Elena Foukes
  • About
    • About Elena
    • Professional Biography
    • Resources >
      • Climate Investing
      • Recipes >
        • Recipes
    • Event Archive >
      • Events
      • 2014 Event Archive
      • 2015 Event Archive
      • 2016 Event Archive
      • 2017 Event Archive
  • Writings
    • Writings
    • Resources / Favorite things
  • Offgrid
    • BoatLife
    • Vanlife
    • Mountaintop
    • Joshua Tree

Some cool jobs I saw this week 6/27/14

6/27/2014

 
BIG thank you to Green Jobs & Career Network for these listings! 
SF Sustainability Analyst, Jones Lang LaSalle 
http://bit.ly/greenjobs9604 

CA - Mountain View
* Program Manager - Carbon Offsets, Google
http://bit.ly/greenjobs9607 

* Program Manager - Sustainability Program Assessment, Data Centers, Google
http://bit.ly/greenjobs9608 

CA - San Francisco
Chief Marketing Officer, Net Impact
http://bit.ly/greenjobs9643 

Salary Negotiation: Strategies, Techniques, and the Role of Gender

6/27/2014

 
Recently, I listened in to WoWE's Salary Negotiations Webinar with Deborah Swerdlow of the AAUW. WoWE will have the recording available in the WoWE Member Center by the end of the week, but here are some resources in the mean time:

How much is your college major worth?

Smart employers are conducting self-audits on pay equity within their companies. Here are some examples: 
  • State of Minnesota
  • Australia
  • Britain Equality and Human Rights Commission
  • Business and Professional Women 
  • Department of Labor (This is a modified version from the National Committee on Pay Equity)

Top 5 energy stories this week, 6/17

6/17/2014

 
Picture
Arizona substation attacked with bomb - A very different event than the attack on PG&E's Metcalf substation in 2012.

Storage Is the New Solar: Will Batteries and PV Create an Unstoppable Hybrid Force?

Ohio freezes renewables, efficiency mandates until 2017

Elon Musk opens up all of Tesla Motors' patents - Who wants to see what they can build?

Energy Quote of the Day: ‘It’s the Kim Kardashian of Carbon’

The EPA's proposed regulation, more to it than meets the eyes

6/11/2014

 
At first glance, the proposed EPA regulation seems straight forward: 30% reduction in carbon intensity of the electricity industry by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. However, the compliance targets vary widely from state to state.

"The intensity-reduction targets range from 72% in Washington State to 11% in North Dakota The reductions would take place between EPA’s base measurement year of 2012 and the proposed full-compliance deadline of  2030. Neither the timeline of these state goals (2012-2030, vs. 2005-2030) nor the metric being used (measure of CO2 intensity usage vs. total CO2 volume reduction) match."  wrote Bloomberg New Energy Finance in a white paper which explains the complexities.

There are also the legal issues. The Clean Power Plan regulates a network of electricity matters in states when up until now, the EPA only regulated individual emission points/individual plants. It is likely that states and electricity generating companies will challenge the ability of the EPA to enforce regulations this way. States will also challenge the varied emissions targets, accusing the EPA of unequal treatment. 

Yes, the EPA is treating each state separately, but only after taking into account the measures and abilities of each state. Washington state's reduction target of 72% is partly based on the expectation that TransAlta’s 1,460MW Centralia, WA, coal plant will be decommissioned between 2020 and 2030, an EPA official said during a background briefing for reporters and analysts. Other states have less aggressive targets because they may have limited access to new, cleaner natural gas plants. 

The proposed rule considers four (4) building blocks in reducing carbon intensity (lbs CO2/MWh). 
  1. Efficiency of existing coal plants
  2. Increase usage of natural gas plants - they emit about a third of what a coal plant does
  3. Renewables and nuclear - some environmentalists will find the inclusion of nuclear hard to swallow, but we have to do something now, and nuclear is the best option for a centralized, zero-emission grid.
  4. Energy efficiency - this also includes demand response, which would shave peak load so dirty plants don't have to turn on. 

30-35 states are likely to start on their implementation plan this summer for compliance as planned. That leaves 15-20 states to challenge the regulation in courts. Legal issues related to the Clean Power Plain will be resolved by 2018, a mere two years before aggressive targets need to be met. 

Since states are allowed to partner with other states to reach targets, analysts expect the regulation to result in a default national cost of carbon. California and RGGI, the East Coast's cap and trade program, are likely to be models for other states to follow. California's GHG and CO2 programs will need to be restructured so that electricity generation can be measured independently of other carbon reduction measures across the state. RGGI will require fewer modifications. 

All views expressed here are for the purpose of meaningful dialogue and are solely my opinion. 



Connectomatic - a rolodex for today

6/10/2014

 
I spent this weekend building a team and a mock up for Connectomatic. Check it out on AngelList below. A BIG thank you to Startup Weekend!

Interesting stories from this week 6/7/2014

6/9/2014

 
Google Admits It Hires Too Many White Dudes - they even have a nice infographic about it. 

5 Career Lessons I Wish I'd Had When I Was 22

You may not be investing aggressively enough—It's especially true for women and that isn't good when it comes to investment growth. 

Disrupting Mentoring through Personal Advisory Boards

21 most powerful women in Bay Area tech - There’s room for more women in technology, which remains a male-dominated field. In 2013, 26 percent of the computing workforce was made up of women, including leaders at Sunrun. 

Riches Come to Women as C.E.O.s, but Few Get There
In the New York Times' annual list of the 200 highest-paid chief executives in the United States, there were just 11 women. That’s 5.5 percent of the total, and similar to the 4.9 percent representation of female chief executives at the 1,000 biggest companies.
    These posts compliment my weekly newsletter: 
    Sign me up!

    Archives

    January 2023
    August 2022
    May 2022
    February 2022
    May 2021
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2018
    September 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    February 2015
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

    Categories

    All
    Career Development
    Cleantech
    Connectomatic
    Diversity
    Diversity In Tech
    Environment
    EPA
    Green Economy
    Interesting Stories
    Negotiation
    Networking
    Networking Tips
    Salary
    Smart Grid
    Social
    Startup
    Women2.0
    YPE

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • About
    • About Elena
    • Professional Biography
    • Resources >
      • Climate Investing
      • Recipes >
        • Recipes
    • Event Archive >
      • Events
      • 2014 Event Archive
      • 2015 Event Archive
      • 2016 Event Archive
      • 2017 Event Archive
  • Writings
    • Writings
    • Resources / Favorite things
  • Offgrid
    • BoatLife
    • Vanlife
    • Mountaintop
    • Joshua Tree