Home is the Key to building a sustainable future symposium

Nick Burger (Moderator)

Deputy Director, Energy Administration at DC Department of Energy and Environment

Nick Burger is the Deputy Director of the Energy Administration at the District of Columbia’s Department of Energy and Environment. He leads a team that is working to meet the District’s climate and energy goals through building energy efficiency, electrification, solar power, and clean transportation policies and programs. He was previously a Senior Economist at the RAND Corporation and the director of RAND’s Washington office.

He holds a PhD in economics, and his research has focused on energy, climate, and resilience issues. He was a Lead Author on the Fourth Assessment Report produced by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. An 18-year resident of the District, Dr. Burger has worked with Habitat for Humanity of DC for over ten years, helping them construct eight Passive homes for District residents. He served as an ANC Commissioner in ANC 6B for four years and has worked extensively on zoning issues and housing expansion. Dr. Burger also serves a board member for Habitat for Humanity DC & Northern Virginia.

Prudence Ferreira

Vice President of Sustainability + Resilience at Thornton Tomasetti

Prudence joined Thornton Tomasetti in 2023 and serves as the firm’s Passive House Practice Lead. Ms. Ferreira has been consulting on passive house projects for over a decade, primarily large-scale affordable housing (LIHTC) and non-residential projects. Prudence has experience and expertise coordinating large design teams and large projects via both Phius and PHI certification paths and has taught Phius Certified Consultant (CPHC®) training in North America since 2011. She is a founding member of the Phius Technical Committee and has worked on the development of passive house standards and protocols for a decade. 

Prudence has consulted on more than 50 passive house projects across 7 different climate zones, including the world’s largest Phius certified structure (Second and Delaware) and the first commercial passive house curtain wall tower with electrochromic glazing in North America (PHFA Headquarters). She has experience with unique passive house typologies such as historic masonry retrofit, medical facilities, labs, schools and senior housing. 

Teresa Hamm-Modley

Associate at VMDO

Prior to joining VMDO, Teresa Hamm-Modley spent a decade working on the construction of high-performance affordable housing buildings in Washington, DC. During this time, she worked on some of the first single and multi-family housing projects in DC to be certified by the Passive House Institute of the US (PHIUS). As a true “building scientist”, Teresa understands how buildings live and breathe, and the construction execution required to extend their longevity and performance. This skillset was instrumental in her work on the renovation of Truesdell Elementary School for DC Public Schools, and the renovation of Stead Park Recreation Center, set to become the first net-zero community center in DC. 

A Ward 3 resident, Teresa also holds an appointment on the National Capitol Region’s Net-Zero Energy Coalition Leadership team, where she exchanges research and knowledge on the pursuit of net-zero design across the DC Metro Area. 

Giuls Kunkel

Vice President Sustainable Investing at BGO

Giuliana (Giuls) Kunkel is the Vice President of Sustainable Investments at BGO, where she leads the firm’s U.S. sustainability efforts across its real estate investment portfolio. Prior to joining BGO, she spent three years at MetLife Investment Management, serving most recently as Head of Sustainability for Real Estate Investments. Before that, Giuls spent seven years at VEIC, where she led decarbonization initiatives in both Hawaii and Washington, DC. She is a LEED AP and Certified Energy Manager (CEM). Giuls also serves as a Vice Chair of the NCREIF Sustainability Committee, is on the LEED Steering Committee, and is a member of the CREW National Sustainability Council.

Oscar Macció,

Executive Vice President at Hamel Builders

Born, raised and educated in Argentina, Oscar moved to the Washington, DC area in 1996. He immediately launched a career characterized by hard work, consistently high performance and a steady rise from roofer to project manager to senior executive two decades later.

Oscar quickly progressed from the field to Project Manager with a real estate development consulting firm where he was involved in a wide range of projects, expanding the company’s footprint across the Mid-Atlantic region. In addition to three golf courses, Oscar led the execution of 723 units funded through the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) affordable housing program.

Oscar joined Hamel in 2007 and was promoted to Project Manager in 2008. During the next four years, he led the completion of 1,427 units worth $100 million. In 2012 he was promoted to Director of Business Development and also served as Hamel’s Director of Preconstruction Services.

Matt Fine

Principal, Architect, Certified Passive House Consultant at Peabody Fine Architecture

The nexus of affordable housing and high-performance building design is where Matt loves to work.

As Principal of the PFA, he leads a design and consulting team with perhaps the deepest experience of any firm in the DMV working in the realm of Passive House certified, high-performance, and Net-Zero projects.  His mission is simple.  Raise the standard of homes and housing by creating inspiring and healthful spaces.

Matt has a long track record with larger-scale housing projects and building typologies. Among them, Housing Up’s Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Commons was a landmark venture as the U.S.’s first multifamily retrofit project to be Passive House certified.  When the 2015 PHFA pilot initiative for Passive House as an incentive in their competitive QAP was first released, Matt served as the CPHC®  for the Washington Square Town Homes project, in Chambersburg, PA.  The two projects combine for a total of 90 affordable dwelling units, all of which adhere to Phius design and construction standards.

Dan Hines

Director of Construction – Washington, DC at Habitat DC-NOVA

Dan graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BS and MS in Electrical Engineering from Villanova University. After college, he worked as an engineer for Lockheed Martin. Then he left his engineering job and served 2 years as a Construction AmeriCorp. After his two years of AmeriCorps service, he worked as a Construction Supervisor for Wake County HFH in North Carolina.

Kelly Renaud

Director of Construction – Northern Virginia at Habitat DC-NOVA

Kelly Renaud is the Director of Construction for NOVA at Habitat for Humanity, leading the delivery of affordable, high-performance housing across Northern Virginia. Since 2010, she has helped to build and specialized in EarthCraft and ENERGY STAR® homes. Her work has earned multiple awards to the affiliate, including the 2021 Building Sustainability Award for Top High-Performance EarthCraft Home of the Year. As a licensed VA General Contractor with years of hands on experience, she brings a practical, field-based perspective, proving that sustainability is key to long-term housing affordability.

Michael Spotts

VP of Real Estate Development at Habitat DC-NOVA

Michael A. Spotts is the Vice President of Real Estate Development for Habitat for Humanity of Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. Prior to joining Habitat in 2022, he was the founder and President of Neighborhood Fundamentals, LLC and served as the Senior Visiting Research Fellow for the Urban Land Institute’s Terwilliger Center for Housing.

He has nearly 20 years of experience providing research and technical assistance to on-the-ground practitioners in both the public and private sectors, at every level of government, and in urban, suburban and rural areas.