Board of Directors

Susan Walker, Board President
Energy Project Manager, General Motors

Susan has served as a MEO board member since April 2006.  She is a 28-year employee at General Motors where her responsibilities have included electrician, skilled trades supervisor, tool design, power distribution engineer and utilities manager.  For the last six years she has served as manager and engineer for GM’s corporate Energy Savings Project Implementation program.  She is a Michigan State University alumni, licensed electrician and Certified Energy Manager.  She is also a lifelong resident of Michigan with a strong passion for the Upper Peninsula.  Her other community activities include volunteering at the Grace Center of Hope in Pontiac, and doing home builds for Habitat for Humanity.

Daniel Kraft, Vice President
Principal, The Kraft Law Firm PLLC

Daniel Kraft is a Lansing attorney with over 26 years of valuable experience in real estate transactions and land use, farm credit, farm reorganizations and other related issues. Kraft has served as general counsel and a board member of The Michigan Farmers Union Foundation.  He was also general counsel for The Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association.  As a volunteer, Dan has been serving for many years on the Williamston Township Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals. He also worked as the bookkeeper for MEO’s predecessor, Urban Options, in the early 1980s. Dan believes energy efficiency is the economic tool that can save the planet and improve our lives.

Wayne Ekren, Secretary

Fred Jacobs, Treasurer
Associate Professor, Department of Accounting and Information Systems, Michigan State University

Fred Jacobs has lived in East Lansing for 35 years and has served on the Board for the past six.  Because of his background and expertise, Fred focuses on MEO’s financial issues, but he has been committed to the environmental movement his entire adult life, or at least since he helped his wife, Kathy, build a solar oven for one of the first Earth Day celebrations, in 1973.

Christine Fisk, Board Member
Fuel Procurement Analyst, Lansing Board of Water and Light

A resident of Lansing for 12 years, Christine continues her efforts to learn and share new energy efficient technologies in her everyday life.  She has experience in making green improvements, and has installed a rain barrel, on-demand water heaters, 0.8 gpf low-flush toilets and numerous CFLs, among others.  Prior to moving to Lansing, she learned many ways to reduce and reuse while studying at Indiana University and has carried that knowledge to Michigan.  Christine's IT background has also helped reduce the amount of paper produced at her place of employment—which happens to be the electricity provider of MEO's East Lansing office.

Kendy Gaffner, Board Member
Human Resources Administrator, The Christman Company

Kendy has worked as a human resources professional in the Lansing area for five years.  Kendy joined the MEO Board in 2010 to contribute her HR expertise. She has a passion for sustainability (The Christman Company is one of the world's foremost green development companies) and community support programs. For Kendy, MEO has been a great opportunity for her to bring together her personal and professional goals.

David Gard, Board Member
Energy Program Director, Michigan Environmental Council

David Gard directs the energy program at the Michigan Environmental Council, a statewide nonprofit working toward better policies in Lansing. MEC helped pass legislation in 2008 that jump-started Michigan’s utility efficiency programs. The group currently intervenes in regulatory cases to drive smart investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy for ratepayers. David helps convene the Peak Oil Book Club at MEO and presents frequently on this topic to audiences of all kinds.

Sally Talberg, Board Member
Senior Consultant for Energy and Environment, Public Sector Consultants

Sally Talberg has 15 years of experience in the energy and environmental fields. She leads energy projects at Public Sector Consultants (PSC), with a focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy policies. Sally serves as manager of program design for Michigan Saves, a multi-million dollar statewide financing program for energy improvements. Prior to joining PSC in 2008, Sally worked on electric utility regulatory issues for state government in Texas and Michigan. Sally has a BS in Environmental and Natural Resource Policy from Michigan State and an MPA from the LBJ School at the University of Texas-Austin. Despite her endless work hours finding ways to convince people to invest in energy efficiency upgrades, Sally's 1951 home could use a few itself — she's working on it.