Electrification is accelerating across transportation, buildings and industry, but ambition alone will not deliver the infrastructure needed to power a changing economy. At AEC 2026, the Electrification & Load Growth track will bring together the people shaping the policies, investments and technologies that will determine whether this transformation succeeds and whether it remains reliable and affordable for everyone.
The track begins with a direct look at the policy signals influencing infrastructure investment, customer adoption and rising electricity demand. Carolyn Kissane of NYU’s Energy, Climate and Sustainability Lab will join Rory Christian, chairman of the New York State Public Service Commission; Kathleen Schmid, deputy executive director at the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice; Carter Strickland, chief sustainability officer at SUNY; and Billy Haugland, CEO of Haugland Group. Their perspectives span regulation, municipal climate policy, institutional sustainability and infrastructure delivery, setting up a candid discussion of what government, utilities and major energy users must do now.
The conversation then shifts from policy to execution. Digaunto Chatterjee, senior vice president of engineering at Eversource, will be joined by Bart Franey of National Grid, Joe Ambrosio of Unique Electric Solutions, David Hammer of PopWheels and Joe Silver of NineDot Energy. They will explore why promising electrification pilots often stall, how grid integration and interconnection affect scale, and what makes a technology bankable and ready for customers.
The final session brings affordability, workforce and community impact to the center. Solomon Caviness, commissioner of the City of Atlanta Department of Transportation; Paula Glover, president of the Alliance to Save Energy; Suzanne Brienza, vice president of customer experience and clean energy at LIPA; Kaela Mainsah, vice president of environmental justice at the New York Power Authority; and William Scherle, director of decarbonization at Soulful Synergy, will examine how rising demand can be managed without shifting unfair costs onto vulnerable communities. Expect attention to transportation policy, customer experience, environmental justice, workforce opportunity and the programs that can translate large goals into household benefits.
For utilities, policymakers, developers, investors and innovators, this track offers more than a forecast. It is a working conversation about the choices that must be made today to build the energy system tomorrow will require. Join AEC 2026, November 4-6 at the New York Hilton Midtown, and be part of it.