Power Lunch with Elaine Hsieh: Accelerating Climate Tech Innovation

Duke students are invited to join an in-person Power Lunch featuring virtual speaker Elaine Hsieh, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Third Derivative, a vertically-integrated global climate tech accelerator program. Elaine graduated from Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering with a master’s degree in engineering management in 1998 and a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering in 1997.

Event capacity will be limited so that all attendees have the chance to introduce themselves, ask questions, and exchange ideas. A boxed lunch will be provided at the end of the discussion for students to take with them. Advance registration required.

This event is organized by the Duke University Energy Initiative and Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, which are merging.

With over 20 years of industry experience leading, managing, and consulting on a wide range of sustainability, green building, clean energy, and technology issues, Elaine is passionate about the power of multi-stakeholder alignment and helping people understand and respect the interconnectedness of our world. 

Elaine is currently focused on building and scaling up Third Derivative (D3) — a vertically-integrated global climate tech accelerator program created as a joint venture of Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and New Energy Nexus. D3 has been building an inclusive ecosystem to rapidly find, fund and scale climate tech innovation globally. By uniting and aligning committed investors, global corporates, and RMI's market, regulatory, and policy experts — all the stakeholders needed to bridge gaps faster — supported by financing and insights along the way, D3 increases the rate at which climate innovations can help us achieve a prosperous, equitable, and inclusive 1.5-degrees C world.

Prior to joining the D3 leadership team, Elaine was widely recognized as the program director for VERGE at GreenBiz — the premier global event series focused on scaling solutions that bridge technology, sustainability, and systems-thinking across cities and industries. She has also had careers as a green building consultant, utility business strategist, engineer, and technologist. Elaine graduated from Duke University with a master’s degree in engineering management and a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering.