Dick Bradford is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, a SAP 2005 'Accredited Assessor', National Trainer for SBEM, a 'Low Carbon Energy Assessor' and a 'Low Carbon Consultant' under the CIBSE Competent Person Scheme.
A Building Services Design Engineer, with nearly 40 years experience in a senior capacity, he has held the post of Chief Services Engineer with Barnsley MBC for the last 24 Years.

A specialist in controls and in application technology one of Dick's earliest achievements was the pioneering of 'Airless Kindle' on Solid Fuel Boilers which served to demonstrate that coal could be better and more properly controlled and thereby economic in use. Primary fuel savings around 40% become the norm after his methods were applied.

His comprehensive understanding and use of Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) has played a significant part in reducing BMBC's Energy Costs and Carbon Emissions by over 50% from the expenditure levels that existed in the mid 1980's.

Latterly his insistence on designs utilizing Radiant Panels and Under-floor Heating with conductive screeds, as a departure from more conventional systems, has produced design solutions that operate better than the Governments 'Best Practice' performance criteria.

The focus of his attention now is on the introduction of Biomass Technology as being the answer to many of the problems associated with national energy shortages and the need to make considerable reductions in 'Greenhouse Gas' emissions.

Recognition of this work is seen in that Barnsley MBC received the Ashden Award 1st Prize for Renewable Energy Generation in June 2006 and an invitation from the EU, in January 2007, to join the 'Sustainable Energy Europe 2005 - 2008' Campaign as an 'Exemplar' organisation. Barnsley Council has also won in two categories at the 2007 Yorkshire and Humberside 'Micro - generation Awards', 'Best Public Buildings' and 'Best Policy'.

John is a former President of the SBGI (Society of British Gas Industries), is a Director of the Natural Gas Vehicle Association (www.ngva.co.uk), a member of the Steering Group of Biomethane for Transport and of the Renewable Energy Association biogas group.

His company, CNG Services Limited (CSL) supports the development of new anaerobic digester projects including a range of utilisation options for the biogas:

• Use to generate electricity in ''good quality'' CHP
• Clean-up of biogas to produce biomethane
• Compression of bio-methane for use as fuel in road vehicles
• Injection of bio-methane into low pressure gas distribution networks
• Support to introduction of biomethane fuelled vehicles

John Pinkney

John is a chemical engineer who has spent the majority of his career, which begun in 1968, with ICI/AstraZeneca where he has had a number of senior management roles. Specific activities have included leading the development of the 'Quorn' foods business, and being General Manager of a range of biotech/ fermentation oriented businesses based in North America. Latterly he has focused on the food industry, and has served on the board of Marlow Foods, producers of Quorn. He is currently Technical Director for Ensus Ltd.

Mark Fairbairn was appointed to the Board of National Grid plc in January 2007 as Executive Director with responsibility for Gas Distribution. He joined National Grid in 1989 from BNFL and was awarded the OBE in 2002 for his services to the electrical industry in respect of his leadership of the fundamental changes implemented for the introduction of the New Electrical Trading Arrangements (NETA).

Previously Chief Operating Officer of National Grid's UK gas distribution business, he has played a key role in helping to restructure the UK gas distribution market through the gas networks sale and the creation of National Grid's new global gas distribution business.

National Grid's gas distribution business has over 11 million customers connected in the UK and 3.4 million customers in the northeast of the USA.

Mark, who is 50, holds a BSc (Hons) Degree in Mechanical Engineering, is a Chartered Engineer, Fellow of the Institution of Engineers & Technicians, Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and Companion of IGEM.

Matt has worked on climate change policy for the Environment Agency for the last 4 years.  Previous to this he worked in a consultancy specialising in fuel poverty, energy efficiency and local authority action on climate change.  His current brief includes landfill gas regulation and energy generation from biomass, but he has also worked on the Environment Agency's response to the climate change adaptation agenda and on methods of effectively communicating the challenge of climate change and encouraging positive shifts in attitudes and behaviour.  He holds an MSc in Environmental Technology from Imperial College and is a visiting lecturer at Bristol University.

Her recent renewable energy experience includes advising developers and debt and equity funders across all technologies including on shore and off shore wind, biomass, biofuels, geothermal, solar, hydro, tidal and wave.  Clients include RWE Npower, Centrica, Statkraft, RES, Novera, ECO2, Good Energies and Regen.

Michelle has advised on some of the market's largest renewable energy transactions such as Statkraft's investment in the £1.5 billion Sherringham Shoal project and bids for the London Array offshore wind farm, Centrica's Borea portfolio and the Thanet offshore wind farm. Michelle has also advised on numerous onshore wind farm transactions including bidding for the 200MW onshore Griffin wind farm, the sale of Savills' interests in a 1000MW+ wind portfolio to Koop Energie, the sale of the 16MW Tullo wind farm project from West Coast Energy to Eneco Wind UK and the acquisition by Statkraft of Catamount Energy SC3's shareholding in Catamount Cymru Cyf. In addition, Michelle has also advised on equity investments for PurePower and Regen in relation to their equity fund raising for biomass projects.

Michelle is currently advising a number of bidders on the Round 3 offshore wind programme, including the Forewinds Consortium (RWE, SSE, Statkraft and Statoil Hydro) and the WPD/Clipper Consortium.

Michelle is also involved in advising on clean energy projects in the emerging markets including China, India, the Philippines, Thailand and Africa.

Michelle advises numerous clients in the sector on competitive and non competitive acquisitions and disposals such as the sale of CLPE Holdings (£120m) to Macquarie, EPR (£200m) to Macquarie, SRG and Scottish Biofuels' renewable energy portfolio to Infinis.

She writes regularly on the opportunities and challenges facing the sector and is a regular speaker at conferences including REFF India, REFF China, BGCC Biomass conference, IMECHE Renewables Conference, REA biomass conference and Financing Carbon (London).

Michelle is on the Panel of CBI Climate Change and is a member of the Consultation Board of PLC Environment.

She is rated as one of the leading lawyers in the renewable energy sector in Chambers 2008 as "rounding out the renewable energy practice" with her finance and is "held out by commentators as a market leader."

Sandra graduated from University College London with a degree in Law and spent the early years of her career working as a solicitor. A growing interest in environmental issues led to her undertaking an MA in Environmental Law and Policy at Keele University in 1998. In 2000 she started working at the National Energy Foundation (NEF), an educational charity promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy. At NEF Sandra has promoted the uptake of wood fuelled heating through a number of projects, most recently LogPile (www.logpile.co.uk) and Pellets@las (www.pelletcentre.info), a European Project to promote and create more transparency of the European pellet market. The core work of Pellets@las is to collect and disseminate available information on prices, volumes and trade of wood and mixed biomass pellets (MBP) in all EU25+ countries.

Sandra is also responsible for developing NEF's training programme and delivers training on subjects as diverse as wood fuel heating, solar water heating, planning, domestic energy efficiency and energy related transport issues.

William Thurmond is the President and founder of Emerging Markets Online, a global energy and biofuels intelligence firm started eleven years ago in 1997. Mr. Thurmond is also the author of Biodiesel 2020: A Global Market Survey.

Mr. Thurmond's work been cited in the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, Biodiesel Magazine, Swiss Derivatives Review, the Futurist, BBC Radio, Fox News, Reuters TV, and his business has received Forbes Magazine's "Best of The Web" award seven years in a row. Mr. Thurmond is also a columnist for Biofuels International journal, Renewable Energy Access, Biofuels Digest, and speaks regularly at biofuels and renewable energy conferences.

Mr. Thurmond is a member of The International Association for Energy Economics, and the Association of Professional Futurists, and serves the American Biofuels Council as Chairman of Development, the National Algae Association as Chairman of Research and Development, and serves the University of Houston as a lecturer and adjunct faculty and where he teaches Technology Forecasting for Entrepreneurs. Mr. Thurmond has participated in graduate courses towards a PhD, Alternative Futures, at The University of Hawaii at Manoa; earned an M.S., Studies of The Future, from The University of Houston; and a B.A, International Relations and Economics from Rollins College.