A Chartered Engineer and Chartered IT Professional Mark has been a specialist in data centre design, operations and technical management for more than 25 years, holding senior positions in global organisations. Now operating as a Consultant and Technical Advisor supporting all aspects of the Data Centre Lifecycle including energy efficiency and routinely involved in Technical Due Diligence for data centre investors and operators. 

A regular public speaker and thought leader involved in multiple technical and advisory boards. Mark is involved in the development of International Data Centre Standards as well as being the Technical Editor and Committee Chair of the European Commission Code of Conduct on Data Centre Energy Efficiency since 2013. This document now underpins the EU Taxonomy and CSRD reporting requirements. Connect on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markacton/ 

Christopher brings over 26 years of environmental permitting experience across many sectors of work to include transportation, oil and gas, transmission, renewable energy and most recently, data center development. He brings unique perspectives not only as a seasoned consultant, but also as a former state and federal employee.

His subject matter expertise is in both natural resources and various federal agencies National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures. Christopher’s skills also include extensive interagency coordination and facilitating difficult public involvement situations. Some of his most recent experience includes navigating project permitting and delivery for data center clients.

Christopher has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology and a Master of Science Degree in Environmental Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio.  

Profile coming soon

Julie Bolthouse is the Director of Land Use at Piedmont Environmental Council and co-leads the Virginia Data Center Reform Coalition. Over the past 15 years, her advocacy work has covered a wide variety of land use issues including the pressing issue of data center growth in Virginia and the impact of the energy and water infrastructure required to support it.

She graduated from Virginia Tech with two Masters Degrees in Urban and Regional Planning and Natural Resources and a Bachelor of Science in Fisheries Science and Watershed Management.  

Hal is Chief Development Officer at Viridi, where he focuses on market development, strategy, partnerships, leading Viridi's "Insights" software and connectivity division, and structuring of large programs. Hal comes to Viridi from JPMorgan Chase where he was Vice President, Global Head of Energy and Sustainability for Global Real Estate. There he ran global energy management and was responsible for delivery on JPMorgan Chase's public sustainability commitments relating to operations (Scopes 1 and 2). Execution included energy procurement globally, all programs relating to decarbonization, efficiency, sustainability, water conservation, and renewable energy for the firm's operations spanning 7500 properties in over 70 countries. Additionally, he oversaw energy-related capital programs (solar, microgrids, EV, etc.) while crafting strategy and conducting the development, due diligence, underwriting, and implementation of all solutions.

Prior to joining JPMorgan Chase, Hal served as Energy Manager for Jeffco Public Schools, a 100,000 occupant portfolio, where in addition to running sustainability and energy management function he frequently taught energy and conservation topics to students. Prior to joining Jeffco, Hal worked as a consulting Mechanical Engineer where he designed HVAC, energy plants, and authored technical studies for complex environments for Dewberry and Affiliated Engineers Inc (AEI).

He served on the Corporate Advisory Board of the World Green Building Council, and the Advisory Board for Power Magazine, and twice served as Chairperson of the Colorado Association of School District Energy Managers (CASDEM).

Hal is a graduate of the P.C. Rossin School of Engineering and Applied Science with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University and holds a MBA from the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business at Elon University. Hal holds the Certified Energy Manager (CEM) and Certified Energy Procurement Professional (CEP) professional designations.

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Profile coming soon

Khoi is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in market development and client relations, currently serving as Vice President of Market Development and Transformation at the U.S. Green Building Council since July 2025. Prior to joining USGBC, Khoi worked at Cohesion, an integrative smart buildings startup. Khoi also spent a large portion of his career at UL Solutions, and over 16+ years he held key roles in global account management, product management, innovation, strategy, and international government affairs. Earlier experience includes positions at Magna Mirrors & Magna Closures as Market Analyst and Product Development Manager. Khoi holds a Bachelors of Business Administration degree in Corporate Strategy and International Business from the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He currently resides in Chicago, IL.  

As GreenScale’s Senior Director of Sustainability, Anna's focus is to align the company’s vision and growth with ambitious environmental commitments and positive social impact. With a strong technical background on sustainable building design and operation across leading global organisations such as CBRE, Tesco and AECOM, Anna has successfully led the development and implementation of carbon reduction strategies across multiple sectors. Her role at GreenScale spans overseeing initiatives that help to integrate advanced technologies and renewable energy solutions into the company’s data center operations whilst driving positive impact to local communities. 

Anna is a chartered engineer with a doctorate in building energy performance. She is Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) and is also Co-chair of the iMasons Climate Accord Power Working Group.

Tim Foster joined Conrad Energy in 2021. As Director of ‘Energy for Business’, he is responsible for all our tailormade client facing energy solutions, from our market-leading sustainable electricity supply product, Match+, through to renewable PPAs. Tim previously held senior leadership positions at Sembcorp UK and Statkraft.​

Adrian Friday is Professor of Computing and Sustainability at Lancaster University.

His interdisciplinary projects focus on understanding the environmental and societal impacts of ICT.  This includes energy use in the home; thermal comfort; sustainable food choice; sustainable transport, last-mile logistics; and business 'campus' energy demands. 

He is advisor to Royal Society "Digital Technology and the Planet", working group on policy for ICT toward sustainable digital society.

Brian Granahan is the Director of the Illinois Power Agency (IPA), an independent state agency tasked with developing energy procurement plans; conducting energy, capacity, and renewables procurement events; developing solar energy incentive programs; and providing financial incentives for the continued operation of at-risk nuclear plants. As the Director, Brian oversees the development and implementation of plans to procure electricity and clean energy resources for customers of Illinois electric utilities. This work includes development of the IPA's Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan, which outlines the state's approach to supporting new distributed generation and community solar projects, as well as overseeing programs providing incentives to support those projects.

Previously, Brian served as IPA's Chief Legal Counsel, beginning with the Agency in April 2014. In this role, he oversaw a variety of legal, policy, and strategic responsibilities for the IPA, including serving as the Agency's legislative liaison and representative in negotiations around the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (2021) and the Future Energy Jobs Act (2016).

Brian began his career as an associate with Sidley Austin LLP and worked as clean energy advocate and staff attorney with Environment Illinois before shifting to the public sector and serving as a policy advisor to two Chairmen at the Illinois Commerce Commission. Prior to joining the IPA, Brian was a Vice President with the strategic consulting firm of Tur Partners LLC working to incubate a startup low-profit, limited liability company (L3C) focused on cleantech adoption by municipal governments.

Brian is a former board member of the Illinois Environmental Council and Green Economy Chicago, and most recently served as the Vice Chairman of the Clean Energy States Alliance Board of Directors. Brian holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science with Honors from the University of Iowa and a juris doctor degree from New York University School of Law.

Olivia Hough is a Sustainability Consultant and Sustainable Materials Lead, specialising in reducing the environmental impacts of buildings through low‑carbon, circular and resilient material strategies. As part of the Buildings and Places Sustainability Team, she works closely with multidisciplinary project teams to develop holistic sustainability approaches that respond to both project ambition and planning requirements. 

With over 20 years’ experience in the construction industry, Olivia trained and practised as an architect, delivering projects with strong sustainability agendas across education, commercial and industrial sectors. Since joining AtkinsRéalis, her experience has expanded to include a range of data centre projects, where she works with clients to develop bespoke sustainability strategies that target reducing the sector’s environmental impact. By collaborating closely with project teams and applying the AtkinsRéalis sustainability tool, Azolla, Olivia helps optimise sustainability outcomes, with early design-stage engagement playing a critical role. 

In her current role, Olivia supports the industry’s transition towards lower‑carbon construction by championing sustainable and innovative materials, circular economy principles, and opportunities to enhance health, wellbeing and social value.  

Andrew Howell, CFA, is Senior Director and Head of Research for Sustainable Finance at EDF, where he is responsible for engaging with the financial community to accelerate the energy transition. He works on a range of sectors, including sustainable finance, data center energy impacts, methane, transportation, and carbon markets. 

Previously, Andrew was an equity research analyst with Citi Research for two decades, where he led a top-ranked research team focused on emerging and frontier markets. Andrew has also worked at the Emerging Markets Investors Alliance, where he led investor ESG engagements in the mining and energy sectors. 

Profile coming soon

Jack Johnson is a Chartered Environmental Scientist with 10 years experience providing consulting support and advice to a range of water sector clients.

He specialises in water resource management and modelling to assess and understand the impact of future droughts on public water supply to inform regulatory requirements such as Water Resource Management Plans.

Jack has worked both in the UK and internationally and more recently has been focused on the development of Strategic Resource Options and Regional Plans.  

Rich is the Managing Director at Interact, a world leading IT performance consultancy utilising circular economy machine learning software. He is also a Visiting Research Fellow in the School of Engineering at London South Bank University (LSBU).

He is Co-Chair of the UK Government Digital Sustainability Alliance Planetary Impact Working Group and Co-Chair of the IEEE Water Resource Management Technologies Industry Connections Program

In 2024 and 2025 he was named one of the top 50 individuals driving the UK’s progress towards achieving Net Zero by 2050.

Brad is a Managing Attorney and Clean Energy Program Lead at the Environmental Law & Policy Center, a not-for-profit organization that advocates for clean energy development, pollution reduction, transportation and land use reform, and natural resources protection in Midwest states. ELPC’s clean energy team develops and promotes ambitious policies to modernize the energy grid, accelerate renewables, reform energy markets, and decarbonize the economy. Brad engages at utility regulatory commissions and courts at the state, regional, and federal level to advance ELPC’s clean energy goals.  

Brad previously served as a federal judicial law clerk in Washington, D.C., a law fellow at the Environmental Law Institute, and an environmental engineer at CH2M Hill, Inc. Brad received his law degree with honors from New York University School of Law and a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis. 

Dr Carolynne Lord is a Senior Digital Sociologist based at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH). Her research focuses on technological sustainability, exploring this through an angle of use, provision, policy, and practice. This involves exploring the system dynamics that shape technological and infrastructural provision and use, recognising these as a product of design, demand, governance, and disposal.

Alongside colleagues, Carolynne is especially interested in how we can leverage systems thinking and the cross-disciplinary expertise at UKCEH to better understand the whole system impacts of data centres. Her work argues that if we want to intervene and aim for more sustainable data centres, we must follow their resource costs and better understand their implications on the environment (e.g., carbon emissions, biodiversity, water quality) and society (e.g., pollution and resource scarcity impacts on communities). This is especially important as her previous research has evidenced that some forms of large-scale infrastructure demand are wasteful in not outweighing costs through their value. 

Dr. Andrea Merkle studied Geography and obtained a doctorate in Agricultural Sciences. Since January 2024, she has been heading the Global Data Center Sector business unit at Ramboll Environment & Health. With over 25 years of experience in environmental and sustainability consulting, including 10 years in the data centre sector, she has played a key role in advancing related services across the data centre lifecycle in recent years. 

Her scope of work includes site selection, due diligence, environmental permitting, environmental impact assessments, environmental and occupational health and safety services in data centre operations, conceptual master planning, stakeholder engagement and management, as well as sustainability-related topics. 

Andrea Merkle also works closely with other global business units at Ramboll, including sustainable data centre design and commissioning (Ramboll Buildings), grid connection and waste heat utilisation (Ramboll Energy), traffic and transport risk assessment in due diligence (Ramboll Transport), water-related challenges and solutions (Ramboll Water), innovative façade and landscape design on data centre campuses (Henning Larsen), as well as strategic advisory services (Ramboll Management Consulting). 

Her primary focus is on working in partnership with Ramboll´s clients to drive sustainable transformation and to integrate topics such as the circular economy, biodiversity, and decarbonisation into projects.  

Helen Munro approaches sustainability from a dual perspective of philosopher and accountant.

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She has spent 15 years working with people-based systems across heavy, power-intensive industries in the UK and Australia.  She now leads Pulsant’s evolving sustainability strategy as an edge platform and data centre operator, during a time of change for the climate, energy transition, culture, geopolitics, technological capability and mineral availability.    

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Helen works internally to support energy and environmental governance; measurable performance, long-term strategies and business-wide engagement on planetary impacts – so that Pulsant can deliver digital infrastructure resiliently and responsibly. 

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Having served on TechUK's Data Centre Council and currently serving on TechUK’s Climate Council, Helen advocates for better transparency and collaboration across the digital value chain, and a fundamental shift towards the resources, places and people which both create and define value.

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Helen holds a BA in Philosophy, a BSc in Accounting and Finance, and further qualifications in Data & Systems Analysis, ISO 9001 Lead Auditing, University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership’s ‘High Impact Leadership’ programme. She is an affiliate member of the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals (ISEP).  

Coleman Peiffer has over 15 years of experience in economic development. As the Senior Manager of Data Center Services at Alliant Energy, Coleman is responsible for the attraction of new data centers in Wisconsin and Iowa.

Under Coleman’s leadership, Alliant Energy has successfully attracted over 3 gigawatts and $20B of Data Centers over the past two years.  

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Coleman previously led all economic development efforts in Wisconsin for Alliant Energy. In this role, he facilitated conversations with communities and partners, introducing them to new and expanding project opportunities.

Prior to joining Alliant Energy, Coleman led the State of Wisconsin’s business attraction department, successfully marketing and attracting major projects to the state.

Coleman also has experience consulting individual businesses on their expansion efforts. He was also a manager at Ernst and Young based in Chicago where he assisted Fortune 500 companies with their investment strategies and expansion efforts. 

Oliver leads system applications for Ceres’ solid oxide technology, bridging commercial, product and engineering teams.

Oliver has 16 years at Ceres across systems engineering, testing and partner integration, plus 7 years’ int the automotive industry. He has extensive joint development experience with global partners including Doosan, Miura and Weichai.

Oliver holds an MEng in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London and is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. He was named inventor on nine fuel cell system patents, spanning system architecture, integration and performance optimisation

Nin has 25 years’ experience in the effective management of environmental liabilities and successful redevelopment of brownfield sites across UK, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. He is the Global Land Contamination Program Manager at AWS leading brownfield acquisitions, sustainable redevelopment, and environmental risk management. 

He has held senior leadership roles in consultancy delivering high-value, multi-disciplinary, award-winning demolition and remediation projects for public and private sector clients that balance social, economic, and environmental considerations. 

Chris Pennington is Director of Energy & Sustainability for Iron Mountain Data Centers. His responsibilities include the development of Iron Mountain's global sustainability program and identification of opportunities to innovate for a more sustainable digital future. He received the Green Power Leader of the Year award in 2021 from the Center for Resource Solutions and championed Iron Mountain's public commitment to 24/7 carbon free energy that same year.

Chris actively participates in the Clean Energy Buyers Association as faculty for their energy buyer support programs, as well as Eurelectric's 24/7 carbon free energy hub.

Dan is an ecologist leading the development of Ramboll's biodiversity metrics with a global team of specialists. He has extensive experience in restoration ecology and natural resource management. His expertise includes biodiversity planning, metrics development and implementation, biodiversity-focused design, ecological restoration, and monitoring. 

Dan works with clients in the US and Europe to help them achieve corporate biodiversity and nature-related goals.  

Mike Rose is the Chief Executive Officer of UKWIR, leading the UK water industry’s strategic research agenda to address its most pressing challenges and unlock it’s biggest opportunities.

An internationally experienced leader in business transformation, Mike brings over 25 years of expertise across the water, energy, and infrastructure sectors. His career includes executive leadership roles at Arcadis, where he spearheaded global growth and digital strategy, and a foundational tenure at United Utilities, pioneering the UK water sector’s first carbon reduction program.

A Chartered Management Consultant with an MSc in Water, Energy and the Environment, Mike specialises in bridging the gap between physical assets and digital disruption. He is a dedicated advocate for operational resilience and sustainability, focused on driving the collaborative innovation necessary to achieve global net-zero goals. 

Gareth Richardson is a Client Director at AtkinsRéalis, where he leads the Energy Transition, Renewables and Industrial sub‑market. He has a technical background from operations to design and construction in nuclear systems and solid oxide fuel cell technologies and a broad range of industries he advises clients on the development of complex, low‑carbon energy systems across power, storage, and industrial applications.

Jon Saltmarsh is Chief Technology Officer at Energy Systems Catapult. He is responsible for identifying the key innovation challenges where the Catapult can have most impact and providing the technical direction to deliver practical insights and solutions. 

His role includes driving forward major new initiatives within the Catapult, in areas such as flexibility, developing a products business, improving knowledge management, and supporting internal research across the net zero innovation space. 

Prior to joining the Catapult in January 2023, Jon had over 30 years’ experience in the public and private sectors in both energy and defence. This focused on identifying and exploiting opportunities for new technologies to deliver transformative change. He initiated the government’s innovation programme on hydrogen for heating. More recently, he was responsible for providing the central technical, engineering and research-based evidence and advice to all DESNZ policy teams delivering the net zero energy system.  

Amanda is the global lead engaging the buildings sector at the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). In her role, she works with companies, financial institutions and partners to accelerate decarbonisation of the built environment through the adoption of science-based targets across the sector. Amanda also collaborates with key stakeholders to strengthen the SBTi Buildings Criteria and foster the clarity and coordination needed for systemic change across the sector. She joined SBTi, from global real estate company JLL where she was the Climate and Nature Director for the UK. She has previously held a range of roles focussed on stakeholder engagement, cross-sector collaboration and corporate sustainability. 

Cassie is the Managing Director for the Climate Solutions and Networks team, leading the development and delivery of sector programmes and support to cities in energy and buildings, food and waste, transport, urban planning, air quality and climate resilience. Cassie started at C40 as the Director for Energy and Buildings, supporting cities to reduce energy consumed by existing buildings, ensure new buildings are efficient from the start, and clean up the energy supply to buildings and beyond. 

Prior to joining C40, Cassie was at the Greater London Authority (GLA) where she was the project manager for the London Environment Strategy; launched in 2018, it is a world-leading strategy for environment ambition at the city level. She was also leading the climate adaptation and sustainable development team, working to manage London’s climate risks and impacts and improve quality of life. Cassie has a wide range of technical experience in buildings and energy including developing new carbon scoring tools for national energy efficiency schemes and assessing new energy efficiency measures while working at the UK energy regulator Ofgem. She has also developed national government policy on smart energy systems. 

Cassie graduated from Edinburgh University with a BSc in Environmental Geoscience and Newcastle University with an MSc in Clean Technology.  

Breana Wheeler became BRE's Director of Operations in the US in June 2016. BRE is a 100+-year-old building science research organization that delivers innovative and rigorous products, services, standards and qualifications which are used around the globe to make buildings better for people and for the environment.  

BRE developed BREEAM, the world’s first and leading science-based suite of standards defining and validating sustainability performance in the built environment. Since 1990, BREEAM’s standards have helped improve asset performance at every stage, from design through construction, to use and renovation. Millions of buildings across the world are registered to work towards BREEAM’s holistic approach to design, construct and operate sustainable buildings and 850,000+ certificates have been issued for assets in over 100 countries.  

Breana oversees the deployment of the BREEAM family of standards in the US, including BREEAM USA In-Use for existing buildings. In addition to market development, she supports technical work on Resilience and Social Impact and developing these themes within all BREEAM standards globally. Prior to joining BRE, Breana worked for ten years as an internal advisor on environmental and sustainability risk management for large, multinational corporations.  

Breana is a Member of the Institute of Sustainability & Environmental Professionals (ISEP, formerly IEMA) and a Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv) with the Society for the Environment. 

She earned her a double Bachelor degree in Geography and Political Science from San Francisco State University and a Masters in Environment, Politics and Globalization from Kings College London. 

Dr Stephanie Wray is a specialist in ecology, biodiversity and sustainable development, and is Director of Nature Repair, a specialist consultancy advising on BNG and other habitat creation / regenerative farming projects. She has 30 years’ experience in assessing the impacts of projects, programmes and whole organisations on the natural environment and has worked extensively in the construction and real estate sectors.

Since 2020 she has consulted on corporate-level issues in biodiversity and climate such as setting science-based targets, and disclosures under TCFD and TNFD, most recently trading as Athene Consulting. She has a PhD in Ecology and a master’s in business administration, and is a past President of the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management. 

Linda Yang is Vice President, Director of Environmental Growth at Terracon Consultants, Inc.  With extensive environmental and engineering consulting experience, Linda has a broad range of expertise serving public and private clients across environmental, health, safety, and sustainability. For 15 years, she has advised clients in the areas of brownfields redevelopment, funding strategies and stakeholder partnership, and regularly speaks on key topics at industry conferences.

In her current role, she collaborates cross-functionally with teams to advise clients across the sectors of digital infrastructure, power and transmission, transportation and infrastructure, industrial, and federal and state agencies. Prior to Terracon, Linda worked at AECOM holding various leadership positions in operations, client development, and strategic accounts management. Linda earned a Master of Business Administration with distinction from Kellogg Graduate School at Northwestern University, a MS in geology from the University of Illinois Chicago, and a BS in geology from Peking University.   

Profile coming soon...