Citizens Advisory Committee
| Name | City | Selected Background | Term Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Baerwaldt | Los Banos | Student and Researcher at UC Merced, UC Merced Solar Energy Association, dedicated to working on and understanding climate issues that our communities face through research and community outreach, a lifelong resident of Los Banos. | 2024 |
| Diane Bailey | Belmont | Director of Menlo Spark. Deep professional experience in environmental advocacy, environmental justice, and climate policy. Committed PCE champion from formation. | 2024 |
| Steven Booker | Half Moon Bay | Political Director and Community Affairs Liaison with IBEW 617. Has experience working with SMC city councils. Also helps young people in high school and Adult continuation schools find construction industry opportunities. Was an electrician for 20+ years and worked with Building Management Systems to reduce energy consumption. | 2025 |
| Brandon Chan | South San Francisco | Current member of Community Advisory Committee General Plan 2040 for City of South San Francisco. Interested in supporting the electrification of existing buildings equitably. | 2025 |
| Michael Closson | Menlo Park | Former CAC Chair. Advocated for CCA in San Mateo County through Sierra Club, San Mateo Community Choice, and Menlo Spark. Served on original PCE formation committee. Former ED of Acterra, developed Green@Home residential energy efficiency program. | 2023 |
| Michael Garvey | San Carlos | Led various energy and energy efficiency efforts through a career in local government, including as City Manager of San Carlos. Vision is to increase education around electrification programs. | 2025 |
| Kathleen Goforth | San Carlos | Brings experience from a career with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and volunteer work with local environmental organizations. Actively engaged in generating public support for building electrification. Co-led successful grassroots campaign for all-electric reach codes in San Carlos and retrofitted own home to be all-electric. | 2025 |
| Kathryn Green | San Mateo | Research Analyst for DNV GL. Has experience evaluating energy efficiency programs for utilities and conducting market research on demand response, policy, EV accessibility, and other energy related issues. Is a volunteer Adult Literacy tutor with San Mateo’s Project Read, and has experience lobbying and advocating on behalf of an environmental non-profit in Sacramento. | 2023 |
| Margaret Li | South San Francisco | Civil/Environmental engineer with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission enthusiastic about contributing to the community through local environmental advocacy. Life member of the Sierra Club for over two decades and a dedicated volunteer at Engineers Without Borders for over 15 years. | 2025 |
| Jason Mendelson | Redwood City | Current CAC Vice Chair. Active in developing Woodside’s Climate Action plan and city sustainability ordinances, organizing Earth Day celebrations in Portola Valley/Woodside, owns TV and film production studio. | 2025 |
| Cheryl Oliver Schaff | Menlo Park | Current CAC Chair. Dedicated activist as a Climate Reality Project Leader, Bay Area Chapter, and member of Extinction Rebellion San Mateo; working on Menlo Park City Team, in conjunction with 350 Silicon Valley; deep experience in marketing communications, PR. 30-year resident of Menlo Park. | 2024 |
| Desiree Thayer | Burlingame | Former CAC Chair. Active in Burlingame Citizens Environmental Council youth leadership programs with San Mateo County Department of Education. Volunteered on PCE business outreach. Extensive outreach and legislative volunteer experience through Oxfam. | 2023 |
Apply to Join Peninsula Clean Energy’s Citizens Advisory Committee
Be a part of bringing the benefits of clean energy to your community! Peninsula Clean Energy is recruiting Citizens Advisory Committee members.
To qualify, you must live or work in a Peninsula Clean Energy member community, which is any area of San Mateo County or in the City of Los Banos. The committee usually meets monthly on the second Thursday of the month at 6:30 pm. This is a volunteer position with a time commitment of approximately 3-4 hours per month.
To apply to be considered for the Citizens Advisory Committee, please fill out this form online by March 31, 2023.
We encourage you to read over the Citizen Advisory Committee documents in the sidebar to the right before applying. We also encourage you to attend a meeting of this committee (see information below) or the Peninsula Clean Energy Board of Directors.
Candidates will be screened by Peninsula Clean Energy staff. Top candidates will be interviewed by a committee of Peninsula Clean Energy’s Board of Directors, which will make nominations to the full Board in May.
For questions email Vanessa Shin at vshin@peninsulacleanenergy.com.
Objectives for the Citizens Advisory Committee
The goal of Peninsula Clean Energy is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by providing cleaner power to County residents and businesses at competitive rates. We also develop new renewable energy sources, including within San Mateo County, and implement programs to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
To further this mission, the Citizens Advisory Committee will:
- Act as a liaison to the community.
- Provide feedback on policy and operational objectives.
- Engage in outreach to the community, including encouraging ratepayers to upgrade to ECO100 (100% renewable energy product offering) and implement other carbon reducing practices.
- Assist with legislative advocacy in conjunction with staff and board.
- Provide a forum for community discussions on a wide variety of strategies to reduce carbon emissions in conjunction with staff and board.
- Form working groups, as determined by the CAC membership, to assist Peninsula Clean Energy’s staff and Board with projects of importance to the organization.
Meetings
The Citizens Advisory Committee usually meets on the second Thursday of every month at 6:30 p.m. Please check the posted Meeting Schedule for specifics. Please note that the meeting location (address or teleconference options) will be announced in the Agenda. All meeting agendas will be posted here at least 72 hours prior to each meeting.
How to join the meeting
Our meetings are currently hybrid with options to join remotely or in person. Please click on the meeting agenda for details and instructions.