Kristen N. Taddonio

Kristen N. Taddonio is the Director of Climate Control at IGSD. She is a member of SAE (formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers), where she serves as a liaison to the Interior Climate Control committee, which develops industry standards for automotive air conditioning systems, refrigerants, as well as fuel economy, and greenhouse gas standards related to vehicle climate control systems. 

In 2004 Kristen started working at US EPA on mobile air conditioners (MACs) and other topics with Dr. Stephen O. Andersen. She co-chaired the Mobile Air Conditioning Climate Protection Partnership (MACCPP), where she spearheaded the removal of US state bans on flammable refrigerants in MACs and managed industry/government partnerships on MAC energy efficiency and leak tightness. For her work, Kristen was awarded the “Government Partner of the Year” award from the Mobile Air Conditioning Society (MACS). Later at EPA, Taddonio managed the Energy Star appliance program and helped create the Energy Star Most Efficient and Emerging Technology Award program to accelerate the introduction and adoption of highly efficient appliances. In 2011, President Obama launched the Better Buildings Initiative to improve the efficiency of the nation’s buildings, and Taddonio was invited to join the Department of Energy team working to make the program a success. From 2011-2015, she served as the team lead for commercial building technology deployment in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Kristen has a bachelor’s degree in international relations and a master’s degree in international science & technology policy (summa cum laude) from the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs in Washington DC, along with associate’s degrees in scientific and technical communication and Spanish that she earned from her local community college while attending high school in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She also holds a grid-tied solar PV installer certificate from Solar Energy International in Paonia, Colorado; earned her Certified Climate Change Professional (CC-P) certificate from the Association of Climate Change Officers; and is working toward her Credentialed Cooperative Director certificate from the US-based National Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives.