Speakers

Senate’s confirmation of Dr. Homer Wilkes to serve as Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment. An incredible public servant, Dr. Wilkes has worked with USDA for more than 41 years heavily contributing to engineering, natural resource, and watershed projects, as well as forestry and working lands. His leadership as the Director of the Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Restoration Division, where he was responsible for the restoration of the coastal ecosystem after the BP oil spill of 2010, has prepared him well for this role. Dr. Wilkes’ confirmation is also historic, as he will be the first African American to hold the position of Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment at USDA.

Eunice Heath serves as corporate director for Sustainability. She leads the coordinated planning and implementation of the 2025 Sustainability Goals, sustainability integration, and next generation strategy development. In addition, Heath partners to deliver the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting disclosure cross the company and business units.

Heath joined Dow in 1991 as part of the Commercial Development Program and has worked in a myriad of Marketing, Sales, Supply Chain, Government Affairs and Business Leadership roles throughout her career. In 2019, she assumed the current role in corporate sustainability, which includes responsibilities for Dow 2025 goal implementation, results and liaison to external organizations such as The Task Force for Climate Related Financial Disclosure, Green Chemistry Commerce Council (Sustainable Chemistry Alliance Advisory Board), The Nature Conservancy and serves on the United Nations Global Compact USA Network board.

Heath is a Six Sigma Green Belt, a recipient of the 2007 Black Engineer of the Year Award, 2011 Women of Distinction winner by the Philadelphia Business Journal, 2013 Champion of Champions award by NSBE, 2017 Honoree of Forty Women to Watch Over 40 by Forbes Media, 2020 Honoree of 25 Badass Women Shaking Up the Climate Movement by GreenBiz and recently named to the 2020 and 2021 HERoes Role Models for leadership in championing women in business and driving change for gender diversity in the workplace. Eunice also serves as the executive sponsor for Dow’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) in support of building next generation STEM talent.

Heath earned her MBA at the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Science in Industrial & Systems Engineering at the University of Florida.

Isik C. Kizilyalli, Ph.D. currently serves as the Associate Director for Technology at the Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-e). In this role, Dr. Kizilyalli oversees all technology issues relating to ARPA-E’s programs as well as assisting with program development, Program Director and Fellow recruitment, and coordinating project management across the Agency. Kizilyalli’s focus at ARPA-E includes power electronics, wide and ultra-wide bandgap semiconductors, electronic systems for hostile environments, electrifi cation of transport (aviation, ships, automotive, space), subsurface instrumentation, novel sub-surface drilling concepts, medium voltage DC distribution grids, and grid resiliency against EMP and space weather threats. Prior to joining ARPA-e, Kizilyalli served as founder, CEO, CTO, VP at various venture backed startups. Previously, he was with Bell Laboratories. Kizilyalli was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in 2007 for his contributions to Integrated Circuit Technology. He also received the Bell Laboratories’ Distinguished Member of Technical Staff award and the Best Paper Award at the International Symposium on Power Semiconductors and Integrated Circuits (ISPSD) in 2013. Kizilyalli holds his B.S. in Electrical Engineering, M.S. in Metallurgy, and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois (Urbana). He has published more than 100 papers and holds 125 issued U.S. patents.& Systems Engineering at the University of Florida.

Dr. Dimitri Corpakis, is an independent expert, writing and talking on innovation, growth and technological change. An engineer and planner by training, he has more than 30 years’ experience on the European integration process. He worked extensively for the European Commission in Brussels as well as for the Greek civil service. His work experience spans many policy areas including Education and Training, Information and Communication Technologies, Social Sciences and Humanities, and Regional Innovation Ecosystems with an emphasis on interactions and synergies between the Union’s Research, Innovation and Cohesion Policies (European Structural and Investment Funds). Over the years he acquired substantial experience in designing science and technology policy with a focus on economic performance.

Prior to retiring from the European Commission, he led its DG Research and Innovation Unit on the Regional (sub-national) Dimension of Innovation, with a strong focus on developing Research and Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation (RIS3); the Joint Programming Initiative on “Urban Europe” and the ground-breaking actions on closing the innovation divide (Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation - Teaming, Twinning and ERA Chairs). As of 2018, he co-founded FoSS (Friends of Smart Specialisation) an informal advocacy and policy group. He is a Fellow of the Regional Studies Association (RSA) and a Senior Research Fellow of the South East European Research Centre (SEERC) an institution of the CITY College, University of York Europe Campus. He is a member of the Club of Rome (EU Chapter) and has also been a member of the Executive Committee (and acting VP) of the International Triple Helix Association. Dimitri has published several articles on peer-reviewed journals as well as book chapters.

He can be reached at d.corpakis@gmail.com, on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/in/dimitricorpakis ) and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/DimitriCorpakis).

Roei Friedberg is the CEO of Aura Air Americas. He has extensive experience planning and executing strategic collaborations with various industries, including government, healthcare, hospitality, commercial real estate, and educational institutes. As part of his previous position as Vice President of Business Development, he led the Coronavirus clinical trials at Sheba Medical Center. Roei worked in the Israeli Prime Minister's office for two years and holds a B.A. in Government, Diplomacy, and Strategy from the Lauder School of Government at IDC University.

Carl Silverberg is the Senior V.P. of Outreach & Public Affairs for iUNU, a Seattle-based startup that provides AI and computer vision technology to greenhouse growers. He focuses his efforts on three areas. First, the continued the expansion of iUNU’s partnerships with universities. Second, the development of international markets for iUNU. Third, managing the company’s federal initiatives such as urban greenhouses in underserved communities, supporting grants with partners, and raising awareness of AgTech issues with Congress.

In this role, he has had numerous articles published in trade publications in the greenhouse industry as well as the general press.

Mr. Silverberg spent the majority of his career as a domestic and international political strategist. He worked in campaigns either directly or indirectly in all 50 states in the United States, and has consulted on over 20 Presidential campaigns in the Caribbean Basin, Central America, South America, and Africa. Carl played a major role in the first constitutional transition of power on the continent of Africa when President Mills of Ghana died while in office. Then-Vice President John Mahama assumed the presidency and retained it in the election four months later.

Mr. Silverberg has been a Chief of Staff to a Member of Congress and Director of Communications for a large judicial agency, as well as an investment banker early in his career.

Carl continues to be a frequent media guest and speaker at conferences and universities. He has published one novel Kidnap The House, and is in the editing stage of his second novel. Mr. Silverberg lives with his family in Seattle where he actively engages in outdoor activities.

Csaba Deák, PhD. Former Chancellor University of Miskolc, Hungary, & Hon. Consul Finland. 2014- Associate Professor, Corvinus University of Budapest. Education, research and training 2014- Chancellor, University of Miskolc 2012-2014 Vice President for strategy, National Innovation Offi ce 2010-2012 Vice Rector, University of Miskolc 2010- President, North Hungarian ICT Cluster 2007-2009 Cluster Manager, North Hungarian ICT Cluster (48 IT companies) 2007- 2012 Auditor, Hungarian Space Cluster 2007- 2012 Member of the Senate of University of Miskolc 2007-2009 Managing Director, Uni-Flexys Ltd. (Spin-off company of University of Miskolc) 2005- 2012 Director, Innovation Management Research Centre, University of Miskolc 2005- 2012 Visiting Professor (Project Management course), University of Caen, France 2002-2014 Associate Professor, University of Miskolc. Education, research and training 1997- Management Consultant Human Telex Consulting Ltd. Budapest consulting and training 1993-2001: Different position at University of Miskolc. Education, research and training.