2020 CEF Board Nominations
In the 2020 Board election, CEF has five candidates for five available seats. Please vote by 7:30PM on Thursday May 14th using the link to OpaVote and your personalized voting code sent to each member by email. Candidate Statements, including a video intro and statement of relevant experience from each candidate are included below.
Dan Bakke (for 2nd Term)
My name is Daniel Bakke. I am a current and hopefully returning board member. I believe that the Co-op model has proved successful as will be essential as we move forward into a new sustainable economy. I believe that there are opportunities for small & large businesses to improve their overall operations by implementing sustainable methodologies into their everyday practices, and CEF is one of those avenues.
I have been studying and working in energy efficiency and renewable energy for the past ten years. My broad educational background; in addition to my comprehensive knowledge of energy services and practical working qualifications have prepared me to successfully perform the responsibilities of a CEF Board member. My background includes an MBA with an emphasis in sustainability from Dominican University of California, an active AEE Certified Energy Manager accreditation, and I also currently work for an Energy Services Company constructing energy efficiency, solar PV, and Electric Vehicle charging station projects throughout the country.
In my last two years as a board member I served as the Treasurer. As the treasurer I was a part of the financing committee. As a board member I have helped address subscription terms and conditions, implications within SEC filings, review and approve many financing agreements, attend public utility commission hearings, and help guide the financial health of CEF.
Volunteer and Professional Affiliations:
Board Member - Treasurer at CEF: Responsible for policy decisions, guiding strategic priorities for the co-op, and evaluating operational progress.
Project Developer at ABM: Develop scope and financing for Federal Energy Efficiency Projects. Spec and quote EV Charging stations in the MidWest and at Federal Locations nation wide. Develop scope and financing for Solar PV projects nation wide. Organize annual Energy Exchange convention and booth. Write proposals and grant applications for each project.
Project Director at New Light Energy Design: Design, manage, and coordinate energy efficiency improvements for multi- family, commercial and industrial facilities. Researched, analyzed and presented potential revenue streams including intelligent controls, LED lighting technologies, and car charging stations.
Sustainable Vehicle Ranking Intern at Sonoma Raceway: Successfully designed and developed a customized search and ranking tool that brought sustainability practices to raceway fans and members.
Green Business Certification and Sustainability Intern at Sebastopol Community Hospital: Strategized, planned, and implemented a hospital wide sustainability plan. Performed comprehensive energy, waste, and water audits with remediation recommendations.
Apprentice Electrician at Hitech Electric: Performed trade skills associated with position demands
Matt Hazelton (for 1st Term)
My first material experience with solar power was reviewing a proposal my father sent me for putting solar cells on his house. I was surprised to see that the financial savings were real. I at first believed the savings touted by the industry were mostly moral savings, or more “feel-good” in nature. I know now that this technology translates into tangible savings. After a few conversations, I subscribed my own home and a rental property to a solar garden owned by a real estate developer that I’ve been in contact with over the years. Now having a better understanding of the costs/savings associated with making homes and businesses more efficient, I have been looking for ways to participate at a personal level, while also being able to have an impact on the broader community, by leveraging my own network and skills. Getting involved with the CEF Board looks like an excellent opportunity to further both agendas.
I bring a unique skill set to the table. I have worked in commercial real estate for almost 15 years. My focus is on the sales of retail and medical buildings. I have completed roughly 300 transactions and have advised on the operations and valuations of properties with a total aggregate value of more than $1 billion. The properties I have worked on have been in all parts of the state of Minnesota, and in almost every city in the Twin Cities. With my experience in negotiating property purchases, and many connections to local business and commercial real estate owners, I believe I could assist in both tracking down new subscribers, and in potentially securing properties that would agree to be “host sites”. Because of my familiarity with commercial properties, I am well-versed in communicating ways to improve building operations, and in turn, quantifying the benefits.
Volunteer and Professional Affiliations:
Organizations:
Minnesota Shopping Center Association (MSCA) - Member: Retail real estate trade group with ~500 members (Minnesota & Western Wisconsin)
MSCA Research Committee – Committee Member: Produce content and give presentations updating the entire organization on the industry
International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) - Member: Retail real estate trade group (National/International) -attend several conferences each year to gain macro-economic insights and meet with national clients.
Licenses: Licensed Real Estate Broker – Minnesota & North Dakota -requires 15 hours per year of continuing education
Other Info: Rental Property Owned: 4 – tenant commercial building in South Minneapolis
Ahmad Kian (for 2nd term)
There is no planet B, this is a phrase that motivates me to do everything in my power every single day as our children and future generation count on us.
I run a Thrivability consortium of companies to help our planet with elimination of waster, replacing dirty power with renewable energy, and provide clean water to citizens of the world.
My 25 years of engineering, operation and finance has allowed me to grow my businesses and support CEF mission the last two years as its Vice Chairman of the board.
Volunteer and Professional Affiliations:
President of Apadana LLC
CEO of Apadana Solar, responsible for Ramp A, Faribault, and Clark’s Grove community solar gardens of CEF
Chairman and CEO of Clark Technology, a waste to energy conversion company
Sean McLoughlin (for 2nd term)
I have been on the Board of CEF for two years now, and I really enjoy it. I am Board Secretary, and I can honestly say that I enjoy having to sweat the minutiae of assembling the Board Minutes every month, mainly because I have learned a lot about the organization via the need to accurately articulate the decisions we make and the discussions we have. The mission of this organization is very dear to me— creating access to clean energy for people with low and moderate incomes— and I would appreciate being able to continue to support that mission. I am a builder. I have been working in the area of green building, sustainability, and energy efficiency for over 30 years now. I am also a decent writer and communicator, so I have helped revamp the website as well as helped organize last year’s Annual Meeting. This year, of course, our Annual Meeting is virtual, and I am helping some with that too. I have built some good relationships with other Board members, and with the staff, and I hope to continue to cultivate those relationships and work at contributing to an appreciative and thriving culture here at CEF.
Volunteer and Professional Affiliations:
MN Licensed Building Contractor #635059
Member of the Green Home Institute
Roger Steinkamp (for 1st Term)
I've been keenly aware of the need to move from fossil fuels to clean energy for sometime, seeing the effects on climate in several countries where I have worked and now here in Faribault. There is a urgency to move to renewable energy.
I have also had the opportunity to deal with Xcel Energy on a wind and solar project and am keenly aware of the issues that can present themselves in transitioning to renewable energy.
I've managed projects for Land O'Lakes, and understand a quite a bit about how coops work. In one case we formed 33 coops and organized a national organization.
Finally, I believe that serving the membership by being well informed and soliciting their concerns is the duty of a board member.
Volunteer and Professional Affiliations:
I have had the opportunity to work with Land O'Lakes as manager of several projects, and have gained an understanding of how successful cooperatives operate. This included organizing new coops.