Melissa Kirr
Chair
Melissa Kirr is the Senior Programs Director of Sustainability at Walking Mountains Science Center in Avon, CO. She currently works at a local, regional and global level on a variety of sustainability initiatives. In her role at Walking Mountains, she is responsible for the oversight of sustainability-focused programs and projects that include Energy, Climate Action, Actively Green Sustainable Business Training and Certification, Waste Diversion and Zero Waste programs, and Mountain IDEAL Sustainable Destination. She has spent the past 17 years working in the non-profit sector, specifically the environmental and sustainability realms. She holds degrees in Forest Resource Management from Penn State University and the University of Montana. She also volunteers her time to food equity projects, serves on the board of Cloud City Conservation Center, and has spent the last five years serving as a PPAB Assistance Committee member.
Susan Williams
Vice-Chair
Ms. Williams is the Principal of Pro Rolloff, LLC in Denver. In this capacity, her 100% women-owned company provides construction waste management solutions for the General Contractor industry in Metro Denver. Ms. Williams brings ten years of experience in LEED waste management, C&D diversion, construction logistics, and hauling operations management to the PPAB. She has actively participated with the Association of General Contractors and the Colorado Association for Recycling. Her goal is to help the expansion of businesses that will process C&D waste materials for future use and reuse.
Doug Hargrave
Doug Hargrave is the President of Iconergy, an energy management and sustainability firm that is based in Denver with additional offices in Boulder and Chicago. Doug has over 25 years of resource conservation, renewable energy, and water and energy efficiency experience with the vast majority of those years dedicated to designing and constructing better buildings. Through his work on public policy, government and utility programs, as well as individual projects, Doug has experience in all facets of energy management and sustainability as it applies to the commercial and industrial sectors.
Doug Hargrave is the President of Iconergy, an energy management and sustainability firm that is based in Denver with additional offices in Boulder and Chicago. Doug has over 25 years of resource conservation, renewable energy, and water and energy efficiency experience with the vast majority of those years dedicated to designing and constructing better buildings. Through his work on public policy, government and utility programs, as well as individual projects, Doug has experience in all facets of energy management and sustainability as it applies to the commercial and industrial sectors.
Julie Hendricksen
A licensed Landscape Architect with 20 years of experience in residential, commercial and community master planning. Julie brings a wide range of experience including design-build, staff management and strong connections in the industry. Julie is involved with food equity and as an avid beekeeper, supporting pollinator habitat.
Laurie Johnson
Laurie Johnson is the Chief Operating Officer, Recycling for 5280 Waste Solutions. 5280 is a hauling and C&D recycling company that captures C&D material and secures markets for these materials in Colorado. Previously, Laurie served as the executive director for Recycle Colorado and VP of Client Services for Recyclebank, and she owned a distribution business in Phoenix for eight years. Laurie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Affairs from Cal State Northridge and an MBA in Sustainable Business from Antioch University.
Laurie Johnson is the Chief Operating Officer, Recycling for 5280 Waste Solutions. 5280 is a hauling and C&D recycling company that captures C&D material and secures markets for these materials in Colorado. Previously, Laurie served as the executive director for Recycle Colorado and VP of Client Services for Recyclebank, and she owned a distribution business in Phoenix for eight years. Laurie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Affairs from Cal State Northridge and an MBA in Sustainable Business from Antioch University.
Margaret Medellin
Margaret Medellin serves the City and County of Denver as a Deputy Manager of the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI). In this role, she oversees the Utilities Administration which includes the Divisions of Solid Waste Management, Wastewater Management, and the Office of Green Infrastructure. Ms. Medellin holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Civil Engineering from Texas Tech University and an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School.
Janna West-Heiss
Janna West-Heiss is Director of Communications and Corporate Development for the Solar Financing Company, Solaris Energy, LLC. She previously held positions in government and non-profits focusing on climate and sustainability. She has a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Management and an MBA in Managing for Sustainability. Janna also holds seats on CU Denver School of Business Managing for Sustainability Advisory Board and Denver Word Cup Sustainability Committee. She’s a Delegate for the Biennials for the Americas Youth Congress for Sustainable Americas and a Denver Youth Sustainability Advisory Board mentor.
Janna West-Heiss is Director of Communications and Corporate Development for the Solar Financing Company, Solaris Energy, LLC. She previously held positions in government and non-profits focusing on climate and sustainability. She has a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Management and an MBA in Managing for Sustainability. Janna also holds seats on CU Denver School of Business Managing for Sustainability Advisory Board and Denver Word Cup Sustainability Committee. She’s a Delegate for the Biennials for the Americas Youth Congress for Sustainable Americas and a Denver Youth Sustainability Advisory Board mentor.
Jackie Slocombe
Jackie Slocombe is the Sustainability Manager for the Auraria Higher Education Center. There, she works to reduce the ecological footprint of the Auraria campus through energy efficiency, waste diversion, and alternative transportation efforts. She is also currently leading the campus greenhouse gas inventory and climate action planning effort. Jackie has a Master’s Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from CU Denver and is a LEED Green Associate. She enjoys volunteering with Denver Food Rescue, as well as trail running and backpacking throughout this beautiful state!
Roger Freeman
Roger Freeman is an energy and environmental lawyer active in a variety of renewable energy, recycling and transportation projects and groups throughout the Rocky Mountain West and California. Mr. Freeman uses his experience and understanding to help expedite project steps and creatively solve legal constraints to the development of renewable and advanced transportation projects. He recently left his 31 year practice at a Denver based firm to establish a solo practice focused solely on advancing renewable energy, recycling, sustainability and related efforts in Colorado and beyond. Mr. Freeman applies his diverse background in policy, law, and advocacy, and as a member of various environmental boards, to seek multi-faceted solutions to legal problems on behalf of his clients. See https://rogerfreemanlaw.com/ for more information about his practice and background.
Byron Kominek
Byron Kominek is the owner and manager of Jack's Solar Garden, a 1.2 MW agrivoltaics community solar garden in Boulder County. He is a former U.S. diplomat having served with the U.S. Agency for International Development on projects related to forestry and wildlife conservation in southern Africa. He has over 12 years of experience working in international development related to natural resource management and speaks French and Portuguese. He holds a M.S. in Environmental Engineering from the University of North Carolina. Byron also through-hiked the Appalachian Trail with his dog in 2016 and has a penchant for dry-cured meats.
Rachel Wilson-Roussel
Rachel Wilson-Roussel is the Sustainability Unit Manager at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and oversees a variety of cross-media, voluntary environmental programs including the department’s recycling grant and rebate programs. Wilson-Roussel was first appointed by Governor Hickenlooper in 2015 to represent the department on the Pollution Prevention Advisory Board. She is also a founding member of the Front Range Waste Diversion Enterprise Board of Directors.
Jonathan Bortles
Mr. Bortles is Chief Operating Officer for Woody’s Wood-Fired Pizza in Golden, CO. In this capacity Jon leads one of the busiest pizza restaurants in the state toward the sustainability and profitability nexus. Prior to assuming this role in his family’s business, Jon was the Sustainability Program Manager for CU Boulder and the Sustainability Director for the Auraria Campus in Denver, CO. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies from CU Boulder as well as an MBA from the University of Denver.