Green California Summit 2026

Timothy Baird, Ed.D. is the superintendent of the Encinitas Union School District and a member of the state’s Environmental Literacy Steering Committee. His district-wide efforts to implement sustainable practices and cultivate environmental stewardship have received statewide and national recognition, including a Green Ribbon District award from the U.S. Department of Education.

As a higher education sector leader and award-winning practicing architect, Martha Ball specializes in leading complex multidisciplinary projects including student housing, state-of-the-art science and research, and academic and healthcare facilities working with top-tier institutions such as the University of Washington, Loma Linda University, UCLA, University of Iowa, and USC. As a licensed architect, she believes a holistic and integrated approach to architecture contributes to project success. She has created new models and best practices for dynamic learning environments that manifest positive collaboration and connect people, celebrating the heterogeneous nature of today’s campus populations. She brings a focus experience in large, complex projects working at CSULA South Village Housing, UC Irvine Health Sciences and Nursing School, Saddleback College ATAS, and CSULA South Village Housing.

Irina Brauzman is a Supervising Architect for the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC) and is responsible for overseeing development of building standards in the California Green Building Standards Code (CALGreen, Part 11 of title 24). Additionally, she assists with administering the California Building Standards Code development process, conducts various technical committee meetings, and provides training regarding the code adoption process and code application, including sharing information regarding the new embodied carbon reduction regulations. Irina previously worked as an architect and technical director for architectural companies in Santa Cruz and Monterey counties, and in Russia. During that time, she designed various complex commercial, industrial and residential buildings, was responsible for developing uniformly refined production standards, and monitored projects to ensure the quality standards were met for all design and contract documents. Irina was born in Russia and got her Bachelor of Architecture degree there. She moved to the United States in 2010. Since moving to the USA, Irina completed all the required registration examinations and received a California Architect license.

Matthew Brennan is General Manager of the Kota platform, the employee benefits solution powering better health and pension experiences for 65,000+ employees at companies like PayFit, Carwow, and Unmind. In his role, Matthew speaks with hundreds of HR leaders every month about the challenges they face with their current benefits setup - from low employee engagement, to renewal shock, to managing everything on spreadsheets. Before Kota, he built and scaled products at Wayflyer, and Immedis and co-founded Gradguide to help new grads find fulfilling careers.

Dan Burgoyne is the Sustainability Manager for California’s Department of General Services (DGS). He is an architect and LEED Fellow, with over 35 years of experience in the design and construction industry, including 19 years developing and leading implementation of California policies and executive orders in energy, green building, zero net energy and climate change adaptation and resiliency for state facilities. Dan chairs California’s Sustainable Building Working Group, leading state agencies to implement sustainability policies. Dan has served as a green building advisor to the California Green Building Code (CALGreen), GSA, and California’s High Speed Rail Authority. and served in two decades on the US Green Building Council’s Board of Directors.

Hafsa Burt is a practicing architect with 23 years of design experience in carbon neutral and regenerative buildings. She is well-known for her expertise in eliminating toxins in indoor air quality, and for her legislative advocacy work to promote sustainable buildings. Burt founded her studio, hb+a Architects in 2006. Her portfolio spans designs for multifamily residential properties, institutions, hospitality, retail, and medical office buildings. hb+a architects includes Box Lab, a development arm focused on zero energy/zero carbon buildings. An industry expert on healthy building practices, Burt is a noted speaker about indoor air quality and carbon neutrality. She is actively engaged with the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and serves on the AIA California Climate Action Committee developing legislation to address the embodied Carbon, Life Cycle Analysis and decarbonization of the building sector. She is also a WELL Faculty. Burt earned an undergraduate degree and a professional Master of Architecture from the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD). She has been named one of ENR’s 20 Under 40 Construction Professionals in California and received the American Institute of Architects’ coveted Young Architects’ Honor Award. She has also won Innovation in Design Awards by Fast Company and German Design Council.

Jim Carroll is the Associate Vice Chancellor & University Architect at University of California, Davis. He leads the team at Design & Construction Management (DCM), including Campus Planning and Environmental Stewardship, Integrated Capital and Space Planning, Design Group, Capital Project Management, Engineering Project Management, the Campus Engineer and Inspection Services, Real Estate Services, Contract Management and the Office of Sustainability. Jim has completed higher education projects of virtually every type, in both private practice and public service during a career spanning more than thirty-five years. Jim is co-Chair of the UC Davis Campus Advisory Committee on Sustainability (CACS). In this role, he coordinated the efforts of the 33-person committee and the more than 70 campus- and region-wide sustainability experts who developed the Fossil Fuel-Free Pathway Plan for the UC Davis enterprise.

Karen Cook leads Alameda County, California’s sustainable purchasing and green building programs, catalyzing institutional change towards sustainability within this 9500-employee organization. She works to accelerate market transformation by collaborating locally, regionally and nationally to share learnings and advance leading-edge programs. Karen enjoys spending her free time outdoors with her family in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she graduated from UC Berkeley with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies.

Kristian Damkier, P.E. is an Associate Air Quality Engineer with the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District in Sacramento, CA. He has worked at the District since 2002 implementing air quality grant programs designed to reduce pollution from mobile sources – including cars, trucks, trains, farm tractors, and others – and promote zero emission technology. Kristian received a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ in 2001 and is a registered California Professional Engineer.

Louie is a Program Manager for SMUD’s Commercial EV incentives and project support. He is managing charging installations for SMUD’s REACH 1.0 grant projects, and for private fleets. Prior, he was a charging specialist for EV bus manufacturer Lion Electric, has worked on utility energy efficiency programs, and was in the CEC’s Efficiency Division. Louie published a children’s book on electric vehicles to help teach kids the benefits of driving electric. He has two teenagers, and loves the outdoors and a good DIY project.

Scot Donaldson is the Vehicle Maintenance Manager at Twin Rivers Unified School District. He has been at TRUSD for a little over 2 years, but has been in the school transportation industry for over 15 years. His journey started in 2008 as a service mechanic for YCUSD.

John Fraser-Mifsud (JFM) is President of Seeley International Americas, a 100% subsidiary of Seeley International headquartered in Australia. John holds a Master’s degree in Architectural and Building Design Science and was recognized with several university awards from the University of Sydney. His research thesis on Thermal Comfort and Indoor Air Quality in the Built Environment earned honors and high distinction. In a career spanning more than 35 years, John has been at the forefront of heat pump and refrigerated product solutions, and now dedicated to advancing what is being recognized as the most efficient cooling technology available today. His mission is to improve the built environment on all fronts that not only include minimizing one’s carbon footprint and saving energy, but also an acute focus on how to improve the human condition and indoor amenity across all applications and verticals. He recognizes these complex challenges simultaneously and strives for continuous improvement and innovative thinking to achieve the solution. John lives in the United States, Minnesota.

Dr. Carla Fresquez is the Interim Director & Engagement Program Manager for UC Davis Sustainability where she facilitates the development of navigational capital among UC Davis students and develops programs and opportunities for students, staff, and faculty to understand the nuance of sustainability in a higher education setting. She is the first in her large Chicanx family to receive a doctorate; a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from UC Santa Cruz.

Phil Haupt Electric has installed over 2000 Electric Vehicle Charging Stations since 2010. We are a proud member of the National Electrical Contractors Association, and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 340.

At StopWaste Heather’s current projects focus on material circularity, building decarbonization and innovation in the construction sector. Heather has lead the Agency’s Green Building Grants to Non-profit Housing program, lead the East Bay Energy Watch Strategic Advisory Committee and Local Government Partnership with PG&E, lead development of the regional Bay Area Regional Energy Network (BayREN) Multifamily incentive program, lead development of the BayREN Municipal ZNE technical assistance program, Chaired the Energy Council Technical Advisory Group of Jurisdictions in Alameda County, Chaired the Statewide Multifamily Home Energy Retrofit Coordinating Committee, and served as a Board Member of the Local Government Sustainable Energy Coalition. Heather has taught energy efficiency courses at San Jose State University and UC Berkeley Extension. She holds a Bachelors degree in Architecture from UC Berkeley and a Masters degree in Sustainable Design from the University of Sydney, in Sydney Australia.

Courtney Leader is a sustainability professional with experience in green building practices and environmental education. Currently serving as the Green Building Associate for the County of Alameda’s Office of Sustainability, she has successfully spearheaded key projects implementing the Climate Action Plan for Government Services and Operations. Courtney’s efforts focus on integrating sustainable building strategies into design guidelines and leases for the County’s operations. Previously, Courtney coordinated the Extended Learning Programs at The Marine Mammal Center, where she expanded programming and enhanced cross-departmental collaboration. An advocate for sustainability across various fields, Courtney has developed education programming for Strategic Energy Innovations and provided pro bono consulting for local nonprofits through the Seed Consulting Group. She holds a Masters in Sustainable Building Design & Performance from University College Dublin and is currently progressing towards LEED AP BD+C accreditation. Her dissertation focused on how to improve the learning experience for students through sustainable design approaches. Dedicated to fostering sustainable development, Courtney also serves a board member for The Charles Lamar Family Foundation, supporting initiatives in education, water conservation and the arts.