In each issue of The TXSES Report, we’ll feature a member of our esteemed TXSES Board of Directors.
The TXSES board of directors plays a critical role in our success, including setting our strategic direction, ensuring that we have the necessary resources to achieve our goals and that we are operating within legal and ethical guidelines. TXSES board members act as trustees of our assets and must exercise due diligence and oversight to ensure that TXSES is well-managed and that our financial status remains sound.
The TXSES Board consists of eight elected at-large members, one appointed member and a representative from each of our five regional chapters. Board members may remain on the board for one three-year extension if they elect to do so. You must be a current TXSES member to run for the TXSES board. To learn more about becoming a TXSES board member, click here.
For more than three decades, Laura’s career has focused on energy from a variety of public and private sector perspectives, including executive positions at Austin Energy, the California Power Authority, the California Public Utilities Commission, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and regional transmission authorities in Texas and California. A common thread throughout her work has been the promotion of energy efficiency and renewable energy and the development of infrastructure to support them.
“I joined TXSES because solar has been a fundamental interest of my career.”
At Austin Energy, she was instrumental in developing Austin’s first conservation and renewable energy plan that was integrated into long-range resource planning, a first for the City’s municipal utility. She served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), and Governor on the Board of the California Independent System Operator. (CAISO). Both organizations manage their state’s electric transmission grids with the critical responsibility for integrating renewable energy and demand response into the network.
Laura’s initial association with TXSES started in January 2022. “I joined TXSES because solar has been a fundamental interest of my career in energy, starting with Austin Energy (AE) in 1982 when we were looking to diversify generation resources away from coal, gas and nuclear,” she said. “John Hoffner, former AE solar program director, taught me the basics and we worked together to help Austin become a leader in both utility-scale and distributed installations nearly 30 years ago. Those efforts look somewhat primitive in hindsight, but they helped Austin move forward toward a greener portfolio.”
After her work with Austin Energy, Doll’s career went in many directions, including work in California government and service on the Board of ERCOT (Electric Reliability Council of Texas), where she was able to participate in policy developments to help accelerate renewable energy. In August 2023 alone, ERCOT made six calls for voluntary conservation as it navigates the precarious balance between supply and demand. Given the constant concern for grid reliability, Laura’s experience with ERCOT couldn’t be more timely.
“Today we face new challenges that are of very serious concern to the future of the industry and to consumer access to solar,” said Doll. “I hope in some way to be able to draw on my experience at a variety of institutions and two states to help TXSES chart a successful path forward.”
If we learn anything from the summer of 2023, it’s that we must take bold steps to aggressively deploy energy efficiency and renewable energy resources. Rather than investing billions in state dollars for new gas-fired generation, Texas must invest in demand-side solutions that can help reduce stress on the grid and reduce customer’s monthly electric bills.
“It’s a tough time, but the fundamental resource is strong, and I believe Texans will demand fair tools to take advantage of it.”
In each issue of The TXSES Report, we’ll feature a member of our esteemed TXSES Board of Directors. In the August 10, 2023 issue, we introduce you to Dr. Ariane Beck, Chair of the TXSES Board.
The TXSES board of directors plays a critical role in our success, including setting our strategic direction, ensuring that we have the necessary resources to achieve our goals and that we are operating within legal and ethical guidelines. TXSES board members act as trustees of our assets and must exercise due diligence and oversight to ensure that TXSES is well-managed and that our financial status remains sound.
The TXSES Board consists of eight elected at-large members, one appointed member and a representative from each of our five regional chapters. Board members may remain on the board for one three-year extension if they elect to do so. You must be a current TXSES member to run for the TXSES board. To learn more about becoming a TXSES board member, click here.
Dr. Ariane Beck, research fellow in Energy Systems Transformation at the University of Texas at Austin, is the chair of the TXSES Board of Directors. She joined the board in 2021, then became vice-chair in 2022 before becoming chair in January 2023. Ariane studies how interactions between the underlying social, behavioral, economic and technological components of the energy system impact the diffusion of residential clean energy technologies and how information channels can accelerate the diffusion process. She received her Ph.D., MS, and BS in Electrical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin, with a research focus on optoelectronics and wide-bandgap semiconductors.
Having managed more than $25 million in U.S. Department of Energy EERE projects throughout her career, Ariane has spent nearly two decades studying novel and innovative technologies, first as a semiconductor device engineer, then through smart grid demonstration and research management and currently through a policy and innovation diffusion lens. She has more than 40 peer-reviewed papers and conference proceedings and formerly served as the Assistant Department Chair for the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at The University of Texas at Austin.
“Our goal is to be inclusive and expansive, making sure everyone has access to affordable solar.”
Ariane began working with TXSES in 2015 while she was a research fellow at UT’s LBJ School. “We worked with Larry Howe from the North Texas Renewable Energy Group on a gamification research project for solar education,” she said. “It was a really good collaboration and we were excited to find a group that could help us bridge the gap between research and practice.”
Ariane’s next connection with TXSES focused on understanding the barriers to community solar. “We invited TXSES to participate in our Community Solar Roadmap meeting,” she said. “The outcomes of that meeting were included in our report, Scaling Community Solar in Texas. Pete Parsons, TXSES’s executive director, was in attendance and reached out to discuss community solar and the work TXSES was doing. That was in February of 2020, and I’ve been working with TXSES ever since.”
Ariane found TXSES to be open to moving research into practice and how TXSES was expanding its scope beyond just educating homeowners about rooftop solar. “They were reaching out to builders and solar installers for community solar, developing resources for solar workforce training and expanding their educational mission to understanding how local, utility and state policies impact solar businesses and homeowners,” she said.
Ariane has seen first-hand that TXSES is a coalition of everyone whose lives are benefitting from solar. “We don’t just focus on the big players,” she said. “Our goal is to be inclusive and expansive, making sure everyone has access to affordable solar.”
For 30 years, under the skilled leadership of Dr. Lehman Marks, the Solar Car Challenge has motivated students in science, engineering and alternative energy awareness. The Challenge teaches high school students around the world how to build and race roadworthy solar cars.
Of this year’s 20 teams, 10 are from Texas. Teams are also from Arkansas, California, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Oregon and Wisconsin. Teams check in on July 12, followed by three days of scrutineering to ensure all cars are eligible to race.
Teams begin preparation for the race during education workshops in fall of the previous year. Additional workshops, on-site visits, mentor opportunities and summer camps help propel the projects to success. After qualifying for this year’s event, teams will drive their solar cars cross-country from Texas to California displaying their vehicles to thousands along the race course.
The 2023 Race will feature the Cruiser, a new racing division featuring a four-door vehicle with the solar array embedded in the body of the car, bringing “realism” to solar car racing.
Qualifying: Thursday-Saturday, July 13-15, 2023 at the Texas Motor Speedway. Purpose?
This year, the 925-mile race event, hosted by Oncor and Lockheed Martin, starts on July 16 in Fort Worth and ends a week later on July 23 in Palmdale, California.
Thursday-Saturday, July 13-15, 2023 at the Texas Motor Speedway
Thanks to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Renew America’s Schools grant program, the Austin Independent School District (AISD) will install solar panels on 16 campuses to build more energy-efficient infrastructure at its facilities.
The project, which could cost up to $15 million, is meant to reduce costs, lower the district’s carbon footprint and educate students on energy efficiency.
The Austin district was one of 24 districts nationwide – and the only one in Texas – to receive an energy grant, according to the federal government.
On June 25, solar power generation hit more than 1,300 megawatts setting a new all-time record.
ERCOT reports show an all-time record for renewable energy generation on June 28, 2023. This is after solar power generation alone set a new record three days prior.
