Tenley Dalstrom, Energy Innovation, California
Tenley Dalstrom is Director of the CalTestBed Program at New Energy Nexus, where she works with all types of clean energy technologies and helps innovators and entrepreneurs bring clean energy concepts to market. Previously, she served as Director of the Obama administration's Solar Ready Vets Program.
What’s your proudest accomplishment in clean energy? I have a few accomplishments I am proud of: working with my DOE counterpart to design and launch the Clean Energy Ministerial Initiative: Clean Energy Education and Empowerment for Women in Clean Energy (C3E); receiving recognition from DOE Secretary Chu for my role in administering nearly $9 Billion worth of Smart Grid Investment Grants as part of the Recovery Act; serving as the Director of the Solar Ready Vets Program; launching and Directing the CalTestBed Initiative which provides clean energy entrepreneurs access to up to $300,000 of third-party testing at one of more than 60 world class facilities at 9 University of California Campuses and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab.; and, being selected for the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Advisory Committee for the American Made Challenge Prize Competitions.
Why should Congress invest in clean energy jobs, not fossil fuel jobs? Investment should be made in clean energy jobs because they provide the most profound benefits for the American public with a multiplier effect across sectors. Clean energy leads to better health, safety, and security in addition to social, environmental, and economic justice. Clean energy provides energy independence, and it’ll lead to lower costs and greater equity for communities across the country. It will reduce our dependence on foreign oil, increase reliability and resilience, and give us sovereignty over our energy pathways.
What did you do before entering clean energy? I was a student, and then a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in Bratislava, Slovakia. Upon my return to the U.S., I worked at World Wildlife Fund, then as a DOE contractor for 9 years. I served as Director of the Obama Administration's Solar Ready Vets Program, and then I became Director of CalTestBed at New Energy Nexus.
How did you first get introduced to clean energy? When I was completing my Advanced Masters in Environmental Management in Amsterdam, we studied the energy sector, and my group thesis was related to carbon flows between Eastern and Western Europe. We did field research in Russia, Sweden and Finland to determine if it was viable to utilize agricultural waste to create biofuel products in Russia to electrify remote and rural communities, and then develop biofuel as an export product to bring in an additional income stream to those communities. The clear economic benefits of clean energy access resonated with me, and I realized that the positive impacts of time spent working to accelerate the transition to clean energy with an intentional equity lens would allow me to create exponentially more positive impact than any other career choice I could make. The social impact return on my time investment was what brought me to and keeps me in this field.
Why is clean energy important to you? I see the transition to a clean energy economy as an opportunity to make geometric impact across sectors, and a vehicle to create opportunities for greater social, environmental and economic justice globally.
What is something you wish more people knew about your job? I wish more people understood that building a robust domestic supply of clean energy will not only reduce pollution and harmful climate effects, but it will also improve public health outcomes, create jobs and strengthen communities. It will improve biodiversity, food security, water and air quality. It will provide reliable, resilient electricity, that we can then use to power transportation, and in times of natural disaster, those vehicles can serve as battery backup with the energy flowing from vehicle to home or grid. Globally, it can alter the standard of living for communities with limited access to electric power, and reduce disease, food insecurity, and safety concerns caused by polluting cookstoves and kerosene lanterns. It allows for cottage industries and underserved communities to thrive. It also contributes to local, regional and national security, allowing for energy independence. There are abundant free natural resources to be harnessed to create affordable and clean energy, and this should not be politicized, as it contributes across the board to the public good. The people suffering on the front lines of the climate crisis from floods, droughts, wildfires, heat waves, and increasingly strong storms can reap the benefits of an equitable transition to a clean energy future. There is no down side, only an opportunity to rise.
How does clean energy impact your community? California is the fifth largest economy in the world. It has the largest network of public universities, and it’s famous for being a hub of technical research and innovation. Clean energy innovators are conducting cutting edge research, launching startups, creating jobs, utilizing testbeds, and commercializing technologies, all of which serve as part of the huge economic engine that powers the state.
The state government has wisely recognized the value proposition of transitioning to a clean energy economy, and seeks to be on the leading edge of that transition, so it provides strategic support for clean energy startups at every phase of development to better the chances of their successful commercialization. This innovation hub draws researchers, entrepreneurs, and investors to the state which has resulted in an exciting and fruitful clean energy ecosystem. The state also benefits from having early access to the latest innovations in the nexus of energy, industry and agriculture, wildfire mitigation and resilience, energy efficiency, electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, clean energy generation, energy storage and other cutting edge technology types.