(Formerly Known as Energy Leadership Achievement Awards)
The awards were given out at the 2022 Energy Leadership Summit
The CleanTech Alliance Awards spotlight individuals and organizations that are making significant contributions to the fields of cleantech policy, innovation and business. The three finalists for each award are listed below.
Energy Leadership Achievement Award – Organization
This award spotlights an organization or company that has been committed to advancing and promoting the cleantech ecosystem in business, policy and/or innovation.
Winner: OCOchem is developing and scaling patented and proprietary technology that electrochemically uses carbon dioxide to store energy in the chemical bonds of formates and formic acid. Their accomplishments over the past year include: building and scaling the world’s largest CO2 electrolyzer for the US Army, winning a $1.5M Washington State Clean Energy Fund grant to demonstrate the process that converts CO2, water and clean electricity into formic e-fuel to power the first of its kind efuel generator at the Port of Tacoma and won a $3.8M project from the DOE’s Office of Carbon Management to prepare an engineering design to enable Nutrien’s Kennewick Fertilizer Operation to use waste heat to directly capture CO2 from the air and convert it into formic acid.
Finalist: CT Fusion is pursuing the sustained spheromak approach to magnetic confinement fusion energy for future fusion power plants. For two years in a row it has led the effort to create the CleanTech Alliance Seattle Fusion Week to accelerate the new fusion energy sector in Washington State. Fusion Week highlights the efforts of the four fusion energy companies here to create a global capital for the commercialization of a new form of carbon free energy while building community here at home.
Finalist: Enovix’s mission is to develop the battery of the future through continuous innovation, transparent business practices and efficient operations. In 2022, they announced a new level of safety in next-gen Li-ion battery design, and the ability of their Electric Vehicle (EV) test cells to charge from 0-80% in as little as 5.2 minutes and achieve a greater than 98% charge in under 10 minutes. Additionally, Enovix aims to assemble cells at its U.S.-based factory, strengthening the American battery supply chain while also supporting American national security needs.
Energy Leadership Achievement Award – Individual
WINNER – Therese Hampton. President at H&H Solutions. Throughout her distinguished career, Therese served as one of the region’s most important clean energy actors. She had an exceptionally keen and strategic mind, which she combined with a focused calm and a genuinely collaborative and kind style that made her an ideal partner in convening people to come together to decarbonize the Northwest equitably. She synthesized complexity with ease and always brought everyone along with her gracious, inclusive manner. This quote from Therese summed up her approach: “How often in our industry do we focus a lot on the challenges, and the disruptions, and the problems, rather than how to turn them into opportunities? So, I’m pledging to look for opportunities in all of this, and I think we can find them.” Therese also put considerable effort into mentoring women in the energy field, helping them to find footing in a male-dominated arena, and seizing openings wherever she could to promote women to positions of influence in the Northwest power world.
Finalist – Cam LeHouillier is the Director, Energy Research and Development at Tacoma Power. Cam was the point person at Tacoma Power responsible for implementing the world’s first e-fuel power tariff, providing green hydrogen and hydrogen carrier companies with load-following production capabilities the ability to lower their clean electricity purchase costs while enhancing Tacoma Power region grid resiliency and flexibility. Cam has also been tireless in partnering with companies across the state and world to get grants and raise funding for clean energy projects in Tacoma, including the state’s largest Clean Energy Fund 4 grant to build the world’s first demonstration scale formic e-fuel production plant and formic-powered genset with OCOchem.
Finalist – Martin Clinton is the Building Performance Services Manager at UMC. Martin has spearheaded many thought leadership efforts aimed at helping building owners comply with Washington State and City of Seattle progressive energy policies. He took it upon himself to create high-quality virtual training videos for building owners. He routinely speaks at events and forums, hosts webinars, leads industry roundtables, authors articles, and stands as the subject matter expert in energy policy issues. He recently received his Certified Energy Auditor certificate from the Association of Energy Engineers making him one of only ~15 CEAs in Washington.
JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) Award
This award showcases outstanding work to make the clean technology sector more equitable, support climate justice and diversity in the sector, and foster an inclusive ecosystem.
Winner – Evangelina Galvan Shreeve — Director STEM Education at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Evangelina is seasoned leader with a track-record of effectively guiding strategic innovation and cultivating highly engaged teams that consistently deliver results. With over 25 years of experience in policy and public administration, she is known for her expertise in navigating and influencing policy, relationship management, and building dynamic diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) initiatives for organizations.
Finalist: Mackenzie Martin — Community Projects Manager for Puget Sound Energy. As part of PSE’s New Product Development team, Mackenzie has led an effort to ensure no customer is left behind in Washington’s clean energy transformation. Mackenzie oversees work for the benefit of our low-income and/or BIPOC customers and removes barriers, creates opportunities and increases transparency.
Finalist: Drew Thompson, Resource Recovery Project Manager at King County Wastewater Treatment Division. He leads capital projects for the utility and is a huge supporter of recycling valuable resources like water, energy, and organic matter. Drew works tirelessly for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion at the King County Wastewater Treatment Division. He is a strong advocate for King County’s equity and social justice initiative (ESJ) and chairs the Wastewater Treatment Division’s ESJ Capital Projects Committee.
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