The United States has entered a new era of electric load growth driven by data centers, industrial onshoring, and the electrification of space heating, transportation, and industry. But with families struggling with energy affordability, it’s critical to alleviate this demand quickly and cheaply.
Join us as we discuss a recent ACEEE report revealing how energy efficiency and load flexibility offer a less expensive, faster, cleaner, and overall less risky approach to load growth than traditional supply-side resources. We will share practical examples of how community energy resources allow utilities and large load customers, including data centers, to work together to improve affordability and resilience. We will also provide a real-time perspective on the regulatory issues surrounding load growth and offer attendees the opportunity to ask leading technical and policy experts their questions on how efficiency and flexibility can help alleviate the challenge of rising demand.
Speakers
Katherine Peretick, Commissioner, Michigan Public Service Commission (PSC)
Commissioner Peretick is a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’s (NARUC) Board of Directors and Committee on Electricity, and chairs its Electric Vehicles State Working Group. Commissioner Peretick also chairs the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Advisory Council, which advises the organization on trends in political, economic, and social issues that affect electric utilities and prioritizes research to serve the public interest. She serves on the board of directors of the Organization of PJM States and represents the commission on the Michigan Council on Future Mobility and Electrification. Prior to being appointed to the PSC, Commissioner Peretick worked across the globe as an energy systems engineer with a focus on energy storage, wind, and technology development.
McGee Young, Founder and CEO, WattCarbon
McGee works at the intersection of demand-side energy, distributed energy resources (DERs), and emerging market mechanisms that value real and verifiable energy and climate value. He is a leading voice on how automated measurement and verification (M&V) can unlock scalable demand response, virtual power plants (VPPs), and building electrification—turning flexible load and DER performance into credible, investable outcomes. McGee formerly served as chief technology officer of Recurve, where he helped advance open-source standards and practical approaches for pay-for-performance and metered savings, strengthening how the industry quantifies demand-side impact.
Mike Specian, Utilities Manager, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)
Mike’s research focuses on the role of energy efficiency within the evolving energy landscape, including policies and practices to maximize energy efficiency's potential to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to a changing climate. Prior to joining ACEEE, Mike worked at the U.S. Department of Energy, where he facilitated behind-the-meter innovations to make buildings more energy efficient, resilient, and flexible for the evolving electricity grid. Mike holds a PhD in physics from Johns Hopkins University.
Moderator: Forest Bradley-Wright, State and Utility Director, American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)
Forest is working to advance energy efficiency policies and practices that increase economic prosperity for all, reduce our reliance on outdated fossil fuels, and accelerate our transition to a more just, reliable, and affordable clean energy future. Forest joined ACEEE in 2023. Prior to joining ACEEE, Forest was the energy efficiency director at the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy and senior policy director at the Alliance for Affordable Energy in New Orleans, where he started his energy policy career in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Forest earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees at Tulane University in Latin American Studies, with a focus on environmental law, business, and international sustainable development.
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