Design & Delivery Team
Alison Cretney
Managing Director
Alison has managed the operations of the Energy Futures Lab for the past 4 years and during that period has overseen its rapid expansion and success. Her career has been at the cross section of energy, environment and collaboration. Moving from oil and gas engineer, to climate and sustainability consultant, to social innovator, her focus is on forging collaborative solutions to our biggest challenges.
Erin Romanchuk
Director of Partnerships
Erin is the Director of Partnerships for the Energy Futures Lab and an Associate with The Natural Step Canada. Erin supports the development of role model organizations as leaders in sustainable business and sustainable communities. Her specialties include sustainability planning processes and indicator development.
Keren Perla
Director, Energy Futures Policy Collaborative
Keren Perla directs and stewards the Energy Futures Policy Collaborative - a multi-leader partnership diving into the future of energy attraction and investment. Keren’s career and specialties have focused on pioneering new ways to solve messy challenges through the use of disciplines such as systemic design, foresight, and design facilitation. She is Co-founder and former Director of the Alberta CoLab – the first public sector social innovation lab to launch at a provincial level - and alumni of Avenue Magazine's Top 40 under 40.
Pong Leung
Lead Strategist
Pong is a founding member of The Natural Step Canada and Senior Associate. Pong has worked with a wide range of clients to share his expertise on sustainability, governance and organizational learning with a range of Albertan stakeholders.
Emma Gammans
Communications Specialist
Emma works with Energy Futures Lab as their Communications Specialist. Emma's professional experience ranges from educational programming and public speaking to historical research and strategic communications. As a communications professional, she is focused on exploring the relationship between energy literacy and storytelling. She believes that stories are a powerful tool in helping us tackle important issues with curiosity and empathy.
Kelley Thompson
Lab Operations Manager
Kelley has a passion for connecting people and is sensitive and adaptive to changes in needs and priorities, while seeking opportunities to understand, empathize, and problem-solve. These skills have positioned Kelley as a leader in advocating for workplace diversity and have helped her deliver numerous opportunities for inclusivity training in professional settings.
Juli Rohl
Animator
Juli is an Animator for the Energy Futures Lab. After 3 years as an EFL Fellow, Juli works with the Lab to support the initiatives, help deliver community roadshows, and acts as liaison between the EFL and the Circular Economy Leadership Coalition. With deep roots in petroleum geology and experience in business strategy and systems thinking, Juli knows that Alberta can be a leader in the global energy transition. Juli earned both a B.Sc. in Geology and an MBA from the University of Calgary.
Nagwan Al-Guneid
Manager, Policy Innovation and Government Relations
Pronounced Najwan, Nagwan is a professional with a Master’s of Science in Sustainable Energy Development and 10+ years of Canadian and international experience in stakeholder relations, strategic communications, community investment within multinational organizations. Her masters research focused on Addressing Climate Change through Collaboration between the Public and Private Sectors. She is a former public member of the City of Calgary BiodiverCity Advisory Committee and past president of Ask Her YYC. Nagwan is a 2020 Young Women Energy winner; an award shining a spotlight on women’s accomplishment and contributions to Alberta’s energy industry.
Matt Mayer
Lead, Special Projects
Matt is the Lead, Special Projects with the Energy Futures Lab and an Associate at The Natural Step Canada and has extensive experience applying systems-thinking, facilitating sustainability strategy and advancing leadership in all sectors across North America. He both advises and supports the design and delivery of the Energy Futures Lab as well as the Circular Economy Lab.
Emily Blocksom
Administration & Logistics Coordinator
Emily has always been fascinated by the natural world. Growing up on a small island off the west coast of British Columbia, she learned early in life of the important connection between healthy communities, economies, and the environment. She is passionate about working collaboratively across sectors to support the implementation of sustainable environmental practices. Emily is a recent graduate of the Master of Environmental Management program at the University of New Brunswick, and holds an undergraduate degree in Geography from the University of Calgary.
Dewly Nelson
Community Mobilizer
Dewly brings a background of 20 years of business and entrepreneurship, government as a Councillor in the Town of Hinton, and community action to his role as Community Mobilizer. He has been involved in energy and environment within his community as well as both provincially and federally. He has been involved with the Lab through Roadshow and Accelerator events and was a member of the Fellowship. He brings a unique perspective and background to the EFL Team.
John Gould
Communications Specialist
John is a communicator, videographer and designer who curates stories with hopes of inspiring action. His passion and enthusiasm stem from a love of Alberta and its natural landscapes. His masters research addressed the communicative barriers to climate action and energy transition within Alberta. He has previous experience working in the UK for a Scottish Climate Group that educates and empowers young people in creating a sustainable future. In his spare time, he runs his own clothing upcycling business and has past experience retrofitting homes.
Steve Williams
Developmental Evaluator
Steve specializes in Corporate Social Responsibility design, evaluation, impact measurement, and data visualization for sustainability. He is a technology strategist designing and facilitating participant-driven public engagement events with over 20 years experience in the software industry.
Mark Cabaj
Developmental Evaluation Advisor
Mark is President From Here to There Consulting and Associate of Tamarack – An Institute for Community Engagement. Mark’s current focus is building the practice of Developmental Evaluation integrating real-time feedback and learning in emerging, complex, and fast-moving environments.