 Hello, I am Karen Butler-Purrey and this is my fourth year as a C3E ambassador. I am one of nine C3E ambassadors who will be introducing the award winners over the next two days. So now the Education and Advocacy Award. This award recognizes clean energy advocates of our educators who have driven greater uptake of clean energy policies and technologies in society or have helped to increase clean energy literacy and our workforce development. I am honored to introduce our 2021 U.S. C3E Education and Advocacy Award winner, Marina Badoyan-Criticos. Marina is a research scientist at the Houston Advanced Research Center, Hark, where she also serves as assistant director of the U.S. Department of Energy, Upper West Combined Heat and Power Technical Assistance Partnership, and senior program advisor to the Texas Property Assessed Clean Energy Authority. Hark's mission is to provide independent analysis on clean energy, air and water issues to people seeking scientific answers and to operate as a research hub, finding solutions for a sustainable future. Marina's research focuses on the intersection of energy, climate, resilience, natural resource policy, and program adoption, and implementation and strategies that advance environmental, social and corporate governance integration and sustainability performance. As an electrical engineering researcher who develops new methods for improving the resilience of power grids with distributed energy resources, I greatly appreciate the important work that Marina does in advancing the acceptance and implementation of the technology that my peers and I develop. As joining Hark in 2017, Marina has created a statewide network, driving the acceptance of clean energy policies and technologies in urban centers and communities across Texas and beyond. For example, she provided technical assistance and coordinated stakeholder engagement, essential to the development of the 2020 Houston Climate Action Plan. In addition to her role with Texas PACE Authority, she works to build Texas into a leading market for commercial PACE finance. Since 2015, her efforts have contributed to PACE policies in over 60 regions across Texas, structuring over 170 million in transactions. Her nominator, Lisa Gonzalez, president and CEO of Hark states, Marina is an exemplary role model for other women in the industry. She stands out in her creative ability for problem solving and she's unparalleled in her ability to identify shared purposes that make new network connections and collaborations possible. Marina has also advanced the field of clean energy through the many programs that she has created and led. For example, she has co-created the Texas Clean Energy Hub, which disseminates tools, webinars and guides to accelerate adoption of distributed generation. She's also developed a student internship program at Hark that connects, engages and educates the next generation of diverse sustainability leaders. And she, through her work with the IAC Women for Energy Efficiency Network, she mentors women and non-binary students to increase gender diversity in the larger energy and engineering industry. Marina received a bachelor's science degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Houston downtown. She credits Arliss Brody, a female business development manager, with taking a chance on hiring her right out of school and introducing her to other women who have been instrumental throughout her career. Marina has a 10-year-old and a 12-year-old daughter working from home has provided opportunities for her daughters to expand their interests in and understanding of their mother's work as an energy professional. So now I will turn it over to Marina for her remarks. Thank you. Hello, everyone. And Karen, thank you so much for that kind introduction. And for all of the work that you have done throughout your career. I'm honored. I'm humbled and I'm truly energized to be sharing this virtual stage with you and to be here to be part of this event. For nearly a decade, as we saw from the clip earlier, the C3E program has really provided invaluable opportunities for women in clean energy. And the symposium really is an inspiration for us to continue to think differently as we look to transform energy systems across the nation and throughout the world. So first, a heartfelt thank you to the C3E committee ambassadors and organizers for putting together this fantastic and fabulous event. I would like to recognize and thank my nominator, Lisa Gonzalez, who along with my other mentors, as Karen pointed out, have really helped and supported and guided me throughout my career. It's truly these women who have taught me the importance of women help move other women forward and the impact of paying that forward by investing in and empowering other women at all stages in their careers. So really thanks to their guidance and a little bit of luck. I'm so blessed to be where I am right now. For the past five years, I've had the privilege to work at Hark amongst a group of engaging colleagues in an atmosphere that honestly is fun and interesting and challenges me every single day. As Karen mentioned, Hark is known for its science-based research and policy analysis on climate, air, energy, and water issues with a goal that helped people find solutions for a sustainable future. So for nearly 40 years, Hark has served as an independent research hub and I'm truly delighted to be part of an interdisciplinary team that focuses on the science, the engineering, and policy analysis needed to understand and address a variety of issues, including climate change, climate equity, and clean energy. In my work, I weave together engineering, economics, and social science to identify equitable solutions to public policy challenges focused on the built environment and the shift to a clean energy economy. I'm passionate about translating science and policy into action and get to collaborate with communities, government officials, and individuals to identify and implement equitable and economic climate solutions that work. And I'm really so excited about the opportunities that are currently going on in this space and look forward to the innovations that are yet to come. So in closing, thank you to the C3E organizers. I'm so grateful to be here with you today. Thank you to my family for supporting and encouraging me in my career. And thank all of you for participating in and supporting this event. The work that we are all doing in this space is so important, both now and for the future leaders that are yet to come. So thank you.