BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Joseph Klein, Board of Directors
Joe has over 20 years’ experience in investment banking, with a concentration on providing capital raising and capital structure advice to public companies. He worked initially in fixed income products and early in his career spent time in U.S. government debt trading as well as high yield corporate debt analysis. Mr. Klein most recently served as Managing Director and Head of Fixed Income Capital Markets for Leerink Partners, a privately held investment bank catering exclusively to the healthcare space. Prior to that, he was a Partner and Co-Founder of KKS Securities, a startup broker / dealer serving institutional money managers in sales and trading of equity, derivative, and convertible securities. He also served as Principal and Head of Convertible Security Capital Markets for Thomas Weisel Partners, an investment bank advising growth companies in the technology, consumer, and healthcare sectors. Mr. Klein holds an MBA from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Yale University.
Joseph Helpern, PhD, Board of Directors
With over 40 years of experience, Dr. Helpern currently is Chief Science Advisor to The Litwin Foundation and Executive Director of New Vision Research. He also is Professor Emeritus at the Medical University of South Carolina, where since 2010 he has held an Endowed Chair and served as Director for the Center for Biomedical Imaging and Vice Chairman for Research in the Department of Radiology. Dr. Helpern was a tenured faculty member at New York University School of Medicine and served as Vice Chairman for Research in the Department of Radiology and Founding Director of the Center for Biomedical Imaging. His numerous honors include a Distinguished Investigator award from the Academy of Radiology Research and an Excellence in Research Award from New York State. Dr. Helpern received his PhD in Medical Physics from Oakland University, Rochester, MI, his MA in Organic Chemistry from The University of North Carolina, and a BA in Chemistry from Case Western Reserve University.
ADVISORY BOARD
Jonathan A. Colby
Jonathan Colby is the President and Founder of Streamwise Development LLC, a client-driven consultancy focused on enabling innovation and commercialization in the renewable energy and aerospace industries. Mr. Colby is actively involved in Standards and Conformity Assessment through the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). He currently serves as the Chair to IEC/TC 114 (Marine Energy) and as the Convener of the Marine Energy Sector Working Group under the IECRE, among other international and national roles. Mr. Colby was awarded the IEC 1906 Award for his work with the IECRE in 2015. Mr. Colby was previously with Verdant Power for 15+ years, most recently as the Director of Technology Performance. While with Verdant, Mr. Colby supported a broad range of activities to successfully demonstrate tidal energy generation in the United States and abroad. Mr. Colby has significant experience in the operation of grid-connected tidal energy converters, including the assessment of power performance and turbine-turbine interactions within arrays. He played a lead role at Verdant’s Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy (RITE) Project (East River – New York, NY), the first tidal energy project to receive a federal commercial license in the United States. Mr. Colby holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley and a master’s degree from the College of Aerospace Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Glenn Smith
Glenn is a managing partner of Verto Impact Partners, a specialist advisory and management platform focusing on decarbonization and Waste to Value related opportunities. He is also the former Acting CEO of Verdant Power. Glenn is a highly experienced executive, who has more than three decades of diverse international experience involving both private and public companies. He has a seasoned view of what it takes to successfully partner with multiple stakeholders in differing jurisdictions, to ensure success through the application of entrepreneurial drive and strategic execution. Glenn's senior leadership, operational and investing experience spans numerous aspects of the Energy and Infrastructure asset classes, encompassing institutional fund raising, structured financing, merger, acquisition, and restructuring, with a special focus on renewable energy and sustainable resource development. Glenn holds a Bachelor of Engineering with honors from the University of West England and has the distinctions of Eur.Ing., CEng, MIMechE and MIGasE
Mary Ann Adonizio
Mary Ann Adonizio is a civil/environmental engineer with over 40 years of experience in renewable electric generation and transmission, including project development, feasibility analysis, capital construction and operating project management. Her early career work focused on hydroelectric project management for various clients. Most recently for the past 15 years, a consultant to Verdant Power, she has provided project development and management of various projects including the Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy (RITE) Project (East River – New York, NY) and the Morlais West Anglesey Demonstration Zone in Wales. Ms. Adonizio holds a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering from Penn State University.
COMPANY MANAGEMENT
Aaron Hernandez, Director of Corporate Development
Aaron Hernandez has over 20 years of experience in the corporate and non-profit sectors, focused on contract award acquisition and management; organizational development and operations; corporate communications; and project planning. He holds an MA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a BA from the University of Michigan.
