Houston Energy & Climate Week 2025
Built on the power of "and," this year's 2025 theme is Unstoppable! From breaking barriers in space to leading advancements in energy, climate, artificial intelligence, medicine, and the arts, Houston is a city of firsts and doesn't just take on challenges—it redefines what’s possible. Visual Note-takers Peter Durand & Kristen McLean were there to capture ideas across domains. Full details at: www.climateweekhouston.com
Opening Ceremonies
Thursday, September 18, 2025
Speakers & Panelists
“Welcome & Opening Remarks“ with Lindsay Roe & Commissioner Lesley Briones
“The Brain Economy–Our Next Frontier for Growth and Innovation“ with David Gow & Katie Mehnert
“Brain, Heart, and Houston“ with David Sandberg, Randy Lack, Katie Mehnert
“Intersections of Climate & Energy“ with Kyle Wiley, Debalina Sengupta, Aaron Fitzgerald, Jolene Gurevich, Juli Rush
“Fireside Chat on Geothermal“ with Sharita Humphrey and Juliana Garaizar
“Houston on the Path to Systems Thinking“ with Juli Allen Rush, Jason Korman, Debalina Sengupta, Katie Mehnert
“Energy Mix Deep Dive into Nuclear“ with Reed Clay, Ryan Neilson, Kreshka Young, Rafael Hernandez
“Closing Remarks“ with Ingrid Velasco, John Rowe
Visual Note-Taking & Graphic Recording | Peter Durand & Kristen McLean
SAF, CCUS & LATAM Panel
Thursday, September 18, 2025
Powering Tomorrow's Workforce
Thursday, September 18, 2025
Hosted by NES Fircroft
“New Energies – New Opportunities“ | Moderated by: Mark LaCour, Editor in Chief & Podcast Speaker of OGGN
Chris Celano, COO, Stardust Power
Jay Keener, CEO, Altillion Inc.
James Walker, CEO, Nano Nuclear
Don Leach, SVP, Carbon Cycle
“Powering Tomorrow's Workforce” | Keynote by NES Fircroft
“The Heat, Power, and Progress of Data Centers“ | Moderated by Michelle Musson, Analyst, Orennia
Hussein Shel, Chief Digital Officer, Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Rafael Hernandez, VP Commercial, Last Energy
Mansur Masood, Director Data Center Origination, NRG
Ian Rock, CTO, TerraFlow Energy
Visual Note-Taking & Graphic Recording | Peter Durand & Kristen McLean
Closing Ceremonies
Friday, September 19, 2025
Welcome
Allies in Energy President | Lindsay Roe
Co-Chairs 2025 Houston Energy and Climate Week | Ingrid Velsaco and John Rowe
Confronting Climate Gridlock | Dr. Dan Cohan, Professor at Rice University, with Jana Schey, Founder of Practical Evolution
The Intersection & Climate and Energy
Radha Balani | Expert Partner, Think Beyond
Kyla Gaganam | Youth Coordinator, One Earth One Chance, and Curator
Cath Conlon | CEO Blackwood Educational Land Institute
James Rees | Founder, Noverram
Juli Allen Rush | UH Adjunct Professor, Foresight Program
Hack the Heat Hackathon Awards - Katie Rosario | Octopus Energy
Reflection on the Week with a musical performance by Raycheal Winters
The Power of AND - Everyone Can Play A Role
Angela Blanchard | Born for Storms
Francisco Sanchez | Senior Advisor for Economic Development, Hagerty Consulting
Lindsay Roe | President of Allies in Energy
Visual Note-Taking & Graphic Recording by Kristen McLean & Peter Durand
Huge gratitude to the many Supporters and all-volunteer Planning Committee.
