Lois Arena, Director

Lois Arena is the Director for Passive House Services at Steven Winter Associates, Inc.
Lois possesses over 25 years of experience in the building science field and has extensive experience with new and existing buildings. Lois is currently consulting on some of the largest and most difficult Passive House projects in the world. She has co-authored and presented training programs about energy-efficient building practices to professionals in all sectors of the building industry and is regularly invited to present at conferences and private firms around the world to discuss the benefits of and roadblocks to Passive House adoption. Lois holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Science from the University of Colorado.

Lori Atwater, Director

Lori Atwater is a California-based African American female entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in capital improvement project development, energy program management, federal and state government contracting, solar project engineering, construction project management, information systems management, communications consulting, and electrical/electronic systems integration. Her humble beginning – IBEW Local 11 electricians apprentice and computer network technician.

Today she leads Transformation Village Inc developing sustainable master planned communities driven by jurisdictional demand. Both new construction and urban revitalization projects are part of the portfolio of smart village projects. The team is committed to deployment that is culturally appropriate, environmentally restorative and economically viable.

Lori speaks publicly at technical conferences in the United States and abroad. She serves as Trustee of the California Homebuilding Foundation, Chair for the Building Industry Technology Academy Advisory Committee, and Judge for California’s CleanTech Open. Lori travels frequently and enjoys extreme sports, including scuba and camping.

Bronwyn Barry, Director

Bronwyn Barry is a registered architect based in San Francisco, CA, and a principal of her firm Passive House BB. Bronwyn organized and directed California’s first all-women construction crew for Habitat for Humanity before co-founding both Passive House California (PHCA) and the North American Passive House Network. Bronwyn’s advocacy work extends internationally. She was an active contributor to the UNECE’s Coalition on Buildings, working to develop a global standard for high-performance buildings. Locally, she has focused on direct implementation by designing and building Passive House buildings since 2008. Bronwyn has contributed as a subject matter expert on a number of research projects in collaboration with researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Labs (LBNL). Most recently she worked with California’s Codes and Standards team on exploring a Multifamily Passive House Reach Code for California. She directed NAPHN’s policy support programming and edited the NAPHN Policy Resource Guide published in 2019 at NAPHN19. Bronwyn was educated in South Africa, the UK, and the USA and holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Natal-KwaZulu.

Joya Cohen, Director

Joya is an attorney focused on real estate and community development. She currently works at the Community Preservation Corporation as Vice President of Loan Closings and Deputy General Counsel, where she works to deploy capital for multifamily real estate projects that advance CPC’s goals of affordability, sustainability, and bridging the racial wealth gap. Previously, Joya held roles at NYC’s Department of Preservation and Development and the Department of Environmental Protection. She also worked at a law firm, where she was awarded a fellowship at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, working in their Community Development initiative. Joya has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland and a juris doctor from Cardozo Law School.

Darren Macri, Secretary

Darren Macri is the CEO of Wythe Windows and Bleu Nest. He is a Certified Passive House Consultant & Tradesperson, LEED AP BD+C. His company Wythe Windows, has a state of the art window factory dedicated to manufacturing high-performance Passive House quality windows and doors located in Ramsey, NJ. Through Bleu Nest he built New Jersey’s first Certified Passive House. Bleu Nest has since project managed and consulted on many other passive house projects ranging from historic retrofits to multi-family. He is proud to serve on the Board of Directors for North American Passive House Network and as one of the founders of New Jersey Passive House. Darren holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from New York University.

Katelyn Meehan, Vice Chair

Katelyn graduated from University of Maryland with a degree in environmental science, and spent the following two years in Peace Corps Peru as part of their environmental management program. She then received her Masters from NYU Wagner with a degree in Urban Planning with a focus on infrastructure, transportation, and the environment. She worked for the Suffolk County Economic Development Department, building out their bus rapid transit initiative and commercial brownfields program, as well as transit-oriented developments. She later worked at HPD’s Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) agency in both their inclusionary housing and credit and underwriting divisions. Katelyn currently is a relationship manager at Wells Fargo in the Community Lending and Investment platform. She provides construction debt for affordable housing projects, primarily in the New York Metro area. Katelyn has been working to bridge her passion for sustainability/environmental responsibility with her current role and has taken on additional responsibilities with the WF Foundation and their efforts around decarbonization and affordable housing.

Karen Spiegel, Director

Karen Spiegel is a skilled storyteller and reputation builder, especially for brands in transition. Karen has led global marketing and communications across many sectors from clean energy to advertising. Her expertise centers around clarifying complexities, along with the ability to articulate technology in understandable terms while teasing out an organization’s previously unrecognized attributes. With twenty plus years of experience successfully repositioning companies and expanding their global credibility, Karen now leads KS&Co., LLC, where she continues to build brand reputations. Previously she was Chief Communications Officer at FCB, overseeing the company’s global rebranding initiative, and at R/GA as SVP Marketing and Communications, elevating the brand to the most innovative digital agency at the intersection of creative and technology. Karen has continually stressed the importance of communicating clearly and simply with the end goal to improve revenues and expand customer engagement by using analytics. To assist others, she works with Cleantech Open helping clean energy startups to better market their products and services. Karen holds a BA in English History from the University of Pennsylvania and a Doctor of Law from Santa Clara University School of Law.

Craig Stevenson, Chair

Craig Stevenson is President of AUROS Group, which is a technology company based in Pittsburgh, PA. Craig is widely known for his role in establishing Pittsburgh as a leader in “Evidence-based Performance” for the built environment. Evidence-based Performance uses technology to bridge the gap between “hoping” a building is performing as designed to “knowing” a building is meeting its performance goals. With 25 years of construction experience, Craig is an expert estimator and is credentialed in virtually all known building performance standards. Using these skills, Craig ensures building owners have the data required to build and operate the highest-performing buildings at the lowest possible costs. Craig is co-author of the book, The Power of Existing Buildings—Save Money, Improve Health and Reduce Environmental Impacts, and the much referenced ASTM article, “Project Case Studies and the Lessons they Teach about Whole Building Envelope Air Leakage Testing.” Craig is a founding member and Vice President of the Passive House Pennsylvania chapter and a member of CEOs for Sustainability. Craig sits on the City of Pittsburgh Clean Tech Roundtable and P4 Performance Measures Committee. Craig is also a committee member with the AIA+2030 Committee on the Environment. Craig holds a Masters of Science in Management of Information Systems and an MBA degree from the Graduate School of Business at Duquesne University.

Eddy Voltaire, Treasurer

Eddy Voltaire is a sustainability consultant with Design Construction & Sustainability Inc (DCS), a New York City-based firm. He is an experienced project and construction manager with a background in real estate, communications, and business development. While very diverse in experience, his approach often involves a distinct sense of play, aiming to put the fun in functional design. His work is guided by a strong belief in design as a problem-solving tool and means of recognizing and forming relationships between ideas and reality. Establishing a method for improving spatial equality, connecting people, community, and environment. DCS’s work exists at the intersection of art and technology. Eddy holds a degree in architecture and energy management from New York Institute of Technology.