NM Gov, Tufts Grad, Keynote Speaker at Energy Conference

The Tufts Energy Conference (TEC), a dynamic forum for cross-border and cross-sector discussions on pressing energy issue, announced that Governor Bill Richardson will deliver a keynote address on Saturday March 2 at TEC 2013: Powering Global Energy Security.

Richardson, who completed his second term as Governor of New Mexico in January 2011, will speak as part of the two-day conference convening international policy makers, innovators, academics, and entrepreneurs to explore how developing and developed countries are working to meet their energy needs, manage geopolitical risk, and ensure energy security.

Prior to being elected governor, Richardson served for 15 years in northern New Mexico representing the 3rd Congressional District. He also served in 1997 as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and in 1998, he was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy. While a congressman, Richardson served as a special envoy on many sensitive international missions. He successfully won the release of hostages, American servicemen, and prisoners in North Korea, Iraq, Cuba, and Sudan. As Governor, his bold governing style moved New Mexico forward in several important areas, including clean energy, education, public safety, environment, transportation, healthcare, and $1 billion in tax cuts for New Mexicans. He made New Mexico the “Clean Energy State” by requiring utilities to meet 20 percent of New Mexico’s electrical demand from renewable sources, and he established a Renewable Energy Transmission Authority to deliver New Mexico’s world-class renewable resources to market.

“We are thrilled to have Governor Richardson join us at TEC 2013,” said TEC 2013 chair Geoffrey Finger. “He is an especially fitting speaker, given his consummate expertise navigating the complexity of global energy security challenges and personal ties to Tufts.”

Richardson received a BA from Tufts in 1970 and an MA from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in 1971. Currently, he serves as Senior Fellow for Latin America at Rice University’s James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy and has joined several non-profit and for- profit boards, including Abengoa’s International Advisory Board, the fifth largest biofuels producer in the U.S., WRI World Resources Institute, Refugees International and Chairman of the International Council for Science and the Environment.

About the Tufts Energy Conference

The Tufts Energy Conference (TEC) convenes speakers, students, and professionals from a variety of disciplines to provide complementary and contrasting views on a wide range of energy topics. TEC is organized by a diverse mix of Tufts undergraduates and graduate students from The Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, the Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning program, and the School of Arts, Sciences & Engineering. TEC 2013: Powering Global Energy Security will be held March 2-3, 2013 and feature six panels addressing energy efficiency in China, energy security and the Department of Defense, biofuels, shale gas, innovation, and the Arctic.

For additional information and to purchase tickets, visit http://www.tuftsenergyconference2013.com.

– Information and photo from Tufts University