Confirmed Speakers:

Moderator: Angie Hacker | Statewide Energy Efficiency Best Practices Coordinator | Local Government Commission

Angie Hacker has nearly 20 years of public, private and non-profit experience serving communities in the areas of sustainability, energy, and climate change, primarily in California. Prior to becoming CEO and Principal Consultant of Prosper Sustainably, she served as Energy and Sustainability Division Chief for the County of Santa Barbara. In that role, she oversaw local, state, federal, and IOU-funded energy and climate initiatives and participated in state regulatory efforts. Her areas of expertise include designing innovative local/regional solutions, communicating a strategic vision, pursuing policy and regulatory opportunities, obtaining resources, building local capacity, leveraging cross-sector partnerships, and engaging stakeholders. She enjoys managing complex projects and datasets to achieve results within multi-agency, political and bureaucratic environments. She earned a Master of Public Administration from New York University.

Noemí O. Gallardo |  Public Advisor | California Energy Commission

Noemí O. Gallardo joined the California Energy Commission (CEC) as the Public Advisor in September 2019 after being appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom. She oversees the Public Advisor’s Office, which advises the public and the CEC to ensure the full and effective participation by all interested groups and the public at large in the CEC’s proceedings.

Before joining the CEC, she was senior manager of public policy at Sunrun Inc. Her professional experiences include serving as a program fellow at the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, a consultant at Gallardo Law and Policy Consulting, an energy and telecommunications legal fellow at the Greenlining Institute, and a principal investigator at the Public Law Research Institute at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. Gallardo is also a state-certified interpreter in Spanish who established and ran a translation and interpretation services business in her native Ventura County.

She is the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and is a first-generation college graduate who earned a juris doctor degree from UC Hastings, a master of public policy degree from the University of Southern California, and a bachelor of arts degree from Pepperdine University.

Ena Lupine | Community Assistance Program Manager | California Strategic Growth Council

Ena leads SGC’s California Climate Investments Technical Assistance Program, which helps create a more equitable playing field for under-resourced applicants looking to access the funds to transition to climate-smart communities. In this role, she manages a broad range of capacity building activities for applicants to cap-and-trade grant funded programs, including workshops, trainings, and direct application assistance. Prior to her appointment at the Strategic Growth Council, Ena completed her Master’s degree at UC Davis, where she focused her research on equitable and inclusive policies for investment in under-resourced communities. Ena also has varied experiences working in education and communications for organizations in France, India and the US.

Ena holds a Master of Science in Community Development from UC Davis and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations, French, and Environmental Studies from Colby College in Maine

Peter Pallesen | Senior Project Coordinator| City of Ontario Housing Department

Peter Pallesen is a Senior Project Coordinator at the City of Ontario Housing Department. Peter leads the implementation and manages the City’s $35 million Transformative Climate Communities Grant Program, Ontario Together. Additionally, Peter is responsible for conducting analytical reports on topics such as affordable housing and homelessness. Peter also assists in overseeing the implementation of the City’s CARES Act Short-Term Rental and Homeowner Utility Assistance Programs.

Prior to working for the City of Ontario’s Housing Department, Peter spent two years overseeing the City’s Business License Department where he was responsible for managing the City’s 10,000+ annual business license renewals as well as implementing the City’s first online business license system and listing. Along with this role, Peter also managed the City’s cashiers and processed all City deposits and wire transfers. Peter has a Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Speech Communications from the University La Verne and has since completed additional professional services certificates such as Fundamentals of Project Management and Business Fundamentals from UCLA. Peter is currently enrolled in Cal Poly Pomona’s Southern California Local Government Leadership Academy and is seeking to obtain his Master in Public Administration.

Walker Weiland | Research Scientist | Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA)

Walker Wieland is a Research Scientist with the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA). He is also OEHHA’s Environmental Justice Liaison. His work is focused on CalEnviroScreen, which he has been working on for nine years. Walker researches pollution and population-based information to characterize burdens to communities across California. He conducts virtual and in-person trainings on CalEnviroScreen, and also creates and maintains web mapping tools for several projects at OEHHA. He is also a representative of Cal EPA’s Open Data Steering Committee.