Electrifying Transportation: Customer-Centric Utility Strategies

Erika H. Myers joined SEPA in 2015 and leads SEPA’s transportation electrification research. She has 16 years of experience in the clean energy sector and specializes in the nexus between the grid, electric vehicles, and renewable energy.

Erika currently serves on an electric vehicle (EV) steering committee for the U.S. Department of Energy and is an EV advisor for the National Energy Foundation, a non-profit organization developing curriculum to increase EV literacy in K-12 schools. She was awarded the 2019 Public Utility Fortnightly “Fortnightly Under 40” award for her work on vehicle-grid integration.

Prior to joining SEPA, Erika worked as a consultant with ICF International where she helped electric utilities and local governments develop EV readiness plans. She also served as the Renewable Energy Manager for the South Carolina Energy Office and was a Clean Cities Coordinator for the Palmetto State Clean Fuels Coalition. In these roles, she oversaw the development and execution of key state renewable energy and clean transportation policies, regulations, and grant programs.

Erika has a bachelor’s degree from Clemson University and a master’s degree from the University of South Carolina with a specialization in clean energy and climate science.

In her spare time, Erika volunteers for her city’s Energy Transition Subcommittee where she identified donations for the city’s first bank of public EV chargers. She also volunteers as a regular guest speaker for the Clean Energy Leadership Institute and mentors young professionals interested in a clean transportation career.

Kathy Knoop is a Principal Environmental Scientist at Salt River Project the our Sustainability Policy and Programs department. She is responsible for SRP’s electric vehicle program including customer support, system impacts, fleet electric vehicles and employee programs. During Kathy’s 25 years at Salt River Project as a senior chemist, environmental scientist and sustainability analyst. Kathy was born in Phoenix, Arizona and attended Arizona State University. She holds a Master’s Degree in Environmental Management and Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry.

In his role as Lead Product Manager at Clean Power Research, Brian is responsible for driving the evolution of the WattPlan and PowerBill software products. Brian works closely with utilities and DER providers to deploy software services that help them and their customers make informed energy decisions.

Prior to joining Clean Power Research, Brian co-founded Ecowell, Inc. and worked at a cleantech startup, Infinia Corporation. Brian holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Washington State University.

Olivier is the founder of ZappyRide. ZappyRide provides world-class, end-to-end, integrated experiences to EV consumers to increase EV adoption. We work with electric utilities, OEMs and advocacy groups to make that vision a reality.
Prior to ZappyRide, Olivier was a strategy consultant at PwC, working for clients in the energy and transportation sectors. He also held positions at Booz and Co., SunEdison, and China Greentech Initiative. Olivier holds a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University and a B.S. from Ecole Polytechnique, Paris.

John Morris is the Vice President of Market Development for D+R International. An energy consulting that furthers the advancement of energy efficient technologies with an eye toward deployment of grid edge programs. Specifically; John leads the electric vehicle practice area for D+R.
John has served on the board of Forth (Formerly Drive Oregon) for the past 4 years. At Forth, John is on the Executive Committee.
John was a strategic advisor to the first EV Bulk Buy in the State of Oregon. This EV Bulk Buy Promotion increased EV sales by 300%.
John has facilitated multiple utility workshops on the mechanics of bulk buy promotions and consumer marketing for electric vehicles.
John produced the first market snapshot report on the impacts of home charging on residential new home construction for the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance which covered market conditions in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.
John, in partnership with Ben Yenter and the Yenter Group has launched the ChooseEV National Utility Platform which provides customer engagement and education tools for utilities across the US.