Speakers

Dr. John C. Wagner
Director, Idaho National Laboratory, US Department of Energy

Dr. John C. Wagner is the director of Idaho National Laboratory and president
of Battelle Energy Alliance LLC. He is responsible for management and
integration of a large, multipurpose laboratory that has a mission focused on
nuclear energy, national and homeland security, and energy and environment
science and technology. He manages this U.S. Department of Energy
national laboratory of approximately 5,700 scientists, engineers and support
staff members in multiple nuclear and nonnuclear experimental facilities, with
an annual budget of more than $1.6 billion.

Wagner began serving as INL director on Dec. 11, 2020. He has been at INL
since 2016 and began serving as associate laboratory director for Nuclear
Science and Technology in 2017. Wagner initially joined INL as chief scientist
at the Materials and Fuels Complex in 2016. Prior to joining INL, he worked
nearly 17 years at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where he held several
research and leadership roles in reactor and fuel cycle technologies.
Wagner is a Fellow of the American Nuclear Society and recipient of
the 2013 E.O. Lawrence Award. He has authored or co-authored more
than 170 refereed journal and conference articles, technical reports, and
conference summaries. He earned a bachelor’s in nuclear engineering from
the Missouri University of Science and Technology in 1992, and master’s
and doctorate degrees from the Pennsylvania State University in 1994 and
1997, respectively.

Alex Epstein
Founder and President of the Center for Industrial Progress
Author: Fossil Future: Why Global Human Flourishing Requires More Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas—Not Less

Alex Epstein is a philosopher and energy expert who argues that “human flourishing” should be the guiding principle of energy and environmental progress. He is the author of the new bestselling book Fossil Future: Why Global Human Flourishing Requires More Oil, Coal, and Natural Gas—Not Less. He is also the creator of EnergyTalkingPoints.com—a source of powerful, well-referenced talking points on energy, environmental, and climate issues. Widely recognized as a master of persuasion and debate on energy issues, Alex has spoken at dozens of Fortune 500 companies and dozens of prominent universities, including Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and Duke (his alma mater). He is also a highly sought-after consultant on messaging, working with dozens of major political offices on pro-energy, pro-freedom messaging.

Dr. Ryan Umstattd
Vice President of Product and Partnerships, Zap Energy

As the Vice President of Product for Zap Energy, Ryan is developing the go-to-market strategy for cost-effective fusion energy.  After completing his PhD in Applied Science (Plasma Physics), Ryan served for 20 years in the Air Force as a scientist, professor, research and development program manager, and technology acquisition officer.  Prior to transitioning to the private sector, he also served at the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy where he helped prepare breakthrough energy technologies for transition from the lab to customers within the Department of Defense. During his last year at ARPA-E, he was the Deputy Director for Commercialization, responsible for oversight of 11 tech-to-market advisors and the hands-on management provided to 300+ project teams for a $250M/year research and development portfolio. 

Wayne Laufer
Retired CEO, Bois d’Arc Energy Corporation
Founder, Laufer Energy Symposium

Wayne Laufer is a retired CEO of an independent oil and natural gas exploration company in the Gulf of Mexico. Wayne spent 40 years in the oil business, starting as a “grunt engineer” at Shell Oil in New Orleans. After a decade with Shell, he struck out on his own as an independent oil and gas producer. In 1977, he co-founded S.A. Holditch & Associates, which is now a part of Schlumberger. In 1984, he co-founded Bois d’Arc Energy Corporation, initiated a NYSE IPO in 2005 and retired after the Company was sold in 2008. Wayne was a registered professional engineer in the state of Texas and is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and the Louisiana Independent Oil and Gas Association. At Missouri S&T, he is a member of the Academy of Civil Engineers and received a Professional Degree from the Civil Engineering Department in 2009. Wayne and his wife Gayle reside in Sanibel, Florida, and Friday Harbor, Washington and are actively engaged in managing their investment portfolio. They are members of Missouri S&T’s Order of the Golden Shillelagh.

Dr. Joseph D. Smith
Professor and Founding Laufer Endowed Energy Chair, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Missouri S&T
Chief Technology Officer and Founder, Elevated Analytics Consulting

Joseph D. Smith was trained at the Advanced Combustion Engineering Research Center at Brigham Young University where he received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering in 1990.  He has over 25 years’ experience in the Chemical and Petrochemical Industry working for the Dow Chemical Company in the environmental research group, Cabot Corporation as global process development leader and the John Zink Company as research director for flare technology and CFD. He has served on the faculties of Tennessee Technological University, University of Michigan, University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign, and University of Tulsa.  Since 2011, Smith has held the Wayne and Gayle Laufer Endowed Energy Chair at Missouri University of Science and Technology where he conducts research on Hybrid Energy Systems involving renewable energy technology.  He co-founded Elevated Analytics Consulting where he currently serves as Chief Technology Officer focused on developing and applying advanced sensor technology to monitor and control gas flare emissions. Smith serves as an expert witness for flare performance and combustion technology and has published over 70 papers, has given more than 100 conference papers and currently holds twelve patents.  He contributed chapters to the John Zink Combustion Handbook, Industrial Burner Handbook, Perry’s Chemical Engineers’ Handbook (9^th edition) and Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology.  Recently he published a book on the Application of CFD in the Process Industries.

Dr. Bassam Alameddine
Acting President and Vice President of Academic Affairs, Gulf University for Science and Technology

Professor Bassam Alameddine is an accomplished professional whose unique blend of instruction, research, and executive program oversight experience has earned him a reputation as an academic leader who not only creates the vision and strategy but drives the team through successful execution. He effectively builds and mentors talented teams while working to enhance programs, optimize curricula and improve student success through overseeing academic and faculty affairs. Guiding academic organizations toward the attainment of goals and objectives is where Professor Alameddine excels.

For more than a decade, Professor Alameddine has been a distinguished member of the Gulf University for Science and Technology where he has progressed through numerous roles, starting out as the Director of Graduate Studies and Research, and currently, Acting President and VP of Academic Affairs.

Professor Alameddine held numerous administrative titles while also serving as faculty member and visiting research professor for multiple global higher education institutions, including Columbia University in New York, various Lebanese universities, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne, and the University of Fribourg. He has been awarded numerous grants to support his research projects in areas such as organic and polymer materials for optoelectronics, gas storage and separation in addition to environmental remediation. Through building a cast network of partnerships with fellow scholars from global institutions and serving as a consultant across various industries, Professor Alameddine had supported the advancement of research efforts across the chemistry and materials science engineering field.

Professor Alameddine earned a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of Fribourg to compliment his Master of Science in Materials Science Engineering from the National Polytechnic Institute – ENSIACET. His well-rounded academic background and professional strengths have been the foundation of his career success to date.

Dr. Khalid Kisswani
Chair, Sustainable Energy and Economic Development, Gulf University of Science and Technology

Khalid M. Kisswani is Associate Professor of Economics and Chair of the Center for Sustainable Energy and Economic Development (SEED) at the Gulf University for Science & Technology (GUST), Kuwait. He received higher education training at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), receiving his Master degree with distinction in Economics, and at the University of Connecticut (UCONN), receiving his Ph.D. degree in Applied & Resource Economics. Before joining GUST in 2009, he was a faculty member at the University of Quinnipiac and held visiting positions with the Eastern Connecticut State University, UNLV, UCONN, and University of Hartford. His research interests cover Energy Economics, Economic Development, and Tourism Economics. The author of over 30 journal articles and several book chapters, his research has appeared in a variety of journals, including Energy Economics, Energy Policy, Resources Policy, Energies, and others.

Dr. Haider Al-Rubaye
Visiting Scholar, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Missouri S&T
Senior Engineer, Elevated Analytics Consulting

Haider is a chemical engineer, he received his master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Technology in Baghdad, Iraq and his Ph.D from the Missouri University of Science and Technology. He has gained valuable experience relating to hybrid energy systems, biomass gasification, biodigestion, and Carbon Black production. Haider currently works as a senior researcher in the Chemical; and Biochemical Engineerinf department at Missouri University of Science and Technology and a Senior Process Engineer at Elevated Analytics Consulting.

Dr. Shoaib Usman
Professor, Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Science, Missouri S&T

Dr. Usman holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, two Masters, one in Nuclear Engineering, and a second master’s in Health Physics and a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering. For the last 20 years, Dr. Usman has been involved in research and development efforts covering various aspect of nuclear engineering. He maintains an active research program in radiation measurements and gamma spectroscopy, fundamental and applied fluid mechanics and nuclear material accountancy. Before coming to Missouri S&T, Dr. Usman worked at University of Cincinnati as an Assistant Research Professor. Dr. Usman has authored over 100 technical publications. He also serves as reviewer for several technical journals and is also an Associate Editor for Journal of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Science and Frontiers in Nuclear Engineering. Dr. Usman has led three federally funded program to include minorities in nuclear industry which included teach and research mentoring. He has also served as a technical reviewer for research and development support applications received by federal agencies including the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). 

Dr. Rizwan Uddin
Professor and Department Head, Nuclear, Plasma & Radiological Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Dr. Rizwan Uddin holds a courtesy appointment of Professor, Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment (iSEE), and serves on the steering committee of iSEE at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is also the Director of Master of Engineering in Energy Systems Program, as well as Environment and Sustainability Engineering (EaSE) Program in the Grainger College of Engineering. In his spare time, he serves as professor and head of the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering. He received his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Middle East Technical University in Ankara, and his MS and Ph.D. degrees in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Illinois. His research contributions are in the development and analysis of:  two-phase flow and BWR stability; advanced numerical methods for thermal hydraulics problems, CFD, and large scale, high performance computing for nuclear applications; analytical benchmarks for heat transfer problems; and new self-consistent turbulence models and associated closure laws for flow in porous media. He also dabbles in the development and use of 3D immersive, virtual reality systems and computer-games for education and training in the nuclear field. Four of his Ph.D. advisees have been awarded the American Nuclear Society’s Mark Mills Award for the “best original technical paper contributing to the advancement of science and engineering related to the atomic nucleus.” He is a Fellow of the American Nuclear Society.  

Wayne McFarland
CEO, SynTech Bioenergy, LLC

A dedicated outdoorsman, Wayne has spent the last 15 years in the field of renewable energy focused on finding solutions for converting biomass and other problematic global waste streams into carbon negative clean energy.  His current focus is on how to deliver immediate solutions to some of the world’s most troubling energy, environmental, economic, social and political problems. Wayne founded SynTech with a mission to be a leader in meeting the challenge of climate change head-on, through delivering renewable, carbon negative clean energy and end-of-waste solutions on a global scale. A successful serial entrepreneur and attorney, Wayne’s expertise in environmental law & policy, global manufacturing, renewable energy and retail energy markets, coupled with his inner drive to better the environment, has been fundamental to his leadership of SynTech. 

Prior to SynTech, he served as Managing Member, CEO and Chairman of Admiral Energy, LLC, which explored energy management, energy conservation and advanced renewable energy technologies during which time he led Admiral’s successful pursuit of a $1.6B (USD) sustainable airport project for the Republic of the Philippines. Simultaneously he served as Chairman, CEO and Managing Member of Native American Tribal Energy Company, LLC, which focused on delivering a full range of energy related products and services to tribal entities across North America. Wayne holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Lewis University and a J.D. degree with honors from the IIT/Chicago Kent College of Law. He has also served on various Continuing Legal Education faculties speaking on subjects relative to energy and corporate finance, and in March 2023 will be a keynote speaker at the Energy Economics Conference in St. Louis, MO.

Dr. Vivek M. Rao
Nuclear CFD Development Engineer, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Vivek M. Rao Ph.D. is a chemical engineer in the Advanced Reactor Engineering and Development Section at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. With a specialized interest in applied fluid mechanics, he has participated in various programs of the U.S. Department of Energy to develop, extend and adapt computational tools on high-performance computing resources to challenges in energy engineering, materials interactions, and large-scale chemical manufacturing processes. He is an active investigator on projects supported by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and the Office of Nuclear Energy. End-applications target pyrometallurgical refining, chemicals manufacturing, and physics-informed design of resilient process equipment. At ORNL, Vivek has supported mission-aligned research for the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), Building Technologies Research & Integration Center, and the Material Plasma Exposure eXperiment (MPEX). 

Dr. Kyle Buchheit
Senior Engineer, KeyLogic Systems

Dr. Kyle Buchheit, PhD, is a Senior Engineer with KeyLogic Systems working as a site support contractor at the National Energy Technology Laboratory in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He holds a doctorate in chemical engineering, master’s in applied mathematics, and two bachelor’s degrees in chemical engineering and economics all from the Missouri University of Science and Technology. Dr. Buchheit’s work focuses on performing techno-economic analysis of hybrid energy systems. Notable works include reports on bio-energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS), carbon capture retrofit costs on existing coal plants, and various studies involving hybrid carbon conversion technologies with solid oxide fuel cells.

Dr. Jeremy Hartvigsen
Research Engineer, Idaho National Laboratory

Jeremy Hartvigsen is a Research Engineer in the Idaho National Laboratory Integrated Energy Systems division. His work focuses on microreactors, high temperature electrolysis, thermal hydraulics, and integrated energy systems. This work includes the Dynamic Energy Transport and Integration Laboratory (DETAIL) for demonstrating coupled energy systems, the Microreactor Agile Non-Nuclear Experiment Testbed (MAGNET) for testing microreactor systems, and the Single Primary Heat Extraction and Removal Emulator (SPHERE) for testing alkali metal heat pipes and other advanced heat removal systems. He holds a PhD and MS in Chemical Engineering from Missouri University of Science and Technology, and a BS in Chemical Engineering from Brigham Young University.

Dr. David M. Borrok
Vice Provost and Dean, College of Engineering and Computing, Missouri S&T

Dr. David Borrok received his bachelor’s degree in geology from the Missouri University of Science and Technology (formerly Missouri-Rolla) in 1995 and earned a MS-degree in Geological Sciences from the University of Michigan in 1997.  He followed this up with 5 years of work in industry, including as an exploration geologist for ASARCO Inc. and as a project scientist for Black & Veatch.  Borrok returned to academia and received his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering and Geological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame. He was a Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellow at the U.S. Geological Survey in Denver, Colorado, before moving to a faculty position at the University of Texas at El Paso. As an Assistant and then Associate professor at UTEP, Borrok formed and directed the University’s Center for Earth and Environmental Isotope Research. Borrok moved to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2012 to become the inaugural director of the School of Geosciences. He joined Missouri S&T in 2017 as the Gulf Oil Foundation Professor and Chair of the Department of Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering.  In 2021, Borrok served as the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Engineering and Computing. He became the Interim Vice-Provost and Dean for the College in August 2022 and was appointed as the permanent dean in February 2023. Borrok is an expert in geochemistry and water resources. Part of his research work has included oil and gas exploration and remediation of petroleum produced waters. He has published more than 60 journal articles and has served as a PI or CO-PI on more than $11 million in external grants and contracts.

Mr. John Warmack
Consultant to the Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment
Member of Warmack and Company LLC

Warmack earned a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Missouri S&T in 1979. Arriving on campus from Fort Smith, Arkansas, at age 17 after completing his junior year of high school, he finished his final high school requirements through a correspondence course and graduated from S&T at age 20, after 3 1/2 years of study. After graduation, Warmack joined his family real estate development business, where he worked for 36 years, and became engaged in public service in his home state of Arkansas. Warmack was a founding member of the Arkansas Executive Forum associated with the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. His other public service included five years on the Fort Smith, Arkansas, Airport Commission and five years on the Arkansas Workforce Investment Commission.

Warmack’s father founded Warmack and Co. LLC in the 1930s. The company manufactured gas heaters in the winter and outdoor lawn furniture in the summer. In 1960, the company transitioned from manufacturing to real estate development with a focus on commercial development. Warmack developed computer-aided design software for the business. He also co-developed the structural engineering module for Graphisoft’s ArchiCad and was involved in designing Structural DeskTop, an application program interface for AutoCad. For the past eight years, Warmack has focused his efforts on developing a national energy policy to close the nuclear fuel cycle through a program for recycling spent nuclear fuel. The science and technology needed to accomplish the policy originated with the Manhattan Project, and Warmack believes it is now ready for full-scale commercial deployment. Warmack has successfully shepherded energy legislation through the Arkansas General Assembly and is working with other states and national laboratories to implement the policy.

Dr. Richard Axelbaum
Stifel & Quinette Jens Professor of Environmental Engineering Science, Washington University in St. Louis

Professor Axelbaum is the Stifel & Quinette Jens Professor of Environmental Engineering Science at Washington University in St. Louis.  He is a faculty member in the Department of Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering and is the Director of the Consortium for Clean Coal Utilization. He also heads the Laboratory for Advanced Combustion and Energy Research.   His research focuses on energy and materials and includes both fundamental and applied research.  From 2021 to 2023 he was the principle investigator of a research project on the International Space Station and from 1998 to 2007 he was chairman and chief scientific advisor for AP Materials, Inc., a startup company he founded that specialized in flame synthesis of nanopowders. Cabot Corporation acquired the company in August of 2007. Professor Axelbaum has over 150 peer-reviewed publications and holds six patents. Prior to joining WashU in 1990 he was a research associate at Princeton University. He has worked for General Electric and Barry-Wehmiller, and in 2013 was a visiting professor at the Technion.

Matt Belcher
COO, Enhanced Building Systems LLC, and Principal, Verdatek Solutions LLC Consulting

Matt Belcher is an experienced builder/developer and nationally recognized consultant, educator, and author on the business of energy efficient “resilient” building and development. He has been actively involved in the construction industry for over four decades, including many years as a top building codes official. While serving as Director of the University of Missouri’s High Performance Buildings Research Center for more than a decade, Mr. Belcher worked to educate building industry professionals, governmental administrators and students on International Building, Mechanical and Energy Conservation Code structure, methodology and application. Mr. Belcher was elected by the Board of Directors of the International Code Council to serve on the Energy and Water Committee for development of the new ICC International Green Construction Code and has served several terms on ICC’s Energy Code Committee, Commercial Building Code Committee and was just appointed to the new 2024 ICC Commercial Energy Standard Development Committee. He also served on a steering committee of the Net Zero Energy Home Coalition to develop a North American Net Zero Energy Standard. Belcher has also worked with ACTIVE HOUSE Alliance in the development of their European based specification and was selected to build the first prototype home in the United States. He has also consulted with the Chinese Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development in the Development of the “Green Star” Green Building Standard in China.

In 2008 Mr. Belcher testified to the U.S. House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee on Climate Benefits of Improved Building Energy Efficiency. In 2011 He was invited back to Capitol Hill to educate the U.S. House High Performance Buildings Caucus on the business benefits of HP Buildings. In 2015 he was invited to the White House to discuss the impact of the proposed “Clean Power Rule” on small business. He is also currently working with DOE and PNNL in Missouri and surrounding states to assist/train Builders, Code Officials, and Industry professionals in understanding and practical application of Energy and Building Codes. Mr. Belcher is a co-founder and Board member of non-profit Operation Triage which serves injured & ill   Veterans, First Responders, and their Families.

Dr. Vijay K. Ramani
Vice Provost for Graduate Education and International Affairs, Washington University in St. Louis

Vijay K. Ramani is the Vice Provost for Graduate Education and International Affairs at Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL). He holds the Roma B. and Raymond H. Wittcoff Distinguished University Professorship and serves as a Professor in the Department of Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering at WUSTL. His research interests lie at the confluence of electrochemical engineering, materials science, and renewable energy technologies, with a focus on electrochemical energy conversion and storage (low temperature fuel cells, electrolyzers and redox-flow batteries). NSF, ONR, DOE and ARPA-E have funded his research. He is a past Chair of the IE&EE Division of ECS and of Area 1E of AIChE.  He has served as co-editor of ECS Interface (2013-2017). Vijay has a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut, Storrs, and a B.E. from Annamalai University, India, both in Chemical Engineering. 

Dr. Greg Gelles
Emeritus Professor of Economics, Missouri S&T

Dr. Gregory Gelles is presently a Professor Emeritus of Economics at Missouri University of Science and Technology (S&T). Dr. Gelles came to S&T in August 1989 as an Assistant Professor. He received tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor in 1995 and was promoted to Full Professor in the Economics Department in 2001.  Dr. Gelles  served as the Department Chair of Economics at S&T from 1998 to 2019. Dr. Gelles earned his BS degree in Mechanical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in 1971, his MA in Mathematics from West Virginia University in 1982 and his PhD in Economics from West Virginia University in 1989. His teaching interests are in Mathematical Economics, Finance, and Energy Economics. His research areas include Mathematical Economics, Decision Theory and Energy Economics among others. Dr. Gelles has published over 30 sole-authored and co-authored research papers in refereed journals.

Gale Hauck
Senior Advisor, Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy

Gale Hauck is a Senior Technical Advisor for the for the Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy.  Gale has 20 years of experience in the commercial nuclear energy industry, supporting all aspects from new construction to decommissioning.  After her industry work, she became Senior R&D Staff for Innovative Nuclear Reactors at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.  Her research interests include advanced reactor technology and deployment, decarbonization, and energy justice. Before joining ORNL, she spent 14 years at Westinghouse, including three years as the Deputy Site Manager at the Barakah four-unit APR1400 construction project in the UAE. Other roles at Westinghouse included QA, product development, and engineering project management for operating plant core reloads. Before joining Westinghouse, she worked for Entergy as a reactor engineer at Indian Point nuclear plant and for Fluor at the Hanford Site.  Gale has a BS in nuclear engineering and engineering physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and a ME nuclear engineering and MBA from Penn State.  She is a student in the PhD Energy Science and Engineering program at University of Tennessee Knoxville. 

Dr. John W. Rogers
Professor of Economics, American International College

John W. Rogers is Professor of Economics at American International College in Springfield, Massachusetts. He was formerly Dean of the School of Business Administration and also served as Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness at AIC. He holds a Ph. D. in economic development from the Johns Hopkins University, an undergraduate degree from Harvard, and has done advanced study at the University of Paris. He has also been on the faculty of the Arthur D. Little Management Education Institute (Hult Business School) in Cambridge, Massachusetts; St. Mary’s University College, Twickenham, U. K.; and the University of Chester, U.K

During a career in industry and government, Dr. Rogers has held positions in human resources management, strategic planning, and international market development with a number of organizations. D. Rogers’ research and consulting focuses on the challenges facing organizations as they expand their operations to new markets and seek to leverage their competencies in the global economy. This work includes a pioneering leverage buy-out of a Mexican direct marketing firm (Betterware de Mexico, S. A. de C. V.in which he represented the primary investor, Actis Capital Partners, a London based private equity investor, as non-executive chairman of the acquired firm.  

Paul Roege
Senior Advisor, Energy Programs, US Army Materiel Command

Mr. Roege provides strategic leadership with respect to energy and resilience to the Army’s major command responsible for materiel readiness, which includes Army installations, supply chain, and industrial production. He integrates diverse considerations of military missions and relationships, climate, economics, and technologies into the framework of readiness and resilience in order to inform metrics, plans, and implementation.

Paul has led technology-based research, engineering, and construction projects and organizations for over 40 years. As an active and reserve US Army engineer officer, he managed construction programs in Europe, Asia, Africa and Central America, including reconstruction of Iraqi oil production systems in 2003. He led development of the Army’s operational energy doctrine and catalyzed adoption of resilience as a focus within DoD. As a DARPA program manager, he initiated a program to build a small transportable nuclear reactor for military use.  In his civilian career, Colonel Roege led engineering and nuclear safety activities in nuclear fuel cycle, waste management, and infrastructure systems on Department of Energy sites.

Paul is a registered professional engineer and a West Point alumnus with graduate degrees from Boston University (Business) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Nuclear Engineering).

Josh Campbell
Executive Director, Missouri Energy Initiative

Josh Campbell, executive director of MEI, a Missouri 501c3, received his B.A. from Saint Louis University and his law degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law. Josh has twenty years of experience building and managing nonprofit organizations, many in energy and environmental fields, where he developed many successful diverse statewide coalitions.

Josh has worked with all levels of state government on a variety of legislative and regulatory issues. Josh’s experience demonstrates the capacity and interest in strategic planning and problem solving.  Josh manages MEI and its board of more than 30 leading Missouri based organizations, including its major universities. In 2015, Josh launched the Show Me PACE Clean Energy District in Missouri and has recently added the administration of St. Louis City and St. Louis County CEDB. This work has resulted in more than $500M in economic impact to Missouri.   Josh has presented and consulted on the development of PACE for nearly a dozen states. Josh works to support PACE in underserved markets and facilitate best practices throughout the industry. Josh was the recipient of the PACE Nation PACESetter Award in 2020.

Dr. Muthanna Al-Dahhan
Laufer Endowed Energy Chair and Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Missouri S&T

Dr. Muthanna Al-Dahhan is Curators’ Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering and Nuclear Engineering, and Laufer Endowed Energy Chair at Missouri University of Science and Technology. He is the former chair of the Chemical and Biochemical Engineering department (January 2009 – June 2019), an AIChE Fellow, and ABET Program Evaluator. He is an affiliated Professor with Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in Morocco.

Dr. Al-Dahhan has received many national and international awards and recognitions, including from students and coworkers who worked under his supervision. He has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles and given 55 plenary and keynote lectures, 160 invited talks and 500 conference presentations. Dr. Al-Dahhan has served as a consultant and expert for various domestic and international organizations. Recently, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Washington University’s Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering Department.

Dr. Fatih Dogan
Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, Missouri S&T

Fatih Dogan is Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, and Director of the Center for Research in Energy and Environment.  Professor Dogan holds MS and PhD degrees from Technical University of Berlin, Germany. His research interest encompasses “Energy Materials” including high temperature superconductors, dielectrics for high energy density capacitors and solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC). His research experience covers processing, microstructure and property relationships of ceramic materials, most recently nanostructured dielectrics for development of multilayer ceramic capacitors and nanostructured catalysts for redox stable SOFCs and hydrogen technologies.  He has published over 150 peer reviewed publications and holds 10 US patents. Prof. Dogan is a Fellow of the American Ceramic Society.

Dr. Joseph W. Newkirk
Department Chair and Professor of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Science, Missouri S&T

Joseph W. Newkirk is the Founding Chair of the Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Science Department at Missouri S&T. He is a Fellow of ASM International and Alpha Sigma Mu. He has been inducted into Sigma Xi, Sigma Pi Sigma, and Keramos honor societies. His education includes a BS (1977) and MS (1979) in Physics from Miami University and a PhD (1983) in Materials Science from the University of Virginia. He holds research positions in the Center for Advanced Manufacturing Technology and the Graduate Center for Materials Research. Research interests include metal additive manufacturing, wear and corrosion resistant alloys, high temperature materials, and nuclear materials. Prior to joining Missouri S&T he was a Research Scientist in the Major Analytical Instrumentation Center at the University of Florida (1983-1987) and a Research Engineer at the Homer Research Laboratories of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation (1981-1983). He has over 200 technical papers and been awarded two US Patents. He edited six books and contributed eight chapters to other technical handbooks and publications.

Dr. Jamal Chaouki
Professor, Polytechnic de Montreal

Prof. Chaouki is full professor from 1995 at Polytechnique, Montréal. He is affiliated professor at UM6P where he is spending his sabbatical right now. He has supervised 53 PDFs, 50 PhDs and 43 Masters. He published more than 450 articles in refereed journals and more than 320 in different reviewed proceedings and more than 450 other scientific articles and edited 34 books. He has 42 patents on different processes. He is member of the Canadian Academy of Engineering. He received many awards. He received the R.S. Jane Memorial Award in 2018 for an exceptional achievement to the field of chemical engineering or industrial chemistry in Canada and last year the “Excellence in Research and Innovation Awards” at Polytechnique. This year he will receive the SCI Kalev Pugi Award and Honoris Genius 2021 Innovation from OIQ. He has co-chaired 10 International Conferences including the 8^th WCCE 2009 where he has acted as technical director, he was also member of the 10^th WCCE 2017 and he was the president of the Fluidization 15^th Int. Conf. He is now supervising 44 researchers (22 PhDs, 15 PDFs, 1MScA, 4 research associates and 2 researcher). He is a member of the Board of Polytechnique and several companies. He is world-renowned consultant for at least 20 national and international companies. He is internationally recognized for his skills in process development and scale-up. He has created 6 start-ups with his students (the last are Pyrowave, Ecolomondo, RMTech and PyroCycle). He is Principal Chaire Holder of Total Group in hydrodynamic modeling of multiphase processes at extreme conditions and Joined Laboratory with OCP-UM6P. His work is mainly dedicaded to develop processes from waste, biomass and complex feedstocks to heat & power, fuels and chemicals.

Dr. Youssef Belmabkhout
Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Mohammed VI Polytechnic University

Dr Youssef Belmabkhout is a Professor in Chemistry and Chemical Engineering for Energy and Environment at Mohammed VI polytechnic University. He holds a PhD in applied sciences from the University of Mons (Belgium). His doctoral expertise covers various aspects of reactive and non-reactive adsorption. He holds also a Chemical Engineering degree (oil and gas technologies) from the “Gubkine” Russian State University of oil and gas in Moscow (Russia).

Prior to his appointment as a professor at UM6P, Dr Belmabkhout occupied a position of Senior researcher at KAUST.  From 2007 to 2010, he occupied a research associate position in the department of chemistry at UOttawa and at ICPET-NRC (Ottawa, Canada). He also spent 1.5 year in the prestigious French Institute of Petroleum (IFP) in Lyon, France from 2006 to 2007.  During his research career, Dr Belmabkhout was awarded the prestigious European Marie–Curie fellowship and Natural Sciences and NSERC Research fellowship. In 2018, he was honored with the Young African Researchers Award by ASRT(Egypt). The award recognizes his research in the water-energy-environmental sciences. Dr Belmabkhout has published more than 100 papers, he is the main inventor in more than 15 application patents and his research works accumulated more to 18000 citations. Prof Y.Belmabkhout was recognized among the 1% most highly cited scientists in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 based on Web of science “Clarivate”.

Dr. Rusi Taleyarkhan
Professor of Nuclear Engineering, Purdue University

Rusi Taleyarkhan received his B.Tech. in Mech. Engr. in 1977 from the Indian Institute of Technology followed with an Masters in Business Administration (MBA) and Ph.D in Nuclear Engineering by 1982 from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has since worked as Senior Engineer with Westinghouse Electric. Corp. through 1988 after which he spent over 17 years where he was Program Director and Distinguished R&D Staff at DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory conducting and leading energy, defense and energy related projects – both classified and unclassified. He joined Purdue University in 2003 as Professor of Nuclear Engineering where he teaches and advises on student research related to: nuclear energy-safety, combating nuclear terrorism, thermonuclear fusion energy, materials synthesis, green-chemistry based coatings and adhesives tailored via radiation polymerization, novel metastable state-based nuclear particle sensors for homes (e.g., Radon monitors), environmental assessments, and for nuclear power plants, explosive burst-based hydrogen production / super-cooled powders, and cavitation prevention in fluid systems. He has consulted extensively, published over 200 articles in the archival literatures, and has received over 25 invention awards besides numerous industry, academic and govt. recognitions. He is Fellow of the American Nuclear Society, Honorary Fellow of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Associate Editor of J. Nucl. Engr. & Radiation Sciences, past Editor of Nuclear Safety, and member of several professional societies. From 2012 to 2018 he served as Chief Technology Officer of Sagamore Adams Laboratories, LLC.