CREST 2015 Information

Keynote Speaker

Congressman Tony Cardenas

Raised by hard-working immigrant parents, Tony Cárdenas was brought up with simple ideals – that integrity and dedication were the keys to success. These are the qualities that he has brought to his 16 year career as a public servant for the people of the North East San Fernando Valley, and that he continues to offer today as a United States Congressman.

Cárdenas has also been chosen to represent Los Angeles on the prestigious House Committee on Energy and Commerce, the oldest of the "authorizing" committees in the House. He also was chosen as a member of House Democratic Leadership, working with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer as an Assistant Whip.

Cárdenas was first elected to the California State Assembly in 1996. He went on to serve three terms in the assembly and was later elected to the Los Angeles City Council, in 2003. An engineering degree, and a business background, prepared him for the day-to-day duties of an elected official and his experience has allowed him to find practical and realistic solutions to difficult problems. Born in Pacoima, Cárdenas was raised with ten brothers and sisters and still resides in the San Fernando Valley with his wife, Norma, and their children.

As a state legislator, Cárdenas focused on ensuring that his community received the programs and services they needed, while he made sure the state’s finances were managed responsibly. As Chair of the State Assembly’s powerful Budget Committee, Cárdenas oversaw the most robust reserve budget in the history of California. His state reforms brought 78,000 new classroom seats to Los Angeles, as well as 15 universal playgrounds throughout the city. He also secured more than $650 million for new school construction in Los Angeles to help relieve overcrowded classrooms.

It was in the Assembly, that Cárdenas began working on juvenile justice issues. His state legislation included the overhaul of California’s gang prevention and intervention programs, with the passage of the Schiff-Cárdenas Juvenile Justice Crime Prevention Act. He brought his passion for juvenile justice to the Los Angeles City Council. As Chair of the City’s Ad Hoc Committee on Gang Violence and Youth Development, Cardenas identified millions of dollars overlooked by the City to help keep kids off the streets, and reduced crime while reducing expenditures on crime abatement programs.

As Vice Chair of the City’s Public Safety Committee, Cárdenas spearheaded the most comprehensive gang intervention model in the country. The Community-Based Gang Intervention Model standardized and defined the methods used by gang intervention workers to help stop violence in some of LA’s most dangerous neighborhoods.

In 2012, Cárdenas also passed landmark amendments to the City’s daytime curfew ordinance. The new policy eliminated costly fines, of up to $500 that students were facing. It also reduced lengthy court visits for parents and students, and gave students the opportunity to do community service to eliminate their citations.

As an animal rights advocate, Cárdenas also created Los Angeles’ first Animal Cruelty Task Force which, for the first time, targeted animal abuse city-wide. One of the task force’s first felony convictions put a known gang member away for three years for abusing a family pet. Cárdenas also co-authored the City’s mandatory spay/neuter ordinance, helping Los Angeles become the largest no-kill city in the country. Cárdenas also launched the city’s first Task Force on Human Trafficking and Child Prostitution, addressing an often overlooked crime. The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that 14,000 to 18,000 people are trafficked into the country annually in Los Angeles.

Attacking persistent blight in his community, Cárdenas launched district and city-wide efforts to improve the environment. Community clean-ups in his district collected more than 56,000 tons of trash and bulky items during his tenure and Cárdenas added more than 100 acres of new park. Cárdenas demanded that L.A.’s Department of Water and Power establish its Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard, laying out specific goals and timelines for their use of clean energy. And he consistently drafted and supported green energy legislation including his plan to convert the City’s taxi fleet to fuel efficient vehicles.

After 16 years in public office, Cárdenas has made history, becoming the first Latino elected to represent the San Fernando Valley in our United States Congress. He will continue his passionate commitment to the community in Washington.

Rafael Alcalde-Navarro CEM, DGCP – GE Energy

Mr. Alcalde-Navarro has worked 24 years in the renewable energy industry. He holds the position of Commercial Leader for Latin America and the West USA Regions with General Electric. He has also led GE’s Licensing efforts for wind products globally.

Mr. Alcalde-Navarro has successfully performed activities with utilities and policy makers in several countries for the development of renewable mechanisms (including renewable laws) that allow for structured financing. He has led negotiations of turbine contracts exceeding 1.5 Billion USD.

Mr. Alcalde-Navarro graduated with a degree in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering from the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, Mexico. Earned an Energy Management, a Distributed Generation and a Cogeneration Professional Certifications from the US Association of Energy Engineers of Atlanta Georgia. Earned an EIT certification from the Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors in California, Completed a Project Economics course with The Harvard University, Division of Continuing Education and is a Member of the International Who is Who of Professional Management edition 1998. In March 2010 Mr. Alcalde was one of 10 Alumni recognized during the 75th Anniversary events of the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara and received the Award “Galardon Lic. Antonio Leaño Álvarez del Castillo" in the area of Business.

Mohd. Hasan Ali, PhD.

Mohd. Hasan Ali received his Ph.D. Degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Kitami Institute of Technology, Japan, in 2004. He served as a lecturer in EEE Dept. of Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET), Bangladesh since 1995 to 2004, and also became an assistant professor in the same university in 2004.  

Dr. Ali was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow under the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Program at the Kitami Institute of Technology, Japan, since November 2004 to January 2007. He also worked as a Research Professor in Electrical Engineering Department of Changwon National University, South Korea since February 2007 to December 2007. He was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of Ryerson University, Canada, from January 2008 to June 2009. He also worked as a Faculty at the Electrical Engineering Department, University of South Carolina, USA, since July 2009 to August 2011.

Currently, Dr. Ali is working as an Assistant Professor at the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, University of Memphis, Tennessee, USA. He leads the Electric Power and Energy Systems (EPES) Laboratory of the University. His main field of interest includes advanced power systems, smart-grid and micro-grid systems, renewable energy systems, energy storage systems, and flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS). Up to now, he has more than 125 publications including 2 books, 1 book chapter, 44 journal papers, 62 international and 20 national conference papers.

Dr. Ali is a Senior Member of the IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES). Also, he is the Chair of the PES of the IEEE Memphis Section.

Philip Father is a seasoned hybrid entrepreneur / corporate executive experienced in high-tech and infrastructure development with emphasis in the satellite/wireless communications and broadcast television industries.

Mr. Father is currently CEO of Prairie Fire LLC (www.prairiefirellc.com), a distributed renewable energy company that is deploying state-of-the-art pyrolysis equipment, which converts waste or underutilized resources (“feedstocks”) into energy, across the U.S. and specifically leverage the multi-faceted capabilities of newly commercialized mobile systems manufactured by SAIC.  This equipment generates revenue from selling power and charging tipping fees while operating well below current EPA emissions standards.  Prairie Fire has engaged sawmills, waste sewage treatment plants, trash management companies and other customers with on-site feedstock and power needs via “inside-the-fence” deals implemented using mobile platforms.  Philip co-founded the Company in early 2011.  As a serial entrepreneur, Mr. Father at times looks to government policy to identify emerging markets/opportunities and this belief has been a catalyst for his current renewable energy industry focus.

Just prior to Prairie Fire, Mr. Father was formerly the CEO and President of ProtoStar Ltd., a satellite communications company that provided satellite bandwidth to primarily small-dish television broadcasters/operators across Asia (www.protostarsat.com/team.html).  As founder, he foresaw the future for direct-to-home (DTH) television services within the developing markets of Asia and set forth in 2002 to develop a new satellite constellation providing high power geostationary capacity.  As such, Mr. Father spearheaded many critical efforts including developing the company’s business plan, differentiating the firm from its competition, financing Protostar’s two high-power satellites (hundreds of million of dollars in equity and debt), growing the company from four initial people to more than forty five across three offices, and securing anchor customer contracts from such firms/entities as Agrani/DishTV of India, Indovision of Indonesia, SingTel of Singapore, PLDT of the Philippines and the US Government.  He also led ProtoStar’s debt refinancing efforts in 2009 with UBS which culminated in selling the Company’s satellites to the world’s two largest satellite operators, Intelsat and SES. 

Beyond Mr. Father’s ProtoStar tenure, he has more than 20 years experience in the satellite industry with both domestic and international initiatives.  Prior to ProtoStar, he helped develop large satellite ventures for GM Hughes such as DirecTV (DTH), Galaxy Latin America (DTH), Asia Pacific Mobile Telephone (telephony/data) and Spaceway (next generation VSAT and broadband services).  In addition, he led business plan development in such areas as internet backbone services, air traffic navigation and broadband services via stratospheric platforms.  He is knowledgeable in both FSS (Fixed Satellite Services) and MSS (Mobile Satellite Services) arenas, across applications that span the frequency spectrum (Ka, Ku, C, S and L bands) and in consumer aspects of DTH service including set-top-box equipment and advanced dish design.

Prior to his operating experience, Mr. Father was employed in the consulting services industry where he worked with three prominent consulting firms (in reverse chronological order): (i) Strategos, an international strategy boutique, where as a co-founder he implemented growth strategies centered around the strategic intent/core competency principles of Dr. Gary Hamel (also a co-founder), (ii) Gemini Consulting (formerly the MAC Group), where he led the west coast high-tech strategy practice, and (iii) GEO-Centers Inc., where he provided analytical consulting services focused on non-linear deformation analysis of submarine hulls to the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL).

Overall, Mr. Father possesses an extensive rolodex of contacts within the global telecommunications, broadcast and satellite industries, and he maintains relationships with government communications and regulatory entities.  Many of these relationships have close overlays with energy and environmental entities.  He is also adept at understanding and converting market trends into business opportunities, and is skilled at cross cultural business development and conflict resolution.

Mr. Father holds an MBA from Stanford University, a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MS degree in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Composite Materials from Rensselaer Polytechnic University.