Plenary Sessions 2025

Wednesday, June 11

8:30 am - Opening Plenary
Welcome
Join our Executive Director Maggie Molina as she kicks off NEEP Summit 2025 | Innovate, Scale, Transform with help from some Massachusetts leaders. This opening session will set the tone for the day and our entire program.

Elizabeth Mahony, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources
Maggie Molina, Executive Director, NEEP

 

9:00 am - Plenary Panel
Passing the Baton to States
State and local action has always been an instrumental part of the energy efficiency playbook, often serving as incubators of innovation and action. In this plenary session, we’ll hear from state leaders who are stepping up and demonstrating that they are ready, once again, to take the baton. These leaders are ready to continue progress on energy efficiency, energy affordability, electrification, and grid flexibility – especially in the face of federal uncertainty. We’ll also hear how they are building the market and providing stability through regional action. Join our Summit kick-off to hear how states are rising to the challenge.  

Chris Corcoran, Assistant Director, Team Lead - Codes, Products, and Standards, New York State Energy Research & Development Authority
Stacy Richardson, Deputy Director, Division of Clean Energy, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities
 

Thursday, June 12

8:30 am - Plenary Panel
Load Growth: A Strategic Opportunity for EE
You’ve heard it by now – electricity demand is growing. This will not be another debate over the extent that Artificial intelligence (AI), manufacturing processes, or EVs are driving loads. Instead, this session will cut through the noise to hear directly from grid planners in the New England and/or Mid-Atlantic regions on the realities of managing load growth after a period of flat demand. Presenters will share regional and state-level challenges and real-world solutions for managing load from the demand side, including energy efficiency. More than two decades ago, we faced similar exponential load growth from computing and other new expected loads, and energy efficiency and market forces kept demand in check. Can energy efficiency and demand flexibility rise to the challenge again in this next era?  

Facilitator
Marion Gold, Senior Advisor of Electricity, NASEO and NEEP Board President

Speakers
Eric Johnson, Executive Director of External Affairs, ISO-New England
Goksin Kavlak, Senior Energy Associate, The Brattle Group
Corey Benson, Senior Director of DER Partnerships, Uplight


1:00 pm - Plenary Perspectives
A Vision for Energy Equity
Join us for a post-lunch plenary perspective session featuring Columbia University professor, energy insecurity expert, and author Diana Hernandez. We'll hear her thoughts on energy as a basic human right and how energy equity is an achievable reality.


3:00 pm - Closing Plenary
Utilities Leading the Charge: Energy Efficiency and Affordability 
Utilities play a critical role in advancing energy efficiency to promote affordability and achieve benefits for the energy system and climate. But as customers face rising energy prices and as we move further up the cost curve on energy efficiency as a resource, utilities and regulators face new pressures and tradeoffs. In this plenary session, utilities and consumer advocates discuss key questions and issues around customer-funded energy efficiency. When we need more investments in efficiency to help customers lower their bills, isn’t it counterintuitive to cap or cut efficiency program budgets?

Facilitator
Steven Nadel, Executive Director, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy

Speakers
Tilak Subrahmanian, Vice President, Eversource Energy
Priya Gandbhir, Director of Clean Power, Conservation Law Foundation

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