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2024 WIRED Grid Resilience Symposium

Power and Energy Career Expo Participants

The 2024 WIRED Grid Resilience Symposium will take place on September 12–13, 2024, at the University of Utah campus, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The symposium, organized by the U.S.-Canada Center on Climate-Resilient Western Interconnected Grid (WIRED Global Center), brings together experts and leaders on grid resilience from the federal and state government, power utilities, industry, academia, and national laboratories to discuss industry challenges and innovation, present the most recent research and development on grid resilience, and explore future direction to further enhance the climate-resilience of the western interconnection.

The symposium features the "Power and Energy Career Expo" to introduce career opportunities and connect students with potential employers through multiple engagement opportunities.

Symposium Speakers

Welcome and Keynote Speakers

September 12, 2024 | 8:30am–10am

Masood Parvania

Roger P. Webb Endowed Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Utah

Hamid Zareipour

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Calgary

Paul Raterron

Program Director, Office of International Science and Engineering | U.S. National Science Foundation

Branden Sudduth

Vice President, Reliability Planning and Performance Analysis, Western Electricity Coordinating Council

Grid Resilience in Action: Industry Challenges and Innovation

September 12, 2024 | 10:30am–12 p.m.

Pramod Khargonekar

Vice Chancellor for Research and Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science | UC Irvine

Brian D’Agostino

Vice President, Wildfire and Climate Science | San Diego Gas & Electric

Mason Baker

CEO & General Manager, Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS)

Johanne Poirier Mouallem

Director, Reliability | Climate Adaptation and Reliability Team, ATCO

Dallas West

Director of Engineering, ENMAX

Policy and Regulation Supporting Grid Resilience

September 12, 2024 | 1:00pm–2:30pm

Lincoln L. Davies

Executive Director for Energy, Resource, and Environment Programs, College Of Law | University of Utah

Tim Reynolds

Director of Reliability Risk Management, Western Electricity Coordinating Council

Sarah E. Edmonds

President and CEO, Western Power Pool (WPP)

Stephanie Lenhart

Senior Research Associate, Energy Policy Institute, Boise State University

Jennifer Gardner

Director of Regulatory and External Affairs, Hydrostor

Kimberly A. Johnston

President, NextGen Energy Partners

Future of Demand and Generation in the Western Interconnection

September 12, 2024 | 3:00pm–4:30pm

Masood Parvania

Roger P. Webb Endowed Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Utah

Briana Kobor

Head of Energy Market Innovation, Google

Craig Eller

Senior Vice President, Resource Strategy and Development, PacifiCorp

Eric Williams

Senior Vice President and Design Authority, TerraPower

Ben Serrurier

Government Affairs & Policy, Fervo Energy

Anna Holmstead

State Energy Program Manager, Utah Office of Energy Development

AI and Cyberinfrastructure for Modeling and Forecasting Future Climate Scenarios

September 13, 2024 | 8:30am–10am

Manish Parashar

Presidential Professor of Computing and Director of Scientific Computing and Imaging (SCI) Institute | University of Utah

Valerio Pasucci

Professor and Director of National Science Data Democratization Consortium | University of Utah

Ilkay Altintas

Chief Data Science Officer, San Diego Supercomputer Center | Director, WIFIRE Lab, UC San Diego

Ali Ghassemian

Program Manager, Advanced Grid Modeling and North American Energy Resilience Model, U.S. Department of Energy

William Anderegg

Associate Professor of Biology and Director of the Wilkes Center for Climate Science and Policy | University of Utah

John Horel

Professor of Atmospheric Science | University of Utah

Transformative Technologies for Climate-Resilient Power Grid

September 13, 2024 | 10:30am–12pm

Mostafa Farrokhabadi

Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering | University of Calgary

Roshi Nateghi

Program Manager, Transmission Reliability and Renewable Integration, U.S. Department of Energy

Konstantinos Oikonomou

Electrical Engineer, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Farnoosh Rahmatian

President, NuGrid Power Corp

Abhishek Somani

Principal Economist, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Ali Bidram

Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering | University of New Mexico

Community Engagement and Workforce Development for Grid Resilience

September 13, 2024 | 1:30pm–3pm

Divya Chandrasekhar

Associate Professor and Chair of City and Metropolitan Planning | University of Utah

Daniel Green

Resilience Analysis - National Preparedness Division | FEMA

Kathy Holder

State Hazard Mitigation Officer, Mitigation Section Manager, Utah Division of Emergency Management

Tammie Bostick

Executive Director, Utah Clean Cities and Communities

Maile Resta

Communications Associate, rPlus Energies

Amber Fletcher

Professor of Sociology & Social Studies and Academic Director of Community Engagement and Research Centre | University of Regina

Innovation and Entrepreneurship Enabling Grid Resilience

September 13, 2024 | 3:30pm–5pm

Jefferson Moss

Associate Commissioner of Higher Education, Utah System of Higher Education

Gabi Tellez

Managing Director, Utah Innovation Fund

Regan Zane

Director of ASPIRE Engineering Research Center, Utah State University

Nate Walkingshaw

CEO and Founder, Torus

Andrew Fry

Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, Brigham Young University

Alan Hall

CEO, BlueSky Energy Corp.

Symposium Agenda

September 12, 2024

Morning

7:30–8:30 a.m. Light Breakfast

8:30–8:45: a.m. Welcome Address (Masood Parvania and Hamid Zareipour)

8:45–9:00 a.m. Welcome Address (Paul Raterron)

9:00–9:30 a.m. Keynote Speaker (Brian D’Agostino)

9:30–10:00 a.m. Keynote Speaker (Branden Sudduth)

10–10:30 a.m. Networking Break

10:30–12 p.m. Plenary Session: Grid Resilience in Action: Industry Challenges and Innovation

Afternoon

12:00-1:00p.m. Lunch

1:00–2:30 p.m. Plenary Session: Policy and Regulation Supporting Grid Resilience

2:30–3 p.m. Break

3:00–4:30 p.m. Plenary Session: Future of Generation and Demand In the Western Interconnection

4:30–5:30 p.m. Transition to Ken Garff University Club in Eccles Stadium

Evening

5:30–8 p.m. Symposium Reception and Poster Session

September 13, 2024

Morning

7:30–8:30 a.m. Breakfast

8:30–10 a.m. Plenary Session: AI and Cyberinfrastructure for Modeling and Forecasting Future Climate Scenarios

10–10:30 a.m. Career Expo Break

10:30–12 p.m. Plenary Session: Transformative Technologies for Climate-Resilient Power Grid

Afternoon

12–1:30 p.m. Lunch with Career Expo Employers

1:30–3 p.m. Plenary Session: Community Engagement and Workforce Development for Grid Resilience

3–3:30 p.m. Career Expo Break

3:30–5 p.m. Plenary Session: Innovation and Entrepreneurship Enabling Grid Resilience

Evening

5:00–6:30 p.m. Energy Innovation Networking Session

Power and Energy Career Expo

Join us for 2024 Power and Energy Career Expo to be held in conjunction with the WIRED Grid Resilience Symposium on September 13, 2024. The Power and Energy Career Expo will introduce career opportunities and connect students with potential employers through multiple engagement opportunities.

10–10:30 a.m. Career Expo Break

10:30–12 p.m. Plenary Session: Transformative Technologies for Climate-Resilient Power Grid

12–1:30 p.m. Lunch with Career Expo Employers

1:30–3 p.m. Plenary Session: Community Engagement and Workforce Development for Grid Resilience

3–3:30 p.m. Career Expo Break

September 14

Social Program at Snowbird

Please join to continue our symposium conversations in the setting of our beloved Wasatch Mountains while enjoying some fun and exciting experiences Snowbird has to offer. We will be in the mountains so please dress appropriately—the average temperature at Snowbird in September is a high of 63° and a low of 41°. Closed-toed shoes are recommended.

Morning and Afternoon

9 a.m. Shuttles will depart Little America Hotel. Attendees are also welcome to use their own transportation to join us at Snowbird.

10 a.m. – 4 p.m. (early shuttle departure at 2 p.m.) Attendees are encouraged to explore Snowbird by participating in the various activities available: Hiking, Aerial Tram rides to the top of Hidden Peak, Mountain Coaster, Alpine Slide, and Mountain Biking. Snowbird’s annual Oktoberfest is a free option attendees can enjoy as well.

Please visit Snowbird by clicking here for pricing and more information.

Participants are responsible to pay the activity fees on their own.

Register Now

Symposium Venue

The 2024 WIRED Grid Resilience Symposium and Power & Energy Expo will take place at the Sorensen Molecular Biotechnology Building on the University of Utah campus. All events will take place in the building’s auditorium and atrium.

The building’s organization has been shaped to capture the breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains and the Salt Lake City Valley below. The building is certified LEED Gold.

Symposium Reception and Poster Session

Symposium attendees are invited to attend an evening reception and the student poster sessions on Thursday, September 12th from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. The activities will take place at the Ken Garff University Club located at the University of Utah (Rice-Eccles Stadium).

Attendees will enjoy the reception and poster sessions in the home of the University of Utah Utes Football Stadium. The Football Stadium served as the host for the 2002 Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremonies!

Accommodations

Located at the Little America Hotel in Downtown Salt Lake City, Utah.

Book quickly to take advantage of the 2024 WIRED Symposium's negotiated rate.

For an additional accommodation location, guests may consider Salt Lake City Marriott University Park.