The Green Light

Hosted by Dylan Green

Business Careers Entrepreneurship

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Episodes

113

Latest episode

May 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

Transforming business through talent. Helping professionals find their career passion within the clean energy and technology space.

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60 recent

July 8, 202614 min

Ep. 114 | How AI Is Reshaping Energy Infrastructure Investment — Louay DaCosta, Macquarie Asset Management

Catherine recently spoke with Louay DaCosta, Vice President at Macquarie Asset Management, about what infrastructure investors should be paying closer attention to as growing demand from AI reshapes energy infrastructure.With transmission interconnection timelines often stretching 5+ years, Louay sees growing opportunities for battery storage and on-site generation as developers look to bring data centers online faster. Louay also discussed how AI is raising the bar for investors, highlighting that competitive advantage will come from thinking creatively about the interaction between policy, pricing, and physical infrastructure to identify differentiated investment opportunities.If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you're exploring your next opportunity in clean energy, browse the latest openings from our industry leading clients: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

May 27, 202617 min

Ep. 113 | Building More Inclusive Leadership Pathways in Clean Energy — Kelly Veney Darnell, American Clean Power Association (ACP)

In this episode of The Green Light, Catherine spoke with Kelly Veney Darnell, COO of American Clean Power (ACP), about building more inclusive leadership pathways across the clean energy industry through initiatives like CLEANPOWER in Color and EmpowHER.Kelly shared how CLEANPOWER in Color - taking place June 1–2 during CLEANPOWER in Houston - has already tripled its registrants year over year as more professionals seek opportunities for connection, mentorship, and career growth within clean energy. They also discussed ACP’s EmpowHER initiative, taking place August 5–7 in Charlotte, which helps women across the industry build leadership skills, community, and confidence navigating executive leadership, finance, salary negotiation, and career advancement.They also discussed workforce development, the importance of visibility and representation in clean energy, and Kelly’s new LinkedIn Live series, Between Meetings with Kelly, where she shares candid insights from nearly two decades in executive leadership.Register for Clean Power in Color: https://cleanpower.org/cleanpower-in-color/Register for EmpowHER: https://cleanpower.org/empowher/If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

April 17, 202640 min

Ep. 112 | Where Capital is Being Invested in Clean Energy Today — Priyanka Duvvuru, S2G Investments

In this episode, Catherine spoke with Priyanka Duvvuru, Principal at S2G Investments, to explore what’s driving the next wave of innovation in the energy transition. They discussed how investors evaluate risk, what separates hype from real value, and where the biggest opportunities are emerging across today’s energy landscape. She’ll also share insights from her experience investing in companies tackling critical challenges across utilities, electrification, and distributed energy. If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

April 7, 202620 min

Ep. 111 | Developing Clean Energy Leaders for a Changing Workforce — Richenda Van Leeuwen, CELI

In this episode of The Green Light, Catherine sat down with Richenda Van Leeuwen, Clean Energy Leadership Institute (CELI)'s new Executive Director, to discuss how the next generation of clean energy leaders is being developed. Recently featured in Forbes, CELI is playing a key role in shaping talent across the industry through its fellowship and broader community.They explored leadership development, career pathways in clean energy, and how emerging tools like AI are beginning to influence the future of the workforce. Richenda also shared insights from her career across finance, international development, and renewable energy—and what it takes to lead in a rapidly evolving industry.If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

December 22, 202521 min

Ep. 110 | Building WRISE from the Ground Up — Lisa Daniels on Community Power and Tribal Energy Leadership

What does it look like to spend more than two decades advancing community-led clean energy — from helping farmers and rural landowners build their own wind projects to supporting Native and tribal nations pursuing energy sovereignty today?In this episode, Catherine sat down with Lisa Daniels, one of the founders of Women of Wind Energy (now WRISE) and the longtime Executive Director of Windustry, whose work has shaped how rural and tribal communities participate in the renewable energy transition.Lisa came into this work as an environmentalist in the late 1990s, confused by an energy system that ignored the free wind and sunlight all around us while investing heavily in fossil fuels. When state funding for her early nonprofit work evaporated overnight due to political changes, she took the curriculum home and built a new organization from scratch — one that helped thousands of farmers, ranchers, and rural communities understand how to harvest the wind for themselves.To mark WRISE’s 20th anniversary, we talked about: • Why community ownership keeps economic benefits local • Building Windustry on a shoestring after state funding collapsed • The early volunteer-powered days of Women of Wind Energy • What it was like to be one of only a few women in every meeting, workshop, and conference • How WRISE’s fellowship program gave new people their first real glimpse into the industry • Why state and local action will drive the next era of clean energyIf you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

November 25, 202525 min

Ep. 109 | Pioneering America’s Early Wind Industry — and the First WRISE Network — with Jan Blomstrann, Former CEO of NRG Systems

What does it take to lead one of the earliest U.S. wind companies through four decades of change — and help spark a nationwide movement for women in clean energy? Catherine sat down with Jan Blomstrann, Co-Founder and later CEO of NRG Systems, a company that helped build the modern wind industry through its early resource assessment tools and later expanded into solar.When she took over as CEO in 2004, Jan was one of the only women leading a clean energy manufacturing company. She guided NRG through explosive industry growth, economic turbulence, and an eventual sale — and then turned her focus to philanthropy, supporting women’s issues, social justice, and sustainable communities.Jan was also in the room at the very first WRISE luncheon that she helped organize in 2005 — expecting 10 women, finding 100. That moment helped spark the network that would later grow to 3,000 members and 47 chapters.To mark WRISE’s 20th anniversary, we talked about:• Leading in a male-dominated industry• Why WRISE became a sanctuary for women in renewables• Her message to the next generation: “Please keep going — what you do matters.”• The men who truly championed women behind the scenes• Why clean energy still needs its mission-driven rootsIf you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

November 12, 202523 min

Ep. 108 | How Three Generations Lead Through Change — Arevon, EVgo & Onyx at WRISE Leadership Forum

What happens when three generations of clean energy leaders sit down for one honest conversation? A masterclass in resilience, leadership, and the future of our industry. In this Green Light podcast episode recorded at the WRISE Leadership Forum, Catherine spoke with:Patty Rollin — CCO at Onyx RenewablesYvonne Robinson — Regional Director at EVgoJimin Suh — Development Associate at ArevonTogether they share:The early-career lessons they wish they’d learned soonerHow they stay grounded through uncertainty and major transitionsHow leadership evolves across decadesWhat the next generation really needs from today’s managersHow they confront fear (not “imposter syndrome”) and build confidenceWhat gives them hope about the future of clean energyIf you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

November 11, 202518 min

Ep. 107 | Founding WRISE, Advancing State Energy Policy, and Inclusive Leadership in Clean Energy | Suzanne Tegen, Center for the New Energy Economy

What happens when women stop waiting to be invited to the table — and start building their own network? That question led Suzanne Tegen and her peers to found Women of Wind Energy, now Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy (WRISE), twenty years ago.Today, WRISE has over 3,000 members, 47 chapters, a robust slate of annual programming, and continues to expand its impact across the renewable energy industry.Suzanne is now Acting Director at Colorado State University’s Center for the New Energy Economy, where she leads bipartisan clean energy policy research and works with state legislators, governors’ offices, and utilities to advance practical, state-level policy solutions.To mark WRISE’s 20th anniversary, Catherine sat down with Suzanne to talk about: • Building leadership confidence through community and mentorship • Lessons from two decades of WRISE’s growth and impact • What allyship really looks like — and how to practice it when someone’s not in the room • The importance of inclusion in energy transitions, especially for fossil-fuel-reliant communities • Her vision for the next chapter of WRISE and a more inclusive clean energy workforceOne line that stayed with us: "Inclusion is intentional. You have to dig in, find out who isn’t being heard, and make sure they’re involved so that better decisions can be made."If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

October 22, 202510 min

Ep. 106 | How Arevon Built a World-Class Development Team from Scratch as a 4.5 GW Solar and Storage Operator | Shanelle Montana, Chief Development Officer, Arevon

What does it take to build a world-class development team from scratch inside a company that already operates over 4.5 GW of solar and storage projects? Catherine sat down with Shanelle Montana, Chief Development Officer at Arevon, on SunCast’s PowerUp Live stage presented by Wärtsilä at RE+ in Vegas, to talk about:• Her path from Washington D.C. to leading utility-scale solar and storage development — including roles at Lightsource bp, EDF Renewables, and BayWa r.e.• How Arevon’s operator-first DNA shapes its development strategy• Navigating policy shifts and market uncertainty with patience and “patient capital”• Building and retaining strong teams in a competitive market• Why advancing diversity across teams leads to better business outcomesShanelle shared thoughtful, grounded insights on how to lead through change — and why patience, flexibility, and relationships are key to lasting impact in the energy transition.If you’re a clean energy employer and need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.

September 30, 202512 min

Ep. 105 | What Actually Drives Revenue in Energy Storage Projects | Sam Kuhlwein, Stem

What actually drives revenue for solar-plus-storage projects? In this episode, Catherine spoke with Sam Kuhlwein from Stem at the Asset Management North America (AMNA) conference in San Diego, where they dug into how energy management systems shape asset performance.They also talked about what gets in the way of performance: commissioning delays, low-quality data, and systems that can’t respond fast enough to dynamic grid signals.Sam shared how Stem approaches EMS design, why these systems need to be considered early in project development, and what it takes to operate across complex use cases—including merchant storage and behind-the-meter applications. “Everyone loves revenue,” he said. “But getting there takes high-frequency data, layered scheduling, and systems that can shift on the fly.” If you’re a clean energy employer & need help scaling your workforce efficiently with top tier staff, contact Catherine McLean, CEO & Founder of Dylan Green, directly on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3odzxQr. If you’re looking for your next role in clean energy, take a look at our industry-leading clients’ latest job openings: bit.ly/dg_jobs.