19th Annual Energy Conference

Each year, Robert Amundsen helps to plan the annual Energy Conference, an event that brings top experts in the energy and environmental fields to New York Tech. He is an enthusiastic promoter of energy efficiency, environmental protection, and saving energy. Amundsen is an advocate of using innovative technologies in virtual and material classrooms. He encourages students to take advantage of distance learning options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from travel.As president of the Long Island Chapter of the Association of Energy Engineers, Amundsen is actively involved in local events that showcase new trends and technologies in the energy field. He is a past recipient of the Environmental Educator of the Year Award, and the Energy Professional Development Award. He served as the engineering faculty advisor for the New York Tech Solar Decathlon Team.

Amundsen earned a B.S. in physics and astronomy and a B.S. in engineering and applied science at the University of Rochester, followed by an M.S. and a Ph.D. in energy management and policy at the University of Pennsylvania. In 2018, he was elected to the AEE Energy Managers Hall of Fame, which recognizes “outstanding leaders in the energy industry who over their lifetimes have made significant contributions in the field of energy management.” He is among a small number of energy professionals who have been accepted as a fellow of the AEE.

Babak D. Beheshti has experience in higher education that spans more than 35 years. He has served as a full-time faculty member, president of New York Tech’s Academic Senate, associate dean, and dean. As dean, Beheshti has led the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences to the introduction of its first two Ph.D. programs, in computer science and engineering, two new bachelor’s degree programs, and one new master’s degree program. In addition, he has led the college through its fastest climb in national rankings: in 2021 a climb of 13 places (since 2020) in the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (National – no doctorate), and #49 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (National – no doctorate) in the 2022-2023 rankings.In line with the career-oriented mission of New York Tech, Beheshti has led the College of Engineering and Computing Sciences in building a strong partnership with industry and government organizations, including NASA, Zscaler, IBM Red Hat, Xilinx, Soter Technologies, and Zebra Technologies. In 2022, he also led the College in launching its first, cooperative education (co-op) track for students in two undergraduate programs: computer science and information technology. The experiential education program allows students to alternate a period of academic study in the classroom with full-time co-op employment in positions directly related to their academic and/or career interests.

Beheshti has served as a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Board of Directors (2018-19) and the Board of Directors of Long Island Software and Technology Network (LISTnet). In 2022, he served as a member of the Educational Activities board and the chair of the Continuing Education Committee. He also serves on the board of IgniteLI—Long Island Manufacturing Consortium and is a member of the International Association of Transportation Regulators advisory board.

He is a recipient of IEEE’s MGA Leadership Award, IEEE Millennium Medal, the IEEE LI Section Athanasios Papoulis Outstanding Educator Award, and three IEEE Region 1 Awards, including the 2008 IEEE Northeastern Region Technical Innovation Award.

Beheshti received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering at Stony Brook University.

Arman Bonakdarpour is an assistant professor of energy management at the New York Institute of Technology in Vancouver, where he teaches energy management courses focusing on renewable energy technologies, solar energy, batteries, and energy modeling. His current research interests include the techno-economics of renewables, advanced batteries, and electrochemical technologies.Bonakdarpour earned his undergraduate degree from UBC and completed his graduate degrees (M.Sc./Ph.D.) at Dalhousie University, specializing in advanced lithium-ion battery and hydrogen fuel cell technologies. After obtaining his Ph.D., he conducted postdoctoral research at UIUC and UBC, focusing on electrocatalysis and hydrogen storage. For over ten years, he worked on many collaborative research projects in the areas of clean energy at UBC (Clean Energy Research Centre) as a research scientist. Bonakdarpour has an extensive R&D background in clean energy technologies, spanning various areas such as advanced batteries, hydrogen energy technologies, water treatment, and carbon dioxode conversion. His contributions in these fields have resulted in over 80 peer-reviewed publications and several patents. Bonakdarpour is a co-founder and technical advisor at Mangrove Lithium and maintains an affiliation with UBC’s Deptartment of Chemical and Biological Engineering.

Originally from Hawaii, Aaron Boranian came to Colorado in 2005 to study engineering topics related to building energy efficiency at Colorado School of Mines and the University of Colorado – Boulder. After finishing his master’s studies on liquid desiccant air conditioning in 2012, he spent two years working in Singapore at the Energy Research Institute @ Nanyang Tech University. Since 2014, he has worked at Big Ladder Software in Denver, where he has developed and delivered building simulation training workshops as well as honed computer programming and software development skills. Boranian received the BEMP (Building Energy Modeling Professional) certification from ASHRAE in 2017.

Tianzhen Hong leads Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s development and support efforts for building energy modeling. Two building energy software tools he led, CBES and CityBES, won the R&D 100 awards in 2019 and 2022, respectively. He is an IBPSA Fellow and an ASHRAE Fellow. He has been a highly cited researcher since 2021.

Gregory J. Leng is the creator and Director of the RETScreen Clean Energy Management Software Platform at Natural Resources Canada’s CanmetENERGY Research Centre in Varennes (Montreal), Quebec. The RETScreen software is an all-in-one platform which enables low-cost energy planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting.This software is the world’s leading clean energy decision-support tool and is available in 38 languages covering two-thirds the Earth’s population. RETScreen is used by more than 850,000+ energy professionals and decision-makers in every country, as well as by professors at 1,500+ universities and colleges for teaching and research. RETScreen can be downloaded at www.retscreen.net

Leng is also a fellow at the Payne Institute, Colorado School of Mines, in Golden, Colorado. His career is focused on the clean energy market, technology, finance and policy interface and he has been working in the renewable energy and energy efficiency fields since 1987. Prior to joining NRCan, he was based in Hyderabad, India, as the India Country Manager (dLA Consultant) for the International Fund for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (IFREE).

Leng obtained a master’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Lowell in energy engineering (solar energy engineering option) and a Bachelor of Commerce degree (marketing and international business option) from McGill University.

Dragos Paraschiv is a licensed professional engineer in the Province of Ontario and a professor of sustainable energy and building technology at Humber Polytechnic in Toronto, Canada. His experience in energy management includes design of commercial building electrical and mechanical systems, central plant retrofit projects, as well as development of community energy management plans and pilot projects. Paraschiv has gained experience in all aspects of energy-related projects, including auditing, design, performance measurement and verification, contract administration and project management. Paraschiv has a bachelor’s in eectrical engineering and a Ph.D. in power engineering.