AWE’s February 2026 Lunch & Learn is happening on Tuesday, February 17 — part of our ongoing AWE Energy Exchange series.
We host the AWE Energy Exchange on the third Tuesday of every month, creating space for connection, learning, and conversation across the energy industry.
More details coming soon. We hope you’ll join us!
As energy demand continues to accelerate, the power industry is facing new challenges driven by large loads, data center expansion, and the infrastructure required to support them.
Join the Association of Women in Energy for our 2026 Power Matters Conference, a one-day event focused on how utilities, developers, policymakers, and technology leaders are responding to rapid load growth and a changing grid.
This conference will explore key topics including interconnection, permitting, policy shifts, financing structures, and workforce transformation. The day will feature expert-led panels followed by an industry networking happy hour.
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
Location: Austin Central Library
Format: Panel discussions + networking happy hour
To register, click here.
Kelly Tomblin
President & CEO, El Paso Electric
Kelly Tomblin brings decades of executive leadership in the electric utility sector, offering a strategic perspective on grid modernization, customer-focused transformation, and managing growth in a rapidly evolving energy landscape.
Jody Allison
Vice President, Customer Experience Operations & Transformation, Xcel Energy
Brenda Barrett
Partner, Husch Blackwell
Chantelle Barretto
Power Origination Projects Manager, Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA)
Manon Chappat Alarcón
Director of Partnerships, Greentown Labs
Carrie Collier Brown
Partner, Husch Blackwell
Maria De La Cruz
Distribution Planning Supervisor, Austin Energy
Ann Delenela
Vice President & Chief Information Security Officer, Entergy
Trisha Elizondo
Chief Executive Officer, Energy Renewal Partners
Sandra Escobedo
Vice President, Customer Account Management, Austin Energy
Sean Fox
Vice President, Renewables Market Lead, WSP USA
Cameron Freberg
Manager, Electric Vehicles & Emerging Technologies, Austin Energy
Ning Lin, PhD
Chief Economist, Bureau of Economic Geology,
The University of Texas at Austin
Katherine Paton-Ilse
Team Lead, Power Markets, Enverus
Reagan Redd
Policy and Business Analyst, Goff Policy
Dilawar Syed
Faculty, LBJ School of Public Affairs & McCombs School of Business,
The University of Texas at Austin
Nathan Zink
Vice President, Renewables – Site Civil Engineering, WSP USA
To register, click here.
Join the Association of Women in Energy for our January Energy Exchange, held on the third Tuesday of the month, January 20.
This session features Carrie Simpson, Vice President of Markets at Southwest Power Pool (SPP), who oversees the development, design, and delivery of SPP’s market-based services. With more than 20 years of experience across operations, power marketing, regulatory affairs, and market design, Carrie brings deep insight into how power markets function and why they play a critical role in grid reliability and resilience.
In this Lunch & Learn, Carrie will explore the topic “How Power Markets Strengthen the Grid,” offering a high-level perspective on the role markets play in supporting reliability, coordination, and efficient system operations as the grid continues to evolve.
This session is part of AWE’s ongoing Energy Exchange series, designed to foster learning, connection, and leadership among women in the energy industry.
Register here:
https://app.glueup.com/event/awe-energy-exchange-january-session-166991/
The AWE Energy Exchange November 2025 session will feature Reena Bhatt, Senior Engineering Manager at Electric Power Engineers, sharing her expertise on large load interconnection and grid reliability in today’s evolving energy landscape. Reena has over 15 years of experience in the electric power industry, specializing in power system studies, renewable integration, and transmission network planning. Her work supports the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) and several renewable developers, focusing on how to design resilient and reliable energy systems for the future. This month’s discussion will focus on:
Speaker: Reena Bhatt, Senior Engineering Manager, Electric Power Engineers
