E8 welcomes new staff and board
As we approach the summer, we wanted to take a moment to introduce a number of new faces to the E8 board and staff teams. The E8 membership and commuity are doing great things together as we continue to grow and make investments to help advance the clean energy economy. And the people making it possible are a foundational part of our success. Please join us in welcoming them!
Keegan Emrick joins E8 as our new Membership and Investment Manager where he will work to maximize member experience and support quality deal flow. Keegan has a degree in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, a Data Analytics certificate at the University of Southern California, and earned his finance-focused MBA at Portland State University. Keegan enjoys golfing at Portland’s municipal courses on weekends, learning new piano pieces, and watching his Oregon Ducks, making frequent trips home to Eugene during football season
Himalaya Rao joins the E8 Board with a passion for expanding the accessibility of entrepreneurship to BIPOC and rural communities as a pathway for economic development and generational wealth building. She is co-founder and Managing Director of Black Founders Matter and is also a Venture Capital Consultant who works with Angel Funds and Venture Firms along the West Coast. She has worked with seven different funds and am currently working with Portland Seed Fund as their diligence lead while actively raising for Black Founders Matter Fund I. She has also helped launch and manage two other funds; Angel Oregon Fund and Mid-Valley Angel Fund. Himalaya received her MBA from Willamette University and a secondary Masters in Social Work from Adelphi University.
KD Hallman serves on the E8 board, is a member of the E8 screening committee, and is board member and/or advisor for several of E8’s environmental startups. She assists in the legal fight to protect the planet’s species and natural assets by serving as co-chair on the Earthjustice Council and as an advocate for their work. She rounds out her efforts as an active Fellow with the Northwest Conservation Philanthropy and on the conservation committee with The Nature Conservancy. KD retired as a Vice President for Microsoft after having held technical leadership roles in the Office, Developer, and Research divisions over a 24-year span. For seven of these years, she was responsible for Microsoft's global semiconductor architecture and strategy. K.D. holds over 25 US and European patents. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Arizona with majors in agricultural engineering and chemistry, and Summa Cum Laude with a Master of Science in Computer science.
Mike Grenier joins E8’s board as a serial cleantech entrepreneur and investor with multiple successful exits and a 20-year career that spans software, venture capital, solar, wind, energy storage and finance. Mike is a managing Partner at Blu Ox Ventures where he has served many roles including co-founder, managing partner, investor, board member, financial analyst, project manager, guy-who-makes-the-coffee and stay-at-home dad. Mike is originally from Montana, and is passionate about his family, spending time outdoors, oxford commas, and constantly learning. He has a BA with honors in Public Policy from Stanford University and an MBA from the University of Maryland.