The SSI staff member responsible for actively participating in energy projects that engage students with the various institutions/departments of the OSU community to make them more sustainable and efficient.
Energy Projects Coordinator
Through her determination and enthusiasm for the goals and projects at the SSI, Colette Conover became the En
Energy Projects Coordinator
Mikkel VandeBergh is a fifth year student in the environmental engineering program working as the Energy Coordinator at the SSI. She has been interested in renewable energy since high school when she learned about the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. Since then she has helped to promote renewable energy and specifically biodiesel greatly. Her work with the Next Generation Scientists for Biodiesel promotes biodiesel for Universities across the nation and her work with the Sustainable Energy Imitative on works spread awareness of renewable energy sources at OSU. Her latest adventure was an internship in Washington D.C. where she combined engineering and policy to research the Renewable Electricity Standard. After she graduates this year she hopes to work for a environmental consulting firm and eventually work for the state legislature developing renewable energy policy. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, camping, biking, baking, dancing and traveling.
Energy Projects Coordinator
Lauren received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University where he majored in Civil Engineering. Upon graduating, he took a job in Chicago working for a consulting engineering firm where he worked on several LEED projects and gained valuable experience in both of the construction and engineering industries. Since May of 2009, Lauren has been working for his family’s business where he is working on developing a closed loop pumped storage facility, which is a utility scale energy storage facility that would be located on his family’s farm in southern Oregon. He is now working on his Masters of Business Administration here at Oregon State and is doing his master’s thesis on putting together a business model for another utility scale energy storage project. Lauren plans to return to his family’s farm in southern Oregon where he will be a fifth generation farmer and continue working on the development of the energy storage facility. Lauren is an avid runner and cyclist. When he is not training for marathons or carving down mountains on his bike he likes to go hiking and camping in Oregon’s beautiful back country.
The Energy Projects Coordinator (Energy Coordinator) will be responsible for actively participating in energy projects that engage students with the various institutions/departments of the OSU community to make them more sustainable and efficient. He/she will be an employee of the SSI, receiving direction and supervision from the SSI Director(s). He/she will work with other SSI staff in the Student Sustainability Center (SSC) to help develop a sense of ownership and community for students within the SSI.
