Page 184 - ISES SWC50

Todd Bartholf
Country: United States
Year joined industry: 1986
Company first worked for: Northern Power Systems
Technology area: Wind
Still active in the industry: Yes

Todd Bartholf is an independent renewable energy consultant and has been active in the industry for over 35 years.
He founded his first solar and wind contracting firm in Colorado at the age of 27, was president of an internationally
respected systems integration design-build contractor for high-reliability renewable energy applications from 1988-
1991 and a senior program officer with the renewable energy team at the international development assistance
NGO, Winrock International, through 1996. More recently he held the position of Global Market Segment Director
for Renewable Energy at a multinational Fortune 100 environmental engineering firm where he led the design and
delivery of numerous large-scale initiatives for a variety of clients in both the public and private sectors, including
as energy team lead for the company’s overall project manager role on the MASDAR project in Abu Dhabi from
2006-2010. He has related experience in more than 15 countries and his current work includes providing strategic
and technical support to a number of US-based commercial and industrial clients seeking to reduce their carbon
footprint through commitments to the purchase of clean energy.

Beverly Blum
Country: United States
Year joined industry: 1987
Company first worked for: Solar Cookers International
Technology area: Solar Thermal
Still active in the industry: No

Bev Blum was a founder of Solar Cookers International (Solar Cookers International, then Solar Box Cookers
International) and served as the first President from 1987-89, first Executive Director from 1989-1999 and 2003-
2006, and Board President 2010-11. Bev is a woman of vast and varied talents, including box cooker developer,
author, trainer, and presenter. Beverly worked with engineers from University of the Pacific in Stockton, California
to mobilize efforts to expand awareness for solar cooking and its potential value worldwide. She was instrumental
in hosting the first solar cooking international conference held on the same campus. At SCI’s world conference
in Granada, Spain in 2006 Bev led formation of the Solar Cookers World Network by and for independent solar
cooker promoters and organizations for information exchange and collective advocacy. After producing periodic
network newsletters 2006-2010, the network is now maintained by the website www.solarcooking.org. At SCI,
Bev developed a foldable box cooker in 1992 that fits within its lid, and also coordinated volunteers to create the
CooKit in 1994, the lowest-cost family cooker, mass-produced or hand-made. By the Year 2000, CooKits were
produced independently in 28+ countries. Starting in 1995, Bev helped SCI launch projects promoting CooKits and
training families in Kenya refugee camps Kakuma and Dadaab (27,000), in Ethiopian camp Aisha (3000) for UNHCR
and community market-based projects in Zimbabwe (10,000) for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) with U. Zimbabwe Development Technology Centre and Kenya (6,000) with local NGO,
Nyakach Community Development Association (NYACODA). Independent evaluations in each project confirmed
wide acceptance, use and benefits - saving time, labor and wood and reducing water-borne diseases. Bev is now
retired but enjoys supporting the ongoing progress in solar cookers’ ever-widening spread, diversity and transition
to wide commercial production, promotion and distribution.

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