Energy Forward Alliance (EFA) Selects Sean V. O’Brien as Executive Director

​After an extensive search, the Tri-City Development Council (TRIDEC) and Energy Forward Alliance (EFA) Executive Committee selected Sean V. O’Brien as the Executive Director. O’Brien is the former Executive Director of the Congressional Western Caucus and previously served as the Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director for Congressman Dan Newhouse (WA-04). Most recently he served as the Eastern Washington Director for Washington Policy Center. 
 
“Sean is an engaging and innovative leader with a deep understanding of the energy arena and our challenges moving ahead with the clean energy transformation,” remarked Bob Schuetz, CEO, Energy Northwest. 
 
“Sean’s long-standing relationships with regional community leaders and officials make him a natural choice for this influential role to help the Tri-Cities be recognized as an energy leader,” commented Paula Linnen, EFA Executive Committee Member.
 
In August, it was announced that TRIDEC formed the Energy Forward Alliance (EFA) to achieve a clean energy vision to transform Mid-Columbia communities, lead the region’s clean energy future, and inspire those far and wide to participate in a sustainable future. EFA will focus on the transition to a reliable and resilient clean energy future in the Mid-Columbia region and will build on the Tri-Cities’ legacy of energy leadership, seeking to capitalize on the community’s passion and commitment toward a new energy future. 
 
“The expertise and leadership that Sean will bring to this new role will continue the Tri-Cities legacy of helping solve the nation’s most important and impactful challenges,” stated Karl Dye, CEO, TRIDEC. “The need now is for a sustainable future – to not only leave our children and grandchildren with a safe place to raise their own families, but to capture the jobs and economic benefits that embracing a clean energy future will bring to the region. We are excited for Sean to join our TRIDEC team and look forward to him building upon EFA’s mission.”
 
Led by TRIDEC, EFA includes foundational efforts from local businesses, universities, and community leaders and looks forward to working with a broad array of regional partners and collaborators to invent, innovate, and inspire the new energy future.
 
The vision of the Energy Forward Alliance is to deliver a model that inspires communities to participate in a sustainable clean energy future. EFA will accomplish this by utilizing the region’s clean energy leadership, skills, and knowledge to leverage existing technologies as well as development and deployment of new technologies.
 
More information on the Energy Forward Alliance can be found at www.energyFWD.org. 
 
About Sean V. O’Brien:
Sean V. O’Brien is the former Executive Director of the Congressional Western Caucus, a coalition of more than 80 Members of Congress whose mission is to represent the voices of rural communities from across the country in Washington, D.C. He previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director for Congressman Dan Newhouse (WA-04), where he served as the lead staffer in handling the Congressman’s energy, forestry, and natural resources portfolios.
 
He has specialized in issues including the Hanford nuclear site, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, hydropower, and nuclear energy. Most recently, he served as Eastern Washington Director for Washington Policy Center, a non-partisan free market think tank.
 
O’Brien is a Visiting Fellow with the Mountain States Policy Center. He recently completed the Civic Renewal Fellowship with the American Enterprise Institute where he focused on the rebuilding of civil discourse in institutions and local communities. He studied Political Science at Gonzaga University and is a graduate of AgForestry Leadership Class 43 and the Global Leaders Program at the Slade Gorton International Policy Center.