John B. King, Jr. is the 15^th Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY), the largest comprehensive system of public higher education in the United States.

Prior to his appointment as Chancellor, King served as president of The Education Trust. This national civil rights non-profit seeks to identify and close opportunity and achievement gaps for students from preschool through college.

Chancellor King served in President Obama’s cabinet as the 10^th US Secretary of Education. Upon tapping him to lead the US Department of Education, President Obama called King “an exceptionally talented educator,” citing his commitment to “preparing every child for success,” and his lifelong dedication to public education as a teacher, principal, and leader of schools and school systems.

Before his appointment as secretary of education, Chancellor King fulfilled the duties of deputy secretary of education, overseeing all policies and programs related to P-12 education, English learners, special education, and innovation.

His service in Washington, DC, followed King’s tenure as New York State’s first African American and first Puerto Rican education commissioner. In this role, Chancellor King oversaw all elementary and secondary schools, as well as public, independent, and proprietary colleges and universities, professional licensure, libraries, museums, and numerous other educational institutions.

Chancellor King holds a bachelor of arts in government from Harvard University; a JD from Yale Law School; a master of arts in teaching of social studies, and a doctorate in education from Teachers College at Columbia University.

You can follow Chancellor King on Twitter at @JohnBKing.

Congressman Paul D. Tonko is an eighth-term member of the US House of Representatives, representing New York’s 20th Congressional District in the Capital Region, including the cities of Albany, Schenectady, Troy, and Saratoga Springs.

He has dedicated his career in public service to bettering the lives of those in his district with meaningful legislation that creates good jobs, strengthens the middle class, and drives economic opportunity.

Serving as ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials, he has jurisdiction over many of the nation’s most important environmental laws, including the Safe Drinking Water Act; Tonko has been a long-time, fierce advocate for removing lead from American communities. He helped pave the way for critical federal investments to replace lead pipes from drinking water service lines through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other legislation.

Carm Basile is the chief executive officer of the Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA). CDTA is an Albany, New York-based mobility management company, serving customers throughout Albany, Schenectady, Troy, Saratoga, Amsterdam, and Glens Falls.

Basile has worked at CDTA since 1981 and was named CEO in 2009. As CEO, Basile has company-wide responsibility for transit development, daily operations, and finances. The company’s annual operating budget is $126 million. Basile works with the CDTA Board of Directors to develop innovative strategies to deliver high-quality services, programs, and facilities to the people of the Capital Region. He has led the company’s transformation into a community-based provider of mobility, increasing ridership, visibility, and brand awareness.

CDTA was named the Best Mid-Size Transit System in North America in October 2017. Under Basile’s leadership, the organization has grown Universal Access agreements with area colleges and businesses and increased mobility options for the Capital Region by adding on-demand service, a regional bike share program that features more than 700 electric and regular bikes at 85 stations, and a regional all electric carshare program. The company has also grown its footprint by expanding into Montgomery County in 2022 and Warren County in 2023.

Basile serves on a long list of boards and civic organizations, including the United Way of the Greater Capital Region, Christian Brothers Academy, and the New York Public Transit Association.

Basile was born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts. He graduated from Worcester State College in Massachusetts with a bachelor of arts degree in urban studies. He lives in Latham with his wife, Sheila, and their two sons.

Matt Brown is a program manager at The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) leading efforts to bring federal funding to New York to support its climate and energy projects. Brown is one of NYSERDA’s lead staff advancing building decarbonization and has run programs and portfolios delivering energy savings and emissions reductions to New York for 25 years. Brown’s focus is to support all sectors of the market to deploy cost-effective clean energy projects while driving economic development, equity, resiliency and creating healthy, safe and comfortable environments for all building occupants

Tara Donadio is the assistant director of sustainability at the Capital District Regional Planning Commission (CDRPC) where joined in 2018 to work with municipalities in the region through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Clean Energy Communities Program and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) Climate Smart Communities Program. She also works with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program. Donadio previously worked as a clean energy communities coordinator in the Southern Tier at Cornell Cooperative Extension and as a program director at the Troy-based nonprofit Audubon International. She holds a master’s in environmental policy from American University and a BS in environmental science from the University of Albany. Donadio lives in the city of Albany with her son and husband.

Jake Egloff is a dedicated public servant who has worked to further progressive policy for the Capital Region in the New York State Assembly since 2017. As the legislative director for Assemblymember Patricia Fahy (D-Albany), Egloff manages a diverse legislative portfolio and has worked behind the scenes to shepherd several landmark bills into law. Jake was instrumental in passing the nation’s first comprehensive “Right-to-Repair” law, eliminating the blanket civil liability shield previously granted to the gun industry, increasing energy efficiency standards for New York’s building stock, and banning dangerous carcinogens from food packaging and clothing. He also serves as the committee director for the assembly Committee on Higher Education. Prior to his time in the assembly, Egloff managed Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s 2016 electoral program in North Carolina and was a workforce development planner in rural Washington State. Egloff holds a master of public administration and a bachelor of arts in political science and economics from the University at Albany. In his free time, Egloff volunteers as an advocate for patients living with ALS and is active in Albany-area politics.

Todd Fabozzi is the director of sustainability for the Capital District Regional Planning Commission. During his 30 years as a professional urban planner, he has managed water quality, geographic information systems, smart growth, and sustainability initiatives. Fabozzi currently directs the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Clean Energy Communities Program and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) Climate Smart Communities Outreach Coordinators Program within the 28-county Eastern Territory and is leading an Environmental Protection Agency funded effort to develop a climate action plan for the Capital Region. Fabozzi also teaches urban planning at Skidmore College and serves on the Saratoga Springs Planning Board.

New York State Assemblymember Patricia Fahy was first elected in 2012 and currently represents the city of Albany, the town of New Scotland, and part of the town of Guilderland. A leading advocate for job creation, environmental conservation, and quality education, Assemblymember Fahy has been the prime sponsor of over 200 bills—more than 70 of which have been signed into law, including the nation’s first Gun Industry Liability Law to hold gun manufacturers accountable for their role in the gun violence crisis, the nation’s first Right to Repair legislation, establishing a 30×30 conservation goal in New York State to conserve 30% of land and water by 2030, and examining modification or replacement of part(s) of I-787 in downtown Albany to expand waterfront access and development. She has also introduced legislation to help accelerate the state’s transition to clean and renewable energy, expand and modernize New York’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and tackle the growing threat of plastic pollution and the industry’s rising carbon emissions.

Assemblymember Fahy serves as the chair of the Higher Education Committee and serves on four additional committees: Environmental Conservation, Codes, Economic Development, and Tourism. She was named the Environmental Champion of the Year by the New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV) and the Legislative Champion by the Environmental Advocates of New York (EANY).

Assemblymember Fahy is married to Wayne Bequette, a professor at RPI in Troy, NY. They have two children and live in the City of Albany. She has a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a bachelor’s in political science from Northern Illinois University.

Tistrya Houghtling served as town clerk for the Town of New Lebanon, New York, for four years, and spearheaded the Clean Energy Communities program. She was responsible for bringing LED streetlights to town, starting a free store, and successfully applying for an EV charging station grant. When she became the town supervisor in 2020, Houghtling led the charge for New Lebanon to become a Clean Energy Community. Thanks to Steve Powers and the amazing Climate Smart Task Force, New Lebanon became bronze certified in record time. New Lebanon is now well on its way to silver!

Houghtling and the Town of New Lebanon have concentrated on high-impact actions that benefit the community in many ways: ensuring the town has clean water and air, bringing free bikes to children in the community, providing clothing, footwear, and children’s items to families in need while keeping items out of the dumpster, saving money on personal energy bills and saving taxpayer dollars running municipal buildings, and lowering the town’s carbon footprint.

Houghtling additionally focused on ensuring the town has clean drinking water and urged the New York State Department of Health (DOH) to place the strictest standards for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemicals. She advocates for public notification when PFAS chemicals are detected, regardless of the levels. She believes in pushing for open and transparent government and allowing individuals to make informed decisions regarding their drinking water.

Karim Johnson is a native of the Bronx, NY, and has over 27 years of experience in the pupil transportation industry, with the past 19 years in transportation leadership roles for urban, suburban, and rural school systems throughout the East Coast.

Johnson holds certifications nationally and in New York State as a director of transportation. He also is certified nationally in special needs transportation. Most recently, Johnson was named School Bus Fleet Magazine 2023 Transportation Administrator of the Year for outstanding achievement at the local, state, and national levels. For the past two and a half years, Johnson has served as the director of student transportation & fleet services for the Bethlehem Central School District in Delmar, NY. He oversaw the first successful deployment of five battery-electric school buses in the capital region. Since the initial deployment, Johnson has worked with district stakeholders on successful ballot propositions for electrical charging infrastructure to support up to 44 battery-electric school buses and purchase two additional battery-electric school buses. All ballot propositions passed north of 71 percent voter approval.

Recently, Johnson was appointed as the executive director of pupil transportation services for Stafford County Public Schools. In this role, he oversees the student transportation safety program for Virginia’s eighth largest school division consisting of a fleet of 323 vehicles and 255 employees serving 31,000 students attending 33 schools encompassing 277 square miles.

Recently married, Johnson and his wife Chrishannah are proud parents of three children.

Sandy Misiewicz, AICP, has been with the Capital Region Transportation Council, formerly the Capital District Transportation Committee, for over 25 years. The Transportation Council is the designated metropolitan planning organization for the counties of Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady, responsible for facilitating a regional transportation planning process. With a background in environmental, land use, and transportation planning, Misiewicz worked in various planning roles at the Transportation Council until becoming executive director in 2021. As executive director, Misiewicz manages activities related to a federally funded annual planning work program, a capital program of federally funded transportation projects, and the implementation of a regional transportation plan.

Misiewicz holds a bachelor’s in environmental studies from the University at Binghamton and a master’s in urban and regional planning from the University at Albany. She is also a member of the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Certified Planners.

Rebecca Morgenstern Brenner, MPA, is a senior lecturer in the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy at Cornell University with additional collaborations as a faculty fellow at Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability and Einhorn Center for Community Engagement, and as a faculty associate at Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies. Morgenstern Brenner is co-lead for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Higher Education Service-Learning and Leadership Special Interest Group.

Morgenstern Brenner teaches courses on environmental policy, environmental justice, vulnerability and resilience, disaster policy, and project management. Her research and practice focus on translating values into practice and policy and working with communities to reduce vulnerability and build resilience. To do this, Morgenstern Brenner collaborates with international and domestic partners to create innovative approaches that address and improve social and environmental conditions. Her current research and practice include managed retreat and equity, environmental justice, bridging policy with science, climate change education, and building disaster resilience with vulnerable communities.

Morgenstern Brenner is a co-principal investigator on grants through the Atkinson Center, including a partnership with The Nature Conservancy to investigate managed flood retreats focusing on how equity and restoration intersect. Another grant is a partnership with the Environmental Defense Fund to assess and understand flooding policy and the implications of buyouts with cooperative housing. The third grant is an Atkinson Academic Venture Fund, a community-based project focusing on equity and illegal dumping in Flint, Michigan.

Alexander Morse is the associate director of public policy and government strategy at the Rockefeller Institute of Government, specializing in clean energy solutions designed to improve energy efficiency and mitigate the effects of climate change. He also serves as project manager for the Institute’s County-Wide Shared Services Initiative portfolio, working collaboratively with local governments to help improve shared services coordination and save taxpayer dollars. Morse is also the host of Policy Outsider, the Institute’s public policy podcast. He received his master of public administration in policy analysis and public finance from the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy and holds a bachelor of arts in history from the University at Albany. Morse previously served as a communications coordinator for the New York State Assembly, assisting various members across the state, preparing and implementing comprehensive legislative curricula and strategic communications plans.

[email protected]

Richard Perez leads solar energy research at the University at Albany’s Atmospheric Sciences Research Center. He has served multiple terms on the American Solar Energy Society board and as associate editor of Solar Energy Journal. He has produced over 300 journal articles, conference papers, books, and chapters.

Perez holds patents on energy storage and load management. The solar resource models he developed are embedded in many engineering and data simulation platforms worldwide. Perez has received several international awards, including a Certificate for Outstanding Research from the US Department of Energy, the American Solar Energy Society’s Charles Greeley Abbot Award, the First International Building and Daylight Award from the Velux Foundation, and the International Solar Energy Society’s Farrington Daniels Award. He leads an International Energy Agency task force on firm renewable power and received the CleanTech Business Club’s 2022 Visionary Scientist distinction for this work jointly with his son Marc.

Steve Powers serves as the chair of the Town of New Lebanon’s Climate Smart Communities Task Force (CSC) and has guided the town to a regional leadership role in the Climate Smart Communities program and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Clean Energy Communities program while mentoring neighboring towns. Powers was born and raised in Philadelphia. After college, where he majored in environmental studies and participated in a work-study at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), he took off for Asia, where he spent the next 18 years living in Nepal, working as a mountain guide and organizer of treks and expeditions. In Nepal, he helped set up and run the Kathmandu Environmental Education Project (KEEP) to educate local guides and tourists on mitigating their environmental footprint while in the Himalayas. In addition to serving as chair of New Lebanon’s Climate Smart Communities Task Force, Powers also serves on the Town’s Conservation Advisory Council and Zoning Rewrite Committee. He continues to operate and organize tours worldwide through his company, Hidden Treasure Tours.

Rick Ruvo has been serving as director for the Air and Radiation Division in the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 2 since March 2020. Ruvo has been with Region 2’s air program for over 30 years, with experience in planning, permitting, and enforcement. Ruvo has a mechanical engineering degree from Manhattan College.

Joseph Seman-Graves is the city planner for the City of Cohoes and an experienced community planning and development manager specializing in environmentally sustainable solutions focusing on emerging clean energy technologies. He has developed community-wide planning strategies in urban and rural settings and is skilled in project management, policy analysis, grant writing, coalition building, and public speaking. Seman-Graves previously served as a construction project manager in Seattle, Washington, a natural resource planner with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and a GIS project manager with the Seattle Trails Alliance and Climate Action Associates of New York.

Seman-Graves spearheaded the development of a groundbreaking floating solar demonstration project, making history as the country’s first municipally owned and operated initiative. This project is crucial in Cohoes’ efforts to decarbonize historic city-owned buildings and achieve 100% renewable energy usage for governmental operations.

Seman-Graves’s achievements include securing $35 million in grant funding, identifying $14 million in energy savings over 20 years, and completing $7.47 million in capital projects for the City of Cohoes. He has been featured in articles by the National Renewable Energy Lab, the Rocky Mountain Institute, and the Associated Press. Seman-Graves serves on various county and state boards, including vice chair of the Capital District Transportation Committee’s Planning Committee and Albany County Land Bank board member. He collaborates across stakeholders to achieve clean energy, climate and economic resiliency, housing, and transportation goals. His dedication to sustainable innovation and fiscal responsibility significantly enhances community resiliency and sustainability. Seman-Graves holds a graduate degree in urban and regional planning from the University at Albany, with advanced graduate certificates in geographic information systems (GIS), spatial analysis, and urban policy, focusing on brownfield remediation strategies.

Jason West is a 14th-generation Hudson Valley resident born and raised in Albany County. As a SUNY New Paltz graduate with degrees in history and visual art, West was elected to his first of two terms as mayor of New Paltz at the age of 25. As mayor, he focused on affordable housing, sustainable land use planning, and increasing public involvement in local government. He made international headlines in 2004 when he was arrested for marrying 25 same-sex couples, arguing that existing New York law already allowed marriage equality.

West is a founder and former executive director of the award-winning Wallkill River Watershed Alliance. The Alliance is devoted to restoring the health of the Wallkill River’s watershed with the aim of once again eating its fish and swimming in its waters. While working with the Alliance, West attended graduate school, earning an MS in climate science and policy from Bard College’s Center for Environmental Policy.

Since 2020, West has worked for the City of Albany, first as energy manager and currently as director of sustainability. He oversees a broad array of sustainability programs ranging from electric vehicle charging infrastructure to clean energy development to compiling greenhouse gas emissions inventories and leading efforts at community outreach.