Anna J. Siefken, LEED AP BD+C and U.S. DOE Clean Energy Education and Empowerment (C3E) Ambassador, joins the Office of Technology Transitions on IPA assignment.
Office of Technology Transitions
April 19, 2022
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Anna J. Siefken, LEED AP BD+C, has spent her career making the business case for energy efficiency, climate tech innovation, and building performance as a means to address the world’s energy challenges and the global urgency of climate change. She is on a leave of absence from her role at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) as the inaugural Executive Director of The Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation, where she is also an adjunct faculty with the Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy.
Today, we are honored to announce she has joined the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) as a Commercialization Executive.
During her 5.5 year tenure thus far at CMU, Anna has overseen all aspects of the Scott Institute’s work. She leverages faculty research, programming, targeted outreach, mentoring, and partnerships to drive the Institute’s mission. In 2020, the American Energy Society recognized the Scott Institute among universities as one of the “Top Ten Energy Elites” for the first time. Her focus on moving energy and climate tech innovation from the research lab to market will continue with her new role, accelerating the transition to a sustainable, low carbon energy future with meaningful global impact.
In 2020, Anna was appointed a U.S. Department of Energy Clean Energy Education and Empowerment (C3E) Ambassador, a cohort of distinguished senior executives, academics, government officials, and thought leaders who serve as role models and advocates for women in clean energy.
Anna co-created the University Energy Institute Collaborative (UEIC) in 2019, which brought together leaders from more than 150 university-based energy institutes to form a national network; the initiative has been featured in ScienceDirect. In addition to bringing new initiatives to CMU, Anna spearheaded CMU Energy Week, one of the largest events on campus that draws more than 100 speakers and 1,000 participants, growing exponentially each year since 2016.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) selected Anna for the 2018 Energy Executives Leadership Academy. That same year, Anna represented CMU as part of a City of Pittsburgh delegation to study district energy systems planning in Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark, at the invitation of the Danish Energy Agency.
Anna has initiated engagements with dozens of organizations, and has increased university partnerships with industry, the City of Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania Governor’s Energy office, national labs including National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and NREL, and DOE. She has served as a Power Connector with the American-Made Solar Prize since the program’s inception.
When she joined CMU in 2016, Anna served as Associate Director for Innovation and Strategic Partnerships, a role in which she deepened engagements and developed a partnership strategy that fostered relationship-building programming and collaboration with industry, government, nonprofit organizations, foundations, universities, start-ups, and investor communities.
Prior to CMU, Anna was the Pittsburgh 2030 District Director and Vice President of Strategic Engagement for the Green Building Alliance, one of the U.S. Green Building Council’s largest chapters. She shaped the governance and was a founding member of the national 2030 District Network’s Board of Governors. Previously, she was Principal at ICF, where she led marketplace adoption of more than 60 Energy Star product categories. Before that, she served as Global Product Merchant for Energy and the Environment at The Home Depot. Anna graduated from Duke University.
A member of Leadership Pittsburgh XXXII, Anna has been honored with the 2019 Women of Influence Award from the Pittsburgh Business Times, The Carnegie Mellon University 2018 Andy Award for Innovative and Creative Contributions, the 2018 Women of Achievement Award from Cribs for Kids, and the Pittsburgh Business Times’ 2016 Women in Energy Leadership Award and the 2015 Energy Leadership Award for Corporate Social Engagement.