Michael T. Eckhart

Michael T. Eckhart has served as one of the independent directors since 2019. Mr. Eckhart has served as a Clinical Professor of Sustainable Finance at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy since 2020, and also as an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of International and Policy Affairs, teaching Environmental Finance since 2016. In 2019, Mr. Eckhart retired as Managing Director and Global Head of Environmental Finance from Citigroup, Inc., where he led Citigroup Inc.’s work in establishing the Green Bond Principles. Prior to joining Citigroup in 2011, Mr. Eckhart was the founding President of the American Council on Renewable Energy, a Washington DC-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that unites finance, policy and technology to accelerate the transition to a renewable energy economy. He previously led the SolarBank Initiative in Europe, India and South Africa, and worked in power generation and advanced technology with United Power Systems, Aretê Ventures, General Electric Company and Booz, Allen & Hamilton. Prior to that, he also served in the U.S. Navy Submarine Service. He has received several awards including Renewable Energy Man of the Year of India, the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship, and the International Solar Energy Society’s Global Policy Leadership Award. He is Vice Chairman of the Oyster Recovery Partnership in Maryland and a Director of the International Solar Energy Society headquartered in Frieberg Germany. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from Purdue University and a Master in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.