Powering What Matters
Rachel Bryant is Executive Editor of Public Utilities Fortnightly.
In recognition of Women’s History Month, PUF sat down with thirteen women leaders across the energy sector to capture their perspectives at a pivotal moment for our industry.
Demand is rising. Infrastructure investment is accelerating. Utilities, regulators, and innovators are navigating increasing expectations around affordability, reliability, and resilience. In this environment, leadership is not theoretical. It is operational. Decisions made today will shape markets, systems, and communities for decades.
The women featured here represent the breadth of the modern grid. Their roles span utilities, regulatory commissions, federal public power, trade associations, research institutions, consumer advocacy offices, and technology companies. The perspectives are varied, but several themes recur: translating complexity into clarity, balancing competing priorities, preparing the workforce of the future, and keeping customers at the center of the conversation.
These conversations are not a single narrative. They are a collection of viewpoints reflecting the realities of leadership in motion. Together, they offer insight into how this essential industry is being guided forward at a time of significant change.
Women’s History Month articles at fortnightly.com
- Doseke Akporiaye, WRISE Executive Director
- Hannah Bascom, Uplight Chief Growth and Commercial Officer
- Michele Beck, Utah Office of Consumer Services Director
- Vittoria Bellissimo, CanREA President and CEO
- Judy Chang, FERC Commissioner
- Neva Espinoza, EPRI Senior Vice President, Energy Supply, and Chief Generation Officer
- Sonia Kastner, Pano AI Co-Founder and CEO
- Maria Korsnick, Nuclear Energy Institute CEO
- Tracey LeBeau, WAPA Administrator and CEO
- Michele O'Connell, Orange and Rockland Utilities CEO
- Ann Rendahl, NARUC President
- Melissa Washington, ComEd Senior Vice President
- Alice Yake, Breakthrough Energy Vice President, GRIDS
