Meet Our Team

We have a team of passionate individuals with experience working in cities to advance bold climate and equity goals.

Jenna tatum, EXECUTIVE Director

Based in San Diego, CA

Jenna (she/her) founded BEI in 2018 to build an organization that accelerates an equitable transition away from fossil fuels by supporting and leveraging the leadership of cities. Jenna believes it is critical to work across the intersections of climate, housing, workforce, health, and energy policy and to build strong coalitions of partners that can create durable and transformational change.

Jenna previously served in the NYC Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, where she designed programs to accelerate energy upgrades in buildings and helped develop the City’s building electrification strategy. Jenna previously served as a staff member in the U.S. House of Representatives and has a Master of Public Administration degree from Columbia University. In her free time, you’ll find Jenna at the beach in San Diego, exploring nearby state and national parks, or planning her next international trip.

MATTHEW Vasilakis, managing Director

Based in San Diego, CA

Matthew (he/him) joined BEI in 2022 to support its mission to equitably transition communities to a healthy, prosperous, fossil fuel-free future. Matthew believes that all public policy must protect and uplift historically vulnerable and underserved communities to achieve broader economic, racial, and social justice, and that local and municipal governments play a unique role in co-creating innovative policies and programs with frontline communities.

Matthew previously served as the Co-Director of Policy at Climate Action Campaign in San Diego where he led a team of bold climate justice advocates and organizers working to secure various climate, equity, housing, land use, transportation and zero waste policies with community organizations, elected officials, and industry leaders. Matthew has a Master of History from San Diego State University and is a proud community college alumnus. In his free time, Mat enjoys the company of his partners, family and friends, riding the bus to run errands, and taking brisk sunset walks around the neighborhood.

Sophie Wolfram, Managing Director

Based in San Diego, CA

Sophie (she/her) joined BEI in 2023 to help accelerate equitable building electrification in cities across the country. She believes that city action is essential both to redress systemic inequities and to successfully mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis, and so she is committed to advancing local policies rooted in intersectional analysis and meaningful community engagement.

Sophie previously served as the Transportation Demand Manager at Stanford University and Director of Policy at Climate Action Campaign in San Diego, where she led a team of advocates to secure aggressive city climate commitments and worked closely with elected officials and city staff to implement climate policies. Sophie holds a Master of Science degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Montana and a Bachelor of Arts from Yale University. In her free time, Sophie enjoys experimenting with new varieties in her vegetable garden, drawing, and spending time with her family.

anna ngai, managing director

Based in New York, NY

Anna (she/her) joined BEI in 2024 to support the development of its research services, help build effective and thoughtful policy and program design and implementation, and continue meaningful engagement with communities and partners. She believes that creating equitably and sustainably designed communities where people live, work, and connect is a crucial part of creating a more enduring future, and she is committed to ongoing learning to understand and center the experiences of marginalized communities within this work.

Anna previously served as Deputy Director at the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, Inc., where she coordinated the implementation of the US's first market-based, multi-state program to decarbonize the electricity sector. At RGGI, Anna led analysis and policy work to engage state government, environmental advocates, and communities to reduce emissions from power plants and generate funding towards clean energy investment. Anna has a Master of Arts degree in Climate and Society from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Stony Brook University. In her free time, Anna enjoys eating her way around her hometown of New York City, going to comedy shows, and spending time with family and friends.
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Caytie Campbell-Orrock, DEPUTY Director

Based in Boston, MA

Caytie (they/them) joined BEI in 2020 and focuses on helping cities analyze community and building data to inform the design of equitable programs and policies, with a focus on engaging local community groups in the process. They believe that reshaping how cities collaborate with historically marginalized communities can help identify and scale up solutions that meet housing, public health, economic, and climate goals, which will be necessary to achieve a truly just transition to clean energy.

Caytie previously worked at the City of Berkeley managing the City’s energy disclosure requirements for the single family residential and commercial building sectors. They also managed Berkeley’s annual updates to the community’s greenhouse gas emissions inventory and contributed to the City’s climate adaptation approach. Caytie graduated from Smith College with a degree in architecture and engineering and served as an AmeriCorps fellow in the CivicSpark program. In their free time, Caytie enjoys exploring new places, spending time with family and friends, eating delicious food, and falling even more in love with their dog.

Dani Makous, DEPUTY Director

Based in Los Angeles, CA

Dani (she/her) joined the BEI team in 2021 and focuses on helping cities thoughtfully design and iterate on building electrification programs and policies to ensure equitable outcomes across health, affordability, and workforce development. Dani believes that city governments are leaders when it comes to ambitious climate action, but cannot achieve their climate goals on their own and must enable community ownership over climate action.

Dani previously worked at the City of Oakland, where she helped develop Oakland's 2030 Equitable Climate Action Plan and implement key actions focused on building electrification, transportation electrification, and climate resilience. Before her role in Oakland, Dani worked for the U.S Green Building Council, where she communicated the benefits of the green building sector to diverse audiences and earned her LEED Green Associate accreditation. Dani graduated from George Washington University with a degree in Political Communication and a double minor in Sustainability and Geography. In her free time, Dani enjoys getting creative on her sewing machine, swimming in the ocean whenever possible, and cooking with her friends.

GAVIN BOWMAN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

Based in Chicago, IL

Gavin (he/him) joined BEI in 2023 to accelerate the equitable transition to fossil fuel-free, electric buildings, centering equitable co-benefits for disenfranchised and underinvested communities. Gavin is committed to co-developing bold building decarbonization solutions that prioritize wealth-building in underserved communities; public health improvements; and systemic reforms that ensure reparative justice. Gavin’s work is rooted in the ideals of Tikkun Olam (“repair the world” in Hebrew), which underlies his professional and personal ethos.

Gavin previously served as the Climate and Energy Project Manager for the City of Chicago Office of Climate and Environmental Equity where he delivered policy, programmatic, and investment solutions to electrify new construction and encourage electrification retrofits. Gavin previously served as the Energy Policy Director at the Illinois Environmental Council and the Environmental Planning Associate at the Chicago Housing Authority. Gavin holds a B.S. and a Masters in Urban Planning from Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania, respectively. Outside of work, you can find Gavin gardening, out for a walk with his wife and their pit-mix Lincoln, or planning to electrify his house!

VIRIDIANA NGUYEN-SANTOYO, CITY POLICY ADVISOR and research associate

Based in Oakley, CA

Viri (she/her) joined BEI in 2023 to support equitable building decarbonization at the local level. Viri believes that through intentional and inclusive co-creation processes, local governments have the ability to advance the shift towards a just and clean energy economy.

Previously, Viri served the City of San José, where she led community engagement programs and policy research and development for new and existing building decarbonization. Viri also worked for the City of Berkeley, implementing the Building Emissions Saving Ordinance and supported the Natural Resources Defense Council’s City Energy Project. She holds a Master of Environmental Planning degree from UC Berkeley and has over 5 years of experience in climate action work. Viri enjoys challenging herself to complete at least 6 “buy-nothing” months a year, where she solely purchases the basic necessities, in an effort to decrease her trash related carbon footprint.