Equitable Origin names new CEO
Equitable Origin (EO), a leading platform for the certification of responsibly-sourced natural gas, said September 18 it had named Jason Switzer, a leader in Canadian climate innovation, as its new CEO, replacing Soledad Mills.
A graduate of MIT, Switzer brings to Equitable Origin decades of work in industrial decarbonisation and international development, including at Shell Canada, Cenovus Energy and the Pembina Institute.
“We must improve the benefit for people and the environment from each electron we produce, hydrocarbon-based or renewable,” Switzer said. “We have a remarkable team at EO, and an impressive roster of assessors, producers and supporters that is growing daily. I look forward to working with them to scale up the market for independently-certified responsible energy as a means for rewarding top-performing companies, strengthening indigenous peoples’ rights and combating climate change.”
Organisations Switzer has helped establish and grow include the Alberta Clean Technology Industry Alliance, the Canada Cleantech Alliance and the $100mn Clean Resource Innovation Network. Most recently, he led carbonNEXT to accelerate carbon capture startups at Foresight and Carbon Management Canada.
“Jason’s deep commitment to a just energy transition combined with his track record in forging pragmatic cross-sector partnerships to get results will be catalytic for the organization,” Equitable Origin chair Hannah Stutzman said. “As we start this new chapter, the board extends our appreciation to Soledad for the outstanding work she did to bring EO to this place of strength.”
Mills built Equitable Origin’s EO100 certification programme, and has been the organisation’s CEO since 2015. Among her accomplishments, Mills has championed EO’s Center for Strengthening Indigenous Rights (CEFO Indígena), securing key indigenous partners as well as supporters including the Mitsubishi Corporation Foundation for the Americas, and the Internet Society Foundation. She also established a joint certification partnership with methane emissions performance standard MiQ, helping both scale their impact.