Brenda Ekwurzel is a senior climate scientist and the director of climate science for the Climate & Energy Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). In her role, she ensures that program analyses reflect robust and relevant climate science, and researches the influence of major carbon producers on rising global average temperatures and sea level. Dr. Ekwurzel is a co-author of the fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4) Volume II. She presents frequently to a range of audiences on climate science, educating the public on practical, achievable solutions for climate change.

Prior to joining UCS, Dr. Ekwurzel was on the faculty of the University of Arizona in their department of hydrology and water resources, with a joint appointment in the geosciences department. She has studied climate variability in places as disparate as the Arctic—where her research brought her to the North Pole—and the desert Southwest. Earlier in her career, Dr. Ekwurzel was a hydrologist, working with communities to protect groundwater source

Dr. Ekwurzel earned a B.S. in geology from Smith College, and an M.S. in geoscience from Rutgers University. She holds a Ph.D. in isotope geochemistry from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, and conducted post-doctoral research at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, in California.

A widely quoted expert on climate change, Dr. Ekwurzel co-authored the UCS guide Cooler Smarter: Practical Steps for Low-Carbon Living. In 2016, she was named a AAAS fellow, and cited for her “distinguished contributions to analysis and outreach aimed at strengthening support for sound U.S. climate policies, and making the science of climate change accessible to diverse audiences.” She has appeared on ABC News, CBS News, Good Morning America, CNN, the Fox News Channel, NPR, and The Colbert Report, and has been cited by the Washington Post, USA Today, the Associated Press and Reuters.

Bentina C. Terry is Senior Vice President for Northwest Region for Georgia Power. In this role, Bentina is responsible for the company's operations, sales, customer service, economic and community development, and external affairs activities for 1.4 million customers across metro Atlanta and the northwest corner of the state.

Bentina is actively involved in the community and feels fortunate to work for a company that has a passion for the communities it serves. She serves on the board of directors for the Midtown Alliance, Posse Foundation, Atlanta Police Foundation, the Atlanta Beltline Partnership, and the Atlanta Women’s Foundation. She is also on the advisory council for the BB&T Open. In 2017, she graduated from Atlanta Regional Commission’s Leadership Institute and has been named one of Atlanta Business League’s 100 Most Influential Women.

Bentina has had a diverse career with Southern Company, beginning in 2001 at Georgia Power. She has worked at Georgia Power, Gulf Power, and Southern Nuclear Operating Company, all Southern Company subsidiaries. In her career, she has been responsible for many different areas of the company including External Affairs, Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, Community and Economic Development, Corporate Communications, Sales and Marketing, Customer Service, Compliance and Ethics, Corporate Services and aspects of Power Delivery. She also served as General Counsel of Southern Nuclear. Bentina began her career practicing law with Troutman Sanders law firm in Atlanta and also served as the Associate General Counsel at Progress Energy in Raleigh, NC prior to coming to Southern Company.

A native of Fayetteville, N.C., Bentina holds a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Michigan Law School and a Bachelor of Arts in English from North Carolina State University. She is a member of the North Carolina State Bar and the Georgia State Bar, Leadership Atlanta, Leadership North Carolina, Leadership Florida, the International Women’s Forum and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She has received various awards and recognitions for her contribution to the state of Florida and northwest Florida including being named one of Influence Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in Florida Politics (2015), 850 Magazine’s Pinnacle Award (2014), Florida Chamber Foundation’s Chair Award (2014), the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce’s Community Leader of the Year (2013), and one of the Florida Diversity Council’s Most Powerful and Influential Women (2012). She has been selected as a member of the “IN Power List” recognizing the top 100 most powerful and influential people in greater Pensacola area for seven consecutive years (2009-2016) and was named #1 in April 2016. She was also an International Women’s Forum (IWF) Fellow in 2012.

She is married to Antonio Terry and they have one dog, Bubba.

Dr. Karl Hausker is a Senior Fellow in WRI’s Climate Program. He leads analysis and modeling of climate mitigation, electricity market design, and the social cost of carbon. He led the Risky Business study of clean energy scenarios for the U.S., and lectures widely on deep decarbonization. He has worked for three decades in the fields of climate change, energy, and environment in a career that has spanned legislative and executive branches, research institutions, NGOs, and consulting. He has led climate policy analysis and modeling projects for USAID, USEPA, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, the Western Climate Initiative, and the California Air Resources Board. Much of his work has focused on the electricity and transportation sectors, and on low carbon, climate resilient development strategies.

From 2007-2013, Karl was a Vice President at ICF International. He previously served as Deputy Director at the Center for Climate Strategies and as a Principal with Hagler Bailly. Karl lived in India all of 1999 as a Visiting Fellow at TERI. His experience also includes: serving President Clinton as Deputy Assistant Administrator in EPA’s Policy Office where he represented EPA in interagency climate policy development and at COP-1; and serving as the Chief Economist for the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, where he worked on a diverse set of issues including electricity restructuring, CAFE standards, alternative fuels, western water policy, nuclear power, and energy security.