Pre-Conference Workshop
Women Leadership in Clean Energy Development
Monday, September 4, 2017; 13:30 - 15:00
WORKSHOP LOCATION:
Institut de Recerca En Energía de Catalunya (IREC)
Jardins de les Dones de Negre, 1, 2a pl., 08930 Sant Adrià de Besòs, Barcelona
Link in Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/iwcehXFtYu12
Women leadership in the clean energy sector is a particularly key factor in the advancement of sustainable energy worldwide. Women and girls in rural developing regions carry a huge burden in providing for the cooking, heating and lighting needs of their households - studies have shown that 2.7 billion people rely on open fires and traditional stoves for cooking and heating, and it is safe to assume that a majority of these people are women. Hence, in the effort to bring clean, renewable energy to developing regions, the insights, leadership and entrepreneurship of women throughout the energy value chain is indispensable. Nevertheless, recent studies by the Environment and Gender Index (EGI) find that that women hold only 4% of World Energy Council Chairs, and only 18% of World Energy Council Secretaries.
This pre-conference workshop focuses on:
- The role of women leadership in advancing clean energy initiatives, particularly in developing regions
- Progress and challenges to date in enhancing women's roles in the clean energy industry
- Opportunities for women entrepreneurs and women-led companies in this field
Executive Director
EarthSpark International
Rachel McManus is a clean energy entrepreneur with a passion for improving energy access in Haiti. She is the Executive Director of EarthSpark International and the President of Enèji Pwòp S.A., a Haitian social enterprise that has benefited over 80,000 people to date through sales of solar lighting and clean cooking solutions. During her five years in Haiti, she oversaw the expansion of Enèji Pwòp, increasing sales of clean energy retail products by 400% in her first year. Currently she focuses on microgrid development; after successfully commissioning Haiti's first pre-pay, town-sized, solarized smart microgrid in June 2015, EarthSpark is preparing to roll out 80 grids by the end of 2022.
With a background in gender, conflict and international development, Rachel earned her BA (Hons) in International Studies and MSc in International Conflict from Kingston University in the United Kingdom. She speaks fluent Haitian Creole and is proficient in French. She is based in Washington, D.C.
CEO and Co-founder
Odyssey Energy Solutions
Emily is CEO and co-founder of Odyssey Energy Solutions, a venture-backed start up working to simplify, streamline, and reduce the costs of developing and financing rural electrification and distributed renewable energy projects around the world. Prior to Odyssey, Emily was Chief Revenue Officer at Frontier Power, a SunEdison subsidiary that developed and operated solar mini-grids in emerging markets. Emily also worked in advanced energy management at EnerNOC and Yahoo, and received a Fulbright Fellowship to address off-grid solar lighting solutions in rural India. Emily holds a BA from Brown University, an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Deputy Director, Global Advocacy
Power for All
Aaron is a Director of Global Advocacy at Power for All. Aaron also leads the design and delivery of Practical Action's ambitious influencing agenda to leverage political and practical change on energy access and energy poverty at international and national levels. He serves on the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) Energy Access Committee, is an observer on the Scaling Up Renewable Energy in Low Income Countries Program (SREP) fund of the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), and on the Steering Committees of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Safe Access to Fuel and Energy (SAFE) initiative; the International Renewable Energy Agency's (IRENA) Coalition for Action on renewable energy; and the Association of CSOs on Clean Energy Access (ACCESS). Prior to working for Practical Action, he co-founded the Global Governance Institute, a Brussels-based think tank, and led its Sustainable Development section for three years. He was also a Team Leader and Energy Policy Expert at the International Institute of Sustainable Development for three years.
This pre-conferene workshop will take place at the IREC facilities in Barcelona, and will be followed by a tour of the IREC microgrid demonstration lab, 15:00 - 17:00 on Monday, September 4.
Registered attendees for the main conference on September 5-6 may attend this pre-conference workshop at no additional cost. Those who wish to register for the workshop only may do so by clicking here
PLEASE NOTE: The pre-conference workshop and tour on 4 Septmeber will be held at the IREC facility. However, the main conference on 5-6 September will be held at the IL3 Instituto de Formación Continua, Districte 22@, Ciutat de Granada, 131, 08108 Barcelona. To view in Google Maps, click here.