Since becoming a Saturn car salesperson at age 17 to pay for university, then joining the General Motors EV1 electric vehicle program in the 90s, Chelsea Sexton has amassed unparalleled expertise in advanced transportation and related technology deployment, including product development, go-to-market strategy, stakeholder engagement, retail processes, public policy, infrastructure, marketing, and communications. 

Chelsea led the initial creation of the Automotive X PRIZE, which awarded $10 million to winning teams and inspired similar prize efforts to catalyze innovative transportation and smart city solutions. As a Senior Advisor to VantagePoint Capital Partners’ cleantech practice, she helped guide the firm’s transportation-related investment priorities, most notably an early stake in Tesla Motors.

Chelsea’s diverse adventures have also involved advising companies, NGOs, and government agencies around the world, including: Audi, Nissan, Tesla, Chevrolet, Electrify America, Google, Best Buy, Edison Electric Institute, Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, California Energy Commission, and many others. She also co-founded Plug In America, the largest consumer-oriented electric drive advocacy group in the US, and remained its Executive Director for several years.

Chelsea is featured in various books, TV shows, and films, including Sony Pictures Classic’s Who Killed the Electric Car? and National Geographic’s Years of Living Dangerously. 

Colin McKerracher manages coverage of the transport sector at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the clean energy and carbon markets division of Bloomberg LP. Colin’s team covers the technology, policy and economic factors influencing the evolution of the transport sector. This includes electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, biofuels, fuel cell vehicles, connected cars and other new vehicle technologies.

Colin previously managed BNEF’s coverage of the global smart grid industry. He has over 10 years of experience in the clean energy sector and presents regularly at industry events. Colin’s past roles include Director of Sales and Marketing for Neurio, a smart grid technology company, and Business Development Manager for a Canadian biofuel company. Colin holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the Sauder School of Business at UBC. He is based in London, UK.

Lan Marie Berg (Green Party) is Vice Mayor for Environment and Transport in Oslo. Vice Mayor Berg is responsible for climate and environmental policies in Norway’s capital, and also in charge of parks and recreation areas, water and sewage, waste management, energy recovery, the municipal roads and the city’s fire department.

Vice Mayor Berg has a strong international commitment with a particular emphasis on climate justice. Berg has followed UN climate negotiations closely and her international experience has strengthened her focus on thinking globally, acting locally. She has lived in Tuvalu, Kenya, South Africa and Vietnam. Berg holds a Master’s degree from the Centre for Development and the Environment at the University of Oslo.

Prior to becoming Vice Mayor Lan Marie worked at The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration, the Mela Festival and CICERO (Center for International Climate and Environmental Research). Vice Mayor Berg started her political career in 2014 when she became the first candidate for the Oslo Green Party.

Former Opel CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann brings 25 years of automotive industry experience to EVELOZCITY. Prior to Opel, he held various leadership positions including CEO of Volkswagen Group China and CEO of Continental AG. Neumann is a longtime advocate and early pioneer of electric mobility and in 2009 he took over VW’s companywide responsibility for electric propulsion.

Neumann also worked as CTO and Board Member at Continental Automotive Systems, where he oversaw the acquisition of Siemens-VDO, making Continental the second-largest supplier of automotive electronics in Germany. He was then promoted to CEO in 2008.

Neumann has a passion for new transportation concepts – believing that traditional car makers will not be driving the change. He feels these new concepts will free major urban centers of traffic and pollution. He has a PhD focused in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from the Technical University of Dortmund.

Monica Araya is an advocate, adviser and communicator who has incubated several initiatives in Latin America. She founded Costa Rica Limpia (costaricalimpia.org) to bring people closer to clean, smarter technologies that improve their everyday life. Her work focuses on consumer and citizen engagement in the shift toward renewable energy and zero emissions electric mobility.

Her group pioneered www.movilidadelectrica.org– the first electric mobility platforms in Latin America devoted to the education of consumers about electric vehicles. She also co-founded the Electric Mobility Association in Costa Rica and is Vice President of the Board.  Her blog, “Essentially Electric” is hosted at the business newspaper La República. She writes frequently for international and local media and has given talks in Latin America, Europe and Asia.

2019 Nordic EV Summit moderator Ellen Hiep is board member of the Dutch Electric Vehicle Drivers Association (Vereniging Elektrische Rijders) and CEO of HiePRactief, a Dutch communications agency specialized in smart eMobility.

HiePRactief is an official and active partner of the S4C Smart e-Mobility Holland- Westcoast Program that promotes knowledge and innovation exchange in the field of smart eMobility between the Westcoast of the US and the Dutch government, universities and industry.

Ellen Hiep is also one of the founders of Adventures 2 a smarter world,  a program that connects kids from different parts of the world with exciting (online) challenges in the field of smart mobility, solar and climate change.

Dr Glen Peters is Research Director at CICERO Center for International Climate Research in Oslo. He is also lead author of IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report and one of the main contributors to the Global Carbon Project.  Peters performs research on the causes of recent changes in carbon dioxide emission trends at the global and country level, and how these changes link to future emission pathways consistent with global climate objectives. He is particularly interested in how emission scenarios are created, interpreted, and used, and how this relates to ongoing policy discussions. He has a background in mathematics and physics.

Barbara Vollert has been with Porsche for 17 years and has since May 2017 held the title of Vice President Region Europe. Previously, she’s acted as the company’s Director Quality Method & Systems, Director Global Training and Vice President Sales Network Management & Development.

She was born in Hof/Saale in Bavaria, Germany. Prior to joining the automotive industry in 1984, Vollert studied Chemistry and Rubber Technology in Bayreuth and Hannover.

Jack Cheng is Co-founder and Executive Vice President of NIO, and the Chief Executive Officer of XPT. As a pioneer in the automotive industry, his focus is to empower a joyful future and mobilise the world through affordable autonomous electric cars.

Julie Furber is the Executive Director of the Electrified Power segment at Cummins. She is responsible for overseeing the development and acceleration of Cummins knowledge and capability in electrification, positioning the company to be the leading provider of electrified powertrains in commercial and industrial markets. 

A disruptor at heart, Julie has been at the forefront of identifying the products and solutions critical to the success of Cummins customers. Prior to leading the Electrification business, Julie was responsible for product planning and product management across the company’s $8-billion Engine Business, the largest of Cummins’ four business segments. This included all new product programs, market-based innovation and new business incubation.

Julie joined Cummins in 2005 as the Global Finance Director for Cummins Generator Solutions in Stamford, England. She then moved to the US where she has held a variety of key commercial roles, which included leading the global off-highway business for Cummins Emission Solutions, serving as the Global Integrated Account Management leader for PACCAR, Cummins’ largest customer, and leading the entire North American Truck team.

A native of the UK, Julie is a qualified accountant and holds bachelors and masters degrees in maths from Oxford University. She is a Court Appointed Special Advocate for Children and resides in Columbus, Indiana with her husband and two daughters.

Professor Pål Johan From is a world leading expert on farm robot systems. Together with his students at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences he has developed a system of automated farm robots powered on electricity. His invention has the potential to revolutionize food production as we know it.

Dr. Oleksii Riabchyn is a Ukrainian politician from Donetsk region. In October 2014 was elected to the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) on the party list of Batkivshchyna. He chairs the subcommittee on energy saving and energy efficiency of the Energy Committee.

He has participated in lobbying and introducing numerous energy reforms in Ukraine. He personally championed initiatives supporting e-mobility, renewable energy and those focused on creating an energy efficiency market in Ukraine.

Dr. Oleksii Riabchyn represented Ukraine in Conferences of the Parties to the UNFCCC in Paris, Marrakesh, Bonn and Katowice. He is focused on promoting renewables, sustainable development, green economy and supporting displaced universities that were relocated from Donbas and Crimea.

World Press Photo award winner Matjaz Krivic and crisis reporter Boštjan Videmšek will present their Lithium Road photo project at the Nordic EV Summit.

Lithium Road  illustrates this new gold rush for the modern age. Batteries are the social and industrial game changers of our time. As the need for effective climate protection gets stronger, the development of cleaner energy is gaining momentum. At the same time, a key part of the solution, lithium, and the production of the material, is not without its own hazards and sins.

The photographic project follows the tracks of lithium, from investment and prospecting in the US, to mining in Bolivia, production of batteries and cars in China and to the small oil state Norway leading the way to electrify all of its transportation – cars, buses, planes and boats.

Annie Pin is the CEO of ALD Automotive in Norway and proud to live in the country with the highest penetration of EVs in the world. As her 7 year old son tells her regularly, “there should be no reason for driving anything but electric”.

Annie is also the global sponsor of the EV program of ALD Automotive, working as a “green” ambassador in the leading Fleet Management company in Europe. With more than 1.6 million cars managed by ALD in 43 countries, the potential for transformation is huge!

“Finance players are usually on the more conservative side, as financing EVs involves taking residual value risk”, says Annie. But she believes the transition to new ways of consuming mobility – EVs but also car sharing, pay per use and of course autonomous cars – is only a question of time… And it will come faster than we think!

Initially coming from Paris, Annie has spent the last 10 years of her life in the Nordic countries and comes with more than 15 years experience in the finance industry. She has a Master of Political Sciences from Sciences Po and an MBA from Essec Business School and is Chairman of the Board of the French Foreign Trade Council in Norway.

Erik Lorentzen is head of Analysis and Consultancy at the Norwegian EV Association. He works closely with policy development and the EV market with a special focus on charging infrastructure. Lorentzen has a master’s degree of Political Economy, and has several years of experience working with climate and transport related issues for the Ministry of the Environment, the public funding agency Transnova and for the Norwegian Directorate of Public Roads.

Bakur Kvezereli is a Georgian-American entrepreneur. He is co-founder and CEO of Ztractor, a Palo Alto based Autonomous Electric Tractor startup company.

Ztractor’s mission is to rethink current farming practice and introduce AI powered, future agriculture machinery. The startup has partnered with OEMs in the United States and Europe, and the first model will be delivered to customer in California in 2019.

Kvezerali is a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has served as Georgia’s Miniser of Agriculture  (2008 – 2011).

Fraser has worked for Dundee City Council since 2001. In 2011 he was appointed Assistant Manager of the newly formed Corporate Fleet Department.

He has been at the forefront of implementing electric vehicles and infrastructure in Dundee as well as surrounding local authorities.

Pro-active in the council’s drive towards the EV uptake of the city’s taxi industry he has presented at many UK/European conferences where he has articulated his knowledge and expertise in the practicalities of electric vehicle adoption.

As Director of the Office of the Chief Scientist at Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Clay oversees research, communications, and diverse interactions both within and outside RMI, an independent, entrepreneurial, non-profit think-and-do tank that drives the efficient and restorative use of resources.

Clay also serves as Project Manager for RMI’s latest initiative, Reinventing Fire: China, a partnership with the Chinese government to examine the maximum feasible share of renewables and efficiency technology in the Chinese energy economy through 2050.

The project’s aim is to develop a transparent, adjustable, and enduring model to inform China’s energy future. Clay has worked on energy strategy in more than a dozen countries including Japan.

Prior to joining RMI, Clay worked in viticulture, marketing, and social-business incubation, and was the founder of an import company dedicated to the international distribution of Mexican wine and spirits. As a Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician, he has led expeditions in the Sierra Nevada, Himalaya, and Rocky Mountains.

He holds a BA in Agriculture, Ecology and Philosophy from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an MBA focused on natural resource management from Bainbridge Graduate Institute in Washington State.

André Aasrud is a senior adviser with the Climate Agency at the City of Oslo where he among other tasks is working to bring about the transition to zero-emission construction machinery in Oslo. Prior to his current position at the City of Oslo, he led the emissions trading unit at the Norwegian Environment Agency.

Previously, he worked on climate change issues for over a decade at the International Energy Agency and the World Bank. He holds a Masters degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University.

Jeanette Shaw serves as Forth’s Senior Director of Public Relations and directs communications, government affairs, marketing, and membership at Forth. She works to develop transportation electrification and e-mobility legislative and regulatory policies as well as marketing and communication strategies for Forth.

Previously, Jeanette also served as Vice President of Government Relations, Executive Director, and as an Organizational Development Consultant to several high-tech companies and nonprofit organizations, including National Semiconductor, Technology Network (TechNet) and the Oregon Winegrowers Association and the Oregon Wine Board.

Jeanette holds an Executive MBA from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Norwegian computer scientist Edgeir Vårdal Aksnes is the CEO and founder of Tibber, the world’s first digital energy consumer service. Previously he held the position as as CEO of Enoro Norway, the leading provider of software to electric utilities.

Edgeir started his career during his studies as co-founder of the startup Deriga in Trondheim, later sold to Visma, the largest software corporation in the Nordics. Edgeir holds a Master of Science degree in computer science from NTNU.

PHOTO: With his smart phone app, Aksnes wants to make it easier for consumers to control their electricity consumption.

With an entrepreneurial spirit, Parveen became the CEO of Solisco in 2016, dedicated to making a difference,  following her career with electric vehicle trailblazers, Tesla.

Headhunted to work for Californian electric car maker Tesla, Parveen joined as a Product Specialist in electric vehicles. Her time with the company was by far the most exciting time, as Tesla was in its infancy in the UK; educating and showcasing new innovations for the first time.

Converting people’s perceptions on EVs, electrifying  business fleets, testing autopilot features and introducing new powertrains accelerated Parveen’s passion and her specialism in electromobility went on to her being promoted to work on marketing strategies and sales.

Environmental impacts and sustainable solutions were at the forefront of Parveen’s work during her time with Tesla and it’s what motivated her to co-found Solisco to offer specialist consultancy, thought leadership and clean tech infrastructure to support electromobility within municipalities and private enterprises.

So far, the start-up company has been working closely with the oil and gas industry, OEMs, large retailers and hotel chains. They hope to expand their presence and open up a new office in California later this year.

In 2018, Solisco was awarded Global Clean Energy’s ‘most innovative EV power tech provider – UK’ award and in 2019, the company won two competitions funded by the UK government’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles and Innovate UK.

Recognizing that there are severe environmental challenges that the next generation faces, Parveen is genuinely motivated to bring her visionary ideas and knowledge to contribute towards a sustainable planet.

Inga Margrete Ydersbond is a researcher at the Institute of Transport Economics (Transportøkonomisk institutt, TØI). Ydersbond does research on electrification of the transport sector, including electric cars, electric bikes and charging infrastructure.

A key focus for her is the connection between political decisions, the policies that are created to attain these decisions, the implementation of those policies and the eventual outcomes in terms of sustainable energy system transformation.

Thus she highly enjoys following the development of the different technologies and policies that may contribute to profound mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions.

Ydersbond holds a PhD in political science from the University of Oslo. Her doctoral thesis dealt with the development of EU’s climate and energy policy. She has also worked with topics like lobbying, renewable energy and international energy policy.

Since she was a teenager, she has been engaged in protection of the environment and climate, and was an active member of the environmental organization Nature and Youth (Natur og Ungdom).

Mr. David Twohig is a seasoned automotive engineering executive with over 25 years of international experience in automotive design and development. He has developed a strong leadership and accumulated solid technical know-how and engineering capability.

At BYTON, he serves as Chief Vehicle Engineer, focusing on the core automotive Engineering disciplines of body structures, body equipment, chassis and thermal management, as well as ensuring that the different Engineering disciplines co-operate smoothly to ensure that BYTON’s future products have a consistent Engineering philiosophy.

Before joining BYTON, David was Chief Engineer at Alpine, and Head of Vehicle Engineering at Renault Sport. Through his leadership and team efforts, he successfully developed a truly groundbreaking sports car – the new Alpine A110, that spearheads the rebirth of the Alpine brand, and has even been favorably compared with established segment leaders like the Porsche Cayman.

From 2009 to 2013, David led the engineering team responsible for the Renault ZOE as the key pillar of Renault’s ambitious Zero Emissions program, and currently Europe’s best-selling BEV. He also steered the development of the first generation Nissan Qashqai, a highly profitable model for Nissan, launching the dominant compact SUV segment in Europe.

David was granted the Mundy Award for Engineering by Autocar Awards 2018 for his great achievements.

Eric Feunteun is Renault’s Electric Vehicle Global Program Director.

Since 2007 Electric Vehicles has been a key strategic move for Renault. With 4 cars Renault is the leader of the European EV market. When Feunteun took the responsibility of the program the priority has been to continue growing the sales while improving the profitability.

This has been achieved with doubling profit margin per car between 2015 and 2016 as well as growing the volume by 25%. His second main undertaking is to launch a renewal of the EV product plan as well as a long-term EV strategy.

Feunteun also set up the first set of EV business units for Renault.

Dag Falk-Petersen has been CEO of Avinor, Norway’s airport operator and air navigation service provider, since 2011.

He was trained and served for several years as a pilot on a number of aircraft in the Royal Norwegian Air Force, including F16, and has held a wide range of operational and management positions in Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS).

Before Mr. Falk-Petersen came to Avinor, he was CEO of CHC Helikopter Service in Norway. He still maintains his private pilot certificate.