Breakout Session V
Policies to Enhance Long Term Competitiveness
David Friedman
David Friedman is the author or co-author of more than 30 technical papers and reports in the areas of advancements in conventional, fuel cell, and hybrid electric vehicles, with an emphasis on clean and efficient technologies. His most recent work includes: A New Road: The Technology and Potential of Hybrid Vehicles; Building a Better SUV: A Blueprint for Saving Lives, Money, and Gasoline; and (as lead author) Drilling in Detroit: Tapping Automaker Ingenuity to Build Safe and Efficient Automobiles, a comprehensive assessment of the technical and economic potential of achieving a safe and fuel-efficient fleet of cars and trucks. Friedman is currently a member of the Committee for the National Tire Efficiency Study with the National Academies Transportation Research Board.
Before joining the Union of Concerned Scientists in 2001, Friedman worked for the University of California-Davis in the Fuel Cell Vehicle Modeling Program, developing simulation tools to evaluate fuel cell technology for automotive applications. At UC Davis, Mr. Friedman also worked on the UC Davis FutureCar team to build a hybrid electric family car that doubled its fuel economy. He previously worked at Arthur D. Little researching fuel cell, battery electric, and hybrid electric vehicle technologies, as well as photovoltaics.
A native of Rhode Island, Friedman earned his bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering
from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1993. He is currently finishing his doctoral dissertation on transportation
technology and policy at UC Davis (2005). For his dissertation, Friedman conducted a systems-based analysis on fuel
cell vehicle fuel economy maximization, through simulating and optimizing the interaction of fuel cell stack and
subsystem components.
Ron Heck
Ron Heck operates a fifth generation soybean and corn family farm in central Iowa. Four generations are currently involved. Heck graduated from Iowa State University. He currently serves as a Director on the Iowa Soybean Association, the Iowa Biodiesel Board, and the National Biodiesel Board, and as a member of the 25x ‘25 Agricultural Energy Steering Committee.
He previously served as President of the American Soybean Association, and Chairman of the American Oilseed Coalition. He has been a member of the U.S. Department of Agriculture/Department of Energy Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee, and the Chicago Federal Reserve Board Agricultural Advisory Committee, as well as Director of the Council for U.S Landcare, and a Director on the United States Soybean Export Council.
Walter Nelson
Walter Nelson is a Product Manager at Ceres, Inc. Ceres is a leading developer of high-yielding energy crops that can be planted as feedstocks for cellulosic ethanol production. Its development efforts cover switchgrass, miscanthus, sorghum and other dedicated energy crops. Founded as a plant genomics company, Ceres holds one of world’s largest proprietary collections of fully sequenced plant genes. In addition to energy crops, the privately held company also licenses its technology and traits to other organizations. Ceres headquarters are based in Thousand Oaks, Calif.
Walter joined Ceres in 1999 and is currently responsible for the advancement and commercialization of one of the company’s energy crop and trait pipelines. Prior to his current position, he managed Ceres' research collaboration with Monsanto. He also established and managed a high-throughput cloning pipeline, building thousands of gene over-expression constructs for screening and trait discovery. Mr. Nelson holds an MBA as well as an undergraduate degree in biochemistry from the University of California at Los Angeles.
Sara Hessenflow Harper
Sara Hessenflow Harper is the newest Senior Associate of the Clark Group, a consortium of environmental policy and project consultants based in Washington DC. Sara's expertise in the policy areas of agriculture, energy and environment date back to her work as a legislative assistant for Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and later, for Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS). Sara went on to become the lead foreign policy staffer for Sen. Brownback focusing on the Middle East and China. In addition to her Capitol Hill experience, Sara most recently worked for the national non-profit environmental group, Environmental Defense as their National Security and Climate Policy Analyst focusing on promoting low carbon biofuels and climate change "carbon markets" for agriculture.