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.

As Founder and Vice Chairman, Elliott continues to advance RES’ role and capabilities in the ecological restoration industry. Building on a 13-year tenure as President and CEO, Elliott is focused on expanding the positive impacts RES can bring to the environmental challenges facing our society as the industry takes on not only large-scale mitigation, but an expanded range of water resource, coastal resiliency, and large public works projects.

Over the past decade, Elliott created a dynamic and unique business model for RES, helping pioneer the emerging environmental mitigation industry. During Elliott’s tenure as CEO, RES grew from a small firm based in Louisiana to a national restoration provider with nearly 500 employees. Elliott is proud to have assembled a team of professionals known for responsible environmental stewardship in all aspects of ecological solution delivery.

Elliott earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 1979.

Following his first successful entrepreneurial effort, Elliott joined Landmark Graphics Corporation, culminating his 12-year tenure in the role of corporate Vice President and General Manager, where he managed various technology and service divisions in Houston and London. Landmark completed an IPO and was acquired by Halliburton in July 1996.

Elliott has been both an active angel investor and an active participant on the board of directors of several growth companies, including FRx Software (acquired by Microsoft), Ischemia Corporation (acquired by Inverness Medical Innovations), Object Reservoir (acquired by Halliburton), and Anark Corporation.

As a private equity investor, Elliott was a general partner with Murphree Venture Partners. He was a founding sponsor and board member of the Houston Technology Council Energy Incubation and Acceleration Program. He served as a board member of the Houston Private Equity Association (HPEA), where he is a Past President.

Elliott has served on the board of directors for several companies and organizations. In 2015, he was named to the Executive Committee of the Committee of 100 for Louisiana, participating in economic development and fiscal reform initiatives. In 2019, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette named Elliott to its Alumni Wall of Honor. In 2022, he was appointed to the board of directors of BCarbon, a non-profit created by the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. 

In 2022, Elliott was named an EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2022 Central South Award winner.

Joni Carswell is the CEO and President of Texan by Nature where she is responsible for leading the mission to bring business and conservation together. Prior to Texan by Nature, Joni was the President and CEO of LivingTree where she grew the company from 1000 to 73 million interactions and 1M+ users. Before LivingTree, Joni held leadership roles in planning, strategy, and product management at Polycom and Dell. She currently serves on the advisory board for the Texas A&M University Rangeland, Wildlife, and Fisheries Management Department. Joni is a graduate of the Kellogg School of Management (Masters, Business Administration) and Northwestern McCormick School of Engineering (Masters, Engineering Management), is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma and served on the Advisory Board for the Kellogg Women’s Business Association. Joni holds a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Texas A&M University. 

Ms. 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 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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