Stephen Ritchie serves as Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies and as a Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. He has over 40 year’s experience in engineering education and research, and interdisciplinary research management. His research interests focus on intelligent and sustainable transportation systems planning and engineering, emphasizing emerging technology research, development and field deployment in support of decarbonization policies for the nation’s freight transportation system. He currently leads the ITS-Irvine Freight Mobility Living Laboratory initiative, with the support of multiple state and federal agencies.
He received his Ph.D. degree in civil engineering-transportation from Cornell University, and is a recipient of the National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award, the Pyke Johnson Outstanding Paper Award from the Transportation Research Board, “Best of ITS” Research Award from ITS America, the Frank M. Masters Transportation Engineering Award from ASCE, and several Best Paper Awards from TRB Freight and Logistics Committees. Professor Ritchie has co-authored over 200 peer-reviewed articles in transportation journals and conference proceedings, and his extensive professional service includes Founding Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technology.
Alice Lee is vice president of the Product Regulatory Office (PRO) at American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (AHM) in Torrance, CA. In this position, she oversees U.S. regulatory compliance activities for automobile, powersports and power equipment products and represents Honda on product regulatory matters to U.S. government agencies. Lee joined Honda in 2002 and has held various roles within Honda Product Planning, Quality, Research, and Product Regulatory business units, and was appointed to her current role in March 2023. Her team actively supports key strategic initiatives within Honda focused on achieving shared societal goals.
Lee holds a B.A. in Economics and a B.A. degree in Psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She earned her JD/MBA at Arizona State University (ASU). She has previously served on the Advisory Council for the Women in Leadership Executive Program at UCR Extension.
Manfred Grunert is Vice President, Government Affairs and Communications Americas. In this role, Grunert is responsible for government affairs and corporate communications for product, technology, production plants and business in the U.S. and the entire Americas region.
A 19-year employee of the BMW Group, Grunert has a deep understanding of the company’s history, having spent time as an archivist in his first role and later as Head of the Archives and the Historical Collection at BMW Group Classic. Additional key positions have included Head of Communication for MINI, BMW Motorrad and Aftersales and Head of the Digital Communications Team at the BMW Group Media House. In 2018 he became Head of Communications and Government Affairs for India, Asia and the Pacific. He began his current role in February of 2023.
Neil Pedersen recently retired as Executive Director of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, a position that he served in from 2015 to 2022. In that role, he provided strategic direction and oversight for TRB’s technical activities, including its annual meeting, which attracts 14,000 attendees; its 177 standing technical committees; its conferences and workshops; its webinar program, its library services; and its bibliographic database with over 1.4 million entries. He also provided executive leadership for TRB’s multi-modal cooperative research programs and its advisory services to the federal government.
Prior to joining TRB, Mr. Pedersen served in leadership positions for the Maryland Department of Transportation for 29 years, the last eight years as State Highway Administrator and Governor’s Highway Safety Representative. While at Maryland DOT, he served in a number of volunteer leadership positions for both TRB and for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, including as Chair of the TRB Executive Committee in 2011.
Marlon Boarnet is Professor in the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California and Director of the METRANS Transportation Consortium. METRANS is the center for transportation research at USC, and a partnership of the Price School of Public Policy, the Viterbi School of Engineering, and California State University – Long Beach. METRANS spans over 15 academic departments and programs at USC, with links to over a dozen universities in the U.S. and abroad. Prior to directing METRANS, Boarnet was the founding chair of the Department of Urban Planning and Spatial Analysis at USC (2016-2022) and he served as Vice Dean for Academic Affairs in USC’s Price School from 2014 through 2015. Boarnet was chair of the Department of Planning, Policy, and Design at UC-Irvine from 2003 through 2006. Boarnet served as president of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, the scholarly association of university planning departments and faculty members in the United States and Canada, from 2019-2021. Boarnet’s research focuses on land use and transportation, links between land use and travel behavior and associated implications for public health and greenhouse gas emissions, urban growth patterns, and the economic impacts of transportation. He is a fellow of both the Weimer School of the Homer Hoyt Institute for Real Estate and the Regional Science Association International. Boarnet has advised California state agencies on greenhouse gas emission reduction in the transport sector, the World Bank on transportation access as a poverty reduction tool, and numerous other public and private entities. He has been principal investigator on over four million dollars of research supported by agencies that include the U.S. and California Departments of Transportation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the California Air Resources Board, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Boarnet’s academic web page is: https://priceschool.usc.edu/people/marlon-boarnet/.
Margo T. Oge is the former Director of the Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) at the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a position that culminated a 32-year career with the EPA. During her 18-year tenure as Director of OTAQ, Margo Oge was the chief architect of the most important achievements in the history of air pollution control in the U.S. transportation sector. These included programs that reduced emissions from gasoline and diesel-fueled automobiles, trucks, buses, and off-road vehicles by up to 99 percent. She led the EPA’s development of the first-ever national greenhouse gas emission standards for cars and heavy-duty trucks, helped establish the Renewable Fuels Standard, and was instrumental in establishing the United Nations process onglobal harmonization of transportation emissions standards, worldwide.
She is the Chair of the board of the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT)and the Chair of the external Advisory Council for the Deloitte Center for Sustainable Progress(DCSP). She also serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the board of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), Distinguished Fellow with ClimateWorks Foundation, member of the advisory board of UCDAVIS Institute of Transportation and member of the advisory board of Climate Imperative Foundation. She has served as a member of the Volkswagen Group’s International Sustainability Council, a director of the National Academy of Science on Energy and Environment board and member of advisory committee of the US Global Change Research Program. She is the author of “Driving the Future: Combating Climate Change with Clean Cars” and is a contributor to Forbes. She has been a contributor tothe New York Times, Wall Street Journal, CNN, ABC, PBS, NPR, The Hill, Forbes, Fortune, Time and Huffington Post.
Jordan Choby is Group Vice President, Powertrain for Toyota Motor North America, Research and Development. In this role, Choby is responsible for the development and integration of a wide range of powertrain technology into Toyota’s North America’s vehicle lineup, including engines, transmissions, and electrified powertrains including hybrids, plug-in hybrids, Battery-EV and Fuel Cell-EVs . His team’s focus is delivering products that meet the needs of the North American customer spanning from driving enjoyment to carbon reduction. Also, as Toyota moves into a New Mobility future, this team is also actively developing propulsion systems for commercial vehicles and energy ecosystem products. Choby has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Grove City College and a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University.
Michael Pimentel is the Executive Director of the California Transit Association, a nonprofit trade organization representing California’s transit industry, including more than 85 public transit and rail agencies statewide. In this role, Michael oversees the Association’s advocacy and member education programs, with special focus on transportation funding, climate change, and air quality initiatives. Before being selected as Executive Director, Michael was the Association’s Deputy Executive Director and Legislative and Regulatory Advocate.
Prior to joining the Association, Michael held various appointed positions in the administration of Governor Jerry Brown, serving most recently as Senior Legislative Analyst at the California High-Speed Rail Authority. In this role, Michael developed and managed the Authority’s legislative program, advised its CEO on legislative and budgetary issues and developments, and served as the Authority’s primary liaison to the State Legislature, the California State Transportation Agency, and the Office of the Governor. Previously, Michael served as a Legislative Assistant in Governor Brown’s office.
Michael received a Master of Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley. In 2023, Michael was recognized for his advocacy on behalf of California’s transit industry in leading industry publications, including Capitol Weekly’s Top 100 and Mass Transit Magazine’s 40 under 40. Michael currently serves on the California Energy Commission’s Advisory Committee for the Clean Transportation Investment Plan and on the Advisory Boards for the multicampus University of California’s Institutes of Transportation Studies as well as for the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies and the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies. He was a fellow with the New Leaders Council in 2015 and served on the NLC Sacramento Chapter’s Advisory Board from 2019 to 2021. He was a fellow for the California Association of Councils of Governments’ California Academy for Regional Leaders in 2019.
Sean Waters is the Vice President of Product Compliance and Regulatory Affairs for Daimler Trucks North America (“DTNA”) and Detroit Diesel Corporation (“DDC”). His responsibilities include supporting the development of smart emission and transportation policies by directly encouraging research into numerous areas affecting heavy-duty commercial products. He has also worked with regulatory agency leadership on standard-setting initiatives, most recently on heavy-duty engine and vehicle greenhouse gas standards. In addition, Mr. Waters has extensive knowledge of other heavy-duty regulations such as for criteria emissions, onboard diagnostics, fuel quality, and safety. He serves on the Board and Executive Committee of the Truck and Engine Manufacturers Association (“EMA”) where he provides advice, counsel, and recommendations on the scientific and technical aspects of programs related to commercial truck emissions control strategies and safety technologies.
Chris Birdsall is the Director, Energy & Economics at Exxon Mobil. In this role, he leads a team of economists, modelers, and researchers that explore economic and energy topics for ExxonMobil.
Mr. Birdsall has a degree in Chemical Engineering with highest honors from the University of Florida. He joined ExxonMobil as an engineer in 1996, and has progressed through a number of manufacturing, technology, and commercial roles over the last 25+ years. He has held management positions in ExxonMobil’s Polymers, Basic Chemicals, Lubricant Basestocks, and Technology Licensing businesses.
Outside of work, Mr. Birdsall serves on the advisory board for the chemical engineering department at the University of Florida. He is also a proud supporter of the United Way and Desire Street Ministries for their work serving communities in need.
Mr. Birdsall has been married to his wife, Julianne, for over 25 years, and together they have two children.