GreenBeat 2009: Bringing in the Grid analysts

In order for a conference to be a catalyst for change, it needs to have people asking the right questions. GreenBeat 2009 has recruited a crack team of moderators to execute this task — including two of the most respected analysts speaking and writing about the emerging Super Grid.

Before we introduce them and the other moderators, remember to register for your GreenBeat ticket today. With an all-star lineup including former vice president Al Gore, Cisco’s Smart Grid guru Laura Ipsen and PG&E’s Andy Tang, tickets are going fast. You can sign up and find out more about the conference — which will take place next week at the San Mateo Marriott — here, or follow us at @greenbeat2009 for breaking news on the event.

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We’d also like to acknowledge our strategic partners: Vantage Communications, DEMO, Matter Network, and Fora.TV; and our sponsors: Accenture, Southern California Edison, Accel Partners, Mayfield Fund, Oracle Utilities, Schwartz Communications, Cisco Systems, CPower, CSC and KPMG.

Now, prepped to fire questions at our roster of speakers, we have:

Sheeraz Haji — Managing director of the Cleantech Group. With his finger on the pulse of the cleantech sector, Haji has witnessed the fast and recent evolution of the Super Grid. He heads up one of the biggest groups generating research, hosting events and spurring conversation about green technologies. Before joining the global company, Haji co-founded and spent eight years running GetActive, a company providing CRM software to nonprofits and educational institutions. During his tenure, it merged with Convio. But he began his career with an environmental bent, earning degrees from both Brown and Stanford in environmental engineering before working at the Washington, D.C. office of Environ International.

Eric Wesoff — Senior analyst at Greentech Media. With expertise in solar power, fuel cells, biofuels and advanced batteries, Wesoff has now taken an interest in the grid and the way it interacts and will interact with renewable energy generation, among other business opportunities. Previous to joining GreenTech Media’s research team, he founded Sage Marketing Partners, providing sales, marketing and consulting services to alternative energy and telecommunications companies. As publisher of the Venture Power newsletter, he became one of the first major voices digging into venture-capital investment in green energy. Over the course of his career, he has managed marketing for Siemens and Akzo Nobel Photonics, and provided consulting services to Merck, IBM and government agencies.

Jesse Berst — Managing director of Global Smart Energy. Heading up one of the most established consulting firms keeping tabs on the Super Grid and the business opportunities it is generating, Berst has become one of the most-sought authorities on these topics. He has worked with clients ranging from Lockheed Martin to the U.S. Department of Energy, from the Gridwise Alliance to Southern California Edison, and many others. He is also the founding editor of SmartGridNews.com, an online publication that tracks the Super Grid’s every move. His book “Electronomics — Creating Wealth and Prosperity from the Transition to the Electricity Economy” has become a reference for the industry.

In addition to the analysts, we’ve rounded up the field’s top journalists to ask the right questions based on what they’ve observed recently.

Katie Fehrenbacher — Editor of Earth2Tech. As founding editor of Earth2Tech, the green technology and business site in the GigaOm network, Fehrenbacher is one of the lead reporters covering the companies, policies and innovations shaping the Super Grid. Before Earth2Tech, she wrote about broadband and mobile technology for GigaOm. She joined the company after reporting for Red Herring and serving as an editor for Engadget.com. She started her career in journalist as the Silicon Valley reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest daily newspaper. She has also contributed to the New York Times, BusinessWeek, CNN, Reuters, the BBC and the Economist.

Michael Kanellos — Editor in Chief of Greentech Media. Overseeing all of the daily editorial content produced by Greentech Media, Kanellos has channeled his interest in new green technologies and companies into coverage of the Super Grid and opportunities and challenges involved in its growth. He arrived at GTM from CNET, where he wrote for its News.com property, and initiated its coverage of the green tech space. Over the course of his career, he has contributed his expertise to NPR, CBS, CNBC, and Fox News among other major media outlets.

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VentureBeat is hosting GreenBeat, the seminal executive conference on the Smart Grid, on Nov. 18-19, featuring keynotes from Nobel Prize winner Al Gore and Kleiner Perkins’ John Doerr. Register for your ticket today at GreenBeat2009.com.