Press Kit — Need an energy expert? EFI Foundation’s analysts can identify the opportunities in a low-carbon energy economy.

Ernest J. Moniz is the Founder and CEO of the EFI Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting the transition to a low-carbon energy future.

Professor Moniz (pronounced MO-neez) served as the 13th U.S. Secretary of Energy from 2013-2017, where he advanced energy technology innovation, nuclear security and strategic stability, cutting-edge capabilities for the American scientific research community, and environmental stewardship. In that role, he strengthened the Department of Energy (DOE) strategic partnerships with its 17 national laboratories while producing energy policies that attracted bipartisan support. Since 2017, he has also served as Co-Chair and CEO of the Nuclear Threat Initiative.

Professor Moniz was a key architect of the Paris Agreement on climate change and Mission Innovation at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21). He has spearheaded international initiatives that placed energy, science, and technological innovation at the center of the global response to climate change.

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Moniz Bio

Melanie Kenderdine joined former Secretary of Energy Ernest J. Moniz and fellow Executive Vice President Joseph S. Hezir in founding the EFI Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting the transition to a low-carbon energy future.

Kenderdine worked in the Obama administration at the Department of Energy (DOE), serving concurrently as Energy Counselor to the Secretary and as the Director of DOE’s Office of Energy Policy and Systems Analysis from May 2013–January 2017.

Her 100-person office was responsible for analysis and policy development in areas that included DOE’s role in the annual review of the Renewable Fuel Standard Program requirements, energy innovation, and climate change. She is an in-demand speaker at global conferences, presenting the Foundation’s analysis and insights on how to navigate the challenges of increasing energy access and energy security.

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Kenderdine Bio

Joseph Hezir joined former Secretary of Energy Ernest J. Moniz and fellow Executive Vice President Melanie A. Kenderdine in founding the EFI Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting the transition to a low-carbon energy future.

As an Executive Vice President, Hezir (pronounced HE-sher) is the lead on key EFI Foundation research projects including reports examining federal support for carbon dioxide removal (CDR) research technologies; the U.S. nuclear enterprise and its key role in national security, and white papers on the Department of Energy’s budget priorities and federal tax incentives for energy innovation.

Hezir served as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Energy from 2013 through 2017. As CFO, he led a 200-person organization responsible for the then $30 billion Department of Energy budget, and supervised strategic planning, programming, budget formulation, and budget execution.

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Hezir Bio

David Ellis is Senior Vice President of Policy Strategy & Outreach for the EFI Foundation, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit founded by former U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest J. Moniz to accelerate the transition to an equitable, low-carbon energy economy.

In his tenure at the Foundation, Ellis has focused on ways to clearly communicate the challenges of climate change. He advises Moniz and the EFI Foundation senior leadership on partnerships, media opportunities, and business strategy.

He also leads the program to brief state and federal policymakers on the leading technological pathways to a low-carbon future. Since the Foundation’s inception, more than 30 U.S. Senators and 50 members of the U.S. House of Representatives have received private briefings. The organization’s leadership has testified before a dozen committees, including multiple appearances before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

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Ellis Bio

Alex Kizer is Chief Operating Officer and Senior Vice President at the EFI Foundation. He develops and manages projects on cross-cutting issues related to technology, policy, and innovation in energy sectors at home and abroad.

An expert in developing and managing major analytical initiatives, Kizer (pronounced KI-zer) supports funders and sponsoring organizations with advice on navigating the interaction between technology disruptions and legacy markets and systems.

At the Foundation, Kizer oversees qualitative and quantitative analysis for EFI Foundation reports, including “Optionality, Flexibility & Innovation: Pathways for Deep Decarbonization in California;’’ “Advancing the Landscape of Clean Energy Innovation,’’ for Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy; and “Investing in Natural Gas for Africans,’’ a project sponsored by the Africa50 infrastructure fund. He has also overseen white papers on blockchain technology applications for energy, an examination of the U.S. nuclear enterprise and the role it plays in national security, studies on large-scale carbon management, and a variety of budgetary analyses.

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Kizer Bio