The “21st Century Energy Transition” symposium has been headed up by the following leaders since 2011:
BILL RITTER
Director, Center for the New Energy Economy
Honorary Chair of 21st Century Energy Transition Symposium
Governor Bill Ritter was elected Colorado’s 41st governor in 2006 and was the District Attorney of Denver from 1993-2005. During his four-year term as Governor, Ritter established Colorado as a national and international leader in clean energy by building a New Energy Economy. After leaving the Governor’s Office, Ritter founded the Center for the New Energy Economy at Colorado State University, which works with state and federal policy makers to create clean energy policy throughout the country. Governor Ritter has authored a book that was published in 2016 entitled, Powering Forward – What Everyone Should Know About America’s Energy Revolution. Bill Ritter is one of the founders of the energy transition symposium and is the Honorary Chair of the 9th annual 21st Century Energy Transition Symposium.
Ritter and his Center’s team has been working directly with Governors, legislators, regulators, planners, policy makers and other decision makers by providing technical assistance to help them create the policies and practices that will facilitate America’s transition to a clean energy economy that includes encouraging environmentally sound practices in natural gas production and use. He has been recognized internationally and has received numerous awards for his efforts.
BRYAN WILLSON
Professor of Mechanical Engineering; Founder, Engines and Energy Conversion Lab; Executive Director, Energy Institute at Colorado State University
Dr. Bryan Willson is Executive Director of the Energy Institute at Colorado State University, where he also occupies the Bryan Willson Presidential Chair in Energy Innovation and serves as a Professor of Mechanical Engineering. CSU’s Energy Institute comprises over 200 faculty members working in energy and works closely with the Colorado energy startup community to help grow clean energy companies. The Energy Institute is headquartered at CSU’s Powerhouse Energy Campus, a 100,000 sq ft research facility that also houses over 15 early stage energy companies; it’s work on cleantech commercialization has been honored by the Economist, Scientific American, the Smithsonian Institution, university technology transfer associations, and the governments of Denmark, Spain, and China. Dr. Willson served as a Program Director at ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy, from 2012-2016 and continued as a consultant / advisor to the agency until early 2019. He has worked for over 30 years to develop and deploy large-scale technology solutions related to energy, air quality, and human health. As an entrepreneur, Dr. Willson is co-founder of Envirofit International, Solix BioSystems, Factor(e) Ventures and Xpower. His research laboratory, the Engines & Energy Conversion Laboratory, has made important contributions in many areas, including: internal combustion engines, advanced vehicles, oil & gas production technology, advanced electrical grids, advanced biofuels, energy access for the developing world, and advanced building technologies. Dr. Willson is a Fellow of the Society of Automotive Engineers and has worked in over 40 countries.
MAURY DOBBIE
Executive Director, Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory and External Relations Director, Energy Institute at Colorado State University
Symposium Chair 2011 - 2021
Maury Dobbie is the Executive Director of the Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory. Since 2007, the Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory has been a successful energy research partnership between Colorado School of Mines, University of Colorado-Boulder, Colorado State University, and National Renewable Energy Laboratory. She also splits her time as the External Relations Director for the Energy Institute at Colorado State University. The four Collaboratory entities are the co-hosts the annual 21st Century Energy Transition Symposium. Maury has headed up the event since 2011. She was the former Assistant Director at the Center for the New Energy Economy founded by former Colorado Governor Bill Ritter. Maury began her entrepreneurial career at age 19 founding and operating six diverse companies, holding CEO or principal positions. Before joining CNEE, she was president/CEO of a regional not-for-profit economic development corporation in northern Colorado. In 1994, Maury founded a video production company and expanded it rapidly into an award-winning multimedia enterprise, with a web-development department and live event services. Dobbie served as a board member on the Northern Colorado Clean Energy Cluster and has been a part of Colorado’s new energy economy initiative since 2006. Maury is the chair of the board for the Colorado C3E non-profit organization under the Colorado Clean Energy Cluster focused on encouraging women in STEM careers. She worked with industry partners to create Colorado State University’s Systems Engineering Program and the Clean Tech Certification Program at Front Range Community College. Maury is currently the chair of the board for the Colorado C3E non-profit organization. She has served as chair of the board for the Colorado Community College System made up of 13 colleges in 38 different locations in the state of Colorado. Maury was named Top Women in Energy by the Denver Business Journal in 2020.