Keynote Speaker:

Alice Madden, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs, U.S. Department of Energy

As Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental and External Affairs in the Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, Alice Madden serves as the interface between the U.S. Department of Energy and state, local, and tribal governments, and other relevant constituencies.  Under her leadership, the Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs facilitates the exchange of information between the Department and stakeholders regarding the development and implementation of energy policies and programs, and fosters an active dialogue with constituencies to ensure their views are considered as part of the Department's decision-making processes.

Most recently, Ms. Madden served as the Timothy E. Wirth Chair in Sustainable Development at the University of Colorado, where she worked to advance a clean energy economy, while cultivating a higher level of interest among female and minority students in working in sustainability-related fields and completing degrees in STEM disciplines through mentorships and expanded support systems. 

Featured Panel: Perspectives on Future Cities

Moderator: Marianne Bird Bear, Assistant Dean, Division of International Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Marianne Bird Bear is the Assistant Dean in the Division of International Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In this capacity, she serves as the chief advisor to the dean and works closely with the International Institute, International Academic Programs, the International Internship Program, the WI International Scholars, and the International Fellowships Office. Prior to her joining International Studies, she served for 12 years as the Director of International Engineering Studies and Programs at UW-Madison. Marianne studied in Belgium and France, and worked as an ESL teacher in Japan. 

Mayor Paul Soglin, City of Madison, Wisconsin

Elected seven times, Mayor Paul Soglin is the 51st, 54th and 57th Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin. Mayor Soglin’s seventeen years in office are noted for a major commitment to public transit with record setting ridership levels competitive with cities three times Madison’s size, the development of Madison’s first bicycle routes and lanes, the design and construction of the State Street Mall resulting in one of the strongest downtown locally owned retail sectors, and the development of Madison’s Civic Center which was the basis for the world-class Overture Center for the Arts.

H. Stephen Halloway, Director, Center for Comparative Legislative Management, International Law Institute

H. Stephen Halloway is Director, Center for Comparative Legislative Management, International Law Institute as well as an Advisor to The World Bank and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.  Mr. Halloway held a number of appointments in the U.S. Department of Commerce including Chief Regulatory Officer and Chief Counsel, National Telecommunications and Information Administration.  He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison; holds degrees from Rutgers University where he received an MA in Political Science (Ford Fellow at the Eagleton Institute of Politics) and a JD from the Boston University School of Law. He is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia and Wisconsin where he is a Bar Examiner.

Franziska Breyer, Environmental Director, City of Freiburg, Germany

Franziska Breyer is a forestry scientist holding a degree from the University of Freiburg. After her graduation she worked with the State Forest Administration of the state of Baden-Württemberg as a forester in training for two years. She then joined the Department of the Environment of the City of Freiburg as head of the dep-uty mayor’s office. Her work on a strategic level has included the areas of climate protection and energy policy, environmental protection, forestry and green space, facility management, education and youth. “Sustainability requires a balance of technological innovation, suitable infrastructure and resilient culture.”

Damien Ma, Author, Fellow, The Paulson Institute, University of Chicago 

Damien Ma is a Fellow at the Paulson Institute, focused on investment and policy programs and the Institute’s research and think tank activities. He also serves as an adjunct lecturer at the Kellogg School of Management. He is the co-author of the book, In Line Behind a Billion People: How Scarcity Will Define China’s Ascent in the Next Decade. Previously, Ma was a lead China analyst at Eurasia Group, the political risk research and advisory firm. He specialized in analyzing the intersection between Chinese policies and markets, with a particular focus on energy and commodities, industrial policy, elite politics, and US-China relations.

In addition, Ma writes regularly for a wide range of publications, including the Atlantic Monthly, the New York Times, Foreign Affairs, The New Republic, Foreign Policy, and Bloomberg, among others. He has appeared in a range of broadcast media such as the Charlie Rose Show, NPR, and CNBC. He also served as an adjunct instructor at Johns Hopkins SAIS. Ma is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.