About Us

Our Story

At the epicenter for electric vehicle adoption, California has more electric cars on the road than any other region in the U.S, and is home to some of the greenest cities in the nation and the world. Unfortunately California has some of the least healthy air quality in the country, including the San Joaquin Valley basin, the Bay Area, and the inland empire metropolitan area in Southern California. When we factor in the “new normal” annual wildfire season, California air quality can sometimes be the worst in the world, as we saw in 2018, 2019 and 2020!

One of the largest sources of GHG emissions in California is from the transportation sector, accounting for 41% from commercial trucks and automobiles – and in the San Francisco Bay Area, almost 40% of greenhouse gas emissions come from cars and trucks.

The good news is California is a pacesetter of environmental policy and is moving forward with a bold vision for an all-electric transportation future in California by 2035: 100% of in-state sales of new passenger cars and light-duty trucks will be zero emission. In 2020, the #1 export in California was electric vehicles; with EV sales in California at almost 1 million, California has a long way to go to reach its ZEV goals. This is where Charge Across Town comes in – we have helped move the dial towards a 25% adoption rate at our statewide events.

Our Work

Over the past ten years, Charge Across Town (CAT) has been working across the state directly with consumers, community organizers, local government and the automotive industry to get people excited about driving and purchasing electric vehicles, and educating them about charging. Our approach has been to produce fun, user-friendly events, in a non-sales environment, for people to ask questions, talk to EV owners, learn about incentives, and of course take the cars out for a test-drive. Since 2012, we have conducted over 15,000 test-drives of all types of electric cars, surveyed over 25,000 consumers on EV attitudes and buying trends, worked with every major automotive company and local dealerships, and partnered with energy and infrastructure players to demonstrate charging solutions. Our data shows that when people can get behind the wheel of an electric car, and take it out for a spin, they are more likely to purchase an EV. As a matter of fact, over the past seven years, Charge Across Town has seen a 25% adoption rate of new and used EVs due to its educational test-drive events.

Some of the seminal work Charge Across Town has done include our annual EV Week(s), Driving on Sunshine, MTC’s Experience Electric #thebetterride, Veloz’ Best.Drive.EVer!, SMUD’s Drive Electric, The Governor’s Global Climate Action Summit Zero Emission Vehicle Showcase, and the Electrify America ZEV Awareness and Education Program for Disadvantaged and Low-Income Communities. CAT is working with ValleyCAN on their ride and drive events across the central valley, and is a key partner in the Drive Clean Bay Area (DCBA) EVs for Equity program.

Our Team

Maureen Blanc

Executive Director

Maureen brings business and marketing acumen, and non-profit expertise to Charge Across Town, leading the charge in EV adoption.

Maureen is a successful high-tech businesswoman and environmental entrepreneur. She spent 25 years in the private sector as a leader in high tech marketing and communications. Most recently, Maureen was director of Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) Northern California from 2007-2010.

Maureen built one of the largest high tech PR firms, Blanc and Otus Public Relations, and sold the firm in 2000 to WPP, a world leader in marketing communications services. Blanc and Otus launched over 200 companies into emerging markets from enterprise computing, salesforce automation software, mobility, web-based broadcasting to Web 2.0, and clean technology companies. Maureen has spent the past 10 years in the non-profit sector working on domestic and international issues, and is an advisor and board member to world affairs, philanthropic, educational, and environmental organizations.

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Bill Bright

Senior Program Manager

Bill oversees our ride and drive programs, with partners, dealers, and educational organizations across the state.

Bill is a seasoned event marketing project manager, with extensive consumer event marketing experience in the areas of EVs and alternative fuel vehicles. As a founding and principle member of the AAA Greenlight Initiative from 2005-2012, Bill designed and delivered a wide range of public and internal educational event campaigns including sales personnel training on the Greenlight Initiative. Since 2012 Bill has been a valuable member of the CAT team as a leader in managing EV test drive event components of CAT-led campaigns.

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Michelle Pierce

EV Ride and Drive Manager, SoCal

Michelle is a recognized electric vehicle enthusiast and advocate in the Inland Empire in Southern California.

She founded EV Nirvana, a company dedicated to the promotion, education, advocacy and sales of plug-in Electric Vehicles. Michelle has deep expertise in EV education and outreach, strategic planning, EVSE site design and analysis, project management and EV charging best practices. Michelle has delivered specialized presentations on Electric Vehicles and Charging Infrastructure, developing and executing outreach strategies with local utilities, community organizations, and faith-based organizations and advocating for federal and state policies for lower income residence to receive incentives that help them with buying or leasing Electric Vehicles.

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Jenny Matchell

Events Manager, Northern California

Jenny manages Charge Across Town’s EV educational and outreach events in Northern California.

Jenny has over 15 years experience in the event management industry. As a graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with a degree Environmental Sciences she works mainly with nonprofit organizations, focusing her time on public health and sustainable event management. Through the years she has worked in all aspects of the industry including special events, youth programs, bike rides, and running events. She believes in the collaborative approach to event management and works closely with community partners, organizations, volunteers, and vendors to produce exemplary events.

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Briana Trejo

Events Manager, Central Valley California

Briana manages Charge Across Town’s EV educational and outreach events in California’s Central Valley.

Briana has worked within the clean energy industry for nearly 4 years. She graduated from California State University – Stanislaus with a degree in Biology. She brings great passion for sustainability with alternative energy resources.
She is a clean tech and electric vehicle enthusiast. Briana has focused her time advocating with nonprofits dedicated to promoting and educating disadvantaged communities of alternative fuel vehicles and government incentives to improve the air quality within the San Joaquin Valley and Bay Area.

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Linda Hutchins-Knowles

Multi-Family Housing Senior Manager, California

Linda manages Charge Across Town’s educational and outreach programs at multi-family housing sites.

Fluent in Spanish, Linda empowers residents to access EV charging and financial incentives to bring EV ownership within reach, especially in disadvantaged and low-income communities. She also volunteers as a co-leader of the EV Charging for All Coalition, advocating for state and city building codes that ensure affordable, at-home charging for residents of apartments and condos. Prior to joining the Charge Across Town team, Linda served as E-Mobility and Advocacy Senior Manager at Acterra and as California Senior Manager for Mothers Out Front: Mobilizing for a Livable Climate. A former teacher, she holds a master’s degree in Education from Holy Names University in Oakland as well as a B.A. in Spanish and Philosophy from Earlham College.

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Charge Across Town Board of Directors

Maureen Blanc

Member, Past Board Chair

Dedrick Roper

Board Treasurer

Partner, eMobility Advisors

Dedrick is an advanced vehicle technology pioneer with over 12 years’ experience cultivating public-private partnerships, business offerings, and programs.

His enterprising spirit and creative problem solving has helped spearhead initiatives that have accelerated EV adoption. Dedrick is currently Director, Public-Private Partnerships at ChargePoint where he has worked in grant operations and public policy management. Dedrick has spent the past decade as an entrepreneur and business leader in personal mobility, in electric bikes and bike share programs at Current Moves, City CarShare, and Mahindra GenZe. He also spent 4 years in the NFL as a professional football player.

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Rebecca Fisher

Board Member

Associate Director, Road Transport, ClimateWorks

Rebecca Fisher is the Associate Director of Road Transportation at ClimateWorks. She has almost a decade of experience in sustainable international development, climate finance, and electric vehicle technology and policy.

Before joining ClimateWorks, Rebecca worked on light-duty EV grant programs and policy development at the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Prior to moving back to the west coast, Rebecca was a climate finance negotiator for the Obama Administration, representing the United States during the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals negotiations. She serves on the National Board of Directors of the Electric Auto Association, where she supports the Association’s mission to accelerate widespread adoption of EVs.

Rebecca holds a Master of Environment Economics and Sustainable International Development from Duke University and a B.A. in Environmental Studies from Brandeis University.

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David Rubin

Board Member

Mobility and EV Policy Expert | ex-Cruise

David Rubin has a robust background in policy campaign management, technical and policy research, political risk analysis, and government affairs.

As part of Cruise’s Government Affairs team, Dave lead Cruise’s engagement with research centers, universities, think tanks, and policymakers to advance analysis and scholarship on the ways in which autonomous, electric, and shared mobility can improve today’s transportation system. In his role, Dave worked with both government and NGO stakeholders across policy areas impacted by self-driving technology – the environment, road safety, congestion, accessibility, equity, and data privacy.

Prior to joining Cruise in January 2019, Dave worked for over six years at the strategic advisory firm The Asia Group, based in Washington, DC. In that capacity, Dave supported U.S. multinational corporations in the transportation, energy, and aerospace industries in navigating political risks and developing market entry campaigns across the Indo-Pacific, with a predominant focus on Japan. Previous to The Asia Group, Dave worked at Logistics Capital & Strategy, a boutique management consulting firm focused on the transportation sector.

Dave has spoken at a variety of transportation policy fora, including the Transportation Research Board’s Annual Meeting; the Conference on Advancing Transportation Equity; the E-Mobility Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Conference; the Pennsylvania AV Summit; and more. He currently serves on the Board of the Electric Vehicle Charging Association on behalf of Cruise.

Dave holds a Masters of Arts in International Affairs from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, with a dual focus on International Economics and Energy, Resources, and the Environment. Dave also holds a Bachelors of Arts in International Service from American University. He is passionate about combining technology and policy to drive positive sum outcomes.

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Alex Frank

Board Member

Program Manager, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

Alex Frank, born and raised in Berkeley, CA, is a passionate advocate for sustainable and equitable transportation systems.

With a global perspective gained from living in various cities and countries, he brings a wealth of experience to his work. Alex serves as the Bike It Forward Program Manager at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, dedicated to providing fun, low-cost mobility and supportive services to those in need. His mission is to spread the joy of sustainable travel by making bicycles accessible to those who might otherwise not have the opportunity.

Additionally, as a Commissioner on the Oakland Bicyclist and Pedestrian Advisory Commission, he leads the Policy and Legislative committee, striving for safer and more equitable environments in Oakland. Alex holds a Master’s in International Public Policy from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor’s in Economics from New York University.

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Pamela Wellner

Board Chair

Chief Strategist, Amplify Eco

Pamela has been working passionately for a sustainable planet for over 25 years. She is currently the chief strategist of her company, Amplify Eco, a communications and program management consulting practice.

She has directed communications campaigns for nonprofits, government and businesses focused on increasing energy efficiency, clean energy and electric vehicle adoption on behalf of California agencies such as the Air Resources Board, Energy Commission and Public Utilities Commission. She was senior manager for Energy Upgrade California, which won the 2017 Energy Star Excellence in Promotion Award, managed marketing for the Clean Vehicle Rebate Project, developed its brand strategy, as well as that of the California Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Project. Pamela also managed the 2016 CoolCalifornia City Challenge, a 22-city competition that engaged over 3,000 households to reduce their carbon footprint.

While at the California Public Utilities Commission, she focused on utility customer energy efficiency marketing and behavior change, helped create the Behavior Energy and Climate Change Conference and has frequently presented on behavior change approaches.

Before getting ensconced in California energy issues, Pamela directed cutting edge campaigns to protect old growth forests and human rights from unsustainable timber practices for products ranging from musical instruments to tissue paper and helped establish the Forest Stewardship Council.

She has a master’s in public administration from New York University and bachelor’s in human ecology from the small, but mighty, College of the Atlantic.

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Francesca Wahl

Board Secretary

Business Development and Policy, Tesla

As part of the business development and policy team at Tesla, Francesca focuses on managing regulatory policy engagement on transportation electrification in California and electric vehicle charging infrastructure issues with key agencies, utilities, and cities across the country.

Previously, she was the Senior Associate for Energy and Environmental Policy at the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, a public policy trade association representing more than 390 companies in Silicon Valley. Francesca has also worked on federal energy efficiency policy at the Alliance to Save Energy in DC, analyzed state recycling regulation and legislation, assisted governments and small businesses with implementing sustainability principles in their management plans, and served in the White House Liaison Office at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Francesca has a B.A. in Economics and Foreign Affairs with Distinction from the University of Virginia.

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Shawn Dillon

Board Member

Shawn is passionate about biking, urban mobility, equitable access to transportation, street design, and getting people to their destination safely with zero emissions.

He was previously Marketing Specialist at Lyft Bikes & Scooters, focusing on bike share in the San Francisco Bay Area, and coordinates Bike Share for All, a bike share equity program and local events. Before that, he was with Motivate International and worked at GIG CarShare.

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Tiya Gordon

Board Member

Co-Founder, It’s Electric

Tiya holds 20 years’ experience in design, leadership, and operations across a range of disciplines for some of the country’s top firms and institutions. She is now venturing to spend the next 20 years on projects that use design to wage war against the Climate Crisis starting with the founding of It’s Electric.

It’s Electric is a Brooklyn-born electric vehicle charging company whose unique approach solves for the infrastructure and environmental justice barriers cities face in the deployment of EV charging.

Tiya’s body of work has received the industry’s top accolades, including The National Design Award from the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum; the SXSW Innovation Award for Urban Infrastructure; the Inaugural Cannes Gold Lion for Creative Data; the Emerging Filmmaker Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival; and the designation of second most innovative design firm in the world by Fast Company.

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Our Advisory Council

Eugene Dickey

Owner and Founder, Third Rail eBikes

Third Rail is an electric bike shop in San Francisco – with ebikes designed and assembled in San Francisco and built to last years.

Lisa Ghotbi

Director of Pharmacy, San Francisco Health Plan, previous CAT Board Members

Lisa has been a healthcare and employee benefits executive for over 20 years, most recently as the COO for the Health Service System, a board governed multi-employer trust responsible for benefit administration for 110,000 employee and retiree families.

She worked for several large health insurance companies overseeing operations, analytics, contracts and customer service teams. She started her career as a hospital pharmacist and is highly organized with a strong record of change management, customer service, and complex strategic restructuring projects delivering compliant operational efficiencies and improved financial management. Lisa and her family are committed to alternative energy with solar panels, electric chargers and electric vehicles in use since 2012.

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Gordon Bauer

PHD, Senior Data Scientist, Stable Auto

Gordon is a sustainable transportation researcher with almost 10 years of experience in transportation data science and electric vehicles.

In his current role, he develops machine learning algorithms and data analysis to help companies identify the best locations to install EV chargers and optimize operations. As the EV market expands, it is more important than ever that charging infrastructure is sited and operated efficiently.

Previously, Gordon worked at Via Transportation, helping modernize and electrify public transportation, and The International Council on Clean Transportation, where he conducted research on charging infrastructure needs and used EV market trends. Gordon holds a BA in Chemistry from Williams College, and a MS and PhD in Energy and Resources from University of California, Berkeley.

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Tom Knox

Executive Director, Valley CAN

Valley Clean Air Now (Valley CAN) is a qualified 501(c)(3) public charity committed to quantifiably improving air quality in California’s San Joaquin Valley, one of the most polluted regions in the United States.

ValleyCAN reduces air emissions in the San Joaquin Valley by creating new opportunities for affordable emissions reductions through strategic partnerships. They promote voluntary reductions in transportation emissions through conducting local Tune In & Tune Up events across the region to repair high-emitting vehicles, and by bringing electric vehicle ride and drives to these events.

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Felix Kramer

Founder, ClimateChargesEverything.org and CALcars.org

Felix Kramer is a writer and an ex-entrepreneur who’s been able to volunteer on cleantech and climate change awareness and solutions for a long time.

He led the successful crowd-created campaign by the California Cars Initiative to get automakers to mass produce plug-in hybrids, declaring victory when the Chevy Volt arrived.

He’s a strategic advisor to the Healthy Climate Alliance and the Foundation for Climate Restoration. He edits ClimateChangesEverything.org to bring you resources and connections to help you get your hopes up about our future. And stories about how people are making reversing global warming and restoring our climate their ambitious goals.

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Pete May

Co-founder, GreenBiz Group

Pete May is Co-founder of GreenBiz Group. GreenBiz Group is the media and events company accelerating the just transition to a clean economy.

Through events that galvanize, stories that amplify, peer networks that bond and industry-leading analysis, GreenBiz Group defines markets and advances opportunities at the intersection of business, technology and sustainability. They build and empower professional communities to confront the threats of climate change.

Prior to founding GreenBiz Group in 2006 with Joel Makower, Pete had over 20 years experience in B2B and technology media as an executive with companies such as Primedia, CMP and Miller Freeman — in both Europe and North America. May was honored with the 2010 Folio 40 C-Level Visionaries Award, recognizing media industry influencers and innovators. He is a graduate of UC Santa Barbara.

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Rebecca Milliken

City of Berkeley

Rebecca is the Sustainability Outreach Specialist at the Office of Energy & Sustainable Development with the City of Berkeley.

Rebecca collaborates with other municipalities and community organizations to educate and engage residents and businesses on climate change solutions, such as transportation and building electrification, community choice energy, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. She also co-convenes the Berkeley Climate Action Coalition with the Ecology Center. Prior to joining the City, Rebecca spent many years in the non-profit sector in program and grant management and direct service roles advancing green workforce development, educational access and equity, and environmental justice.

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Lawrie Mott

Board Chair, Cool the Earth

Lawrie Mott is currently an independent consultant specializing in environmental health.

From 1982 to 2000, she was a senior scientist with the San Francisco office of the Natural Resources Defense Council. Lawrie has served on a wide variety of environmental and educational nonprofit boards including Resource Media – a media strategy organization focused on environmental issues, Marin Academy – an independent high school, and Envision School – a charter school management organization. She received her BA from University of California Santa Cruz and her MS from Yale.

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Michael Mayfield

Environmental Scientist, US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Michael is an Americorps fellow, and CAT ride and drive team leader in San Joaquin Valley.

Simon Mui

Senior Scientist, Climate and Clean Energy Program, NRDC

Simon Mui researches and advocates for cleaner vehicles and fuels in order to reduce the impacts of transportation systems on the environment.

Prior to joining NRDC, Mui worked in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality, where he coauthored studies on plug-in electric vehicles and climate-mitigation strategies. He has also served as a fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and worked as an engineer developing lithium-ion batteries for a startup company. He holds two bachelor’s degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, a master’s in technology and policy, and a PhD in materials engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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Shana Patadia

Business Development & Strategy for Fleet Electrification

EV Realty, bringing grid-optimized charging solutions to fleets!

Mark Tang

Bay Area Air Quality Management District

Mark brings over 15 years of Air Quality industry experience working in engineering, compliance and transportation planning.

Mark currently leads light-duty infrastructure and vehicle programs at the Bay Area Air Quality Management District providing incentives to increase EV adoption in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In additional to his work at the Air District, Mark serves on the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Citizen’s Advisory Committee and the Balboa Reservoir Community Advisory Committee advocating for clean energy generation, equity and affordable housing.

Mark holds a BA in Environmental Studies from California State University, Sacramento and a MLA in Extension Studies with a focus in Environmental Management & Sustainability from Harvard University.

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Karen Weber

Non-profit Administration

As Operations and Finance Director for Charge Across Town since its earliest years, she was responsible for all data collection and reporting metrics to track and measure its impact on EV adoption across California.

Karen worked in the securities and management consulting industries before completing a Master of Nonprofit Administration degree at the University of San Francisco. Karen has been involved with many facets of nonprofit organizations including strategic planning, marketing, program evaluation, operational analyses, and fundraising. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of two local nonprofit organizations.

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Sam Wilson

Senior Vehicles Analyst, Union of Concerned Scientists

Working closely with coalitions, communities, industry, and state/federal decision-makers, I produce research and analysis that informs and affects the adoption of zero-emission trucks and buses regulations and laws.

John Kalb

In Memorium

EV Charging Pros

John Kalb had more than 30 years of managerial, operational, and technical experience developing business opportunities from emerging trends.

EV Charging Pros helps commercial property owners, workplaces, and multifamily HOAs across the country develop EV-specific business models and organizational plans; perform equipment vendor assessment; and manage site selection, RFP’s, bids, awards, and installations.

Before launching EV Charging Pros, John served as VP of EV Market Development for Evolvelectric, a company focused on electrical innovation with an emphasis on putting customers on the path to sustainability. Evolvelectric has installed more than 200 EV charging station in Northern California.

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Get Involved!

We work in partnership with the EV and charging industry, clean energy providers, environmental and regulatory groups, and the communities most impacted by air pollution, by providing education, outreach and experiential events, that reduce barriers to adoption of electric transportation.

If your organization is interested in partnering with us, or if you’re interested in volunteering for one of our upcoming events, please contact us.

Our work is financed by local and state grants and programs, corporate sponsorships, and donations from individuals and philanthropic organizations.

Corporate Match