Hydrogen Wisdom Council

Dave Austgen, Energy & Renewables Consultant & Entrepreneur
Innovation and new technology development and commercialization are Dave’s passion and have been the focus of his career for 30 years. He has worked in the energy and chemicals industries, in both the conventional petroleum-based sectors and the clean/renewable energy sectors.  Dave has worked at the lab bench and held senior management roles at large global energy and chemical companies as well as several technology startups. His personal mission is to contribute to the deployment of cleaner and cheaper energy, chemicals, and materials solutions with the aim of improving lives and protecting our beautiful earth.

Other roles included Vice President of Technology, Shell Hydrogen and Global Technology Manager – GameChanger Innovation.  In 2004, Dave oversaw the opening of the world’s first retail hydrogen fueling station, in Washington D.C, opened by the second President Bush.

Dave was an Adjunct Professor at the Jones Graduate School of Management, Rice University, from 1997 until 2004. He has served on numerous advisory committees and boards. He received a MBA and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering both from the University of Texas at Austin.

Russ Conser, Co-founder and CEO of Standard Soil – a regenerative agriculture startup.

– An emerging voice for the science, business and impact of regenerative agriculture
– 30 years at Shell Oil culminating in leadership of the GameChanger innovation program
– Deep and broad experience in emerging energy technology
– Deep expert in both theory and practice corporate innovation and venturing
– Long-held passion for all things energy
– New passion for the solar-powered biological system at the nexus of energy, water and food

In his final 3 years at Shell, Russ was leader of the Gamechanger program with a remit for the full Shell business. GameChanger is a Shell-created innovation program acting as an angel investor in highly novel energy technology ideas from anyone, anywhere at anytime. Scope included novel technologies for oil and gas industry (geophysical imaging, drilling systems, completion technologies, catalysis, …) and novel options for alternative and renewable energies (e.g. biofuels, hydrogen, wind, solar thermal, …)

Russ advised Shell Senior executives (e.g. CEO, CFO, Teasurer), business units on strategy and finance issues. Led a) development and delivery of Shell’s annual operating plan and annual performance lookbacks, b) development of novel methods for applying game and auction theory to offshore oil and gas lease bidding, c) application of real options decision making to upstream oil andgas investment decisions simultaneously accounting for commodity price and future technological uncertainty. Participated as team member in Shell Scenario development.