YPE New York City

Sheila Garcia is a marketer with over five years of marketing and branding experience in the sustainability space. She previously worked at EnterSolar, a leading provider of solar photovoltaic systems to corporations and schools. Prior to that, she worked at Safe Water Network, a nonprofit organization that provides clean water systems across Ghana and India. She obtained her undergraduate degree at Cornell University in 2013 where she double-majored in marketing and entrepreneurship, and minored in music.

Shruti Nayar is an Analyst at Greenwood Sustainable Infrastructure, where she supports the team in underwriting new investment opportunities and monitoring the existing portfolio of assets. Previously, she was an Analyst at GoldenSet Capital Partners, and the Director of Asset Management at Green Street Power Partners, a national solar developer and financier. In addition to her involvement with YPE NYC, Shruti is an Advisory Committee Member for the CityParks Learn Program. She dual majored in Economics and Environmental Studies at the University of Rochester, and holds an Advanced Diploma in Energy Finance from NYU.

Savannah Goodman leads the modeling & simulation team at Blueprint Power, a company that unlocks new revenue for real-estate owners by transforming their buildings into energy market connected power plants. Since joining in the summer of 2018, Savannah has architected and managed the development of machine learning and optimization models that enable autonomous operation of DERs for market participation. From her previous experience at companies including Tesla, NRG, Off Grid Electric, and SDG&E, Savannah has developed an expertise in global energy storage and DER applications. She has a particular knack for modeling operational strategies for DERs and their associated economic value streams. Savannah received a BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in Civil Engineering with minors in Electrical Engineering and Technology Management. She received an MS from Stanford University in Civil Engineering with a focus in renewable energy optimization.

Catarina Carvalho is a Manager at Arup’s New York office, where she advises clients on business strategy and operations. She combines industry experience – having worked for energy, water, aviation and telecom utilities worldwide –  with a consultancy background from Accenture Strategy. Catarina has a BSc and MSc in Electrical Engineering and MSc Merit Award from Columbia University in Sustainability. She has lived and worked in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and North America.

Claudia Villar-Leeman is an Energy Policy Analyst at the NYC Mayor’s Offices of Sustainability and Resiliency. There, she contributes to the City’s goal to achieve an energy system that generates net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, is affordable for residents, and is resilient to the impacts of climate change. Claudia’s portfolio includes coordinating the development of the City’s first Long Term Energy Plan, as well as working with City agencies and industry to promote energy storage development citywide.

Prior to joining the Mayor’s Office, Claudia worked in the climate education and advocacy space: she taught biology and climate policy at a high school in the Dominican Republic, and later served as the Research & Communications Coordinator at the Climate Museum, the first museum in the U.S. dedicated to climate change and climate justice. She holds an M.A. in Climate & Society from Columbia University and a B.A. in Biology from Bowdoin College.

Samuel Bordenave is currently a Business Development Manager at Tesla, in the Energy Products division. In his current role, he helps develop strategies for the energy business globally – identifying, exploring, and prioritizing new market, segment, and product opportunities. Prior to joining the Business Development team, Samuel held roles in the Business Operations team and the Product Management team. Before his time at Tesla, Samuel worked at E-CUBE Strategy Consultant, a boutique consulting firm advising European Utilities and Oil & Gas companies on their renewable energy strategy. Samuel holds an MBA from Chicago Booth and an MS in General Engineering from Mines Paristech.

Rebecca Isacowitz is the Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Energy Efficient Operations with the NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services’ (DCAS) Division of Energy Management (DEM). Focused on capital and expense funding strategy to maximize greenhouse gas emission reduction; citywide operations & maintenance initiatives, including workforce development; and innovations and applied research, she works across the universe of City agencies to support the municipal portfolio to achieve a spectrum of climate action goals.

A longtime proponent of energy management and sustainability issues, prior to joining DCAS DEM, she worked with NYC Parks; in the private sector working to deploy small- and community-scale renewable technologies; and with the National Audubon Society. Rebecca is a graduate of Lehigh University with a BA in International Relations, focusing on Environmental Policy.