Grid Catalyst is pleased to welcome two incredibly talented graduate students joining our team as 2022 Fellows for the fall term. Alexa Carerra and Sarah Komoroski are both pursuing a Master of Science in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. They will be working on major initiatives for Grid Catalyst, including our 2nd year convening of the EnergyTech University Prize for the Department of Energy and the advancement of our Energy Innovation Hub platform. 

Meet Alexa

Alexa Carrera is joining the team as a Program Development and Outreach Fellow. She is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Alexa is a first-year graduate student at the University of Minnesota Humphrey School of Public Affairs where she is pursuing a Master’s in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (STEP). Before the STEP program, Alexa earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology with minors in Environmental Studies and Chemistry from Augsburg University. 

She is passionate about environmental policy, sustainability, and environmental justice. Her primary interest is in the renewable energy field, which is what interested her about working with Grid Catalyst. She has experience working alongside policy makers and stakeholders, advocating to better serve our shifting environmental demands. She is excited to utilize her experiences and education to support Grid Catalyst projects. Fun fact about Alexa, she lived in Guatemala for 7 years and is fluent in Spanish. One of her life goals iis to visit every National Park in the U.S!

Meet Sarah

Sarah is joining the team as a Program Development and Outreach Fellow. She is a Master’s student at the University of Minnesota studying Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (STEP), with a focus on Midwest climate and energy policy. Most notably, she has been studying rural electric cooperatives and their role in the energy transition. This past summer, she interned with a renewable energy development company doing market research and customer analysis as part of their origination team.

Before starting her graduate program, Sarah earned a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and worked for seven years as a design engineer and project manager at a large manufacturing company. She currently lives with her spouse and dog in the Armatage neighborhood of Minneapolis and enjoys soup season, reading, and spending time outdoors.