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April 3rd, 2025
Agrivoltaics: Financing projects and philanthropy - Seminar wrap up
Description Pending
Join us at the Dairy Arts Center in Boulder
Location: Gordon Gamm Theatre, The Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St, Boulder, CO 80302
Time:
5.00 pm - 8.00 pm
Doors Open at 5.00 pm
​Please take your seats by 5.15pm
Parking at The Dairy Arts Center: Free parking is available in the lot located on the west and north sides of The Dairy building. The parking lot entrance is on Walnut Street, between 26th Street and Folsom.
Transport Information: Transport will leave CSU Campus at the BUSTANG Bus Stop outside of the Lory Student Center at 4.00pm, and will leave The Dairy Arts Center at 8.00pm returning to CSU.
Parking at CSU: Those with cars should park in the LSC Engineering Parking Lot [310].
Please register your attendance so that we can adhere to venue capacity restrictions and ensure adequate catering.
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Session Speakers
Byron Kominek
Executive Director
Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center & Jack's Solar Garden
Byron Kominek is the Executive Director of the Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center and founder of Jack's Solar Garden. Byron is a former US diplomat, having served with the US Agency for International Development in Zambia and Mozambique, working on forestry and wildlife conservation. Through his work in Africa with USAID, the Peace Corps Volunteer, and Doctors Without Borders, Byron has a long-standing interest in natural resource management and governance. Byron was recently honored as a 2024 US Ashoka Fellow to continue educating and inspiring Americans with his work in agrivoltaics. Other recent fellowships Byron has participated in include the CiviCO Colorado Governor's Fellowship and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory Energy Executive program. He is on the Board of Visit Longmont to encourage agritourism in the greater Longmont area and works on his family's farm just south of town where Jack's Solar Garden is located. Byron speaks rusty French and Portuguese and through-hiked the Appalachian Trail with his old dog Mosi in 2016.
Anja Richmond
Executive Director
Colorado Energy and Sustainability Collaboratory
Anja Richmond joined the Collaboratory as Executive Director in July 2024. She began her career working in economic development in 2007, working for both rural and urban communities, and has secured grant funding for projects ranging from community enhancement to large business attraction. At her previous position at the Wyoming Energy Authority, she was the Program Director and led the state’s hydrogen initiative as well as the Energy Matching Fund program. While at the Energy Authority, she also served as the Program Director for the Western Interstate Hydrogen Hub (WISHH), a four-state collaboration between Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, which was created to pursue federal funding through the Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Hub funding opportunity to develop a hydrogen economy in the region. In 2022, she was awarded the Women of Influence in Economic Development award from the Wyoming Business Report in recognition of her successful service to her community. As she was born and raised in Boulder, CO, and is a graduate of both Colorado State University and CU Boulder, she is pleased to be back working for her home state.
Dan Bilello
Over the last three decades, Dan Bilello’s work has centered on the dual challenges of addressing sustainable development and climate change in both the international and domestic arenas. On the international front, his efforts have focused primarily on strategies for increasing the share of renewable energy in the developing world. At the domestic level, he has worked to advance the discussion around climate vulnerabilities in the U.S. energy sector and to deploy practical approaches to mitigate those risks. Prior to joining NREL, Dan worked in the donor community, private sector, the Department of State, the National Economic Council, and the Environmental Protection Agency. He also served on the U.S. delegation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations.
Director
Strategic Energy Analysis Center
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Heidi VanGenderen
Chief Sustainability Officer
Heidi is currently the CU Boulder’s first Chief Sustainability Officer. Among her duties, she serves as the primary liaison to the University Climate Change Coalition (UC3) and served as a tri-chair for the United Nations/CU Right Here Right Now Global Climate Summit. Prior to returning to Colorado, Heidi was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as the Director of Public Engagement at the U.S. Department of Energy. Heidi was also Director of National Outreach for the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) and Senior Energy Advisor for the Worldwatch Institute. Heidi served as Colorado’s first gubernatorial climate advisor for Governor Bill Ritter. She staffed the Wirth Chair in Sustainability at CU Denver and served as Deputy Director of the Presidential Climate Action Project. She is an alumna of Carleton College.
University of Colorado, Boulder
Gene Kelly
Professor of Pedology,
Director
Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station
Colorado State Univeristy
Gene Kelly is a Professor of Pedology and Director of the Colorado Agricultural Experiment Station at Colorado State University (CSU). He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Colorado State University and his Ph.D. from the University of California-Berkeley. Dr. Kelly conducts research and lectures nationally and internationally on various aspects of soils as related to global change issues. His scientific specialization is in Pedology and Geochemistry with primary interests in regional soil water dynamics, soil degradation, and global biogeochemical cycles. His current research is centered on soil degradation, soil water dynamics, and regenerative agriculture. He is the chair of the U.S. National Committee for Soil Science with National Academy of Sciences. He serves as an advisor to the United States Department of Agriculture with the National Cooperative Soil Survey, USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, The National Science Foundation, Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa, and several major research programs. He is a Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America and is a recipient of the Soil Science Society of America Research Award.
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Rebecca Perrin has served as the Agriculture Advisor for Region 8 since 2012. In this capacity, she serves as a liaison between the agricultural community and the Region and provides advice on agricultural environmental programs and policies. Prior to becoming the Regional Agriculture Advisor, Rebecca worked in the EPA Region 8’s Tribal Assistance Program. Rebecca obtained a Bachelor of Science in Soil and Crop Science from Colorado State University and a Master of Applied Science in Environmental Policy and Management from the University of Denver.