NCSEA Staff

Ivan Urlaub, Executive Director
Since 2005, Ivan Urlaub has led the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, working to ensure a sustainable future by promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency in North Carolina through education, public policy and economic development.  Ivan brings thirteen plus years of state, U.S. and international experience in resolving policy, finance, communications, and economic challenges to the sustainable provision and use of energy and water.  Ivan’s personal goal is to find win-win solutions with industry, utilities and customers that make the use of sustainable energy solutions accessible and affordable for all energy consumers in North Carolina and the Southeast. Doubling the size of the NC Sustainable Energy Association’s budget and staff every one and one-half years, Ivan has led the NC Sustainable Energy Association's success in passing more than 70 energy bills into law and winning dozens of key regulatory decisions, making advanced energy solutions more affordable and accessible for all North Carolina rate payers.  The NC Sustainable Energy Association has become the go-to organization for market-based policy and market intelligence on North Carolina’s rapidly growing advanced energy industries. Ivan holds a Master of Public Policy from the Terry Sanford Institute as well as a Master of Environmental Management from the Nicholas School at Duke University.

Michael Youth,  Counsel and Policy Director
Michael Youth received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  For almost seven years, he served as an Assistant Attorney General, providing counsel and representation to the North Carolina Department of Revenue.  In 2012, Michael earned an M.S. in Forestry and Environmental Resources Policy and Administration from North Carolina State University.  He joined the NC Sustainable Energy Association at the end of 2011.

Kathleen Fleming, Director of Human Resources and Outreach
Kathleen Fleming brings over 20 years of human resources and over five years of communications experience to the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association. Prior to coming to the NC Sustainable Energy Association, she served as the Director of Human Resources and Communications at a pharmacovigilance company in the Research Triangle and as the Senior Manager of Human Resources at a biotechnology company.  At the NC Sustainable Energy Association, she oversees the strategy of communications, membership, outreach and human resources. She leads the outreach in an effort to provide timely and effective communications as well as to grow and sustain the NC Sustainable Energy Association's membership and sponsorship base. In her role, she promotes the NC Sustainable Energy Association's value among renewable energy and energy efficiency businesses and the public. She also coordinates the NC Sustainable Energy Association's educational and training events, networking receptions and the annual conference among other programs.

Betsy McCorkle, Director of Government Affairs
Betsy directs the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association's governmental affairs work.  As a registered lobbyist, she works with legislators, state and local government officials, state agencies, and allied organizations to educate them on clean energy issues to ensure passage of the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association's legislative agenda.  Previously, Betsy managed the North Carolina Solar Center’s Economic Development Program, delivering client-based services to businesses and organizations engaging in the renewable energy industry in North Carolina.  Betsy received a Master Degree in Environmental Management from Duke University, and she holds a Bachelor Degree in Environmental Economics from the University of Georgia, where she graduated magna cum laude.  Betsy was the 2012 Recipient of the J.W. Fanning Distinguished Young Professional Award, she is a member of the Natural Capital Investment Fund Advisory Committee and the NC Economic Developers Association.

Lowell Sachs, Director of Communications
Lowell Sachs brings a wealth of experience designing and executing strategic, high-level communications to his role as Director of Communications for the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association. A lawyer by education and training, Lowell developed a knack early in his career for applying rigorous critical analysis skills to the public policy arena. He has since spent nearly two decades harnessing the power of targeted messaging and the well-told tale to advance the causes of progressive corporations, government offices, and formative public issues. A veteran of campaigns in both the private and public sectors, Lowell now helps NCSEA advance goals critical to North Carolina by finding new ways to share the timely and compelling story of what a healthy market for clean energy business and technology can do for the region’s economy, jobs, energy security, and environment. Prior to joining NCSEA Lowell served as a contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy providing high-level communication, strategic planning and partnership development expertise intended to highlight major accomplishments of the agency, build public awareness of its mission, and cultivate broad support for its major initiatives. Working at the intersection of science, business, and public policy, Lowell’s contributions helped accelerate research, development and deployment for some of the nation’s most promising clean energy technologies as an essential ingredient to boosteconomic growth for America's manufacturing and industrial sectors.Before his time as an analyst and advocate for clean energy causes, Lowell spent over a decade at Sun Microsystems, one of the IT sector’s pioneers in the area of enterprise-level computing. There, as Senior Manager for Federal Government Affairs, he spearheaded the company’s engagement on a host of public policy issues that would go on to help shape e-commerce and safeguard innovation as an engine of growth for the Internet. Among his areas of focus, Lowell supported the company’s effort to push the envelope on energy efficient IT products and services for its customers while reducing its own carbon emissions and energy costs. Lowell earned a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law where he served on the Virginia Environmental Law Journal and received his B.A. in Government from Cornell University.

Mike Davis, Charlotte Regional Manager
Mike Davis represents the Charlotte region where he serves as the contact for current members and strives to build the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association’s network by educating and recruiting new members. He serves as a voice for the NC Sustainable Energy Association at critical meetings, events and presentations and offers insight into the policy and market trends he finds within the community.  In addition to renewable energy, Mike has expertise in sustainable building practices, urban development and historic preservation. Prior to joining the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, he was the Charlotte Business Manager for Southern Energy Management where he served as a representative with various organizations such as the USGBC, Habitat for Humanity, the Charlotte Homebuilders Association and the Building Owners and Managers Association. He is also a member of the Charlotte USGBC’s Legislative Advocacy Group.  Mike holds a Master of Media Arts from the University of South Carolina and a B.A. from Winthrop University where he majored in Political Science and had a minor in Business Administration. He is an accredited USGBC LEED® Green Associate, and is also an NC Licensed General Contractor and an NC Licensed Real Estate Broker.  He is on the Advisory Committee of the Central Piedmont Community College Sustainability Program, and serves on the Residential Subcommittee of the US Green Building Council and the Sustainability Committee for the Charlotte Chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

Victoria Somol, Marketing and Communications Specialist
Victoria Somol assists the Communications Director in determining effective marketing campaigns as well as creating other marketing materials such as brochures, press releases, eNews, surveys, etc.   She is also the web administrator and a primary point of contact for social media. Victoria has over ten years of experience in property management, marketing, event coordination and residential and community relations.  Prior to joining the NC Sustainable Energy Association, Victoria was a Marketing and Event Coordinator in New Jersey. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management and Marketing from The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale and an Associate’s Degree in Specialized Business from the Art Institute of Philadelphia.

Jim Kennerly, Regulatory & Policy Analyst
As NCSEA’s Regulatory & Policy Analyst, Jim is primarily responsible for the evaluation of existing and proposed policies intended to maintain and/or expand access to affordable clean energy in North Carolina. Jim also serves as our energy efficiency, demand-side management and regulated utility subject matter expert. As a regulatory analyst, Jim monitors and analyzes utility filings at North Carolina Utilities Commission that pertain to issues of concern for our membership. He has also given expert testimony on behalf of the organization at the Commission, and is a recent graduate of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) Utility Rate School. Prior to joining us, Jim worked for ICF International, serving as a management consultant to EPA’s ENERGY STAR^® program efforts in Washington, DC. He holds a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Texas at Austin and a B.A. with Honors in Politics from Oberlin College.

Miriam Makhyoun, Clean Energy Industry Specialist
Miriam Makhyoun is the Clean Energy Industry Specialist for the NC Sustainable Energy Association, where she works fluidly with the NC Sustainable Energy Association’s public policy and market intelligence experts to facilitate solar and renewable energy industry growth and development. At the NC Sustainable Energy Association, Makhyoun offers technical assistance to other Southeast states and consults individuals and businesses interested in the adoption or promotion of renewable energy. She was the principal author of the NC Sustainable Energy Association’s Levelized Cost of Solar Photovoltaics in North Carolina and is currently acting as project lead for both the State Energy Sector Partnership Asset Mapping Contract for Work Force Development and the UNC-Chapel Hill Consumer Survey of solar electric and geothermal system adopters.  Miriam holds a Master of Science in Technology with a concentration in Appropriate Technology, a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Sustainable Business, a B.S. in International and Comparative Politics and a B.A. in French from Appalachian State University. She is fluent in French and also speaks Spanish.

Christine Hill, Database and GIS Management Specialist
Christine manages the geospatial data and databases that support the NC Sustainable Energy Association’s policy initiatives, outreach, education, and research. She compiles, designs, and maintains databases relating to North Carolina’s renewable energy industries and capacity. She also conducts geospatial analyses and develops maps of the renewable energy system locations and potential across North Carolina. Her experience in geographic information systems (GIS) and database management spans over 16 years and was gained at the local, state and international levels. Christine brings skills from architecture, urban planning and infrastructure, marketing, and natural resources to support the NC Sustainable Energy Association’s efforts.

Keeley Boggs, Community Relations Specialist & Policy Liaison
Keeley serves as the Community Relations Specialist & Policy Liaison for the Eastern North Carolina region.  Keeley spent a decade as a community resource and support specialist for a Mental Health organization. Keeley is a humanitarian by nature with a passion for education and environment. She spent two years studying at Cape Fear Community College, achieving an Associates of Applied Science in Sustainability Technologies. Throughout her studies, she performed home and commercial energy audits, blower door testing, duct leakage testing as well as total home air leakage testing. In addition, she became skilled with several energy software programs and performance tools such as Google Sketch Up, REScheck, REMrate, RETscreen, and PV Watts. She also performed complete site analysis and determined most viable alternative energy sources based on environment, energy consumption, and appropriately sized equipment and hardware. Keeley was also able to gain insight of energy codes, tax credits, incentive programs, subsidies and rate schedules. Her emphasis is to strengthen the community and state of North Carolina by bringing awareness to the advantages and possibilities of renewable energy resources.

Dotti Prince, Part Time Administrative Assistant
Dotti Prince also came to the NC Sustainable Energy Association as one of our valued volunteers.  In August of 2011, she joined our staff as our Administrative Assistant. She has been valuable in organizing our offices, literature and administrative workload.  She does our membership mailings as well as research and inputting of data.  Dotti maintains our membership and donor databases. At the Board of Directors’ meetings, she takes and publishes the minutes. She is our go-to person for special projects. She graduated from the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School in Montclair, New Jersey.

Julie Robinson, NC Sustainable Energy Association Contract Lobbyist
Julie acts as a consulting lobbyist on behalf of the NC Sustainable Energy Association.  She represents the NC Sustainable Energy Association before the North Carolina General Assembly and consults with the NC Sustainable Energy Association on political and policy issues, including on legislative implications of issues before the North Carolina Utilities Commission.  Julie brings fourteen plus years of state and U.S. experience in Policy, and Government Affairs.  Julie is a subject matter expert in Government Affairs and High Performance Building Energy Efficiency.  As a registered lobbyist, Julie works directly with legislators to educate them on various clean energy issues to ensure passage of North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association’s legislative agenda.  She also coordinates North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association’s Lobby Days and in-district meetings between legislators and clean energy business leaders and advocates, as well as building and strengthening coalitions among state and local government officials, state agencies, and partner organizations. Julie has worked in the Speaker's office at the NC General Assembly and for U.S. House Minority Leaders Nancy Pelosi (CA) and Dick Gephardt (MO), U.S. Senator Max Cleland (GA) and U.S. House of Representative’s Jim Turner (TX) in Washington, DC.  Julie holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism (Public Relations) and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.