Alumni Biographies (2003 - 2005)

Class of 2005

Nick is an alternative energy entrepreneur, presently working to replace diesel generators in telecommunications applications in developing countries with an ammonia-fueled, low-carbon fuel cell system. He is also a founding member and non-executive director of thin film photovoltaic company Solargystics Ltd, a strategy advisor to Canadian project developer SouthPoint Wind, and a corporate sustainability consultant with Eco Innovation Partners. Nick is the former CEO of a publicly-traded energy technology incubator and a former business development advisor to Energy Conversion Devices, where he worked on UNI-SOLAR photovoltaics, advanced NiMH batteries, fuel cells, solid-state hydrogen storage, and next-gen information technologies. Before joining the Erb Institute, Nick worked as a private yacht captain and served as an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, where he was named a “Coast Guard Hero” in 2000. While his professional focus is on energy technology, Nick still believes that long-term sustainability will only be achieved through leadership, organizational innovation, and social transformation. He holds a B.S. in Marine & Environmental Science with high honors from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and a 200-ton captain’s license.

Jonathan Forrester, a Principal in the Structured Transactions group at Pacific Gas and Electric Company, focuses on renewable energy (RPS) procurement and carbon market development. In his current role, Jon leads structuring and negotiating for complex renewable power purchase agreements (PPAs).  Jon also served on the core team and in an advisory procurement role for ClimateSmart, a voluntary carbon offset program, and helped develop PG&E’s strategy for advanced renewable technologies. Prior to joining PG&E, Jon held positions or consulted on a number of wind energy, energy efficiency, and climate change projects for Fortune 500 and government clients. Jon graduated from the University of Michigan's Erb Institute earning an MBA from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business and a Master of Environmental Science at the School of Natural Resources and Environment. Jon likes to ski fast.

Liz is interested in corporate sustainability initiatives,cross-sector partnerships, and nonprofit capacity building. During her first summer internship, Liz worked with The Nature in Conservancy southwestern Massachusetts,where she collaborated with a tri-state stakeholder group to develop itscapacity for rural conservation. During her second summer she worked for Ford Motor Company's Purchasing Strategy Office,focusing on emerging market suppliers' working conditions. Liz currently sits on the board of the Michigan Great Lakes Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Prior to graduate school, Liz worked as a research analyst for The Nature Conservancy's national science division and as a researcher for a health and environmental consulting firm. Liz has a BA in Biology with distinction in allsubjects from Cornell University.

Eric Wingfield is an internal consultant within Information Technology: Strategy and Organizational Development, at Ford Motor Company located in Dearborn, Michigan.  Eric is focused on organizational learning with an emphasis on developing collaboration and improving decision making across all of Ford.  Additionally, Eric is currently reviewing the future impact of transportation infrastructure, information technology, and mobility on social and environmental sustainability.  Previous to his current position, Eric studied biofuels infrastructure and has developed simulations to learn more about the potential impacts of biofuels on food availability, transport demand and ecology.   He is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley in Civil Engineering.  Eric holds a Master's of Science in Natural Resource, Policy and Behavior, and a Master's of Business Administration, a dual degree administered through the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan designed to bridge the issues in environment, society, and business.

Wendy is part of the strategy team within Target Corporation's supply-chain, supporting international and domestic logistics efforts.  She leads their sustainability efforts as well as other long-term strategic projects, like starting up a team in Target’s India office.  Prior to Target, Wendy worked with internal teams on sustainability initiatives within Aveda.  While in the Erb Institute’s dual degree program at Michigan, she did a corporate finance internship with ExxonMobil and a sustainability internship with Nike.  She also was part of a team that developed a "sustainable agriculture tool-kit" for dairy farmers for Ben & Jerry's.  Prior to starting the dual degree program, Wendy was a consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers where she managed quantitative and qualitative survey work within the public and private sectors across a broad range of industries.  Wendy graduated with University honors from Miami University of Ohio with a degree in mathematics/statistics and a degree in education. 

ZBI Ventures is the private equity arm of Ziff Brothers Investments and is providing growth capital for unconventional energy companies and the development of related assets.  As a member of the ZBI investment team, Elizabeth is identifying, analyzing and structuring investments within the biofuels and carbon management areas.  Before joining ZBI, Elizabeth was with GE Energy Financial Services, underwriting and structuring a variety of energy infrastructure investments, primarily in the midstream and power sectors.  Prior to EFS, Elizabeth was responsible for client relationship management and business development for Global Forest Partners.  She also coordinated the periodic reporting to individual clients regarding their specific timberland portfolios.  Before earning her MS and MBA from the University of Michigan, Elizabeth was an Associate with The Alliance for Environmental Innovation, where she partnered with market leading consumer product companies to design environmental initiatives resulting in business benefits.  She holds a BS from the University of California, Berkeley, and as part of her undergraduate work, Elizabeth studied international policy, economics and law at the University of Oxford, UK.

Ajay is currently setting up a spinoff focused on rural electrification in developing countries and leading renewable energy activities for Cummins Power Gen, a 4 billion dollar subsidiary of Cummins Inc. Prior to this, he led the implementation of several strategic initiatives for the company and reported to the president while developing a turnaround strategy for the Company. Before graduate school, Ajay worked for several years with a United Nations Development Programme fund called the 'Global Environment Facility' where he originated, developed and managed multi million dollar investments in environment and energy projects around the world. Wanting to get his hands dirty, he moved from New York City to the far reaches of Brazil and then India for several years to set up community owned eco enterprises. Ajay received a BS from Allegheny College in Environmental Studies. A native of India, Ajay loves photography, motorcycling, travel, and playing soccer, and speaks several languages poorly including Portuguese.

Elizabeth is a Manager at Duke Energy in Charlotte, NC.  Duke Energy is the third largest electric power holding company in the U.S., based on kilowatt-hour sales, and is also the third largest emitter of CO2 of all the companies in the U.S.  Since 2007, Elizabeth has held positions in Duke Energy’s Strategy and Operations departments.  From 2004 through 2007, Elizabeth was in the Commercial Associate Program, Duke Energy’s MBA rotational program, and completed rotations in Supply Chain, Duke Energy Generation Services and Strategic Planning/Corporate Development.  Elizabeth graduated from Dartmouth College with a B.A. in Anthropology and a Certificate in Environmental Studies. She then joined the United States Peace Corps as an Environmental Education volunteer and served for two years in Senegal, West Africa. While an Erb MBA/MS Program student, Elizabeth had a summer internship co-sponsored by Ford Motor Company and the World Resources Institute (WRI), in Dearborn, MI, where she worked on the WRI Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Elizabeth also had a summer internship at Battelle in Seattle, WA, where she developed alternative business models for the Pacific Northwest Regional Collaboratory, a NASA-sponsored geospatial data provision project.