April showers bring May flowers—and new Fresh Energy team members! We are celebrating the spring season by broadening the team and filling the roles of staff who have moved on to new opportunities in the past year. With guidance from our bold new strategic framework, Fresh Energy leadership has strategically evolved select aspects of old roles into new positions that align with our mission to achieve equitable carbon-neutral economies. We know that to achieve Fresh Energy’s ambitious decarbonization goals, we need to grow our team to meet this crucial moment for clean energy and climate action; we’re so pleased that Briana, David, Eric, and Natalie have joined us!
Introducing Briana Kerber
Briana, who goes by Bri, joined Fresh Energy as a policy communications associate and supports our public engagement efforts. Bri hales from western Wisconsin and earned her bachelor’s degree in Intercultural Studies and moved to Belgium in 2019 to earn her master’s degree in International Migration and Foreign Policy. In Belgium, Bri worked for a think tank that lobbies in the European Parliament and UN spheres; she jumped headfirst into policy communications and advocacy there and loved it—so she’s very excited to be filling a similar role again. Bri loves to hike, read, buy more plants than she has space for, and vintage/thrift shop in her spare time. Read more about Bri.
Introducing David Maldonado
David joined Fresh Energy as an operations assistant and supports the Operations team, particularly while we prepare to transition to a post-COVID-19 hybrid office model. David holds a bachelor’s in Linguistics from the University of Minnesota and is also working with the grassroots Latinx advocacy nonprofit, COPAL, where he supports fundraising and human resources. David is a first-generation Chilean immigrant and grew up in the West Saint Paul area. In his personal time, David enjoys gardening and mushroom growing, biking through the many beautiful trails the Twin Cities have to offer, and playing music. Read more about David.
Introducing Eric Fowler
Eric joined Fresh Energy as a coalition communication and policy associate to help grow the Midwest Building Decarbonization Coalition (Midwest BDC) and support Fresh Energy’s Public Affairs team. A Gustavus Adolphus grad, Eric grew up in West Fargo, N.D., and moved back to his adopted home state of Minnesota after six years in Chicago. In Chicago, Eric did communications and policy work for the Chicago Jobs Council, where he started a transportation equity coalition that advocated for public transportation and against regressive tickets, fines, and more. Eric loves baking bread, long walks, and board games. Read more about Eric.
Introducing Natalie Townsend
Natalie joined Fresh Energy as a policy associate with the Clean Electricity team, where she supports Fresh Energy’s work to move Minnesota to a carbon-free economy. Natalie holds a master’s degree in Public Policy from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs and for the past few years has worked as an environmental educator with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board and as an Environmental Intern with the City of Roseville. In her free time, Natalie loves camping, hiking, canoeing, trying new recipes, gardening, and taking trips to the cabin. Read more about Natalie.
