IDEA Awards Three Energy Industry Scholarships
Two Canadians, one American are honored
BOSTON, July 15, 2011 – The International District Energy Association recently announced three John Gray Scholarship Award recipients: Canadians Brad Bradford and David Rulff and American Michelle Parks. The awards were bestowed during IDEA’s 102nd Annual Conference & Trade Show held in late June in Toronto.
The scholarship program’s objective is to help the industry attract and retain individuals interested in the growth and success of district energy and combined heat and power (CHP) technologies. As John Gray Scholars, each received a monetary award and complimentary registration to the annual conference and trade show.
Brad Bradford graduated with honors from York University in Toronto with a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies. He is a candidate for a master of arts in urban planning at the University of Waterloo, where his research focus is on district energy initiatives, resilience planning and local economic development. Bradford serves as the chief administrative officer of the Corporation of the Canadian Planning Students and previously served as its president. He presented a poster “District Energy: Exploring the Relationships Between Planning Policy and Implementation” at the Canadian District Energy Association’s 2010 annual conference. Bradford served as a teaching assistant in the School of Planning at the University of Waterloo and was a research associate intern at the Canadian Urban Institute.
David Rulff graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2009 with a bachelor of applied science in systems design engineering; he is pursuing a master of applied science in civil engineering from the University of Toronto. Rulff’s interest is building systems and energy infrastructure started as an undergraduate. He spent two consecutive co-op terms employed in the operations department at Enwave Energy Corp., helping monitor and maintain the district steam and deep lake water cooling systems in Toronto. Rulff is now participating in a graduate research program within the University of Toronto’s Sustainable Infrastructure Group. His master’s research focuses on the viability of satellite district energy networks outside established district systems.
Michelle Parks recently graduated with honors from the University of Maryland, where she obtained a bachelor of arts in government and politics and a bachelor of arts in English language and literature. She was a member of the university’s Team Cogeneration Technology from 2007 to 2011. Her team researched the potential for carbon emission reductions using gas turbine-powered CHP plant design. The group defended its findings to a panel of industry experts and Parks presented the team’s work at IDEA’s 2011 Campus Energy Conference in Miami. She was a member of the university’s Student Sustainability Committee. Parks will join IDEA staff as a policy and industry analyst Sept. 1.
Award Recipients
Brad Bradford, Michelle Parks and David Rulff.