To view past speakers, please check out the VX Archives

VX2026 Speakers

  • Tamotsu Saito

    Tamotsu Saito

    Chairman, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) 

    Bio
  • Mark Pestrella

    Mark Pestrella

    Director, Los Angeles County Public Works

    Bio
  • Siva Gunda

    Siva Gunda

    Vice Chair, California Energy Commission

  • Christine Harada

    Christine Harada

    Commissioner, California Public Utilities Commission

  • Noemí Gallardo

    Noemí Gallardo

    Commissioner, California Energy Commission

  • Miguel Luna

    Miguel Luna

    Chair, Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy; CEO, Urban Semillas

  • Allan Marks

    Allan Marks

    President, Board of Water and Power Commissioners, LADWP

  • Noel Hacegaba

    Noel Hacegaba

    CEO, Port of Long Beach

  • Kathleen Brown

    Kathleen Brown

    Fmr. Treasurer, State of California | Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

  • Lauren Faber O’Connor

    Lauren Faber O’Connor

    Partner, Lowercarbon Capital

  • Arnab Pal

    Arnab Pal

    Executive Director, Deploy Action

  • Minh Le

    Minh Le

    General Manager, Los Angeles County Internal Services Department

  • John Shegerian

    John Shegerian

    Co-Founder, Chairman/CEO of ERI

  • Tak Yokoo

    Tak Yokoo

    Founder and Chair, Japan Hydrogen Forum

  • Jason Caudle

    Jason Caudle

    CEO, First Public H2

  • Simon Bluestone, PG, BCES

    Simon Bluestone, PG, BCES

    Vice President, Stantec

  • Benjamin Allen

    Senator Ben Allen

    California State Senator, Chair, State Senate Energy Committee 

  • Stephen Cheung

    Stephen Cheung

    President/CEO, LA County Economic Development Council/World Trade Center-Los Angeles

  • Rick Caruso

    Rick Caruso

    Founder and Executive Chairman, Caruso

  • Jackie Birdsall

    Jackie Birdsall

    Senior Program Manager, Toyota North America

  • Anil Tammineedi

    Anil Tammineedi

    Partner, Angeleno Group

  • Murota Kosei

    Murota Kosei

    Consul General of Japan in Los Angeles

  • A professional headshot of a man with short gray hair, a goatee, light blue eyes, wearing a dark suit, white shirt, and patterned tie against a blue background.

    Jim Kelly

    Director, S&C Electric

  • Terry O'Day

    Terry O'Day

    Chief Operating Office / Founder, In-Charge Energy

  • Portrait of a woman with shoulder-length brown hair, wearing a green silk blouse, smiling, against a blue background.

    Andrea Sasse

    Consul General of the German Consulate, Los Angeles

  • Gene Seroka

    Gene Seroka

    Director, Port of LA

    Bio
  • Kathryn Barger

    Kathryn Barger

    Supervisor, 5th District of Los Angeles County

  • Shivaji Deshmukh

    Shivaji Deshmukh

    General Manager, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

  • Romi Kadri

    Romi Kadri

    Managing Partner, Levelized Capital

  • K J Srinivasa

    K J Srinivasa

    Consul General of the Indian Consulate, Los Angeles

  • Vamsi Kumar Kotla

    Vamsi Kumar Kotla

    Founder & CEO, ReMo Homes

  • Robert Hertzberg

    Robert Hertzberg

    Sr. Advisor, Mission Possible Partnership; CA Senate Majority Leader Emeritus

  • Portrait of a young man with glasses and dark hair, wearing a dark collared shirt, against a plain white background.

    Evan Birenbaum

    Sr. Technical Executive, EPRI

  • Eliot Abel

    Eliot Abel

    Senior Vice President, Corporate Clean Energy Solutions, Pivot Energy

  • Hilary Norton

    Hilary Norton

    Fmr. Chair, California Transportation Committee

  • Ted Bardacke

    Ted Bardacke

    Executive Director, Clean Power Alliance

  • Tim McOsker

    Tim McOsker*

    15th District, Los Angeles City Council

  • Jules Radcliff

    Jules Radcliff

    Partner, Radcliff Fairman LLP

  • Gunjan Bagla

    Gunjan Bagla

    CEO, Amritt, Inc.

  • Lorraine Paskett

    Lorraine Paskett

    Chief Operating Officer for First Public Hydrogen

  • Professional headshot of a smiling man in a suit and tie against a white background.

    Haresh Kamath

    Director of Cross-Cutting Technologies and Solutions, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)

  • Andrew McAllister

    Andrew McAllister

    Commissioner, California Energy Commission (CEC)

  • Andrea Ambriz

    Andrea Ambriz

    General Manager, Exposition Park

  • Ross Zelen

    Ross Zelen

    Chief Committee Consultant, Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies

  • Mary Nichols

    Mary Nichols

    Co-Chair, Commission on the Future of Mobility

  • Eric Garcetti

    Ambassador Eric Garcetti

    Former Consul General to India in Los Angeles; Former Mayor of Los Angeles

  • Rebecca Lee

    Rebecca Lee

    Director of Government Affairs, Western US, NRG

  • Jacob Lipa

    Jacob Lipa

    Founder and Principal, Lipa Consulting

  • A smiling middle-aged man with gray hair and beard, wearing a dark suit, white shirt, and dark tie, against a gray background.

    Phillip Recht

    Partner, Mayer Brown

  • Victoria Harmon

    Victoria Harmon

    CEO & Founder, VL Harmon Advisors

  • John Keisler

    John Keisler

    CEO & Managing Partner, Sunstone Economic Development

  • Ricky Sakai

    Ricky Sakai

    Senior Vice President of Investment & Business Development, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

  • Joone Kim-Lopez

    Joone Kim-Lopez

    General Manager/CEO, Moulton Niguel Water District

  • Lex Heslin

    Lex Heslin

    CEO, Enso Infrastructure

  • Beckie Menten

    Beckie Menten

    California Director, Building Decarbonization Coalition

  • Nancy Sutley

    Nancy Sutley

    Board Vice Chair, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

  • Nurit Katz

    Nurit Katz

    Chief Sustainability Officer, UCLA; Vice President, Board of Water and Power Commissioners  (LADWP)

  • Joe Sullivan

    Joe Sullivan

    Director of Energy Solutions, Los Angeles IBEW & NECA

  • Coby Skye

    Coby Skye

    Executive Director, San Luis Obispo County Integrated Waste Management Authority

  • Nate Taylor

    Nate Taylor*

    Director of Integrated Infrastructure Planning, SoCalGas

  • Billy Riggs

    Billy Riggs

    Professor, Director, Autonomous Vehicles and the City Initiative; University of San Francisco

  • Alycia Gilde

    Alycia Gilde

    Chief Strategy Officer for Climate Action Partnerships, Los Angeles County Internal Services Department

  • Miguel Sangalang

    Miguel Sangalang*

    Executive Director and General Manager, City of Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting

  • Timothy O'Connor

    Timothy O'Connor

    Executive Director / Ratepayer Advocate, City of Los Angeles Office of Public Accountability/Ratepayer Advocate

  • Brian Goldstein

    Brian Goldstein

    Executive Director, Energy Independence Now

  • Dr. Kelly Sanders

    Dr. Kelly Sanders

    Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Former Assistant Director for Energy Systems Innovation, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

  • David Libatique

    David Libatique*

    Deputy Executive Director, Stakeholder Engagement, Port of Los Angeles

  • Randall Winston

    Randall Winston

    Deputy Mayor of Infrastructure, City of Los Angeles

  • Kristen Torres Pawling

    Kristen Torres Pawling

    Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of LA City Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky

  • Robin Wong

    Robin Wong

    Industry Partnerships Lead, Livermore Institute for Fusion Technology

  • Edward Moses

    Edward Moses

    CEO, Longview Fusion Energy Systems

  • Nasser Faarooqui

    Nasser Faarooqui

    Co-Founder, CEO, GridGPT

  • Rachit Khare

    Rachit Khare

    Founder, ConceptX

  • Ehud Ganani

    Ehud Ganani

    VP Strategic Programs, EIS Council

  • Rick Cole

    Rick Cole

    Councilmember, City of Pasadena

  • Tom Soto

    Tom Soto

    Founder & CEO, SAS Earth Energy Services

  • Masaaki Kawai

    Masaaki Kawai

    Business Development Director, NGK Automotive Ceramics USA, Inc.

  • Janna Sidley

    Janna Sidley

    Commissioner, California Little Hoover Commission; Board Member, LACERS

  • Cameron Bard

    Cameron Bard

    Chief Revenue Officer, Madison Energy Infrastructure

  • Christopher Sheppard

    Christopher Sheppard

    LA County Public Works

  • Tanya Peacock

    Tanya Peacock

    Managing Director, EcoEngineers

  • Hamed Noori

    Hamed Noori

    Founder and CEO, SenseNet Inc.

  • Robert Piascik

    Robert Piascik

    SVP, Chief Information & Technology Officer, New York Power Authority

  • Gerro Prinsloo

    Gerro Prinsloo

    Sales Director, AlumaPower Corporation

  • Heidi Sanborn

    Heidi Sanborn

    National Stewardship Action Council Executive Director

  • Daishu Hara

    Daishu Hara

    Senior Director, NEDO Washington DC

  • James Kast

    James Kast

    General Manager, Iwatani

  • Yuma Taniguchi

    Yuma Taniguchi

    Manager, Nikkiso

  • Tim Sasseen

    Tim Sasseen

    Clean Energy Executive; Vice President, American Honda

  • Joy Chen

    Joy Chen

    Executive Director, Every Fire Survivor’s Network

  • Paul Nelson

    Paul Nelson

    Managing Partner, Saoradh Enterprise Partners

  • Angelina Galiteva

    Angelina Galiteva

    Founder & Board Chair of Renewables 100 Policy Institute; Former CAISO Boardmember

  • David Nahai

    David Nahai

    Chair, Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board

  • John Flory

    John Flory

    Co-founder, Gulf Energy Catalyst

  • Tiya Gordon

    Tiya Gordon

    Co-Founder/COO, it's electric

  • Ruben Aronin

    Ruben Aronin

    Senior Principal, Better World Group

  • Larry Kosmont

    Larry Kosmont

    Chairman and CEO, Kosmont Companies

  • Edgar Khalatian

    Edgar Khalatian

    Partner, Mayer Brown LLP

  • Tomohiro Fujita

    Tomohiro Fujita

    Section Chief, Namie Town, Fukushima

  • Larry Frank

    Larry Frank

    Senior Advisor to Mayor Karen Bass, City of Los Angeles; Former Deputy Mayor to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, City of Los Angeles

  • Joseph Irvin

    Joe Irvin

    City Manager, City of Malibu

  • Alisa Kreynes

    Alisa Kreynes

    Director, Ports & Shipping, C40 Cities

  • Aaron Lapsley

    Aaron Lapsley

    CTO, Hyroad

  • Peter Rose

    Peter Rose

    Senior Director, Stakeholder Relations at Hydro Québec

  • Jason Rondou

    Jason Rondou

    Interim Chief Operating Officer and Senior Assistant General Manager - Power System, LADWP

  • Brianna Daniels

    Brianna Daniels

    Vice President, Stantec

  • Zoe Heller

    Zoe Heller

    CalRecycle Director

  • Emily Coven

    Emily Coven

    Circular Action Alliance CA Executive Director

  • Mike Caprio

    Mike Caprio

    Republic Services Director of Government Affairs

  • Martin Howell

    Martin Howell

    Associate Principal, ARUP

  • Andrew Wordin

    Andrew Wordin

    LAFD Battalion Chief

  • Peter Ambler

    Peter Ambler

    VP, Global Government Affairs, Pano AI

  • Erin Rowland

    Erin Rowland

    City of Long Beach General Superintendent

  • Matt Horton

    Matt Horton

    Vice President, Research and Policy -Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation

  • Jennifer Norris

    Jennifer Norris

    Executive Director, Wildlife Conservation Board

  • Ignacio Fernandez

    Ignacio Fernandez

    Senior Policy Advisor, The Climate Registry

  • Geneva Thompson

    Geneva Thompson

    Deputy Secretary for Tribal Affairs, California Natural Resources Agency

  • Eileen Alduenda

    Eileen Alduenda

    Executive Director of the Council for Watershed Health

  • Esther Kim

    Esther Kim

    Founder, Altadena Village Partners

  • Maryam Zar

    Maryam Zar

    CEO, Malibu Pacific Palisades Chamber of Commerce; Founder & President, Palisades Recovery Coalition

  • Diana C. Tang

    Diana C. Tang

    Assistant General Manager - City of Long Beach, Public Utilities Department

  • Aya Izawa

    Aya Izawa

    CN Business Development Assistant Manager, NGK Corporation

  • Yuhei Sasahara

    Yuhei Sasahara

    Managing Director, NYK Group Americas

  • Brianna Pilkinton

    Brianna Pilkinton

    Senior Principal, Business Center Operations Leader, Stantec

  • Maggie Messerschmidt

    Maggie Messerschmidt

    Resilience Associate - ARUP

  • Elias Rashmawi

    Elias Rashmawi

    VP, Major Commercial/Industrial Land Development Sector Leader, North America - Stantec

  • Marcel Porras

    Marcel Porras

    Deputy Chief Innovation Officer at Los Angeles Metro

  • Dan Weinstein

    Dan Weinstein

    Partner, CTI Housing

  • Robert Barna

    Robert Barna

    Battalion Chief

  • Andrew Grinalds

    Andrew Grinalds

    COO & Co-Founder, Critical Loop

  • Jessica Lall

    Jessica Lall

    Managing Director, CBRE

  • Daniel Eppstein

    Daniel Eppstein

    Head of Partnerships at CoMotion

  • Johnny Hernandez, Jr.

    Johnny Hernandez, Jr.

    Vice Chairman of the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation

  • David Jacot

    David Jacot

    AGM & Executive Director of Distributed Energy Solutions // LADWP

  • David Libatique

    David Libatique

    Deputy Executive Director of Stakeholder Engagement, The Port of Los Angeles

  • Kevin Kammerzell

    Kevin Kammerzell

    Vice President, Mine Site Infrastructure, Stantec

  • Nadia Vogt

    Nadia Vogt

    Associate, Senior Project Manager, Stantec

  • Reb Guthrie

    Reb Guthrie

    Principal, Fueling Systems Design, Stantec

  • Tomo Kumahira

    Tomo Kumahira

    Co-Founder & CEO, WaterOne.AI

  • Luticia Miller

    Luticia Miller

    First Nations Major Projects Coalition

  • Nate Kirchhofer

    Nate Kirchhofer

    CEO, Cofounder, & Physical Electrochemist @ BioZen Batteries

  • Violet Flocks

    Violet Flocks

    Land Use Associate at Mayer Brown LLP

  • Adrian Hightower

    Adrian Hightower

    Strategic Sustainability Partnerships Program Manager, MWD

  • Ben Stapleton

    Ben Stapleton

  • Lujuana Medina

    Lujuana Medina

    Environmental Initiatives Division Manager - Los Angeles County Internal Services Department

  • George B. Holmes

    George B. Holmes

    Executive Chair & CEO, Stormentum

  • Eddie Alvarez

    Eddie Alvarez

    Council Representative, Los Angeles and Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council

  • David Yanagisawa

    Senior Manager, Mitsui and Co. Ltd.