Executive Leadership Team (2023 - 2024)
Rebecca Hutman
Co-President
Rebecca is an MBA Candidate at MIT Sloan & an MPA Candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School focused on building decarbonization. Prior, she helped launch the San Francisco Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF), a public-private fund that expedites affordable housing development in the region. Before HAF, she had a winding path through policy & politics (White House, LA City Hall, Rockefeller Foundation, and the 2012 Obama Campaign). More recently, she's worked for the LA-Better Buildings Challenge and ADL Ventures, and will spend this summer at ARPA-E. She holds a BA in Social Studies from Wesleyan University. In her spare time, you can find her hosting dinner parties, watching reality TV, and dusting off her tap shoes.
Ross Phillips
Co-President
Ross is pursuing an MBA with a focus on finance and energy at MIT Sloan. Ross serves in several leadership positions, notably as Co-President of the MIT Energy and Climate Club (MITEC) and as Co-President of Sloan Senate, representing a 1,300-person student body. He also serves on the leadership of Sloan Pride, the Venture Capital and Private Equity (VCPE) Club, and the Sloan Infrastructure Club. During the summer, Ross interned in the power, utilities, and renewables investment banking group at Bank of America. Prior to his MBA, Ross worked in an investing role at Mercer's Private Market Infrastructure Group. He started his career at Hatch, a global engineering consultancy, specializing in industrial decarbonization and integrating renewable power into conventional power grids. Ross holds a Bachelor's in Applied Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Toronto and is a CFA Charterholder.
Shreyaa Raghavan
Co-President
Shreyaa Raghavan is currently a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Computer Science and will be starting her PhD in MIT’s Institute of Data, Systems, and Society, this Fall. She is interested in studying computational and deep learning techniques to accelerate sustainable energy technologies. She previously researched optimization algorithms to improve the efficiency of solar cells at the MIT Photovoltaic Research Lab as well as photovoltaic forecasting at EPFL. She is also passionate about the development of autonomous transportation and urban mobility!
Laurentiu Anton
Vice President, Marketing
Laurentiu is pursuing a PhD in EECS. Prior to MIT, he served as the program manager for the Iceland School of Energy, a lecturer in electrical engineering, and the administrative director for the Sustainability Institute and Forum, all at Reykjavik University. Laurentiu has worked as a consulting engineer and project manager with solar, wind, and battery energy storage projects. He holds a BSc in Honors Mathematical Physics from the University of Waterloo, and an MSc in Sustainable Energy Engineering specializing in Electric Power Engineering & Management from Reykjavik University. Outside of work, Laurentiu enjoys reading, fitness, and nutrition. He can be spotted at meetings awkwardly taking out his food scale to track his intake.
Hara Moraitaki
Vice President, Marketing
Hara is a Class of 2026 undergrad majoring in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science with a minor in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Outside the club, she is interested in ClimateTech and how AI can impact renewable energy efficiency. She is excited to contribute in informing the MIT community about energy innovations and events, and building a community with others interested in energy!
Shomik Verma
Vice President, Community & Education
Shomik is a MechE PhD student in the Atomistic Simulation and Energy group with Prof. Asegun Henry. He is working on developing a carbon-free power plant featuring hydrogen combustion coupled with thermophotovoltaic electricity generation. Prior to MIT, Shomik completed 2 MPhil's in the UK as a Marshall Scholar, working on computational design of novel spectral conversion materials and 3D printing polymer hosts for these materials. He previously earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Duke. In his free time he enjoys playing tabla, basketball, and badminton.
Luis Carlos
Vice President, Community & Education
Luis Carlos is a 2nd year MBA candidate at Sloan. Before MIT, he worked on robotics for subsistence farming in Central America. He then shifted to the energy sector, working with power producers in Latin America and the Caribbean. His current interest lies in energy equity and the challenges of implementing renewable energy in small island countries. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechatronics Engineering.
Alice Wang
Vice President, Community & Education
Alice is a 2024 MBA Candidate at MIT Sloan focused on climate tech, sustainability, and entrepreneurship. Before MIT, she worked in corporate finance in tech, most recently leading a strategic finance team at Twilio. She has worked in business development, strategy, and finance for climate tech startups. For the summer, Alice will be interning in Supply Change Capital, a VC firm investing in food and climate. She will never turn down an opportunity for karaoke, board game nights, or dimsum.
Rushabh Sanghvi
Vice President, External Relations
Rushabh is pursuing an MPA/ID at the Harvard Kennedy School, and has a keen focus on using industrial policy as a lever for enabling energy transition globally. Prior to HKS, Rushabh worked in corporate strategy at Kinetic Green, an Electric Vehicle OEM, where he led strategic partnerships with public and private stakeholders to enable last-mile electric mobility. His projects ranged from setting-up charging infrastructure at public gas stations to piloting EVs for city garbage collection and e-commerce delivery. Prior to this, he worked at Harvard Growth Lab on industrial policy projects in Ethiopia, Namibia, and Australia to promote inclusive and sustainable development. He also worked in strategy consulting at IQVIA and Booz Allen Hamilton in the past, after having graduated from Tufts University with a BSc. in Quantitative Economics and Entrepreneurship.
David Gottdiener
Vice President, External Relations
David is a System Design and Management graduate student pursuing an Engineering and Management degree at MIT. He has worked for Siemens since 2016, most recently as a Business Development Manager at Siemens Smart Infrastructure, where he has supported industrial customers implement decarbonization strategies and roadmaps, including on-site solar photovoltaic and energy efficiency projects. He is interested on strengthening collaboration between industry, academia, government to improve the environmental footprint of cities and industries.
Gabriel Balzaretti
Vice President, Budget & Finance
Gabriel is a MBA '25 candidate at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and holds Bachelor's degree in economics and mathematics from Northwestern University. Prior to Sloan, he worked at Cornerstone Research, where he provided financial and economic consulting services for high-stakes commercial litigation. As part of his MBA, Gabriel intends to complete extensive energy and climate coursework and pursue the Sustainability Certificate. In his leisure time, Gabriel enjoys outdoors activities such as cycling, camping, and running.
Thomas Lee
Vice President, Sponsorships
Thomas is a PhD student in MIT’s Institute for Data, Systems, and Society focused on optimization methods for energy systems and markets. He conducts research in Professor Andy Sun’s lab within Sloan / Operations Research Center, and through the MIT Energy Initiative. Previously, Thomas worked in electricity trading at BETM (part of Mitsubishi Corporation) covering power/gas futures and financial transmission rights; and developed energy storage valuation models for Amp Energy’s global investment portfolio across UK, Australia, and US. He started his career at AQR Capital in quantitative global macro strategies. He holds Bachelor's degrees in Economics (Wharton) and Computer Science, and an MS in Electrical Engineering – from the University of Pennsylvania.
Lexi Leija
Vice President, Sponsorships
Lexi is a 2024 MBA candidate at the MIT Sloan School of Management with interests in Climate Tech and Sustainability. During her 2023 summer, she interned as an associate at VamosVentures, a VC fund that provides capital and partnership to Latinx and diverse teams solving real problems through scalable, tech-driven companies. Prior to business school, she worked in private wealth management at Bank of America, where she advised institutions and individuals with $25mm+ in assets on allocating to alternative investments. Lexi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Columbia University, and she is passionate about the roles that private markets and entrepreneurship will play in the transition to a net zero world. In her spare time, Lexi enjoys sailing, cooking and discovering new wines with friends.
Peter Heller
Vice President, Sponsorships
Peter is an S.M. candidate in the Technology and Policy Program at MIT. His research in focused on ensuring a financially sustainable, just, and inclusive energy transition. He is particularly interested in regulation of the electricity sector and innovative policies to protect low-income families during the renewable transition. He is also an associate at the Colorado Energy and Water Institute, where he coordinates Western states' efforts in creating a wholesale electricity market. Prior to MIT, Peter worked as Colorado State Senator Chris Hansen's policy director, focused on energy and environmental legislation. Peter holds a B.S. in environmental engineering and a minor in engineering management from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Jenny Yao
Vice President, Sponsorships
Jenny is in her second year of pursuing the MBA and MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering dual degree at MIT. This is also her second year at MITEC. She previously studied Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto. Upon graduation, Jenny worked in engineering, management, and analytics consulting for over five years, where she collaborated with several energy and utilities organizations. In her spare time, Jenny enjoys working on climate tech startups, making short videos, watching musicals, playing basketball, and finding innovative ways to improve global sustainability.
Rosie Keller
Vice President, Sponsorships
Rosie is a 2025 MBA candidate at MIT Sloan. She is especially interested in climate tech innovations to increase climate resilience in emerging markets and how to tackle the challenges in scaling these solutions.
Sanjay Pitchai
Vice President, Social
Sanjay Pitchai is a 2025 MBA candidate at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and hold's a Bachelors degrees in Financial Actuarial Mathematics and Economics from the University of California, Los Angeles. Sanjay is interested in the Energy Transition and Climate Tech field, and how innovations in the space will help decarbonize manufacturing processes. Prior to Sloan, Sanjay worked in Strategic Finance and Investment Banking helping Technology companies make strategic decisions and grow revenue. In his free time, Sanjay enjoys watching and playing soccer, spending time outdoors and travelling to new cities.
Jennifer Constanza
Vice President, Social
Jennifer is a 2025 MBA candidate at MIT Sloan and holds a B.A. in Public Policy from Duke University. Prior to Sloan, Jennifer worked as a Consultant for PA Consulting; she advised governmental institutions and utilities on energy security, emergency response operations, and managing their technology portfolio. Jennifer is excited about supporting cities and states in improving energy reliability and resiliency and developing robust climate action plans that mitigate the effects of weather events.
Jim Owens
Vice President, MITEC LaunchPad
Jim is a graduate student pursuing a joint PhD/MBA between MIT’s department of Chemical Engineering (2023) and the Sloan School of Management. With experiences spanning oil and gas and electrochemical carbon capture, Jim is broadly interested in addressing the challenges of bringing sustainable energy technologies to market. He works within the MIT Energy Initiative and his current research serves to understand interactions between electric vehicles and the power grid in high-renewable futures.
Charlotte Ross
Vice President, MITEC LaunchPad
Charlotte is 2024 MBA candidate at MIT Sloan and a 2024 Master’s in Public Policy candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School. Last year, she was the MITEC Director of External Relations. Prior to Sloan, Charlotte completed her bachelor’s degree in economics and political science at Queen’s University in Ontario, and then began her career in strategy and operations at a technology startup in Toronto. More recently, she has worked in climate venture capital at Piva Capital, in various roles at climate tech startups Mantel and SYSO, and in climate policy for the Massachusetts government. Charlotte is interested in addressing the challenges of commercializing and scaling emerging climate technologies and how public policy can best support the growth of clean energy solutions. In particular, Charlotte is most focused on technology that will help decarbonize the industrial sector. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, mountain biking, and trail running with friends, family, and her dog Wiley.
Trent Weiss
Vice President, MITEC LaunchPad
Trent is a PhD candidate in the Department of Chemical Engineering advised by Fikile Brushett. In the Brushett lab, he is primarily developing prototypes for lithium-ion convection batteries, with a broader interest in the roles electrochemistry can play in the energy transition. Trent also has an array of industry experience through internships and employment with ExxonMobil, Shell, and AspenTech. He previously earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Georgia Tech. When not in the lab, Trent enjoys skiing, hiking, playing soccer, and just about anything that will get him outside.
Flagship Event Managing Directors
Hyacinthe Naré
Hyacinthe is pursuing the Sloan Fellows MBA Program with a focus on energy, climate and entrepreneurship. He holds a Master of Environmental Management from Yale University as a Fulbright student, with a dual specialization in Energy and the Environment/ Business and the Environment. Prior to MIT, he served as Programme Coordinator with the International Civil Aviation Organization, working on CO2 mitigation from international aviation. He enjoys watching soccer.
Julia Esterin
Julia is a PhD student in the Research Laboratory of Electronics. She conducts research in Power Electronics, improving size, efficiency and cost of devices used over a range of power levels. Prior to MIT, Julia completed her bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering at Northeastern University, where she co-oped at Honeywell Aerospace, developing power electronics for hydrogen fuel cells. Julia is an avid cyclist and loves to spend time exploring in nature.
Aaliya Hussain
Aaliya Hussain is an MIT undergraduate in the Class of 2025. She is majoring in Management and minoring in Statistics and Data Science, and her academic research interests include healthcare finance, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) scoring, and climate economics. Since her senior year of high school, she has held a deep level of personal commitment to facilitating climate action and effecting systematic change, goals which she hopes that her time in MIT and MITEC will build towards. Outside of academics and MITEC, she participates in a wide range of student organizations, including MIT Divest, the MIT Global Health Alliance, the Baker Foundation, and Delta Phi Epsilon (her sorority).
Tom Luly
Tom is a 2024 MBA Candidate at MIT's Sloan School of Management and is co-President of the Sloan Entrepreneurship Club. He previously worked at MIT's Office of Innovation, where he worked on innovation infrastructure and venture creation pathways, including Proto Ventures, MIT's venture studio. He was also co-Managing Director of the MIT Global Startup Workshop in 2020.
Juan Guzman
Juan is a 2024 MIT Sloan MBA and Co-Managing Director for 2024 MIT EnergyHack. Prior to Sloan, he was a U.S. Naval Officer leading teams on ships throughout the world. He previously served on the MIT Climate and Energy Prize leadership team and led a consulting team for MITEC's inaugural Consulting initiative. Juan is most passionate in electric vehicle solutions and improving energy efficiency.
Shu Yang (Angela) Zhang
Angela is a Junior studying a double major in Materials Science and Engineering with Finance. She is interested in the materials science and finance-related challenges in the energy space, especially pertaining to batteries and e-mobility. In the past, she has worked in field engineering for EVs, project operations for an university-wide EV transition, and fund and tax accounting. Most recently in Summer 2023, Angela will be interning at Tesla working on battery cell engineering. She also enjoys conducting experimental work on advanced sustainable materials in MIT's Materials Research Laboratory. Previously, Angela was a Corporate Relations Director for EnergyHack 2022. In her spare time, she can be found eating desserts, taking photos, and learning to play the guitar.
Jack O’Brien
Before MIT, I was a software engineer at Google and founder of a venture-tech company that was eventually acquired. I’m excited to bring 6 years of technical experience with me to MIT and transition my career into the climate space!
Nick Matteucci
Nick is a Ph.D. candidate in the Chemical Engineering department, working with the Brushett Research Group. He is working on electrochemical reactor design for high energy density flow batteries and flow systems with solids. His long-term goals involve aiding in the development - and potential commercialization - of electrochemical technologies to efficiently and sustainably use renewable energy for grid-scale storage and materials production. Nick is an avid runner, and he competes in half and full marathons.
Aateeb Khan
Aateeb is an MBA candidate at the MIT Sloan School. Prior to MIT, he received his BA in Public Policy from Duke University and worked as a product manager at Aurora Solar. At Aurora, he helped build software tools that make rooftop solar cheaper and easier to install. He also holds a real estate license and is interested in the intersection of real estate development and building decarbonization. Outside of work, Aateeb loves to bike, surf, climb, and cook. You can expect to find him backpacking in the mountains of New England when he's not in Cambridge figuring out how to make housing more affordable and sustainable.
Manuel Esparragoza
Manny is the Managing Director of the MIT Energy Conference, a graduate of the University of Florida, and an MBA candidate at MIT Sloan School of Management. He has developed a deep interest in the convergence of energy and healthcare, exploring innovative ways these two sectors can work together for the common good. Prior to MIT, he had stints in various engineering roles at QuesTek Innovations, SpaceX and ExxonMobil. His leadership of the MIT Energy Conference stems from a commitment to advancing dialogue and understanding of the most pressing energy issues of our time.