Board of Directors

• Dr. Lon Bell

  Dr Lon Bell Lon E. Bell Ph.D. was President of BSST LLC (Retired), Amerigon Inc.'s research and development subsidiary, since September 2000. From Amerigon Inc.’s formation, Dr. Bell served as Director of Technology until 2000, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer until 1999, and President until 1997. Previously, Dr. Bell co-founded Technar Incorporated, which developed and manufactured automotive components. Dr. Bell served as Technar’s Chairman and President until selling majority ownership to TRW Inc. in 1986. Dr. Bell is a leading expert in the mass production of thermoelectric products. Dr. Bell continued managing Technar, then known as TRW Technar, as its President until 1991. He served as a Director since founding Amerigon Inc. in 1991, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors since 1999. He has been a Member of Scientific Advisory Board of Nextreme Thermal Solutions, Inc. since June 22, 2006. He has authored more than 20 publications in the areas of thermodynamics of thermoelectric systems, automotive crash sensors, and other electronic and electromechanical devices. Five of Dr Bell's inventions have gone into mass production, and dominated their target markets. Dr. Bell received a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics in 1962, a Master’s degree in Rocket Propulsion in 1963, and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 1968 from the California Institute of Technology.

• John Boesel

  John Boesel CALSTART The public/private nature of CALSTART is reflected in John’s background.  Upon graduating from the University of California, Davis, in 1982, John worked in the California legislature as a legislative aide to then Assemblyman (now Congressman) Sam Farr.  In that position he managed energy and environmental legislation for nearly four years. He received his MBA from the Haas School at UC Berkeley in 1989.  After graduating from business school he worked as a commercial banker in Wells Fargo’s Corporate Headquarters building in San Francisco.  In 1993 John joined CALSTART as the Vice President of Technology Programs.  In 2001 the Board of Directors promoted him to the position of President and CEO. John serves on the Advisory Board for the Precourt Energy Efficiency Center at Stanford University and is also a board member of the Clean Vehicle Foundation.  John chaired the Vehicle Efficiency Subcommittee of the Western Governor’s Association Alternative Fuels Committee in 2007/2008.

• Jonathan Burke

  Jonathan Burke Westport Innovations Jonathan E. Burke is Vice President, Global Market Development for Westport and joined the company in 2006. Mr. Burke is responsible for Westport's sales, market development and government relations activities for the Westport HD business unit. Mr. Burke has over 15 years' experience in corporate and investor communications and business development for both private and public technology companies. Prior to Westport, he was Director of Business Development and Investor Relations at MIGENIX Inc., a publicly-traded biotechnology company. Prior to that, he held investor relations and corporate communications roles in the biotechnology, medical device, and venture capital fields. Mr. Burke is a Director of the British Columbia Innovation Council, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition and Board Chair of the Canadian Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance. He holds a Masters of Business Administration from Athabasca University and has completed Executive Education at Stanford University and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

• John Formisano

  John E. Formisano Azure Dynamics John Formisano serves on the Board of Directors of Azure Dynamics. Mr.  Formisano retired as Vice President, Global Vehicles of FedEx Express in Memphis, Tennessee.  In addition to managing the FedEx vehicle fleet mix, FedEx Global Vehicles is focused on the development of fuel-efficient vehicle models.  It pioneered the creation of hybrid vans in partnership with a diverse group of manufacturers such as Eaton Corporation, Isuzu and Iveco in 2003.  Since then, the hybrid-electric and electric truck fleet of 325 vehicles around the globe has covered more than five million miles of revenue service. Over his twenty-six year career at FedEx, Mr Formisano held several operations management positions such as Vice President, Regional Operations and Vice President of Worldwide Ground Operations Planning & Support.  Prior to these positions, he was the Managing Director, District Operations/AAA; Managing Director, Regional Planning & Administration and managed several engineering divisions.  Before FedEx, he worked at Automatic Data Processing, Searle Medical Products, and the United Parcel Service.    He has been recognized with the FedEx Express Five Star Award, which recognizes team members who have enhanced service and profitability and exemplified the spirit of teamwork, in 2006, 2004, 1992, 1990.  It is one of the most prestigious FedEx awards.  In addition, Mr Formisano was also the recipient of the FedEx Express President’s Award in 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998.   He has been on the Board of Directors of CALSTART since 2005 and has held the Vice Chair Board Member role since 2007.  He is also on the Board of Safe Kids Worldwide, and he holds an M.B.A from Fairleigh Dickinson University and B.S. from Montclair State College.

• Fred Hansen

  Fred Hansen Mr Hansen was Deputy Administrator, US EPA (Retired). Mr. Hansen served the General Manager of the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) until 2010. He had been serving in this position since October 5, 1998. Mr. Hansen has extensive experience in public service. Before coming to Tri-Met, he served for four years as Deputy Administrator for the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Washington, D. C., where he managed EPA’s day-to-day operations and was involved in all major policy issues. Before joining the EPA, Mr. Hansen directed the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for more than ten years. He also served as Oregon’s Deputy State Treasurer as well as previous stints in Washington, D. C., where he worked as Executive Officer of the Peace Corps and Chief of Staff to a member of Congress from Oregon. Mr. Hansen grew up in Beaverton, graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Oregon, has a master’s degree from McMaster University and completed a year of doctoral work at The Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Hansen likes to practice what he preaches. While working in Washington, D. C. for the EPA, he chose not to bring his car to the nation's capital and instead relied on transit. Now he rides the bus to work from his home in northwest Portland to Tri-Met’s southeast Portland offices. Mr. Hansen is married to the Honorable Joyce E. Cohen, former Oregon senator and now assistant to Governor Kitzhaber on environmental issues and other governmental policies.

• Douglas H. Kim

   

  Douglas H. Kim Southern California Edison Doug Kim,Director, PEV Readiness Program, is responsible for the newly formed Plug-In Electric Vehicle (PEV) Readiness Program at Southern  California Edison (SCE). The program positions SCE to support customer adoption of plug-in electric vehicles, expected to begin late this year by  many of the major automakers for the 2011 model year. Prior to this  assignment, Doug was general manager of Edison Carrier Solutions (ECS), an SCE business unit which provides large-capacity fiber  optics-based broadband services to all types of telecommunications companies including wireless carriers, large and small local and long distance telephone companies, alternative telecommunications service providers, cable television companies and internet access companies. Kim previously worked as a senior manager in various SCE organizations, with primary responsibilities in assessing new business opportunities and developing strategies and detailed business plans. Kim joined Edison International (EIX) in 1996, working on corporate strategic planning and new  business development. He also provided internal consulting to many of EIX’s operating units. Before joining SCE, Kim worked in the aerospace industry, leading technical organizations that designed, integrated and tested various systems and managing relationships with large defense industry customers. Kim earned an MBA at University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) and a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering from Harvey Mudd College in Claremont.

  
  

• Dr. Chung Liu

  Dr. Chung Liu South Coast Air Quality Management District Dr. Chung S. Liu is the Chief Scientist and Deputy Executive Officer for Science & Technology Advancement at the South Coast Air Quality Management District.  He is responsible for the District's Technology Advancement Office, Mobile Source Division, and Monitoring and Laboratory Analysis Division.  Dr. Liu's principal charges at the AQMD are to identify, evaluate, and stimulate development and commercialization of clean air technologies, develop and coordinate mobile source regulations, and to conduct ambient monitoring, source testing, and laboratory analysis. Dr. Liu received his B.S. in chemistry at Fu Jen University in Taiwan.  He was awarded an M.S. in organic chemistry, an M.B.A in finance and management science, and a doctorate in environmental science and engineering-all from UCLA. Dr. Liu serves on the Board of CALSTART, the California Air Resource Board Research Screening Committee,and the University of California at Davis Institute of Transportation Studies Advisory Board.

• Alan Niedzwiecki

  Alan Niedzwiecki QUANTUM Technologies Mr. Niedzwiecki is President and CEO of QUANTUM Technologies. He was appointed Chief Executive Officer in August of 2002 and has been serving as President since February of 2002. Prior to this, Mr. Niedzwiecki had served as Chief Operating Officer, and also served as the Executive Director of Business Development of QUANTUM Technologies. Prior to joining QUANTUM in October 0f 1999, Mr. Niedzwiecki was President and CEO of NGV Corporation, an engineering and marketing/commercialization consulting company. In this capacity, he worked with companies and organizations such as Shell, World Bank, EDO Aerospace, Dynetek Industries, and over 100 natural gas utility companies. Mr. Niedzwiecki brings more than 25 years of experience in the alternative fuels industry in product/technology development and commercialization relating to mobile, stationary power generation, and refueling infrastructure solutions. QUANTUM designs, manufactures and supplies components and integrated fuel systems to original equipment manufacturers for use in alternative fuel vehicles, fuel cell applications, and hydrogen refueling systems. These fuel cell applications include transportation and industrial vehicles, and stationary and portable power generation. QUANTUM's advanced fuel systems comprise the fuel storage, fuel metering, control, and injection of gaseous fuels to improve efficiency, enhance power output, and optimize emissions from fuel cell applications and internal combustion engines that operate on natural gas, propane, or hydrogen. QUANTUM trades on Nasdaq, ticker symbol QTWW.

• Puon Penn

  Puon Penn Wells Fargo  Puon Penn is a Senior Vice President and head of the National CleanTech & Emerging Tech Markets sector at Wells Fargo within the Technology Banking, part of Commercial Banking. Based in Palo Alto, Calif., he manages a team of banking professionals who serve the financial needs of businesses in technology and clean technology nationwide. Mr Penn began his career with Wells Fargo in 1998 in the International. He moved on to become a relationship manager in the Regional Commercial Banking Office (RCBO) in Modesto, Calif., serving the financial needs of middle-market companies. In 2003, he joined the Securities Investment Group as a financial analyst covering the food and beverage, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, and financial services sectors. In 2006, Mr Penn was promoted to loan team manager for the RCBO in Palo Alto.  Mr Penn earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from Reed College in Portland, Ore., and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.   Active in the community, Mr Penn is involved with several nonprofit  organizations including the Khmer Institute and Friends Without a Border.

• Dipender Saluja

  Dipender Saluja Capricorn Investment Group Dipender Saluja is Managing Director at Capricorn Investment Group, a private investment firm headquartered in Palo Alto, California, where he oversees investments and helps incubate companies in energy technology, clean tech, and IT.  His current areas of interest are solar, electrification of vehicles, energy storage, smart grid, wind and water.   Dipender is also President & CEO of Automatiks Inc, a Capricorn portfolio company that is developing electronic connectivity platforms for electric & hybrid vehicles, storage and smart grids.   Prior to Capricorn & Automatiks, Dipender was Chief of Staff at Cadence, a global market leader  in electronic design. Prior roles at Cadence included Corporate Vice President of Technical Field Operations and GM of Worldwide Services, in which he led a 1200 person global organization. He was also GM of Asia Pacific field operations, and Vice President of Applications Engineering, and set up and managed organizations in various regions around the world including North America, Europe, Japan, Asia Pacific, India and China.  Prior to Cadence, Dipender worked at Data General (now EMC), Honeywell, and ROLM (now IBM).  Dipender is an electrical & computer engineer by training, and attended UND, the University of innesota, and Stanford.  Dipender also serves on the boards of Automatiks Inc., Sunpreme Inc., and Education Frontiers.  He currently lives in Los Altos, with his wife and two sons.

• Dr. Ravi Shanker

  Dr. Ravi Shanker Dow Kokam Ravi Shanker is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dow Kokam. Shanker led the team that created the Dow Kokam joint venture, and has many years of experience building, growing and running businesses with The Dow Chemical Company. Shanker first joined Dow in 1991 and has primarily focused on growing Dow’s business via new product and new business development. Starting in the research department, he focused on developing new manufacturing processes. Shanker also supported the office of the Chief Executive in strategy development for near- and long-term business opportunities in emerging geographies, as well as in the role of Business Director of Specialty Plastics in the Performance Products Portfolio. Before assuming his role with Dow Kokam, Shanker served as Corporate Director of Ventures & Business Development, where he incubated a portfolio of innovative business opportunities for Dow, driving many to commercialization. Shanker holds a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of Delaware and a B. Tech. in mechanical engineering from B.I.T. Sindri, in India. He also has an MBA from the University of Houston.

• Paul Smith

  Paul Smith New Flyer Industries, Ltd. Paul Smith, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, joined New Flyer in 1988 in Engineering and moved into the Sales Department in 1995. He has served in his current capacity since 2000. He is responsible for Sales and Marketing, which includes revenue generation, brand management, advertising and promotion, strategic intelligence and customer relationship management. Prior to New Flyer, he worked in the agriculture industry.

• Hal Snyder

  Hal Snyder Sempra Energy Hal D. Snyder is Vice President of Customer Solutions for San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), Sempra Energy's regulated California utilities. Sempra Energy is a San Diego-based Fortune 500 energy services holding company whose subsidiaries provide electricity, natural gas and value-added products and services. SDG&E is a regulated public utility that provides service to 3.4 million consumers through 1.4 million electric meters and more than 840,000 natural gas meters in San Diego and southern Orange counties. SoCalGas is the nation's largest natural gas distribution utility serving 20.5 million consumers through 5.7 million gas meters. As Vice President of Customer Solutions, Snyder is responsible for the utilities' customer programs promoting energy efficiency, sustainability, low-income assistance and the development of new emerging technologies, including clean transportation, distributed energy, in-home services and biofuels. From 2004 through 2007, Snyder was Vice President of Gas Storage, Transmission and Distribution, managing operations serving more than 6.2 million SDG&E and SoCalGas customers. From 1998 to 2004, Snyder served in increasingly responsible management positions for Sempra Pipelines & Storage, which develops and operates North American natural gas pipeline and storage facilities. Snyder also led Sempra Pipelines & Storage's development efforts in Canada. Prior to 1998, Snyder held a variety of management positions in business development, operations, marketing, engineering and project management for SoCalGas. Snyder serves as a board member of the California Science Center, American Gas Association and the Coalition for Clean Air. He also is actively involved in the Leukemia Lymphoma Society. Snyder holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from California State University, Long Beach, and a master's degree in business administration from Pepperdine University, Los Angeles.

• George Survant

  George Survant Florida Power and Light Mr. Survant is Director of Fleet Services for FP&L, managing the company's 3,600 vehicle fleet. He brings significant real-world expertise in vehicle and fleet operations, certification, testing and maintenance. Mr. Survant has been a leader among fleet managers nationwide in helping to commercialize advanced vehicle technologies. His insights on how to accelerate fleet acceptance of clean and energy efficient vehicles will be extremely valuable to our organization. For the past four years Mr. Survant has served as the chair of the Utility Working Group of WestStart’s Hybrid Truck Users Forum (HTUF). This HTUF group has launched a comprehensive pilot program to assess the performance of heavy-duty hybrids in some of the nation's largest utility fleets. Mr. Survant played a principal role in recruiting utilities to the HTUF program and guiding the utility effort. In 2004 he was awarded a Blue Sky Leadership Award recognizing his visionary leadership in helping move heavy-duty hybrid technology into the marketplace for utility service truck.

• Steven Trichka

  Steven Trichka BAE Systems Steve Trichka is a General Manager, Power & Energy Management, for BAE Systems.  The Power & Energy Management business area provides integrated power management, energy storage, and control systems for land vehicles, rail, energy, and maritime vessels. Steve joined BAE Systems in May 2004 as Associate General Counsel, and was appointed as Vice President and Chief Counsel for Platform Solutions in 2005. Previously, he served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of IIT Research Institute/Alion Science & Technology Corporation, and as Senior Counsel and Corporate EH&S Counsel with Science Applications International Corporation, both in the Washington, D.C. area.  Before joining private industry, he was a Judge Advocate in the U.S. Marine Corps, assigned to the Office of Counsel for the Commandant in Washington, D.C. and Camp Pendleton, California, where he concentrated on government contracts and environmental issues. Steve holds an A.B. in Mathematics and English from Bowdoin College (1984), and a J.D. from Washington University in St. Louis (1987), where he was appointed Editor-in-Chief of the Washington University Journal of Urban & Contemporary Law.  He is a member of the American Bar Association and the Association of Corporate Counsel, and is admitted to practice in Virginia and New York.  He also serves on the legal committees of the Aerospace Industries Association and the National Defense Industrial Association.  Steve and his wife Laura have two daughters and live in Endwell, NY, where he serves on the Board of Directors for the Town of Union Local Development Corporation and the Binghamton Youth Symphony.

• Jane Warner

  Jane Warner American Lung Association in California Jane Warner joined the American Lung Association in California (ALAC) as President and CEO in July 2009, bringing 30 years of experience in nonprofit management, fundraising, and consulting.     Most recently, Jane served as the Executive Director for the American Diabetes Association (ADA) of Los Angeles where she successfully secured a million dollar gift for diabetes research. She also rebranded the Tour de Cure cycling fundraiser “Ship to Shore,” securing a unique experience for cyclists to travel over the Vincent Thomas and Gerald Desmond bridges in their quest to support the ADA.  The result was that the LA Tour de Cure became one of the top tours in the country raising over half a million dollars.   Before working with ADA, Jane was the Senior Executive Director for Southern California for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. In this role, Jane increased revenue for the organization and secured a key national sponsorship from American Airlines.  Jane's customer relationship management program for Team in Training was so successful, it was adopted nationwide.     Prior to her position at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Jane was the Director for Annual Giving at UCLA, where she developed a brand identity for annual giving, and produced a comprehensive plan for donor solicitation and cultivation.     Jane operated a successful nonprofit consulting practice, working with a variety of clients including the National Kidney Foundation, the Partnership for a Drug Free America, the Spondylitis Association of America, the Thalians at Cedars Sinai Hospital, the California Urban Forest Council, and the Epilepsy Foundation.   Before opening her consulting practice, Jane rapidly moved through the ranks at the Arthritis Foundation, serving as President and CEO of the St. Louis, Missouri chapter, where for four consecutive years, they were the number one chapter in the country.  As a result, Jane was recruited to the National Office as the Vice President for Major Gifts, where she developed the organization’s first major gift campaign.  Two years later, she became Group Vice President, overseeing 60 Chapters nationwide and the National Chapter Operations Committee.  Jane ended her tenure with the Arthritis Foundation as Senior Vice President, responsible for all chapter operations, including $120 million in chapter fundraising, managing all the national office development departments and serving as lead staff for three key National Board Committees:  Chapter Operations, Development, and Strategic Planning.   Jane was born in Bristol, Tennessee and began her nonprofit career with the Muscular Dystrophy Association in Florida and Los Angeles. She is an avid golfer and enjoys long distance cycling and sailing.

• William Zobel

  	William (Bill) A. Zobel Trillium USA Mr Zobel is Senior Vice President of Business Development at Trillium. He leads Trillium's efforts for strategic growth in the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) marketplace.  He joined Trillium from Sempra Energy, where he was the manager of Clean Transportation programs. Mr. Zobel has 22 years of experience in the energy sector ranging from environmental policy, to plant operations, process engineering and design, and directed research.  He served as manager of the San Diego Gas and Electric and Southern California Gas Company's Clean Transportation programs. In this role, Mr Zobel was responsible for the development and execution of the joint utilities' alternative fuels program which included customer education and outreach, development of alternative transportation fuel policy, external advocacy, and demonstration/ commercialization of natural gas and electric vehicle drive technologies. Mr Zobel has long history of public service and volunteerism.  He is and has served in leadership positions on a variety of non-profit boards, foundations, and trade associations.  He currently serves as a board member of NGV America, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition, and the California Electric Transportation Coalition.  He has served as Chairman of the California Manufacturers and Technology association’s committee on environmental quality, vice-chairman of the Conservation Corps of Long Beach, and vice chairman of the Moonlight Cultural Foundation.  He continues to be an active member of both the Pacific International Council and the California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance.   Mr Zobel holds a bachelors of Science degree in Chemical Engineering, and has attended Columbia University’s executive business program.  He and his wife, Sylvia, have two children, Kyle and Christopher.