The Hon. John Tien is a distinguished external fellow at the Georgia Tech Strategic Energy Institute and the Georgia Tech Research Institute. He is also a distinguished professor of the practice in both the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs and the School of Cybersecurity and Privacy and a senior fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School. 

Before joining Georgia Tech, Tien was deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from 2021 to 2023. In that role, he was the DHS chief operating officer, overseeing a budget of $105 billion and facilities in all 50 U.S. states and all territories as well as more than 3,000 personnel stationed overseas in more than 75 countries. 

Alongside the secretary of Homeland Security, Deputy Secretary Tien led the policy development, operational oversight, and risk management of the department’s statutory mission areas and subordinate agencies, including cybersecurity and protection of America’s critical physical and cyber infrastructure; disaster preparedness and recovery; supply chain optimization, border security, and free and fair trade; air, pipeline, and rail security; maritime physical and cyber security; citizenship and immigration services; protection of senior officials and safeguarding the U.S. financial system; and counter-narcotics production and trafficking. 

In his broader policy administration role, Deputy Secretary Tien served as a member of the National Security Council’s Deputies Committee, the board of the National Counterterrorism Center, and the President’s Management Council. 

Upon his retirement from DHS in 2023, he was awarded two of DHS’ highest civilian awards: the DHS Distinguished Service Medal, and the United States Coast Guard Distinguished Public Service Medal. 

Tien previously served in the Obama administration as a National Security Council (NSC) senior director for Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Bush administration as an NSC director for Iraq, and the Clinton administration as a White House Fellow for the United States Trade Representative. 

From 2011 to 2021, he held various senior leadership positions at Citigroup as a managing director in their Citi Retail Services and Global Consumer Bank organizations. Before Citigroup, he was a U.S. Army officer, retiring at the rank of colonel. His Army career included commanding an 1,100-soldier armored task force in combat in Iraq, serving overseas for nearly a decade, and teaching political science at West Point. Col. Tien’s military awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Combat Action Badge, and Valorous Unit Award. 

Tien is now serving on the corporate board of directors for Union Pacific Railroad, on the Carter Presidential Center’s Board of Councilors, and as a founding board member of the Avalon Action Alliance, a nonprofit focused on nationally scaling proven healthcare programs to help heal veterans and first responders who struggle with depression, PTSD, and traumatic brain injury. He is also an executive partner and ambassador for the Master’s in Business for Veterans program at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. 

Tien holds a B.S. in civil engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point and an M.A. in philosophy, politics, and economics from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He lives with his wife Tracy in Atlanta and volunteers with and supports numerous local civic institutions including the High Museum of Art.

Miguel Granier serves as a distinguished external fellow of the Strategic Energy Institute, and is the managing director of Cox Cleantech Accelerator by gener8tor. He has nearly two decades of experience financing businesses from startup to growth stage. As the founder/managing director of Invested Development (ID) and the Impact Factoring Fund (IFF), and founding investment manager for First Light Ventures, he led investments in dozens of startups across nine countries and three continents. Miguel began his career in finance as a loan officer for the global micro-finance organization ACCION and has worked for the insurance giant Fidelity National Financial in New York and the Delter Business Institute in Beijing, China. 

Miguel holds or has held board positions at more than a dozen start-ups, including Growing Energy Labs, Inc (acquired by Hanwha/Q-Cells), Simpa Networks (acquired by Engie), OnFarm (acquired by SWIIM Systems), and iHub (acquired by ccHub). He has also served on the boards of several non-profit organizations, including Greentown Labs, Village Capital, and Global Growers Network. 

Miguel has earned two Masters’ degrees from Georgia Tech in City and Regional Planning and Sustainable Energy and Environmental Management. In addition, he has been an adjunct faculty at the Monterrey Institute of International Studies, Northeastern University, and Georgia Tech. 

Dr. Sam Shelton is a nationally recognized expert in energy systems. He is the founding director of the Georgia Tech Strategic Energy Institute, an interdisciplinary technology development-based resource. The institute is actively engaged with industry to facilitate near-term, high-impact solutions to national and regional energy challenges. As a professor for 35 years, he developed in-class and web delivered undergraduate and graduate level energy technology courses. He is currently teaching 30,000 students enrolled in a MOOCs course, Energy 101, with a focus on energy supplies, independence, economics, and society’s demands. 

His primary research focus has been the development and commercialization of sustainable energy technology. He has received over $30 million in R&D funding for this work. Dr. Shelton holds eight patents in sustainable energy technologies and founded two companies developing, manufacturing and marketing energy-efficient products. Starting in the 1980s, he was among the pioneers developing commercial solar energy technologies and the assessment of offshore wind farms. His favorite hobby is flying experimental airplanes

Richard Simmons is currently a Principal Research Engineer and Fellow at Georgia Tech’s Strategic Energy Institute (SEI) where he directs cross-cutting energy projects with an emphasis on clean electric power, vehicle efficiency and alternative fuels. Simmons is also director of the Energy Policy and Innovation Center (EPICenter) whose objective is to perform research and outreach in energy policy and innovation with a distinctively regional perspective. He is also a part-time instructor in Georgia Tech’s Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, with a specialization in design, mechatronics and thermal systems. 

Simmons received his BS from Georgia Tech, and MS and Ph.D. from Purdue, all in Mechanical Engineering. He is a licensed professional engineer (PE) with more than 20 years of RD&D experience in automotive, advanced materials, and alternative energy and fuels. 

From 2009 to 2012, he served a prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science S&T (Science and Technology) Policy Fellowship at the U.S. Department of State, providing technical analysis on international policy issues related to renewable energy. He has recently authored numerous publications including an open-access eBook entitled “Understanding the Global Energy Crisis” (Purdue Press, 2014), several book chapters and journal articles related to advanced energy technologies, transportation energy technology, and future energy policy strategies.

As Director of Activities for three of Tech's Interdisciplinary Research Institutes: the Strategic Energy Institute, the Renewable Bioproducts Institute, and the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems, I'll help bring together researchers from different disciplines to address topics of strategic importance. Each interdisciplinary research group mobilizes faculty to address the needs of external stakeholders (federal, state, and local entities, corporations, foundations, and communities) by fostering an Institute-wide innovation ecosystem around a specific focus.

Richard Gruber leads the clean tech commercialization efforts at Georgia Tech. Gruber works closely with Georgia Tech researchers helping them convert their ground-breaking research into impactful companies. His role includes cultivating relationships with constituents of the broader Atlanta area, officials in the Georgia department of economic development, the national community of business leaders, angel investors, attorneys, and venture capitalists.

In close coordination with the director of Venture Lab and the broader activities of the Office of Commercialization, led by Raghupathy Sivakumar, Gruber identifies and grows commercialization of technology innovation in key areas of business strategy, fundraising, team development, and assist with startup efforts. 

Throughout his career, Gruber has been focused on the development of energy, including infrastructure, markets, policy, stakeholder processes, structured transactions, joint ventures, energy system planning and operations, and startups. Investors in Gruber’s startups include two-time investor Ted Turner through Turner Renewable Energy.

Since 2007, he has been dedicated to clean energy power plant and technology development. As the vice president of project development at First Solar, Richard spearheaded the company’s initial buildout of a multi-gigawatt solar project platform, making First Solar one of the largest solar developers in North America.

In 2017, Gruber co-founded and served as the chief commercial officer for Merit Sustainable Infrastructure (Merit SI). Merit SI develops solar microgrids for infrastructure clients and utility scale renewable projects, and, through its subsidiary Merit Controls, develops advanced power system controls for solar, battery storage, and solar-hydrogen hybrid plants.

In his role at Georgia Tech, Gruber supports commercialization efforts across the entire energy and sustainability innovation space, from energy sources to energy carriers to consumers, and the necessary supporting supply chain and software innovations required to deliver cleaner, more affordable, and reliable, central, and distributed energy solutions. Georgia Tech researchers are encouraged to reach out to Richard Gruber with questions or ideas.

Previously an “Executive in Residence” at Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center, Gruber lives in Atlanta with his wife of 37 years. They have two daughters also in Atlanta, one a recent ISyE graduate of Georgia Tech, and one working with Delta.