Sustainability in Industry

Join the OEC for its final Fall webinar, a panel discussion on sustainability in industry. Panelists Perrin Falkner, Haley Hiller, Sarah Nerette, and Claire Trevisan lead sustainability initiatives in diverse industries, including transportation, building design, and energy. Please see their bios below. They will each share their experiences incorporating ethics in pursuit of sustainability on behalf of corporations. Then they will discuss these issues together, led in conversation by Dr. Elise Barrella, an expert on coordinating multi-disciplinary projects related to infrastructure systems, spatial justice, and sustainability and the founder of Design for X Consulting LLC.

The webinar will be hosted by Dr. Caitlin Wylie, Associate Professor of Science, Technology, and Society at UVA’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Watch the Replay
 

Panelist Bios

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Perrin Falkner, PE

Perrin is an engineer in Toole Design’s Portland office who sees boosting alternative transportation options as one way to pursue her passion for sustainability. Perrin has experience in transportation design, including traffic analysis, geometric layout, and surface modeling, plan production, and cost estimating for street redesign, bikeways, trails, and transit. She has also worked on data collection in the field for safety audits, micromobility planning and design, and Spanish translation for community engagement. From time working, studying, and living in various U.S. states, Bolivia, Spain, and South Africa, Perrin has a strong appreciation of the importance of a tailored community-based approach to design to create both accessible and vibrant places. In her spare time, Perrin loves to run, hike, and cycle to explore the urban and wild outdoors, try cooking new recipes, test out her green thumb, and spend time with her partner, family, and friends.

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Haley Hiller

Haley is a Sustainable Program Specialist at Sustainable Building Partners and has over five years of experience in the construction and green building industries. Her primary focus areas include certifying LEED multifamily residential buildings and conducting whole-building life cycle assessments to capture projects’ embodied carbon impact. She loves being able to collaborate with and drive project teams towards more sustainable solutions. Outside of work, you can find Haley scouting out new restaurants, honing her cooking skills, and exploring the great outdoors.

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Sarah Nerette

Sarah is a Program Manager at RE Tech Advisors, a consulting firm working at the intersection of sustainability, technology and buildings. There, she works with clients to design and implement ESG programs across their portfolios.  Sarah’s expertise lies in identifying strategies and solutions for clients that improve the performance and sustainability of the built environment through energy efficiency retrofitting activities. Sarah has an academic background in Engineering and Sustainability, with a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Virginia and a MS in Sustainability Management from American University.  Other areas of experience include DEI program creation and implementation, green building and residential solar and energy efficiency. Outside of work, Sarah has developed programs and activities for high school women in the Charlottesville community focused on Academic Excellence, Leadership, and Service as a director of the LADYS program, a local mentoring organization, and has served on the Charlottesville Renewable Energy Alliance board. Currently, she continues to be involved in the community by coaching the performance team at a local dance studio.

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Claire Trevisan

Claire currently is a Modeling Analyst at Energy Innovation, an energy and climate policy think tank, on the policy team. She provides research and data analysis to support climate policy modeling across the globe. Prior to this role, Claire worked as a Climate Change and Sustainability Analyst at ICF, a global consulting firm. Her work focused on greenhouse gas accounting and climate planning for a range of clients, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Park Service, and many state and local governments. She also provided climate risk analyses and conducted vulnerability assessments for electric utilities, state governments, and other private sector clients. Finally, Claire has experience working in local government on climate action and energy planning through her year of service in AmeriCorps in Clackamas County, Oregon.

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Elise Barrella, PhD, PE 

Elise Barrella enjoys working with diverse teams on multi-disciplinary projects related to infrastructure systems, spatial justice, and sustainability. She has nearly 20 years of professional and research experience in the transportation and engineering education fields, and provides leadership in mixed-methods research, curriculum development and instruction, and design thinking facilitation. Elise has completed research sponsored by Federal Highway Administration, National Science Foundation, state agencies, and private foundations. As an engineering faculty member at James Madison University and a founding faculty member of Wake Forest University’s Engineering Department, she infused sustainability concepts and community engagement into interdisciplinary design courses from first year to capstone. As the founder of DfX Consulting LLC, Elise currently provides research and consulting services for the education and transportation sectors and teaches design thinking. She also uses her expertise to support local non-profit organizations including Community Design Studio of NC, Creative Corridors Coalition, and the Boston-Thurmond Community Engagement Roundtable.