The Speakers

Joshua Batres is a junior majoring in Engineering Science and Business. He has been involved with Engineers Without Borders (EWB) at the University of Rochester since 2018 Fall, and is the current publicity coordinator. He travelled to the Dominican Republic in January 2020 for the monitoring trip for the water chlorination project at Don Juan, DR where EWD working to provide clean water access to a Catholic school. As an international student from Mexico, lack of clean water access (increasingly amplified by climate change) is a problem that encourages him to pursue engineering and the decision to get involved in EWB in the project to provide clean water in the Dominican Republic in spirit of Pan Americanism, sustainability and to make a positive impact in our continent. He is also part of the Grand Challenges Scholars Program and member of the Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity Inc outside of EWB.

Tanya Bakhmetyeva is an Associate Professor of History and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies. Her book Mother of the Church (2016) received the 2017 Harry C. Koenig Book Prize. She is currently working on a book on a history of hunting and nature protection in Soviet Russia and collaborating with Professor Weaver on the ongoing oral history and climate change project in Ladakh, India.

Ivana is a senior at the UofR, majoring in Biology on the pre-med track. She will begin working as Supervisor of the Emergency Department Research Associates Program in the Summer of 2021 for her gap year in the hopes of attending medical school in Fall 2022. In 2018, under the supervision of Dr. Katrina Korfmacher, she was a Climate Change and Health Equity Intern. She is a social activist who hopes to combat bias and bridge the gap between the healthcare community and the underrepresented minorities they serve.

Shalini Beath is the Energy and Sustainability Analyst at the City of Rochester’s Department of Environmental Services/Division of Environmental Quality. Shal’s role includes implementing environmental initiatives to build a sustainable city in order to improve the quality of life and create a healthier city. Shal works to raise public awareness about sustainability issues and helps people connect to and value their environment and natural resources.

Shal holds a Master’s degree in Conservation Biology from Columbia University and a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Binghamton University. Shal began her career at the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation’s Urban Park Rangers division working on wildlife management and environmental education. Later she worked at the Forestry division as Deputy Director of the MillionTreesNYC program, an ambitious initiative to plant and care for a million trees across New York City. Following that, in 2016, Shal joined the the City of Rochester’s Department of Environmental Services.

Sarah Brylinsky leads Cornell's efforts in climate change and sustainability strategic planning and systems change, and the implementation of the living laboratory for sustainability. She responsible for leading strategic partnerships and deep systems change across the University as well as high level internal and external communications on campus sustainability after a decade of working in the higher education field, including as Director of Climate Resilience for Second Nature and the Carbon Commitment, a founding member of the MIT Office of Sustainability and Dickinson College Center for Sustainability Education, and award winner of the AASHE Student Leadership Award. Sarah has spoken at over 100 national and international conferences on the crisis of climate change and the capacity for higher education and students to change the tide of our future through deep, systemic sustainability change. Fun fact: Sarah has completed a solo trek of Mt. Everest!

Karen Berger is Associate Professor of Instruction in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Coordinator of College Sustainability Studies. She brings her passion for energy, water and sustainability challenges to her undergraduate teaching, engaging her students in real-world problem-solving to support efforts on campus and in the community.

Linden Burack is a Junior at School of the Arts and a member of the Rochester Youth Climate Leaders Steering Committee. He has been involved in climate activism for five years and has planned multiple youth climate summits as well as organized lobbying campaigns for local change. Currently he is working with 540 West Main to develop an Environmental Justice curriculum in addition to his employment at the City of Rochester's Urban ecology program.

Anna is a Junior at Penfield High School and serves as the New York Youth Climate Leaders’ Director of Operations. She is the Youth Liaison to the Climate Solutions Accelerator Board, and is a member of the Rochester Youth Climate Leaders Leadership Team. Aside from climate activism, Anna loves to hike, ski with her school’s Nordic Ski team, and rock climb. She also plays the cello in the Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra and especially likes playing in chamber groups.

Frank Ciampa is the Program Manager for Policy Development at NYSERDA and is responsible for managing a strategic planning team that seeks to qualify and initiate policy interventions to promote clean energy market development in New York State. As leader of the Policy Development team, Frank provides operational oversight for projects related to clean energy job census tracking in the state, GHG inventory and forecasting, carbon and air pollution markets, energy efficiency technologies and investment mechanisms, as well as regulatory proceedings intended to rethink electric and nat. gas utility business models for the “utility of the future”. Together, these topics (and many more) are all contributing to progress on the State’s ambitious energy and climate goals.

Frank has over 15 years of experience in energy policy, clean technologies, and corporate sustainability. Before joining NYSERDA, He worked in the private sector as Manager, Sustainability Policy Development with KEO International Consultants in Abu Dhabi. Prior to his expat posting, he worked in Boston for Clean Asset Partners Corporation and MSCI, Inc. Frank earned his Bachelor’s degree in Earth and Environmental Sciences from University of Rochester, and his Master’s degree in Sustainability and Environmental Management from Harvard University.

Brad Flanagan, is a volunteer for Citizens Climate Lobby, a non-profit, nonpartisan, grassroots advocacy organization focused on national policies to address climate change. He graduated with a Masters of Engineering in Energy Systems from the University of Illinois in 2019. Brad currently works as an Energy Engineer for Wendel in Rochester. His passion for sustainability and renewable energy has led him to advocate for legislation to combat climate change on the state and national level.

Eban Goodstein is an economist who directs Graduate Programs in Sustainability at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY. Professor Goodstein holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Michigan, and a B.A. in Geology from Williams College. Goodstein is the author of three books: Economics and the Environment, (John Wiley and Sons: 2017) now in its eighth edition; Fighting for Love in the Century of Extinction: How Passion and Politics Can Stop Global Warming (University Press of New England: 2007); and The Trade-off Myth: Fact and Fiction about Jobs and the Environment (Island Press: 1999). Articles by Goodstein have appeared in among other outlets, The Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Land Economics, Ecological Economics, and Environmental Management. His research has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Scientific American, Time, The Economist, USA Today, and The Chronicle of Higher Education, and he has testified in Congress on the employment impacts of environmental regulation. He serves on the editorial board of Sustainability: The Journal of Record. In recent years, Goodstein coordinated a series of national educational events around climate change, engaging over 2,500 colleges, universities, and K-12 schools in solutions-based dialog

Ben obtained his PhD in Geoscience from the University of Rochester in 2020 under the supervision of Dr. Vasilii Petrenko. His thesis utilized ancient air and ice samples collected from Summit, Greenland to characterize the Carbon-14 isotopic signature of methane in the atmosphere over the past few centuries. From these samples, it was discovered that the natural emissions of fossil methane are over-estimated by an order of magnitude; therefore, emissions of methane from anthropogenic fossil fuel emissions are likely overestimated by 25-40% in current inventories. After defending his thesis, Ben now works as a Postdoctoral researcher at the Environmental Defense Fund as part of the PermianMAP project. This study aims to characterize methane emissions from the largest and most rapidly developing oilfield on the planet located in west Texas and southeastern New Mexico. Providing actionable data on these emissions to industry stakeholders, regulators and researchers aims to reduce methane emissions and therefore limit future global warming caused by the oil and gas industry.

Sue Hughes-Smith has been an environmental educator for 20 years, joining the Public Health Department at SUNY Brockport in 2007 as an adjunct professor of Environmental Health and began teaching Environmental Studies at R.I.T in 2012. In addition, she volunteers her time advocating for climate action. Sue serves as Vice Chair on the Monroe County Climate Action Plan Advisory Committee and is the NE co-coordinator of Diversity and Inclusion for Citizens' Climate Lobby. She co-founded the Rochester People's Climate Coalition and a small business, Roctrity. Roctricity is the local program manager for Community Choice Aggregation programs and is facilitating the implementation of cost-saving, community-wide, renewable electricity programs in 10 municipalities. Sue resides in Brighton with her husband, Craig, and their five children.

Jamil Jackson is a 16-year-old Little Rock, Arkansas native that serves as a National Communications Coordinator for Extinction Rebellion Youth U.S.

Abigail McHugh-Grifa was a founding member of the Rochester People’s Climate Coalition (now called the Climate Solutions Accelerator of the Genesee-Finger Lakes) and New York State’s first Mothers Out Front chapter. Her early volunteer climate activism also included co-leadership of Rochester's Citizens' Climate Lobby chapter for several years. She currently serves as the Executive Director of the Climate Solutions Accelerator. Though she holds a Ph.D. in Music Education from the Eastman School of Music, she gave up her career in music to dedicate herself to climate advocacy work out of concern for her two young sons, whose futures depend on our collective efforts to maintain stable global temperatures.

Congressman Joe Morelle is proud to represent New York’s 25th Congressional District, which includes almost the entirety of Monroe County. A lifelong resident of Upstate New York, Rep. Morelle is a former small business owner and was previously elected to the Monroe County Legislature as well as the New York State Assembly, where he served as Majority Leader from 2013-2018. Throughout his career, Rep. Morelle has worked diligently to improve and expand access to healthcare for all people, grow our economy, and protect our communities by passing legislation to ban assault weapons and strengthen gun background checks.

A graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo, Rep. Morelle resides in the town of Irondequoit in Rochester, New York, with his wife, Mary Beth. They have three children and four grandchildren.

Bridget Mousaw is a sophomore at Brighton High School. She loves to be outdoors in nature and is always conscious of the Earth. Bridget has many activist heroes and role models such as Jane Goodall and Greta Thunberg that inspired her to get involved with climate activism through her school's climate club, which she is now one of the leaders. She is currently the Rochester Field Organizer for the New York Youth Climate Leaders, and she works with the Rochester Youth Climate Leaders. Outside of organizing, she is on her school's cross country running and nordic ski teams, and she plays French Horn in the Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra.

Izzy Murphy is a junior double-majoring in Environmental Science and Political Science, driven by a passion for environmental justice and preserving the planet for current and future generations. On campus, she has been the president of Grassroots, an attorney and eboard member for the Mock Trial team, and a Senator as well as the Secretary for Community Engagement for SA Government. During her sophomore year, she and several other students spearheaded an initiative for UR to adopt a much-needed climate action plan, which was met with enthusiasm by President Mangelsdorf. While the pandemic upended their plans, she is excited to continue the project to make UR more sustainable. Currently, she is interning with the Environmental Protection Bureau of New York State’s Office of the Attorney General, and she hopes to work in environmental law and/or policy in the future.

Lee T. Murray, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences. Professor Murray obtained MS and PhD degrees from Harvard University in Cambridge, MA, and performed postdoctoral research jointly at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University and NASA Goddard Institute of Space Studies in New York, NY. He joined the faculty at the University of Rochester in 2016. His main research interests are in the areas of Atmospheric Chemistry and Climate. Professor Murray’s research group maintains high-performance computing resources dedicated to the development and application of cutting-edge global atmospheric models, which the group uses to explore the natural and anthropogenic-driven processes that drive change in Earth’s atmospheric composition and climate.

Antoinette is a senior at the U of R, double majoring in Anthropology and English. She will be attending the University of Rochester School of Medicine as a medical student in the fall of 2021. She worked as a Climate Change and Health Equity Intern with Dr. Katrina Korfmacher under the UR's Sustainability Fellowship in 2018, and is extremely passionate about the intersections between environmental activism, community organizing, and public health advocacy.

Professor Marc Porosoff received his BS in 2009 and MS in 2010, both in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University. In 2015, he completed his PhD in Chemical Engineering at Columbia University, with a thesis on developing catalysts for carbon dioxide conversion. Porosoff then worked as a National Research Council sponsored postdoctoral fellow at the Naval Research Laboratory on the ‘Seawater to Fuel’ project. Prof. Porosoff joined the Chemical Engineering department at University of Rochester in 2017 as an assistant professor.

At Rochester, The Porosoff Group is developing zeolite-based catalysts for upgrading C₁ and C₂ resources for efficient energy storage and low-cost production of plastics, chemicals and fuels. Understanding the relationships between chemical reactivity and catalyst electronic/structure properties are extremely important for developing catalysts that exploit particular reaction pathways. This approach requires controlled synthesis of catalysts combined with in situ techniques and theoretical calculations.

Cam Schauf is the Director of Campus Dining Services & Auxiliary Operations at the University of Rochester. His responsibilities include dining services, bookstores, one card operations, vending, and laundry. Dining includes residential dining, retail, catering, and convenience stores on the University’s River Campus and the Eastman School of Music. Cam has worked in Campus Dining at Duke University, the University of Cincinnati, Clemson University and Bryn Mawr College before coming to the University of Rochester. Cam has been involved in the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS) as national president, regional president, coach/mentor at several education institutes and a variety of other positions. Cam is involved with a number of community organizations, including Healthi Kids, a grassroots community coalition and an initiative of Common Ground Health and the Westside Farmers Market. Most recently, the Seneca Park Zoo Society honored Cam with an Environmental Innovation Award.

Mekayla Sullivan is a current junior at the University of Rochester studying Environmental Science (B.S.) and American Sign Language (B.A). She is the president of the Society of Earth and Environmental Science Students (SEESS). She grew up in Sharon, Massachusetts and after graduation, she plans to pursue her masters in middle school science education.

Pat Wartinger grew up in Vermont and taught Biology. After retiring, she became depressed when global warming horrors began happening earlier than predictions she had taught in class, and Pat worried about the Earth her grandchildren would face in the future. Reading Drawdown in 2019, Pat learned about the 80 solutions already in place and how the Pachamama Alliance’s shared message of hope that, by working together at our community level, we can build an environmentally sustainable, socially just, spiritually fulfilling presence on our planet! Now, she has a vital purpose: to share the Drawdown solutions and the message of activated hope that we can work together and heal our land and people, the air and water and Earth.

Working together, people inspire and empower each other – knowing we’re not alone.

Stewart Weaver is a Professor of History and the author of a prize-winning book (among others) on Himalayan exploration and mountaineering, Fallen Giants (2008). Professor Weaver was named a Carnegie Fellow in 2019 to support his work on climate change and community resilience and adaptation in the Ladakh region of India. He is also currently completing a book on the history of exploration and earth’s magnetism.

Mike Whitmore is the Director, Utilities & Energy Management for the University of Rochester. He has overall responsibility for the success of central plant operations and utility distribution systems. He leads the development and implementation of strategic planning objectives for energy sustainability, reliability, and finances. Before coming to University, Mike lead the design, construction, and operation of a state-of-the-art, award-winning, highly automated, 15MW Renewable Landfill-Gas-To-Energy (LFGTE) Plant. He has lead construction of several large solar PV plants, one of which was 5MWs. He has a passion of sustainable energy resources and incorporating them into business.