Speakers

Bio

Dr. Maria Teresa M. Fajardo is a full-time faculty member of the Department of Science Education of the College of Science and Technology Education of the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines (USTP) Cagayan de Oro City Campus for the last 15 years. She served the university in various capacities including Program Chairperson, Accreditation Task Force Chair, and at present, as Director of the Extension and Community Relations Division and GAD (Gender and Development) Focal Person. She strategically connects USTP to various communities and organizations for sustainable projects for human and economic development. She is an active researcher with publications in international, ISI and Scopus Indexed Journals. She also has a number of externally and institutionally funded research and extension projects.
A mother of two young men, she is a firm believer in women's empowerment, having been an engineer with industry experience of seven years.

Bio

Fritzie Vergel is driving the activities of the UNOPS Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership (ETP) in the Philippines as Country Program Coordinator. ETP is a regional program that supports governments achieve their clean energy targets and accelerate the transition to low-carbon energy systems. In the Philippines, ETP promotes energy efficiency through the Energy Efficiency Innovation Window (EEIW) and through a Demand Side Management technical assistance project. ETP also supports offshore wind sector development, enhancing energy regulations, and battery energy storage system market mechanisms. Fritzie has over ten years of experience working on clean energy policies, financing, capacity building, and energy access. Prior to joining ETP, she was part of ADB's Sustainable Energy for All Initiative for Asia and the Pacific and has worked with USAID, and UNDP under the DREAMS Project.

Bio

Maria Goravanchi is a Managing Director at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation’s (DFC), formerly the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). As DFC’s regional representative based in Bangkok, she is responsible for business development in the Lower Mekong, specifically Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand. Ms. Goravanchi brings 15 years of private and public sector finance experience in underwriting, structuring and negotiating investments in emerging and frontier-market nations. She is focused on providing both financing and insurance solutions for long-term investments that strengthen DFC contributions to international development in sectors such as energy, infrastructure, and inclusive financial services. Prior to joining OPIC in 2008, she worked as a strategy consultant and project manager on cross-border transactions in emerging markets with IBM Business Consulting Services and Abt Associates. Ms. Goravanchi is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University.

Bio

Maria Goravanchi is a Managing Director at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation’s (DFC), formerly the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). As DFC’s regional representative based in Bangkok, she is responsible for business development in the Lower Mekong, specifically Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand. Ms. Goravanchi brings over 15 years of private and public sector finance experience in underwriting, structuring and negotiating investments in emerging and frontier-market nations. She is focused on providing both financing and insurance solutions for ong-term investments that strengthen DFC contributions to international development in sectors such as clean energy, infrastructure, and inclusive financial services. Prior to joining OPIC in 2008, she worked as a strategy consultant and project manager on cross-border transactions in emerging markets with IBM Business Consulting Services and Abt Associates. Ms. Goravanchi is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Georgetown University.

Bio

Maria leads E3G’s work on energy diplomacy, international development finance institutions and geopolitics to drive the sustainable and just transformation of the energy systems.

Maria works with policymakers, academia, civil society, international organizations and businesses to build diplomatic coalitions around the sustainable and socially equitable transition to low-carbon energy systems.

Before joining E3G, Maria worked at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) covering the geopolitical aspects of energy transition and EU energy diplomacy, as well as the EU/German-Russian energy relations. Starting in 2019, she also supported the work of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) on power grid connectivity for sustainable development in Northeast Asia in capacity of an International Consultant. Prior to that, she had worked with Foresight Intelligence, developing strategic foresight formats for a broad range of (geo)political issues.

Maria has a Master’s in political science from the Free University of Berlin and a Diploma in International Relations awarded by the Irkutsk State University (Russia). In her Bachelor, she studied Japanese Studies at the Free University of Berlin and Tsukuba University (Japan). Parallel to her work at E3G, she is writing her PhD on the political economy of energy transition in Northeast Asia.

She speaks English, German, Japanese and Russian.

Bio

Brenda brings more than 9 years of experience in entrepreneurship and innovation. She is currently the Philippines country manager for New Energy Nexus, a global non-profit organization that is committed to building equity in the global clean energy economy through innovation and entrepreneurship. Together with her team, they have numerous programs for ecosystem building and entrepreneur support with the goal to accelerate the rate of energy transition in the country. Prior to joining New Energy Nexus, Brenda has been working with over 200 entrepreneurs through the Philippines’ largest tech startup accelerator. She has a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship from the Philippines.

Bio

Marisna Yulianti (Nina) has professional experience in project management on issues of social inclusion, poverty alleviation, promotion and protection of the rights of vulnerable groups including women, children, elderly and people with disabilities (PWDs), women’s empowerment, gender equality, and young people’s sexuality and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) at national and regional level in Southeast Asia. She is knowledgeable and experienced in gender mainstreaming especially in education, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, natural resource management, transport, urban water and sanitation.

Bio

Project development officer with multiple years of experience in PPP project development from conceptualization to award. Civil engineer with a completed MS in Energy Engineering from the University of the Philippines

Bio

Mark Dunn is the Chief Party/Program Manager at Tetra Tech for the USAID Southeast Asia Enhancing Development and Growth through Energy (Asia EDGE) Hub activity, a role he has held since December 2019.

Prior to joining Tetra Tech, he was an independent consultant, based in Bangkok, specializing in the development of sustainable infrastructure throughout Southeast Asia. He provided policy advice, strategy and subject matter expertise to public and private sector clients in the transportation, clean and renewable energy, and information and communications technology sectors.

Mr. Dunn holds a BA in International Relations from Carleton College and an MA from American University in International Economic Policy.

Bio

Mark is Director of First Energy Asia Pacific.

Bio

After starting out in corporate finance, Mark specialized in energy efficiency almost 20 years ago and has become a leading advocate for expanded energy efficiency deployment. During that time he has been involved with EE industry advocacy in Australia, worked on grassroots projects in sub-Saharan Africa, and lectured in postgraduate sustainable energy courses. After a stint with ADB in the Philippines working to facilitate and scale up climate technology and energy efficiency investments in Asia-Pacific, Mark led the Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency, the global energy efficiency hub of Sustainable Energy for All that aims to double the rate of global energy efficiency improvement by 2030. In January 2020, Mark was appointed Chair of the Efficiency Valuation Organization (EVO). Mark has a Master’s Degree in Social Science (Environmental Policy) from RMIT University. He is based in Melbourne, Australia.

Bio

After starting out in corporate finance, Mark specialized in energy efficiency almost 20 years ago and has become a leading advocate for expanded energy efficiency deployment. During that time he has been involved with EE industry advocacy in Australia, worked on grassroots projects in sub-Saharan Africa, and lectured in postgraduate sustainable energy courses. After a stint with ADB in the Philippines working to facilitate and scale up climate technology and energy efficiency investments in Asia-Pacific, Mark led the Copenhagen Centre on Energy Efficiency, the global energy efficiency hub of Sustainable Energy for All that aims to double the rate of global energy efficiency improvement by 2030. In January 2020, Mark was appointed Chair of the Efficiency Valuation Organization (EVO). Mark has a Master’s Degree in Social Science (Environmental Policy) from RMIT University. He is based in Melbourne, Australia.