraco is a clear example of technology’s role in climate mitigation. The world market leader in energy-efficient reciprocating compressors for refrigeration, their Variable Capacity Compressor (VCC) reduces refrigeration system power use by up to 40 percent compared with a conventional compressor. On a cumulative basis, the energy saved in 2006 by Embraco VCCs around the world would power all the houses in a city the size of Washington, D.C. for 37 days.
• Mr. Richard Bennett, Vice President of Environment, Health & Safety, United Technologies Corporation
  A 2008 recipient of a Star of EE Award, UTC began measuring and reporting its environmental impact fifteen years ago – long before voluntary environmental reporting was common. In the past 10 years, UTC reduced its own energy use by 20 percent while the company more than doubled in revenues. UTC is now well on its way to achieving its next goal of reducing, by 2010, greenhouse gas emissions by 12 percent and water use by 10 percent. Another target is to invest $100 million from 2007 to 2010 in energy conservation projects, including co-generation systems.
• Mr. Michael W. Taylor, Vice President of Sales, Honeywell’s Clinton Climate Initiative
  Honeywell, a global energy services leader, was one of the first companies to join the Clinton Climate Initiative in a wide-reaching effort to help 40 of the world’s largest cities improve the energy efficiency of buildings and decrease greenhouse gas emissions. As Honeywell’s primary liaison with the Initiative, Michael Taylor works closely with Honeywell’s global organization to encourage the growth of local energy businesses and to educate local government and private building owners about the benefits of using Performance Contracting as a tool for reaching their sustainability goals.