About the Commission
On September 20, 2021, the Governor signed Executive Order No. 596, establishing the Commission on Clean Heat in the Commonwealth to advise the Administration on a framework for long-term greenhouse gas emission reductions from heating fuels.
The Commission has explored options to accelerate the deployment of energy efficiency programs and clean heating systems in new and existing buildings and transition existing distribution systems to clean energy. The final Commission report has been issued on November 30, 2022. The final report is available in English here.
Meet the Commissioners
Members from the Commission on Clean Heat and the Interagency Building Decarbonization Task Force, along with meeting facilitators, outside of the MassWildlife Headquarters in Westborough.
William Akley
William J. Akley is President of Gas Operations for Eversource Energy. In this role, he is responsible for the overall operations of the safe and reliable delivery of natural gas to approximately 522,000 customers in 122 towns and cities in Connecticut and Massachusetts. Mr. Akley has more than 30 years of leadership and management experience and is a seasoned veteran of the utility industry in all facets of natural gas transmission and distribution. Prior to joining Eversource, he was Senior Vice President of U.S. Gas Operations for National Grid and responsible for field operations including construction, maintenance, and meter service throughout the company’s service territory in New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Prior to National Grid, Mr. Akley spent several years at KeySpan Energy in New York, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. He began his career as a field engineer at Brooklyn Union Gas in New York City. Mr. Akley has served as the Safety Committee Chairperson for the American Gas Association and serves as a board member on the American Gas Association and the Northeast Gas Association. He earned his MBA from Adelphi University and his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering from Clarkson University.
Lauren Baumann
Lauren Baumann, Vice President at New Ecology, Inc., has more than 15 years of experience providing green building and building science advisory services to clients developing and rehabilitating affordable housing and community-focused facilities. During her time at NEI she has provided technical assistance to green thousands of units of affordable housing, including certifications under the Energy Star, Enterprise Green Communities, LEED, and Passive House programs. Working with NEI's clients she has raised millions of dollars in grant and rebate funds to support energy efficiency, renewable energy and other green features. She is regularly invited to present about high-performance affordable housing design, construction, and financing at conferences and symposiums, and routinely acts in an advisory capacity to entities developing programs and policies to positively influence performance outcomes in the affordable housing market. Ms. Baumann is a LEED Accredited Professional with Building Design and Construction (BD&C) and Homes (H) designations, a qualified Enterprise Green Communities charrette provider, and a Certified Passive House Consultant. She is a Senior Fellow in the New England Region Environmental Leadership Program, and an alumni and previous board member of the Wild Gift. She holds a degree in Biology from Cornell University and a Masters in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts.
Kenan Bigby
Kenan Bigby has been with Trinity Financial since 2001 and is the Managing Director of Development for the company. He has a wealth of experience in multi-family housing development. During Mr. Bigby’s tenure at Trinity he has overseen the development of more than 1,500 units of housing. He has an aptitude for creating successful public/private partnerships and exhibits a strong ability to manage the complex financial structures needed to complete large scale development projects. Prior to joining Trinity, Mr. Bigby worked in the field of affordable housing development and management. He worked in various capacities for Boston area non-profit organizations where his responsibilities included the management of several supported housing programs as well as property oversight ensuring compliance with state and federal housing quality standards.
Harry Brett
Harry Brett first joined the Plumbers and Gasfitters Local 12 union (Local 12) in 1986. After serving on several committees, he was elected as a Business Agent for the United Association (UA), a position he held for 13 years. In 2013, Local 12 elected Mr. Brett to serve as its Business Manager. Starting in 2020, he became the Special Representative for the UA in New England, where he now serves as the liaison between the national organization and the twelve locals in the six-state region. In addition to other New England plumbing unions, the UA represents pipefitters, sprinkler fitters, and HVAC technicians. Mr. Brett assists business managers with training initiatives, legislative matters, and other important UA issues.
Alexander Bross
Alexander (Zan) Bross is the Manager of Design & Construction for MassHousing’s Rental Underwriting Division. A registered architect, Zan has worked in the architecture profession for over twenty years including five years as Director of Design & Construction for a national non-profit developer of affordable housing. Zan holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Temple University and a Master of Real Estate Development from Auburn University and is a Certified Passive House Consultant (CPHC).
Andrew Brown
Andrew Brown is an Assistant Project Manager at The HYM Investment Group, a Boston-based real estate development firm. Andrew is responsible for engaging design consultants and contractors to execute on mixed-use projects that push the envelope of sustainability and resiliency. In addition, Andrew has worked through Smart City master planning to create sustainable infrastructure guidelines to ensure climate resiliency and self-sufficiency while addressing the need for mixed-use developments in the Commonwealth. Andrew has spent just shy of a decade in the Construction and Development sectors and holds a Bachelor of Science from Syracuse University.
Emerson Clauss III
Emerson Clauss has more than 35 years’ experience in all aspects of residential development and construction in both Florida and Massachusetts. His familiarity with heating and cooling residential properties in both warm and cold climates make him uniquely qualified to assist with the work of the Commission. In addition, Mr. Clauss has been a leader in the building industry his entire career and recently assumed the office of President of the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Massachusetts (HBRAMA). Mr. Clauss was also the President and Managing Director of Allegiance Construction & Development LLC between 2016 and 2021.
Rebecca Davis
Rebecca Davis is currently the Chief Operating Officer at the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership (MACP), where she manages the organization's overall strategy, external affairs, and operations, focused on an agenda promoting innovation, social justice, economic mobility, and competitiveness. Rebecca also oversees the organization's state and federal policy portfolios. Previously, Rebecca Davis worked with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, serving as the agency’s Deputy Director since 2015. As Deputy Director, Ms. Davis oversaw the agency’s overall strategy as well as its operations and finance departments, policy and communications work, climate, public health, and municipal governance functions. Prior to joining MAPC, Ms. Davis worked in the Massachusetts State House as Legislative Director to State Senator Robert O'Leary, where she worked on the passage of numerous environmental laws, including the Massachusetts Oceans Act, the nation's first ocean management legislation and the Green Communities Act, creating policy to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy development. Ms. Davis is a graduate of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and American Institutions. She has also served on numerous boards and commission including former Governor Baker’s Future of Transportation Commission, the Energy Efficiency Advisory Council, the Global Warming Solutions Act Implementation Advisory Committee, and the Green Communities Advisory Commission.
Eric Dubin
Eric Dubin is the Senior Director of Utilities and Performance Construction at Mitsubishi Electric Trane HVAC US. His responsibilities include the development and deployment of sales strategy, as well as deploying a comprehensive strategy to work with the nation’s electric utilities to create beneficial Heat Pump incentive programs. Mr. Dubin has represented Mitsubishi and electrification for Mitsubishi for nearly 10 years and has been a valuable stakeholder in several state processes, including the Commonwealth Accelerated Renewable Thermal Strategy (2013). Prior to joining Mitsubishi, Mr. Dubin worked as the Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs at ECR International/Climate Energy. Mr. Dubin previously worked for over fifteen years in multiple positions for the gas companies of National Grid and KeySpan Energy. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnership (NEEP) in Lexington, Massachusetts.
Mike Duclos
Mike Duclos was a principal and founder of The DEAP Energy Group, LLC, a consultancy that provided a wide variety of Deep Energy Retrofit, Zero Net Energy and Passive House related consulting services. He is a member of the Heat Smart Alliance, a volunteer organization dedicated to accelerating the displacement of fossil fuel heating in homes by efficient heat pumps. Mike was an energy consultant on the Transformations, Inc. Mass. Zero Energy Challenge entry in 2008, and has worked on a variety of Zero Net Energy, DER and Passive House projects, including the first National Grid DER projects to successfully obtain the ACI Thousand Homes Challenge Option B and Zero Net Energy, and EnerPHIT incentives, was the Certified Passive House Consultant responsible for the design and certification of the second Certified Passive House in Mass., and assisted with the design, and preparation of the PHPP for the first certified EnerPHIT home in the US. Mike is a HERS Rater with Mass. Residential New Construction Program, a founder of Energy Raters of Mass, Inc, Energy Efficiency Associates, LLC, a trained Building Science Certified Infrared Thermographer, is on the NEHERS Alliance Standards Committee, was on the ICF International MA HERS Rater’s Panel, is a founder of Passive House New England, has consulted for Passive House Institute, United States, holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from UMass Lowell, and two patents.
Madeline Fraser Cook
Madeline Fraser Cook is a bi-lingual urban planner with a strong commitment to affordable housing and community based economic development. As a recognized leader in green development and planning, her recent focus has been on ensuring that sustainability is fully integrated into housing and economic development projects. A native Spanish-speaker, Ms. Fraser Cook has worked extensively with low-income Latino communities. Ms. Fraser Cook has a keen understanding and enthusiasm for the importance of stakeholder engagement in creating and maintaining vibrant communities. She manages LISC’s HUD Technical Assistance portfolio and advises LISC’s local offices on various aspects of housing and community development including disaster recovery and sustainability and climate resilience. Prior to joining LISC, she was a senior consultant to TDA Consulting where she engaged in Department of Housing and Urban Development projects and technical assistance nationally. She also served as market consultant for the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), where she advised RMI on engaging owners of affordable housing portfolios in ambitious energy efficiency strategies while incorporating inclusive economy goals for minority-owned contracting businesses. In Ms. Fraser Cook’s prior stint with LISC, she was the founding Program Director for LISC’s Green Development Center where she created and ran the national green program and worked with local offices and community developers to advance green affordable housing and sustainable planning projects. She is a LEED accredited professional with 20 years of experience in direct technical assistance to green projects including facilitating contractor, architect, and engineer trainings. Ms. Fraser Cook received her Masters of City Planning from M.I.T.’s Department of Urban Studies and Planning (DUSP) where she was a HUD Community Development Fellow. She also holds undergraduate degrees in Economics and Political Sciences from Swarthmore College.
Eugenia Gibbons
Eugenia Gibbons is an expert in clean energy policy and programming. With an eye towards equity and climate justice, Eugenia works to hold people at the center of strategy development, policy design, and program implementation. She is a former member of the GWSA IAC, where she co-chaired the inaugural Climate Justice Working Group. Until recently, Eugenia served as the Massachusetts Director of Climate Policy for Health Care Without Harm where she worked with hospitals to reduce their environmental footprint and with the sector, to become an anchor for sustainability and resilience and a leader in the movement for environmental health and justice. Eugenia has also served as the policy director at Green Energy Consumers Alliance and the program director at Environmental League of Massachusetts. Eugenia is a proud alumna of the University of Connecticut and holds a Master's degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University.
Dharik Mallapragada
Dharik S. Mallapragada is a research scientist at the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), where his research focuses on developing advanced decision-support tools for planning and operating resilient, low-carbon energy systems as well as design and integration of novel energy technologies for various end-uses. Dharik is a principal or co-principal investigator on multiple research projects, that address emerging technology design and assessment, such as flexible CO2 capture for fossil-fuel power plants and nuclear based integrated electricity and hydrogen production, as well as energy systems modeling and analysis for identifying cost-effective pathways for decarbonizing energy use in buildings, transportation, and industry sectors. Prior to MIT, Dharik spent nearly five years in the energy and petrochemicals industry working on a range of sustainability-focused research topics, including conversion of biomass to fuels and chemicals, low-carbon hydrogen production and developing optimization-based decision-support tools for energy infrastructure planning, as well as process and product design. To date, he has published over 25 peer-reviewed publications across a spectrum of journals, including the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, Nature Energy, Energy & Environmental Science, Applied Energy, Climatic Change, and Environmental Research Letters. Dharik’s research contributions also include development of open-source software, GenX, to support planning for low-carbon electricity systems with flexible representations of emerging supply and demand-side technologies. Dharik holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue University and a B.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India.
Cameron Peterson
Cameron (Cammy) Peterson joined the Metropolitan Area Planning Council’s (MAPC) Clean Energy Department in 2013 and has served as Director since 2016. As Director of the Department, she oversees MAPC’s clean energy and climate mitigation work, including local clean energy and climate planning, regional clean energy procurements, and local and state clean energy and climate policy. Ms. Peterson shapes local clean energy and climate planning efforts through MAPC’s Local Energy Action Program (LEAP), from facilitating progress toward Green Communities Designation to meeting with municipal officials and project partners and overseeing scope development and project implementation. Under her leadership, the department has launched an innovative net zero planning platform, pioneered a groundbreaking green municipal aggregation program, and received a 2018 Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources’ Leading By Example Award. Ms. Peterson was appointed by the Department of Public Utilities to the seat representing Commonwealth Cities and Towns on the state’s Energy Efficiency Advisory Council (EEAC), a position held by MAPC since 2017; she serves on the state’s Green Communities Advisory Committee and Zero Energy Advisory Council; and participates regularly as the agency designee on the state Global Warming Solutions Act Implementation Advisory Council (GWSA IAC), serving as the Chair of the Buildings Work Group.
Robert Rio
Robert (Bob) Rio has worked for the Associated Industries of Massachusetts (AIM) for the past 24 years doing advocacy work for the organization’s 3,500 member companies. He is responsible for all energy, environmental, transportation, chemical or product legislation, regulation and ballot questions at AIM. Mr. Rio’s work includes regulatory, legislative, and administrative efforts and he has appeared on behalf of AIM in front of the Department of Public Utilities, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Public Safety, and many other agencies. He represents AIM as a member of several ongoing advisory groups within the Department of Environmental Protection, the New England Power Pool and other agencies, including various regulatory reform committees.
Kimberly Robinson
Kimberly H. Robinson is a knowledgeable, talented, and visionary senior planning leader with vast experience thoughtfully and successfully guiding regional planning and community development at the city and county levels. Ms. Robinson is currently the Executive Director of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, the state-designated regional planning agency for the 43 cities and towns of Western Massachusetts’ Hampden and Hampshire Counties. Prior to this, she served as the Executive Director of the Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Agency (TMRPA) in Reno, Nevada for nearly twelve years, and previously worked as the Community Planning Services Manager for Washoe County, located in northern Nevada. Ms. Robinson also worked at the City of Detroit for nearly 10 years, specializing in community development projects. Professional affiliations include being a newly selected board member of the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, as well as memberships in the American Planning Association (APA) and the Massachusetts state chapter of APA. Ms. Robinson has a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where she graduated cum laude. She also holds a Master of Urban Planning degree from the University of Michigan.
Dorothy Savarese
Dorothy Savarese joined Cape Cod 5 as a commercial lender over 25 years ago after an early career focused on economic development. Today, she is CEO and Chair of Cape Cod 5, which employs over 550 people at 26 locations and has been recognized as one of American Banker’s Best Banks to Work For and by the Boston Globe Magazine as a Top Place to Work and a Top 100 Women-Led Business. The former chair of the Massachusetts Bankers Association, the American Bankers Association and the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce Board, Ms. Savarese was appointed by the Federal Reserve Board to serve as the president of their Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council (CDIAC) for 2021 and 2020. She also served as Chair of the Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council (CDIAC) for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Ms. Savarese holds an MBA from Suffolk University.
Tamara Small
Tamara Small serves as CEO of NAIOP Massachusetts, The Commercial Real Estate Development Association. NAIOP represents the interests of companies involved with the development, investment, ownership, and management of office, multifamily, industrial, retail, lab, mixed-use, and institutional properties in Massachusetts. Committed to building a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture within the commercial real estate industry, NAIOP provides educational and networking opportunities while advocating for laws, policies and regulations that strengthen the industry. A registered lobbyist, Tamara serves on numerous regulatory working groups, regularly testifies before the Legislature, and serves as the spokesperson for the organization. She provides vision and leadership in establishing strategic initiatives and objectives for NAIOP while ensuring that the budget, staff and priorities are aligned with the organization’s core mission. Tamara serves on the board of the Boston Municipal Research Bureau, on the Advisory Committee at the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Northeastern University and is co-chair of a statewide coalition of business associations. Tamara is a recipient of the Women of FIRE (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate) Award and NAIOP Corporate’s Capitol Dome Award.
Richard Sullivan
Richard (Rick) K. Sullivan, Jr. is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Economic Development Council (EDC) of Western Massachusetts, a private non-profit corporation that provides resources and information to businesses operating in or entering the region by aiding in expansion, relocation, and networking. Before he became President and CEO of the EDC, Rick was the top advisor to former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and worked with all members of his Cabinet to advance the Patrick Administration’s agenda. Prior to being named Patrick’s Chief of Staff, Rick served as Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, overseeing the Commonwealth’s six environmental, natural resource and energy regulatory agencies: the Departments of Environmental Protection, Public Utilities, Energy Resources, Conservation & Recreation, Agriculture, and Fish & Game. He also served as Chairman of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, the Energy Facilities Siting Board, and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center.
Charles Uglietto
Charles (Charlie) Uglietto has been the President and Owner of Cubby Oil since 1983. Cubby Oil & Energy is a Multigenerational Renewable Fuel and HVAC provider serving commercial and residential customers in Greater Boston since 1945. Since September 2019, Charlie has chaired the Renewable Liquid Heating Fuel Taskforce through the National Energy and Fuels Initiative. Charlie is also very active on several committees, including as an Executive Committee Member for the Massachusetts Energy Marketers Association, National Oil Heat Research Alliance, National Energy and Fuels Institute, and is a Member of the National Biodiesel Board. Charlie received his BA from Harvard University and is married with three children.
Dennis Villanueva
Dennis Villanueva has led the energy procurement program for Mass General Brigham's portfolio for the past 17 years where he is responsible for the management of energy conservation, on-site generation, and other market related programs. He plays a leadership role in Mass General Brigham’s commitment in the fight against climate change, and on its path towards reducing its carbon emissions with the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2025, while taking steps to achieve increased resiliency of our facilities allowing continuity of patient care in the event of prolonged utility outages due to extreme weather. Mr. Villanueva is currently the large business/C&I representative at the Massachusetts Energy Efficiency Council (MA-EEAC) as well as a board member at the Energy Consortium, an influential group of large energy users in Massachusetts. He is an acting liaison to public organizations including governmental, regulatory and policy setting agencies such as DPU, MA-DOER, and FERC, as well as with regulated and deregulated sectors such as local distribution companies, ISO-NE, and competitive commodity suppliers.
Jolette Westbrook
Jolette Westbrook is the Director & Senior Attorney, Energy Markets and Regulation at the Environmental Defense Fund. Jolette has an extensive energy background which includes serving eight years as a Commissioner at the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities. In that position, her responsibilities included overseeing investor-owned utilities and developing alternatives to traditional regulation. Prior to serving on the Commission, Jolette held the position of Director of the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board. Before working for the Commonwealth, she was the Managing Attorney at Southeastern Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation. Jolette holds a J.D. from Northeastern School of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Russell Sage College. Jolette has been active in such organizations as the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners where she served on the Board of Directors. Further, Jolette has been invited to speak at various events including the European/US Regulatory Conference and the Annual Conference of the American Association of Blacks in Energy. She is based in Massachusetts.