Stephen MacDonald is the President and Chief Executive Officer of EfficiencyOne, the not-for-profit operator of Canada’s first electricity efficiency utility, Efficiency Nova Scotia. Under Steve’s leadership, EfficiencyOne continues its track record of meeting its energy savings targets under budget, with a focus on continuous improvement, innovation, and customer satisfaction.
Nova Scotia’s results and innovative model have been cited by the influential International Energy Agency, and by the Pan Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change. Steve has been recognized as one of Atlantic Canada’s Top 50 CEOs for 2019 and 2020 and is a recipient of Canada’s Clean50 award; both acknowledging his industry-leading efforts promoting energy efficiency and reducing C02 emissions.
Steve is a relentless champion for the development and growth of the energy efficiency industry in Nova Scotia, and the more than 2,500 people working in this field across the province. He is regularly asked to participate in national discussions on energy efficiency and climate policy. A Chartered Professional Accountant, prior to his appointment as President and Chief Executive Officer, Steve previously served as EfficiencyOne’s Chief Operating Officer and held senior leadership positions with a Nova Scotia Crown Corporation and Grant Thornton. Steve is a member and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for the YMCA of Greater Halifax/Dartmouth and chairs the Governance Committee. He is also a member of the Advisory Committee for The ReCover Initiative, a project to develop a deep energy retrofit solution that responds to the climate crisis at the speed and scale necessary to meet our greenhouse gas reduction targets. He has been a member of the Advisory Committee of the Canadian Business for Climate Policy and the Maritimes Energy Association Nominations and Elections Committee.
Sarah MacDonald is an accomplished Executive with international operational and corporate experience in the energy industry. Sarah spent almost 20 years with Emera and its subsidiaries. She has a proven track record of building, turning around and operating companies along with a history of increasing profitability and resolving difficult situations with multiple stakeholders.
Sarah, originally joined the Human Resources team at Nova Scotia Power. She then moved into Emera Human Resources but soon got involved in operations. She was CEO of Emera Utility Services before she took on the leadership of Grand Bahama Power. Her Caribbean responsibilities expanded to include Barbados Light and Power, Dominica Electricity Services and Lucelec – Utilities with 250,000 customers and 1100 employees. She and her team developed, received regulatory approval for and built Emera’s first solar installation. Sarah also led the 38-day restoration of the electricity system on Grand Bahama following the devastation of Hurricane Matthew. Following Emera’s acquisition of TECO in Florida, Sarah took on the role of the President of TECO Services Inc. Most recently she was COO of XOCEAN, an Irish company that uses uncrewed surface vessels to map the ocean floor.
Sarah’s volunteer work includes the Positive Coaching Alliance in Tampa and prior to her move south she was a member of Dalhousie’s Board of Governors and involved with the IWK Board and Centennial Committee.
Sarah Chiasson oversees the delivery of EfficiencyOne’s energy efficiency programs. Prior to her current role, Sarah has held various roles at EfficiencyOne. Before joining EfficiencyOne, Sarah worked in the areas of Equity Research and Strategic Planning.
Chuck Faulkner is a professional engineer who has specialized in energy efficiency for more than 30 years. His experience includes energy auditing of commercial/industrial/institutional buildings, retrofit project engineering, energy performance contracting, utility regulatory affairs, engineering consulting and developing/managing energy efficiency programs.
Chuck was the Director of EfficiencyOne’s Programs and Services department from 2010 until mid-2018 and is currently Director of Engineering & Planning. Since 2015, Chuck has also managed the company’s consulting subsidiary, EfficiencyOne Services, which has completed projects in other Canadian provinces and in the Caribbean region. Chuck holds a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Technical University of Nova Scotia (now Dalhousie University) and a Certificate in Applied Science from Acadia University.
Hugh is responsible for oversight of information management, analytics, business intelligence and research. His focus is on identifying energy savings opportunities through predictive analytics and energy modeling – for use in targeted marketing, service delivery and pilot development. Hugh has managed the organization’s research and analytical needs since 2012.
Prior to joining EfficiencyOne, Hugh held leadership positions in information and analytics across a variety of industries, specializing in developing and managing insights-driven infrastructure and teams to guide business strategy and tactics.
Hugh holds a Master of Science in Resource and Environmental Economics from the University of Georgia.
David Thomson is the Director, Human Resources and Infrastructure at EfficiencyOne, and started with the organization in 2012. David is responsible for oversight of, Human Resources Management, Information Technology, , Customer Information System, Continuous Improvement, Health, Safety and Environment, Privacy, and Security and Facilities.
David holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (honours) in Psychology and Administration from the University of Winnipeg and a Master of Industrial Relations degree from Queens’ University.
Prior to joining EfficiencyOne, David worked as Director of Human Resources with Irving Shipbuilding where he had responsibilities for human resources and labour relations for businesses around the maritime region. David previously served as a board member with the Apprenticeship Board of Nova Scotia and the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia.
Gina is currently the Director, Finance & Regulatory Affairs where she oversees the organizations financial operations and reporting; supply chain including procurement and contract management; and all regulatory matters with the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board. She joined EfficiencyOne in 2013 as the Director, Finance and expanded her role to include Regulatory Affairs in 2018. Prior to joining EfficiencyOne, Gina held senior management positions in the manufacturing, publishing, insurance and professional services sectors.
Gina is a Chartered Professional Accountant.