Pew Convenes a Council of Experts to Inform New Distributed Energy Resources Initiative
Advisory group to guide development of DERs national policy roadmap
In September 2024, The Pew Charitable Trusts launched a distributed energy resources (DERs) initiative that aims to identify policy pathways to accelerate the adoption of distributed energy technologies—such as rooftop solar, batteries, and smart appliances—across the United States. As a part of this effort, Pew will develop a national policy roadmap outlining how policymakers can more rapidly scale DERs to build a modern, reliable, and affordable electric grid.
Leading this effort is a bipartisan advisory council of experts who will help develop a national vision that is equitable and inclusive. The initiative is anchored by co-chairs Audrey Zibelman and Pat Wood III and supported by council members with expertise spanning utilities, community and equity, industry, and regulatory policy.
The Advisory Council will support Pew in making policy recommendations at different levels of governance and serve as an educational and advocacy tool. The roadmap is slated to be published in early 2026.
You can read more about the Advisory Council members below.
 |
Audrey ZibelmanAudrey Zibelman is an internationally known and experienced energy industry executive with a reputation for driving positive change toward decarbonization and innovation within individual organizations and across the energy sector. She served as the CEO of the Australian Energy Market Operator, where she helped launch the country ’s national DERs strategy. Before that, Zibelman was chair of the New York Public Service Commission, where she oversaw massive regulatory reform of the electric industry to support a decarbonized grid.She is the founder of Zibelman Energy Advisors, where she advises companies and governments in the policies and practices required to achieve decarbonization rapidly and at scale. Zibelman was previously vice president of X, the moonshot factory, where she led a team focused on building the digital tools necessary for a decarbonized power system and was an adviser on climate technology. She also founded and led Viridity Energy Inc., a company focused on maximizing energy efficiency and utility operations. She held previous roles with PJM (a regional transmission organization), Xcel Energy (a utility), and the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission. She is on several boards, including SunPower Corp., Rocky Mountain Institute, and Landis+Gyr. |
 |
Pat Wood IIIPat Wood III is a prominent figure in the energy sector and served as chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, where he played a key role in overseeing the nation ’s energy markets and ensuring reliable, efficient, and sustainable energy services. He was also chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, where he worked to increase competition among the state’s regulated utilities.Wood has long championed the decentralized, decarbonized, democratized, and digitized future of power. He has held leadership roles at several energy companies, planning solar and wind, oil and gas, advanced nuclear, and infrastructure construction. Wood is CEO of Hunt Energy Network, working to deploy batteries across the Texas electric grid, and is on the board of Luma Energy, where he oversees efforts to rebuild the Puerto Rico utility system. |
 |
Ben Hertz-ShargelBen Hertz-Shargel is global head of grid edge at Wood Mackenzie, where he leads research across electrification, grid digitalization, DERs, and flexibility in electricity markets. He came to Wood Mackenzie from Rhythm, a retail clean energy provider, where he was head of data science and demand management.Hertz-Shargel previously served as vice president of advanced grid services and analytics at EnergyHub, where he was responsible for analytics in the company ’s distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) and energy market operations. He is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center and serves on the external advisory committee of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s Energy and Environment Program. |
 |
Jahi WiseJahi Wise is a globally recognized expert in sustainable finance, social enterprise, and economic development, including extensive experience mobilizing capital to drive transformative climate and social change. He was the founding director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, where he led the design and launch of a $27 billion federal program to capitalize hundreds of community climate lenders across the U.S., with a focus on leveraging private investment and delivering tangible benefits to underserved communities.Under former President Joe Biden, Wise served as the first special assistant to the president for climate policy and finance, advancing public-private investment strategies that supported local decarbonization, economic development, and community resilience. Before his federal service, Wise was an attorney at a global law firm, focusing on energy and infrastructure, led new markets strategy at a venture-backed social enterprise, and directed policy for a national coalition of green banks. |
 |
Sue TierneySue Tierney is an expert on energy and environmental economics, regulation, and policy, particularly in the electric industry. She was previously the assistant secretary of policy at the U.S. Department of Energy. Prior to that, in Massachusetts, Tierney was the secretary of environmental affairs, a commissioner with the Department of Public Utilities, and executive director of the Energy Facilities Siting Board.Tierney has consulted businesses, federal and state governments, regional grid operators, tribes, environmental groups, foundations, and other organizations and is currently a senior adviser with Analysis Group. She is a director of the Barr Foundation, Sloan Foundation, U.S. Energy Foundation, World Resources Institute, Coalition for Green Capital, and Climate Lead. Tierney was a member of the National Academies ’ Committee on Accelerating Decarbonization in the U.S., which issued its report in October 2023; the Committee on the Future of Electric Power (2021); and the Committee on Net Metering (2023). |
 |
Utopia HillUtopia Hill has deep experience developing DER projects and been involved with over 10,000 megawatts of renewable projects including wind, solar, and energy storage. She is the CEO of Reactivate, a company that develops renewable energy solutions in low-to-moderate-income communities, where she manages and fosters relationships with industry partners, businesses, and communities while growing the company to ensure positive environmental and social impacts to the communities served by Reactivate projects.Hill previously served as head of engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) at Reactivate and as vice president of renewables construction for Invenergy. After beginning her career at General Electric, Hill spent nearly two decades at Invenergy in EPC roles. |
 |
Val JensenVal Jensen brings decades of experience in energy policy and utility management. He is formerly senior vice president for strategy and policy with Exelon Utilities, where he developed the company ’s first board-approved long-term strategy, including monitoring technology developments and decarbonization and resilience strategies.Before that, Jensen served in a similar role with Commonwealth Edison as the senior vice president for customer operations. He has also served in several consulting positions and was on the senior staff of the assistant secretary of energy efficiency and renewable energy in the U.S. Department of Energy. Jensen was the founder of the Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance and has served on a number of not-for-profit boards. |