From Bengkulu, Indonesia to Bastogne, Belgium, Christel began building multilateral relationships early in her career as a US Army officer. While she wasn’t always working on climate and energy issues, she quickly learned that the most important agent of change is a strong partnership. She spent the last few years of her military career mitigating natural resource challenges in countries facing recurring natural disaster—which inspired her to pivot to a profession in climate policy.

As the Director of International Policy for Third Way’s Climate and Energy Program, Christel leads efforts to shape and advance America’s internationally-facing climate and energy policy, engaging with the European Union and United Kingdom to foster transatlantic cooperation on clean energy initiatives. Her role involves designing and implementing strategies and policies to promote a reliable, independent, affordable, and clean energy system essential for the security, prosperity, and climate goals of the US and its allies. She manages and directs research on comprehensive, tech-inclusive energy portfolios, with an emphasis on nuclear technologies. In close partnership with a Brussels-based team, Christel oversees Third Way’s Carbon-Free Europe initiative, which provides research, energy systems analysis, and advocacy for technology-inclusive climate policies across Europe. She serves as a spokesperson to communicate Third Way’s fresh ideas to the press, policymakers, and stakeholders in the global energy sector.

Prior to coming to Third Way, Christel managed energy systems analyses to include decarbonisation and energy land use planning studies with a focus on renewable energy deployment in the US. During her military career, Christel gained deep experience in interagency coordination and advising senior diplomats and international government officials on policies and programs that drive behavioral change. Christel loves a good research agenda, and is often keeping up with the technology and economics behind emerging clean energy solutions and the innovative approaches to scaling and deploying them to market. She’s particularly keen on the implications and the proposed solutions for expanding and modernizing the US electrical grid to support a net-zero global economy.

Christel holds a MS in Environmental Science and Policy from Johns Hopkins University, and a BA in Political Science from Loyola University Maryland. As an east coast native, Christel loves exploring the Appalachian range to hike, camp, paddle, and cycle. She and her husband love spending their weekends chasing around their two young kids wherever the wind takes them.