To sustain a regional framework that creates awareness, breaks down barriers and coordinates access to resources in order to drive mainstream action for energy savings

RREA’s start-up capital comes from a $350K grant from the Department of Energy’s 2010 Grant for Competitive Awards for State Energy Efficiency Projects. In addition, RREA has been accepted into the Carbon War Room’s Green Capital Global Challenge. An important goal for RREA is to establish a market-centric, self-sustaining approach that realizes greater outcomes than traditional grant-based approaches.

RREA incorporated as a nonprofit in 2010 under the Elder Homes organization.

RREA will work directly with property owners as well as stakeholders in government, business, and other nonprofits to create direct benefits for homeowners, local jobs and a sustainable energy future for our community.

RREA will facilitate the use of energy audits to determine retrofit opportunities and work with appropriate partners to ensure that the resources are available to provide retrofit services at the targeted scale. RREA will also work with appropriate partners to ensure the availability of financing for retrofits, ultimately using market mechanisms to ensure sustainability of the pipeline of debt capital required to reach the targeted market penetration. RREA will provide an integrated, multi-channel marketing campaign to drive consumer interest in the program and overcome the barriers to adoption. In addition, RREA will manage verification and monitoring processes to ensure energy efficiency initiatives are realized by property owners.

Bill Greenleaf serves as the Executive Director of RREA. He serves on the board of the Local Energy Alliance Program in Charlottesville and the Capital Region Land Conservancy in Richmond. He formerly was the COO of William McDonough and Partners, a leading architecture and consulting firm specializing in sustainable design. Prior to his role with William McDonough and Partners, Mr. Greenleaf worked in commercial real estate finance for a variety of financial institutions. He served on the Governor of Virginia’s Commission on Climate Change in 2008 and the Governor’s Energy Policy Advisory Council in 2009. Mr. Greenleaf received his BA in Economics from Skidmore College and his MBA from Indiana University.

Stephen Evanko leads Capital One’s Environmental Sustainability Office and is responsible for the company’s sustainability strategy. Working in partnership with senior leaders, Mr. Evanko manages progress against the company’s greenhouse gas emissions and environmental goals, oversees external partnerships, implements environmental projects, leads associate engagement programs and communicates company progress. Prior to joining Capital One, he worked as a Consultant for Boston Consulting Group and Senior Systems Engineer for Essex Corporation. He holds a Master's degree in Physics from the University of Maryland and MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden Business School.

As the first Sustainability Manager for the City of Richmond, Alicia Zatcoff has the challenging task of developing and implementing a complex and city-wide Sustainability and Energy Management Program. Her focus is to create initiatives that support the sustainability priorities for Richmond: an improved quality of life for residents, a healthy environment and enhanced economic development and job creation opportunities. Alicia is a LEED Accredited Professional and she has over twelve years of local government experience. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Virginia and her Juris Doctor from the T.C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond. In addition to serving as the Vice Chairman of the Richmond Region Energy Alliance, she is a member of the Urban Sustainability Directors Network and the James River Green Building Council.

Art Bowen serves as Managing Director of Finance & Administration with the Virginia Housing Development Authority. He is responsible for all VHDA financial operations including bond issuance, treasury management, accounting, budget, as well as procurement and facilities management. He joined VHDA in December 2000. Before joining VHDA, Art worked for the Commonwealth of Virginia in various capacities including Deputy State Treasurer and Director of Debt Management. Art is a native of Charlottesville, Virginia. He holds a BS in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Marion Cake is the Director of Real Estate Development for the Lifetime Homes division of Elderhomes. Marion’s work at Lifetime Homes centers around residential infill development within existing neighborhoods through renovation, the adaptive re-use of existing buildings and new construction. Marion is also responsible for the research and implementation of construction techniques that maximize energy efficiency in Lifetime Homes’ renovation and new construction developments. Marion is a certified HERS rater and holds a Housing Development Finance certification from the National Development Council and a B.S. degree from Randolph Macon College.

Paul Braese is the Energy Manager at Chesterfield County. Paul has degree in Mechanical Engineering from Clemson University, and has worked 25 years in Facilities Management and Energy Management with an emphasis in energy and water efficiency, digital controls, building recommissioning, and the construction and maintenance of LEED certified buildings. He has served as a Project Manager, Building Systems Engineer, Construction Project Coordinator, Director of Facilities Management and Energy Manager. He was project manager for the University of North Carolina at Asheville’s chemistry building in the EPA’s Labs for the 21st Century pilot program. As the Director of Facilities Management at Warren Wilson College, he has served as the Campus Sustainability Chair, and overseen sustainable construction and renovation of eight buildings. Three of these buildings are LEED Gold certified; one of which was constructed and certified by in-house student crews. Another is LEED EB Platinum. He presents frequently on Sustainability and Energy Efficiency.

Karl Bren is President of GreenVisions Consulting, specializing in green building and sustainable design. He is a founder of Richmond Region Energy Alliance, Virginia Sustainable Building Network and Virginia Supportive Housing. He was a founding board member of the Better Housing Coalition, James River Green Building Council, Caretakers for God’s Creation. He is a co-founder of EarthCraft Virginia, the leading residential green builder program in Virginia. Karl has served as Adjunct Faculty at the University of Richmond and Virginia Commonwealth University and served on the Governor’s Energy Policy Advisory Council under Governor Tim Kaine. He holds a Master of Urban Affairs from Virginia Tech and is a Fellow of the Virginia Natural Resources Leadership Institute. He is married and has three wonderful grandsons.

Professor Joel Eisen teaches courses in Environmental Law, Energy Law, and Law of Climate Change, and Environmental and Energy Law in China. He also teaches the Environmental Law and Policy course to undergraduate students in the University of Richmond’s Environmental Studies program. In recognition of his contributions to teaching, scholarship and service, he has been named the University’s Distinguished Educator for 2010-2011. In spring 2009, Professor Eisen was a Fulbright Professor of Law at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, China. He has become an authority on renewable energy law and policy in the United States and China, and has published extensively in law journals, periodicals for general consumption, and books and treatises. He is a co-author of the leading law and business school text on energy law, Energy, Economics and the Environment, with its third edition published in 2010. His most recent articles on renewable energy (including two on China’s energy programs) were published in law journals at Notre Dame, William and Mary, and Chicago-Kent. Professor Eisen is a graduate of the Stanford Law School (J.D. 1985) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (B.S. degree in Civil Engineering in 1981).

Dr. Basil I. Gooden is the Principal Deputy Director of the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. Prior to assuming his current position, Basil worked at Virginia Tech where he served as the Coordinator of Outreach and Community Relations. In 1999, Basil worked with Virginia Cooperative Extension as an Extension Specialist where he designed and implemented a statewide research project to assess community needs and social issues impacting localities across Virginia. Some of his additional professional experiences include working four years as a Legislative Assistant for a U.S. Congressman and receiving a Congressional Fellowship to work for a U.S. Senator. Basil received a B.A. in Political Science from Virginia Tech in 1990 and holds a Master of Social Work (MSW) from Syracuse University. Additionally, he is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he received a Master of Public Health (MPH) and a Ph.D. in 1998.

Michael T. Hubbard is Manager – Energy Conservation for Dominion Virginia Power. His responsibilities include implementation of new Demand Side Management programs, which includes vendor retention and oversight. He is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt. He joined Dominion Virginia Power in 1996 and has served in a number of regulatory and customer service-related leadership roles in the Delivery and Service Company organizations. While in the position of Underground Damage Prevention Manager, he was appointed to serve on the Commission’s Advisory Committee for matters concerning the enforcement of the Virginia Underground Utility Line Damage Prevention Act, and also served on the board of directors that formed a new statewide Miss Utility call center. Michael Hubbard has a B.S. in History from Hampden-Sydney College and M.S.L.S from the University of Kentucky. He has previously presented testimony before the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

Jackie Stewart is the Director of Planning and Information Systems for the Richmond Regional Planning District Commission with over 25 years in local, regional and state planning. In her role at the PDC, Ms. Stewart oversees work with regards to community development, environmental and coastal planning, rural transportation, data services/GIS, and Emergency Management. Most recently Ms. Stewart has assisted in work with the Capital Region Collaborative working to support their efforts on optimized educational excellence and social stability and awareness priorities. Ms. Stewart serves on the Board of Directors for the Charles City County Education Foundation and Partnership for Housing Affordability. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science and Master of Science in Urban and Regional Planning from Texas A&M University.

Mark Slack is the managing member of Kanawha Realty Advisors, LLC (“KRA”), a boutique multifamily and affordable housing advisory firm. He has over twenty years of commercial real estate experience, and has been involved with affordable housing since 1996. Prior to forming KRA, Mark spent ten years with AIG-SunAmerica Affordable Housing Partners, Inc., a national Low Income Housing Tax Credit syndicator, and the 5th largest multifamily owner in the country. His resume includes positions with other national real estate companies including Dynex Commercial, Inc., a permanent lender for tax credit properties, and GMAC Commercial Mortgage, a commercial mortgage banking firm. Mark holds a B.A. in English from Washington and Lee University, and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Real Estate and Urban Land Development from Virginia Commonwealth University. In addition to serving on the RREA board of directors, he also serves on the project:HOMES board and chairs the New Business Development committee.

Lee Alford serves as a Senior Project Manager in the Real Estate and Community Revitalization Department at the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA). He manages the Hope VI program for RRHA and works to transform RRHA’s public housing communities into mixed-income redevelopments. Before joining RRHA, Lee worked for Better Housing Coalition managing in-fill real estate development projects in Central Virginia with a focus on affordable housing. He holds an MBA from Temple University.

James R. Quigg is the Transition Leader for the American Centrifuge Project, US Enrichment Corp, Bethesda, MD. Jim’s dynamic leadership career spans 30 years of finance, project management and operations experience with public and private companies, in industries as varied as financial services, transportation, petrochemicals, energy, engineering and construction. He has demonstrated performance in developing business strategies and converting them into actionable operating plans to drive transformational improvements in business performance. Jim has an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business and degrees in Civil Engineering and Government from Lehigh University.

Brian Sullivan leads a Program Management office for Comverge, Inc. providing utilities with clean-tech energy management solutions. His role involves overseeing energy efficiency and demand-side management programs that span both commercial and residential technologies implemented by utilities to support their initiatives to reduce energy consumption. Brian is a LEED AP and has worked with local organizations such as the James River Green Building Council and the Green Jobs Alliance to promote awareness of energy efficient buildings and the green economy. Prior to working for Comverge, Brian worked as an Area VP and General Manager with Verizon and MCI and was also a local business owner. Brian received his B.S. in Finance from West Virginia University.