NAOMI HIROSE

Chair, Japan Energy Association

Vice Chair, World Energy Council

Former President/CEO, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO)

Naomi Hirose is the former president / CEO whose service at the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) spans four decades. He left TEPCO in 2021, and currently serves as Chair of Japan Energy Association, i.e. World Energy Council Japanese Member Committee. Also, He has been appointed as a Vice Chair of World Energy Council since 2022.

Mr. Hirose joined TEPCO in 1976, having gained an appreciation for the energy industry following the 1973 Oil Shock, and worked in a number of management positions from 1992 to 2005, including corporate planning, sales, marketing, and customer relations.

Immediately after the 3.11 Fukushima Accident, Mr. Hirose dedicated himself to create the system for Nuclear Damage Compensation. After becoming President and CEO in 2012, he led the company in addressing a number of highly complex issues such as water management and decommissioning plans for the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, compensation for the accident and Fukushima revitalization, and keeping TEPCO competitive while facing the deregulation of Japan’s electricity and gas market.

Mr. Hirose received his B.A. in Sociology from Hitotsubashi University in 1976, and his MBA from Yale School of Management in 1983.

JANE NAKANO

Senior Fellow, Energy Security and Climate Change Program

Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

Jane Nakano is a senior fellow in the Energy Security and Climate Change Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Her research interests include U.S. energy policy; energy geopolitics; global market and policy developments concerning natural gas, hydrogen, nuclear energy, and critical minerals; and energy security and climate issues in the Asia-Pacific region. She frequently writes and speaks on these issues at domestic and international conferences and to media around the world. She has also testified before Congress on China's competitiveness in energy technology manufacturing and exports as well as U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports and before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission on U.S.-China nuclear energy cooperation.

Prior to joining CSIS in 2010, Nakano worked in the Office of International Affairs in the U.S. Department of Energy, where she covered a host of energy, economic, and political issues in Asia. From 2001 to 2002, she served at the U.S. embassy in Tokyo as a special assistant to the energy attaché.

Nakano graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and holds a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Jane STRICKER

SVP and Executive Director, Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI)

The Greater Houston Partnership (GHP)

As Executive Director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI), Jane has responsibility for the Partnership’s effort to leverage Houston’s energy leadership to accelerate the transition to an energy abundant, low-carbon future. She leads a coalition of industry, academia, and community partners to ensure the long-term economic competitiveness and advancement of the Houston region towards a more sustainable and net-zero emissions future.

Prior to joining the Partnership, Jane spent over two decades at bp, where she held leadership roles in marketing, corporate finance, governance, and compliance. Among her many accomplishments, she developed and delivered the 2019 National Petroleum Council Study on carbon capture, use and storage in coordination with the U.S. Department of Energy.

Jane has a B.A. from the University of Maryland and an MBA from Loyola University in Chicago. She serves on the advisory board of University of North Carolina’s KenanFlagler Energy Center, the board of BCarbon, and as an advisor to Pana Low Carbon Economy Investments and several early-stage energy transition startups.