Great Minds, Great Conversations: Powering the Future: Transitioning to Clean Energy to Combat the Climate Crisis

Addressing climate change means transitioning from burning fossil fuels for energy to using renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and hydroelectric power. This change will reduce not only greenhouse gas emissions but also pollution and our reliance on other nations. But making change will require us to rethink everything we now know about energy.

At this event, our panel of experts will share their insights on what’s happening in the fields of science, technology, and public policy. They’ll identify the challenges we’ll need to address and the opportunities that await as we transition to a cleaner, greener future.

A complimentary breakfast will be served at 10:30 a.m. so you can meet your fellow attendees and get “energized” for this highly relevant and enlightening discussion.

This event is part of the Scholarship and Creative Works Conference schedule.

About the Panelists

Robert B. Catell ’99 (Hon.), chairman, US, National Grid

Robert B. Catell ’99 (Hon.) is an accomplished global energy leader with more than 50 years of experience in the energy industry. He joined Brooklyn Union Gas, now National Grid plc, in 1958, working his way up to become chairman and chief executive officer.

He currently chairs the Board of the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at Stony Brook University; the National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium; and the STEM Advisory Board at St. Thomas Aquinas College. He also serves on the advisory board for Our Energy Policy Foundation, is chair emeritus of the Cristo Rey Brooklyn High School and is an executive in residence at Hofstra University. He is a member of the President’s Advisory Council at Adelphi University and was named the first John J. Phelan, Jr. Fellow of the Robert B. Willumstad School of Business at Adelphi University.

Justyna Widera-Kalinowska, PhD, professor of chemistry, Adelphi University

Justina Widera-Kalinowska, PhD, researches the field of nanotechnology to create novel materials to harvest, conduct and store solar electricity, and has been awarded grants to further these technologies for wastewater treatment and for involving students in her research. For several years she has been bringing students to the University of Warsaw, where she received her PhD in Chemistry, (2000). She published numerous research papers, with the Adelphi undergraduate students and collaborators from Poland as co-authors, describing their scientific accomplishments in the field of material science. She is also a mentor who is deeply committed to promoting inclusion and diversity in chemistry and STEM as a whole. She is the recipient of the Adelphi Student Government Association’s 2021 Women’s Recognition Award for her leadership, service and commitment to excellence. She also received an Outreach Volunteer of the Year Award for 2022 from the New York Local Section of the American Chemical Society (ACS). This award recognizes the efforts of ACS local section and international chapter volunteers who conduct outreach and teach the public about chemistry.

Robert Kavner ’65, lead director of Heliogen 

Robert Kavner ’65 is a corporate executive turned technology entrepreneur who is currently the lead director of Heliogen, a company advancing the use of solar energy through a unique artificial-intelligence system. Prior to Heliogen, Kavner worked at Price Waterhouse & Coopers and AT&T before starting a new chapter as an independent venture capital investor focusing on investments in technology companies, including technology incubator Idealab. He has chaired a number of start-ups that grew to become public companies, including CitySearch, Overture, Earthlink Networks and Pandora Media. In addition to his role at Heliogen, he continues to serve as an investor, board member and adviser in several other early stage companies. 

Moderator

David Manning, director of Brookhaven
National Laboratory’s Stakeholder Relations Office, Community and External Relations

In his current role, David Manning is responsible for developing, implementing, and assessing strategic internal and external communications plans and programs to advance the scientific mission of Brookhaven National Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy’s education and diversity goals.

Manning has worked in both government and the private sector. Before coming to Brookhaven Lab, he was deeply involved in energy issues as the U.S. representative for the premier of Alberta. Prior positions include serving as the deputy minister of energy for Alberta, Canada, and executive vice president of public and corporate affairs and chief environmental officer for Keyspan/National Grid.

For more information about this event, please contact:

Amy Harrison
harrison@adelphi.edu
516.877.3751