New Jersey Community Clean Energy Aggregation

About

Cooling America thru Local Leadership (CALL), a NJ-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is currently the only group advocating for Community Clean Energy Aggregation™ in New Jersey, and has developed an in-depth expertise in implementing CCEA systems for counties and municipalities. CALL was started in 2007 by Stefano Crema, Steven Humphreys, Bob Hronsky, and Jonathan Cloud (Mr. Humphreys has since resigned from the group); in addition, Zaheer Jan has recently been elected to the Board, and Rob Benjamin has been added to the team.

Its goal is to assist counties and municipalities to take concrete steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to promote clean energy alternatives, and to engage citizens in the fight against global warming.

Directors and Officers:

Stefano Crema, Ph.D.

Dr. Crema has a doctorate in Chemistry from Monash University. He worked for over 25 years at BASF, the largest global chemical company, as a researcher and later in various marketing functions, rising to the level of Business Director.

Since his retirement, Dr. Crema has been involved in the conduction of programs involving municipalities in initiatives to reduce their energy consumption, optimize their operation and reduce greenhouse gases.

He was principally responsible for developing the Sierra Club’s Cool Cities program in Northern and Central New Jersey.

Jonathan Cloud, Chairman, Sustainable Business Incubator, Center for Leadership in Sustainability

Jonathan Cloud is a lifelong environmentalist, community organizer, and entrepreneur. An early pioneer in passive-solar design and construction in Canada in the 1970s and 80s, as well as an environmental community activist, he received a UN Environment Award in 1985, in recognition of his work in renewable energy, conservation, and appropriate technology.

His career has spanned journalism, politics, invention, housing design and construction, database, software, and Internet development, financial services, networking, nonprofits, network marketing, and sustainable business development.

He has lived in over a dozen countries, spoken several languages, and published articles and translations. His passion, however, is human transformation and empowerment in the broadest sense. He was a longtime volunteer and IFLP Leader with Landmark Education, a university lecturer, a Millionaire Mind graduate, and the founder of a successful local business network in one of the wealthiest areas in the U.S.

His current focus is on developing the ISE’s Sustainable Business Incubator, which will assist entrepreneurs with start-up ventures in renewable energy, CO2 reduction, and other environmental technologies, as well as with emerging business models involving carbon trading, sustainability consulting, and sustainable social enterprises.

Zaheer Jan, P.E.

Zaheer Jan is an independent energy & oil/gas consultant with expertise in Value Engineering.

Zaheer has served as:

• Manager of Pipeline Engineering on the $24.0 billion Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System
• A Consultant and Expert Witness for the State of Alaska in its $2.0 billion oil transportation tariff case with Alyeska Pipeline Company
• A Consultant to PEMEX, of Mexico
• A Consultant to Occidental Oil of Pakistan

He graduated with Honors in Petroleum Engineering from the Imperial College of Science & Technology, London, U.K.

After graduating from ICS&T Zaheer worked as a Production/Field Development Engineer for Attock Oil Company, Pakistan.
Prior to moving from Pakistan in 1971,  he was serving as Deputy Chief Engineer for Pakistan’s largest natural gas transmission company.

Associates and Advisors:

Debra A. Italiano, Merintra Co., LLC

Debra A. Italiano, Merintra Co., LLC

Ms. Debra Italiano is Managing Principal of Merintra Co., LLC, a strategic business and market development consulting firm that she founded in 2003.  Prior to founding Merintra she spent 15 years on Wall Street leading large scale change initiatives related to governance and strategy alignment for both Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan Chase.  Her program management responsibilities also included new product development, market roll-outs and operational infrastructure implementations to support business strategy.

Debra now works with green economy clients to build their business and brand equity through sustainability measures, value creation and hi-impact collaborative enterprise initiatives.  She also offers allied merchant banking, public and philanthropic finance advisory services to facilitate capitalization requirements associated with Community Green Infrastructure development and is working on sustainable funding strategies for Regional Food System initiatives.

Debra is the Education Chair for two community organizations 1) Green Collar Futures www.greencollarfutures.org, a not-for-profit focused on green jobs development for youth and for which she is also an active board member and 2) Washington Park Association of Hudson County NJ www.wpanj.org, a 501c3 parks conservancy group in Jersey City where she resides; she is also their Chief Sustainability Advisor.  Working with key collaborators and through her affiliations with the Ramapo College Master’s in Sustainability Program, The Cloud Institute, the Association of NJ Environmental Commissions and the Sustainable Jersey municipal certification program, she is convening an action agenda for Community Sustainability Education in Jersey City.

Other community engagements include co-founding ‘Tasting Change’ a NYC based Sustainable Food Systems Collaboratory – now known as The Neighborhood Project, acting as strategic advisor to Cooling America thru Local Leadership (CALL), a NJ-based 501c3 municipal energy aggregation program initiative (www.njccea.org ) and working with the Sustainable Business Incubator, one of three green business incubators in NJ, to catalyze economic opportunities through innovation via community development-meets-social enterprisehttp://sustainablebusinessincubator.com/

Ms. Italiano is a USGBC LEED Accredited Professional and uses whole systems thinking and Permaculture design metaphors to facilitate interdisciplinary groups and collaborative forums for her clients and community.  She received her BS from Pace University in New York City.

She can be reached via email – debra@merintra.com or phone @ 917-447-9839.

Robert Benjamin, M.A; ISE Fellow; Founder, Sustainable Hamilton

Mr. Benjamin is a writer, consultant, and business coach.

B.A., Queens College, City University of New York; M.A. New School for Social Research; Certificate in Managing Technological Change, Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie-Mellon University.

Rob Benjamin has performed and led business and technology improvement projects for over 30 years, as a consultant, team leader, practice director, and independent professional.  Certified by ISACA (formerly the Information Systems Audit and Control Association) in Governance of Enterprise Information Technology Mr. Benjamin specializes in business and technology governance, and related functions.

As a business and technology consultant and practice leader, he has experience in several industries, where he

• developed and improved control process frameworks
• performed strategic audits and problem-solving projects
• planned and led strategic quality and risk management projects

He has also been an environmental activist since 1968, organizing and supporting community groups, writing and editing newsletters and articles, and developing the first release of the Municipal Climate Action Plan for Hamilton Township, New Jersey.  He is a member of the Hamilton Township Environmental Commission and participating in redevelopment of the Hamilton Master Plan.  In 2009, he founded Sustainable Hamilton and works with other Sustainable Community organizations in Central New Jersey on inter-local sustainability planning initiatives.