Exploring Innovation in Sustainable Solutions and Practical Applications
September 29, 2025 | 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Tickets $50, Students $35 | Venue by 4M
Presented by Ann Arbor SPARK.
Dive into the future of sustainability with experts leading the charge in climate tech, green infrastructure, and circular economies. In partnership with the City of Ann Arbor, we’ll also honor Green Business Challenge participants who are walking the walk when it comes to eco-conscious operations. If you care about business and the environment, this is your space.
Sustainable Future Forum Speakers
Plus more being announced soon!
Beth Gibbons
Director
Washtenaw County Resiliency Office
Beth Gibbons brings a unique blend of regional passion and national and international experience working on climate resilience. For over fifteen years, Beth has focused her career on how to make climate information usable and useful and building programs and organizations that recognize the unmatched expertise that communities and individuals have about their own risks and resources.
She was an author of the 5th National Climate Assessment, a member of the Federal Advisory Council on Climate Adaptation, and a sustainability commissioner in her beloved hometown of Ypsilanti.
She advocates for a perspective that recognizes the risks communities face, but also pushes leaders to realize that climate change presents opportunities for the region to grow and thrive. In August of 2024 became the Inaugural Director of the Resiliency Office for Washtenaw County, MI.
Keynote: Beth Gibbons
Washtenaw County Resiliency Office
William Crane
Founder & CEO
OrbAid
William Crane is a dynamic entrepreneur, executive, and recognized thought leader in sustainable business, with a proven track record of launching, scaling, and improving software, services, and hardware products—ranging from disruptive startups to global enterprises like Stellantis and Lear.
Driven by a passion for advancing sustainability through innovation, William founded OrbAid, an AI-assisted sustainability project management platform. OrbAid enables corporate teams to accelerate greener bottom lines by identifying high-impact, cost-saving sustainability projects. The platform is gaining traction, supported by a growing base of customers and advisors—including industry leaders such as Berkshire Hathaway, Toyota, and Schneider Electric.
William is actively involved in ongoing AI and sustainability research with the University of Michigan’s Zell Lurie Institute and Erb Institute. He is also the Co-Founder and Host of the Ann Arbor Sustainable Innovation Meet-up, a community that brings together diverse perspectives from business and tech to advance both profit and impact.
William holds a BBA in Supply Chain Management from Western Michigan University, and an MBA from the University of Michigan’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business.
William Crane
OrbAid
Teresa Gillotti
Housing Team
Community and Economic Development Association of Michigan
Teresa currently splits her time as a member of the Housing Team at the Community and Economic Development Association of Michigan (CEDAM) and consulting work on through Gillotti Community Consulting, LLC and partnering with Double Haul Solutions Both focus on supporting communities and regions with equitable community economic development.
Previously, Teresa worked in local government for more than 15 years in various planning and community and economic development roles, including more than four years as the Director of the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development. She is particularly proud of developing a process for participatory budgeting with local CDBG funds, launching and updating community data tools like the Washtenaw Opportunity Index, and problem solving to support affordable housing development in the region.
Teresa Gillotti
CEDAM & Gillotti Community Consulting, LLC
Dunrie Greiling
Founder and Principal Consultant
Scientific Ink
Dunrie Greiling, Ph.D. is the founder and principal consultant at Scientific Ink, where she helps science- and mission-driven organizations grow and thrive. She brings deep experience in product marketing, customer discovery, and go-to-market strategy to early- and second-stage ventures, especially in sustainability and the life sciences.
Following last year’s Sustainable Future Forum, Dunrie co-founded the Sustainability & Innovation Meetup with William Crane. The group meets monthly in Ann Arbor, connecting professionals who are building a more sustainable future.
Earlier in her career, Dunrie served on the leadership teams of two University of Michigan spinouts: as VP of Marketing at BlueConduit, an AI company helping cities replace lead service lines, and as Chief Product Officer at Court Innovations, the developer of the online dispute resolution platform Matterhorn. She has also taught Entrepreneurial Marketing at the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering.
Dunrie holds a Ph.D. in plant ecology from the University of Michigan and is a lifelong Michigander who finds joy in the water, woods, and wildlife of the Great Lakes region—especially the frogs.
Dunrie Greiling
Scientific Ink
Sara Hammerschmidt
Director of Sustainable Development
THRIVE Collaborative
Sara Hammerschmidt is the Director of Sustainable Development at THRIVE Collaborative, where she works at the intersection of design, construction, and buyer relations at Veridian at County Farm, a new net zero community in the heart of Ann Arbor. Sara comes to THRIVE from the Urban Land Institute where she worked as part of the Building Healthy Places Initiative, developing content and programs focused on improving public health, sustainability, and social equity through changes to the built environment. Sara has spoken about how real estate development can improve health outcomes and the role of developers and other land use professionals in improving health and sustainability at several national conferences.
Sara holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Community and Regional Planning from the University of Texas at Austin, and a B.S. in Industrial and Operations Engineering from the University of Michigan. She has served on the Ann Arbor City Planning Commission since 2019.
Sara Hammerschmidt
THRIVE Collaborative
Penelope Moskus
Principal and Senior Environmental Scientist
LimnoTech
Penelope Moskus is a Principal and Senior Environmental Scientist with 30 years of experience. Penelope co-directs LimnoTech’s corporate water stewardship practice area, helping clients develop strategies, guidance, and tools to reduce water-related risks and supporting clients with water stewardship program implementation. She advises clients on project selection, has evaluated volumetric and complementary benefits of hundreds of potential and funded projects, and annually supports corporate reporting for numerous companies. Penelope has supported a major corporation’s replenishment program for 15+ years, including strategy development; development of replenish guidance; quantification and reporting of replenish benefits; validation, verification, assurance, and advising on internal audits. She also supports global and local NGOs, food and beverage companies, energy providers, high-tech companies, agricultural providers, and supermarket chains. Penelope contributed to a landmark paper on Volumetric Water Benefit Accounting (VWBA) and is one of the authors contributing to an update (VWBA 2.0). She has piloted Water Quality Benefit Accounting (WQBA) and is a Professionally Credentialed Specialist Consultant for the AWS Standard.
Penelope works at LimnoTech’s Corporate Headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Penelope Moskus
LimnoTech
Dean Streck
CEO
APT Solar
Dean Streck is the CEO of APT Solar Solutions, an Ann Arbor–based company pioneering next-generation 3D solar technology. He brings over 25 years of experience leading technology-driven companies, with a proven record of turning complex concepts into market-ready innovations.
At APT Solar Solutions, Dean is spearheading the development of advanced cylindrical solar modules — a three-dimensional design that stacks panels vertically inside a clear tube. This breakthrough makes solar viable in places where traditional flat panels struggle, from smart city infrastructure and IoT sensors to rural and off-grid sites.
Before joining APT Solar Solutions, Dean built and scaled multiple companies serving global leaders in aerospace, automotive, and medical devices, earning recognition for his ability to drive both innovation and execution. Today, he’s channeling that expertise into advancing the future of accessible, sustainable solar power.
Dean Streck
APT Solar
Charlene Zietsma
Erb Institute
School for Environment & Sustainability
Ross School of Business
University of Michigan
Charlene Zietsma is the Max McGraw Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and the School for Environment & Sustainability at the University of Michigan, and Faculty Director of the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise. Professor Zietsma’s award-winning research focuses on social innovation: the individual, organizational and collective efforts to make significant, large-scale change in the context of sustainability and social justice issues. How do businesses and industries move toward more sustainable practices? How do multistakeholder groups negotiate new governance arrangements across values divides? How do entrepreneurs and social movements use emotions and framing to promote new ideas and practices? How do individuals and organizations overcome resistance to change? Professor Zietsma has published and lectured extensively on these topics.
Charlene Zietsma
Erb Institute, University of Michigan
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