Brooke Harris is a Director of Sustainability in KPMG’s advisory practice, with a focus on the energy transition.  In this role, Brooke works with organizations to identify strategies that can deliver value while achieving sustainability ambitions.  To do so, Brooke leverages her expertise in energy policy, low carbon solutions, carbon markets, and nature-based solutions.    

Prior to joining KPMG, Brooke built nearly two decades of experience in business development, marketing, multilateral partnerships, and strategy in the energy industry.  At ExxonMobil, Brooke held roles across the Upstream with experiences stretching from Guyana to Russia, and a stint in Qatar. Brooke was one of the first members of ExxonMobil’s Low Carbon Solutions business, where she assessed the opportunity space in nature-based solutions.

Brooke holds an M.A. in International Relations and Economics from the Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), at the Johns Hopkins University and a B.S. in Foreign Service from the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.

Mr. Johnson serves as Vice Chairman at Hines. He is a member of the firm's Executive and Investment Committees and is responsible for all investments. Previously he served as Chief Financial Officer from 1992 until 2012, and before that led the development or redevelopment of numerous projects. He initiated the Hines acquisition program and the firm's investment management business.

Johnson graduated from the Georgia Institute of Technology with a BS in Industrial Engineering and received his MBA from Harvard Business School.

Jose Beceiro is a Director in the Site Selection and Incentives Advisory practice, based in Austin, Texas. Jose has 18 years of experience in business and project development, with most of his work centered in the energy transition and cleantech areas. His expertise includes clean energy project development, site selection, university research collaboration, economic development strategy, and corporate business development.

Prior to joining Kroll, Jose was the Senior Director of Global Energy 2.0 in the Economic Development Division of the Greater Houston Partnership focused on building the future energy economy for the Houston region. Before that, served as the Director of Corporate Relations for Energy and Technology at the University of Texas at Austin, where he managed a portfolio of external industry partners representing leading corporations in the energy, cleantech, automotive, and high-tech sectors.

Jose holds a M.A. in Energy and Earth Resources and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin. He is a frequent presenter at industry conferences and thought leadership contributor on topics on the future of renewable energy, and an advocate for the Texas clean energy industry at the state and federal levels.

Jim Blackburn is the CEO of BCarbon, a non-profit ecosystem services registry that catalyzes widespread ecological regeneration by leveraging the power of soil, forests, and wetlands to fight climate change. He is a professor in the practice of environmental law in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Rice University as well as a Rice faculty scholar at the Baker Institute. At Rice, he serves as the co-director of the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster (SSPEED) Center and as director of the undergraduate minor in energy and water sustainability.

Blackburn has had two books published by Texas A&M Press – The Book of Texas Bays (2004) and A Texan Plan for the Texas Coast (2017). He also co-authored three books of art and poetry with artist Isabelle Scurry Chapman – Birds: A Book of Verse and Vision, (2009), Hill Country Birds and Waters: Art and Poems (2018), and Earth Church (2022).

He was recognized as a Distinguished Alumni Laureate of Rice University in 2018, and he has been voted by his peers as a Texas Monthly Texas Superlawyer for the last 16 years. Blackburn received the Armand Yramategui Conservation Award from the Armand Bayou Nature Center in 2018, the Good Egg Award from the International Crane Foundation in 2015 for litigation to protect the whooping crane, the Barbara Jordan Public Advocacy Award from Texas Southern University in 2007 and the Robert Eckhardt Lifetime Coastal Achievement Award from the Texas General Land Office in 1998.

Mr. Blackburn received a B.A. in history and a J.D. from The University of Texas at Austin, and an M.S. in environmental science from Rice University.

Susan Combs is a successful, experienced executive at both the state and federal level.  She has 16 years of statewide leadership in Texas, providing strategic and innovative management, as well as nearly three years at the U.S. Department of the Interior in executive management. At Interior, she was the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget , and Chief Financial Officer. Most recently she served as the Chair of the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission, which was created by Congress, to celebrate the 19th Amendment centennial nationally in August 2020.  She is a board member, and Treasurer, for the Women’s Suffrage Monument Foundation.

In Texas she served in elected positions: as the Comptroller/ Treasurer; the first woman Agriculture commissioner; and was also a state legislator with a history of writing and passing landmark legislation. She was particularly interested in issues surrounding water, conservation, and streamflow. As head of two state agencies, she streamlined operations, ensuring more efficient and cost-effective programs, and received national recognition.

While serving as Texas Agriculture Commissioner, Combs worked with the Environmental Defense Fund to protect the golden-cheeked warbler through partnerships with Texas A&M University, ranchers, and others.   They created the Recovery Credit System, the nation’s most innovative program bringing landowners, ranches, and military at Fort Hood together with other stakeholders to protect the economy, as well as the nation’s defense mission, while complying with the Endangered Species Act. 

At the December 2, 2014 meeting of the Texas Interagency Task Force on Economic Growth and Endangered Species established by Combs, Dr.Benjamin Tuggle, of the U.S.Fish and Wildlife Servi, presented her with a plaque in recognition of her efforts to promote conservation in the state of Texas and the Southwest Region.  He praised Combs for her ability to bring together diverse stakeholder groups to tackle difficult issues surrounding conservation.  In particular he noted her work on the dunes sagebrush lizard, the lesser prairie-chicken and the golden-cheeked warbler. 

She is the manager and owner of a more than 140 year old family ranching, hunting and grazing management operation in West Texas for over forty years.

Nicholas Rodriguez is the President of BDC Industries, a chemical manufacturing and distribution company serving the energy production sector. He brings more than a decade of executive leadership experience in energy services and manufacturing, having served in roles including CEO, CFO, and president across multiple organizations.

Rodriguez began his career in finance as a commercial lending analyst at Frost Bank before transitioning into healthcare, where he led the Texas Gastroenterology Institute as CEO. There, he oversaw the expansion of the practice, negotiated medical contracts, and guided the development of new medical technologies. He later moved into the energy industry, holding senior leadership roles at Patriot Fluid Solutions and CDX Energy Services, where he managed operations across several U.S. regions and developed innovative approaches to chemical treatment, procurement, and logistics.

In addition to his work in the energy sector, Rodriguez has broad experience in healthcare management, product development, and corporate strategy. His career reflects a commitment to building organizations, improving operational efficiency, and creating long-term value across diverse industries.

Rodriguez holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Trinity University. In his spare time, he enjoys activities such as mountain hunting, precision rifle shooting, and triathlon training and racing.

Pamela Giblin joined the Climate Leadership Council as a Senior Policy Advisor after 24 years as a partner at Baker Botts L.L.P. where she led the firm's environmental practice group. She is a past president of the American College of Environmental Lawyers and served for many years on EPA’s Clean Air Act Advisory Committee.

Pamela’s contribution to environmental law is widely cited. She has consistently been listed in the environmental law section of The Best Lawyers in America and ranked by Chambers USA as a Star Individual in the environmental field. She is the first woman to receive the Distinguished Lawyer Award from the Travis County Bar Association.

Ms. Giblin serves on the Seton Fund Board of Directors and is on the Executive Council of UT’s KBH Energy Center. She also serves on the Advisory Council of UT’s Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. She received her B.A. with honors from The University of Texas and her J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law.

Mr. Griffin is Program Director with the US Business Council for Sustainable Development (USBCSD) focusing on Decarbonization Strategies and Water Platforms in the Gulf Coast Region. He leads the Energy Transfer Working Group and serves on the Executive Committee of the USBCSD.

Mr. Griffin has more than 40 years of program and project experience in commercial and government sectors, industry, energy, environmental restoration, conservation and social investment. Prior to retirement from Shell, he served as External Relations Advisor for Social Investment Environmental Programs in the U.S.

Mr. Griffin holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from North Carolina A&T State University.

As Senior VP, Energy Transition and Executive Director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, Jane Stricker leads the Partnership’s efforts to leverage Houston’s energy leadership to accelerate global solutions for a low-carbon future. She leads a coalition of industry, academia, and community partners to ensure the long-term economic competitiveness and advancement of the Houston region towards a more sustainable and net-zero emissions future.

Prior to joining the Partnership, Jane spent over two decades at bp.  Among her many accomplishments, she developed and delivered the 2019 National Petroleum Council study on carbon capture, use and storage in coordination with the U.S. Department of Energy.  Her most recent role as Senior Relationship Manager of Regions, Cities and Solutions integrated her as a critical partner to cities and industry to collaborate on low-carbon energy solutions, working closely with the City of Houston to implement their Climate Action Plan.

Jane received her MBA from Loyola University in Chicago.  She is a contributing faculty member of the University of Houston’s Center for Carbon Management in Energy, Regional Advisory Board member for the Energy Industries Council, and member of the Advisory Board of the Houston Chapter of WRISE – Women of Renewable Industries & Sustainable Energy. 

Joseph B. Swinbank, a successful Texas entrepreneur, graduated from Texas A&M in 1974 with a B.S. degree in Agricultural Economics.  Development, growth, and entrepreneurial spirit are three key aspects of his life and career.  Even while pursuing his undergraduate degree, Mr. Swinbank was already serving as president of the Petroleum Express Company, a wholesale and retail petroleum product sales firm.  After graduating from A&M, he accelerated his business development and built a company that installed self-serve gas pumps at convenience stores.  He sold out to his partner in 1976.  

Joe Swinbank next co-founded Sprint Sand & Gravel to produce sand and gravel for ready-mix concrete producers in the Houston area.   Later, Sprint Waste Disposal Company was formed.  Within six years, the three departments of the company grossed a combined revenue of $20 million after beginning with a mere $300,000 investment.  This company was sold in 1986 to Tricil Environmental Response, Inc.  

His acquisitions and expansions during the 1990s included co-founding Sprint Industrial Services, which was an amalgamation of several transportation and industrial companies.  This was followed by investments into 10+ startups or struggling companies that, through his and his partner’s efforts, have been able to survive and expand within their individual markets.  Today, he has investments in multiple businesses in the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast area in fields such as transportation, landfills, waste collections, sand mining, tank leasing, valve distribution, and commercial real estate.  

Committed to nothing short of excellence, Joe Swinbank has participated for more than twenty years as a “Prof-for-a-Day” in the Department of Agricultural Economics Agribusiness Entrepreneurship classes and as a mentor of students and former students interested in start-up operations.  In 2018, The Association of Former Students and Texas A&M University jointly presented Joe Swinbank ’74 the Distinguished Alumnus Award, the highest honor any Texas A&M University alumnus can receive.

Running a family-owned group of companies in the town he grew up in, Joe feels a strong tie to the community.  Over the years he has donated time, resources and money to various organizations throughout the Greater Houston region.  His leadership in local community organizations includes the Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church, where he is an active participant in Sunday School and Men’s Life.   He has served on several bank boards, including being a Founding Director of Vista Bank (from 2006 until its merger with the Community Bank of Texas in August 2013), and he currently serves as a Director of Community Bank. 

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