NMCIC Board of Directors

Beth Beloff, CEO

Beth Beloff is founder and CEO of the New Mexico Climate Investment Center

It was her vision and essential collaboration with the team at the Coalition of Sustainable Communities NM (CSCNM) and CEO of Colorado Clean Energy Fund (CCEF) that guided the development of New Mexico’s first “green bank.”
Beth has been actively engaged in the sustainability field for more than 30 years. She has founded and directed some important organizations dedicated to implementing sustainable development. This includes having served as Founder and President of the non-profit think tank, BRIDGES to Sustainability, one of the early organizations focused on moving from sustainability strategy to practice; Founder and Director of the Institute for Corporate Environmental Management (ICEM) in the business school at the University of Houston; and Project Lead for the Global Commons project of the National Academy of Sciences and Houston Advanced Research Center, highlighting international work in the field of sustainable development.

From 2015 through 2018, Beth served as Chair of the Santa Fe Sustainability Commission (SSFC), tasked with development of a 25-year sustainability and carbon neutral plan for Santa Fe, adopted in 2018. She also served on Governor Lujan Grisham-elect’s Transition Team for the Environment, and she also served on Mayor Webber’s Advancing Sustainability Working Group. She served on the Santa Fe Climate Action Task Force and the Water Conservation Committee.

Following a principal strategy recommendation of the SSFC, in 2019 she established and became the Executive Director of the Coalition of Sustainable Communities New Mexico (CSCNM) and has always served in a pro bono capacity. Today she serves as its President in more of an external relations role. The Coalition’s purpose is to align local governments’ elected leaders in New Mexico around statewide legislative and regulatory advocacy of sustainability and climate-related policies as well as in the development of practical solutions to climate change, social equity and sustainability. The Coalition’s membership today represents 50% of the population of NM with its four member cities (Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Las Cruces, and Taos) and four counties (Santa Fe, Bernalillo, Los Alamos and Taos). It is considered a strong advocacy voice in the Legislature for policies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and equitable solutions that support lower income households reduce their energy burdens. CSCNM was instrumental in driving the Community Solar Act. It also was instrumental in developing and incubating the state’s first “green bank,” the NM Climate Investment Center (NMCIC). Beth was the first incorporating Chair of NMCIC in its formation as a 501(c)3 organization.

Other engagements include: leading the delegation to COP26 in Glasgow. She served on the Santa Fe Community Foundation board and was board chair from ’20-’22, and she is on the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival board (chair Education Committee). She also served on the following boards: Performance Santa Fe board and Foundation, where she chaired Governance and Education Committees and served on the Executive Committee, Santa Fe Green Chamber of Commerce, the Advisory Council of New Energy Economy. She was appointed by DOE to the Northern New Mexico Citizens Advisory Board regarding LANL nuclear and chemical waste cleanup activities. She was a delegate to the Rio+20 UN Conference in 2012, representing all US engineering societies, to the 2017 Bilateral Climate Summit of Mayors in Beijing representing Santa Fe, and to the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco representing Santa Fe. She was awarded the Community Solar Champion Award by Coalition for Community Solar Access after the Community Solar Act passed the NM Legislature, for her work developing the statute in NM. Beth’s publications include “Transforming Sustainability Strategy into Action,” Wiley-Interscience, 2005, Beloff principal editor/author.

Beth has a BA from University of California, Berkeley, a Master of Architecture degree from UCLA, and an MBA from the University of Houston with emphasis on strategic planning.

Anne Haines

President, CEO, and Principal Founder of DreamSpring

Anne Haines is the President/CEO and Founder of DreamSpring, a community development organization that provides financing and support to under-represented and undercapitalized entrepreneurs across 27 states. Since launching DreamSpring in Albuquerque in 1994, Haines has led the organization to become one of the highest- performing nonprofit microfinance organizations in the United States. She also serves as a member of the national Community Advisory Committee of U.S. Bank, the Microfinance Impact Collaborative of the Aspen Institute, and the Ambassadors of CTEK, an organization devoted to breaking down barriers to entrepreneurship worldwide. Previously, Haines served for six years on the Board of Directors of the Denver Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Haines has been recognized locally and nationally for her vision and impact and is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the 2023 PNM Award for Individual Excellence in Ethical Business Practice, in Honor of John Ackerman, from the New Mexico Ethics in Business Awards presented by CNM.

Carter Bundy

New Mexico Political and Legislative Director for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees

Carter Bundy has been the New Mexico Political and Legislative Director for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) International since 2002. In this capacity, Bundy has been an integral player in significant legislative wins, which includes passing a permanent Public Employee Bargaining Act in 2003, passing state minimum wage law for New Mexicans as lead lobbyist and expert in 2007, securing collective bargaining legislation for home-based child care providers, and achieving bipartisan support to pass “return to work” legislation for New Mexico’s governmental employees in 2024, to name just a few major accomplishments. A lawyer by training, Bundy was also the New Mexico Director of AFL-CIO Election Protection in 2008, and the director of America Coming Together’s New Mexico Voter Protection Program in 2004. Bundy recently served on the State of New Mexico’s Retirement Income Security Task Force and is a current board member of New Mexico Work and Save and serves on the America Votes Steering Committee.

Melia Heimbuck

President and CEO of Credit Union Association of New Mexico

Melia Heimbuck began leading the Credit Union Association of New Mexico as its President & CEO in May 2023. Before taking on this role, Melia led the Association’s legislative, political and regulatory advocacy efforts, assisted member credit unions with all aspects of compliance and risk management, directed education and training programs, and guided governance activities within the Association. Prior to her work with the New Mexico Association, she was the Principal of Risk Management Solutions and Strategic Advisor for CU Solutions Group (CUSG). Previously, Melia spent over 18 years supporting credit unions in Arizona, Colorado, and Wyoming through the Mountain West Credit Union Association (MWCUA). Heimbuck is a licensed attorney in the state of New Mexico.

Ward Hendon

Co-Founder and General Partner of Dangerous Ventures a New Mexico Based Climate Tech Venture Capital Fund

Ward Hendon is the Co-Founder and General Partner of Dangerous Ventures. Backed by the State Investment Council (SIC), Dangerous Ventures is a New Mexico-based climate technology investment fund dedicated to backing companies in our state to build a more resilient future for people and the planet. Prior to his work with Dangerous Ventures, Hendon was a founding team member at Axiom Law, a first-of-its-kind tech-enabled legal services firm that is today an industry-leading player in legal services worldwide. Previously, Hendon served on the Board of Directors of Sierra Nevada Journeys (SNJ), a Nevada-based nonprofit delivering innovative outdoor, science-based education programs for youth, and is currently on the Board of Mount Tamalpais College, a nonprofit organization providing liberal arts education to incarcerated students. Hendon is also a Lecturer at UCLA Anderson School of Business where he teaches entrepreneurship and impact investing from his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Zachary Chavez

Chief Revenue Officer at Somos Solar Inc.

Zachary Chavez is the Head of Finance and Development for Somos Solar, a local renewable energy solutions developer. Previously, Chavez worked as a Vice President with Virtua Partners, leading their internal opportunity zone initiative, and was a Capital Markets Trader at The Vanguard Group. Chavez has a decade of capital markets experience and previously held his FINRA series 7, 63, and 57 licenses. In his more recent work with Somos Solar Inc. and elsewhere, Chavez is able to leverage his experience in finance to drive the development of financial structures for smart city and renewable energy development projects. Zachary graduated from Northwestern University with a BA in Political Science.

Duane Duffy

Vice-President of the Mescalero Apache Tribe and CEO of Red Warrior Consulting, LLC

Duane Duffy is the Vice-President of the Mescalero Apache Tribe in South Central New Mexico, where he has been a community leader throughout his adult life. Through various roles with the Mescalero Apache Tribe, Duffy has led efforts with economic development, renewable energy planning and development, and diversifying tribal finances. He has successfully built and fostered relationships with the Governor’s office, New Mexico Legislators, the US Department of Energy, the DOE LPO, Bureau of Indian Affairs, US Department of Transportation, and the White House. Alongside his work for the Tribe, Mr. Duffy is CEO of Red Warrior Consulting, LLC, where he provides professional services to native-led organizations across multiple sectors, including business, politics, and healthcare. Previously, Mr. Duffy was Deputy Cabinet Secretary for the State of New Mexico’s Indian Affairs Department.

Steve Grey

Executive Committee Member of Four Corners Economic Development, and Founder/President of Grey LLC, a Navajo owned consulting firm

Originally from Kayenta, Navajo Nation, Arizona, Steve Grey is an Executive Committee Member of Four Corners Economic Development, and Founder and President of Grey LLC, a Navajo owned consulting firm focused on energy, telecommunications, engineering and education based out of Farmington, New Mexico where he currently resides. Previously, Grey served as Governmental and External Affairs Director of the Navajo Transitional Energy Company and was Program Manager within the Science and Technology Directorate at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, a National Laboratory of the Department of Energy where, among other things, he participated in analysis of business development opportunities in energy projects across tribal lands. Grey also served on the Secretary of Energy staff for three years as Department of Energy Director for Indian Affairs in Washington, DC.

Kelly O’Donnell

Chief Research and Policy Officer at Homewise

Kelly O’Donnell has over 25 years of experience in New Mexico public finance, having served as a state government official, a UNM research professor, Chief of Research and Policy for a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and as a current member of the New Mexico State Investment Council. Founder and President of O’Donnell Economics and Strategy LLC, O’Donnell has also provided economic consulting services to governments, institutions and non-profits in New Mexico and nationwide for the last 15 years. Alongside public finance, O’Donnell’s career has been defined by a commitment to sustainable economic development, having served as Deputy Cabinet Secretary for the State Economic Development Department and Research Director for New Mexico Voices for Children and as Superintendent of the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing department, where she was instrumental in the adoption of the state’s first green building codes. Today she carries that commitment forward as Chief Research and Policy Officer for Homewise. O’Donnell holds a doctorate in economics from UNM.

Horacio Trujiillo

Applied Political Economist and Strategic Advisor

Horacio Trujillo, from Taos, is an international political economist with more than two decades of advising senior leadership of philanthropies, businesses, governments and social purpose organizations around the world on strategy, long-range planning and learning practices. He has previously been a senior executive in the philanthropic sector, on the policy staff of members of Congress representing New Mexico, and a university professor with published research on various issues of global public policy, including climate change. Of particular value to his service to the CIC, Trujillo has advised various environmental research and policy organizations, including C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, RMI (formerly the Rocky Mountain Institute) and the Environmental Defense Fund, and worked on environmental efforts with yet other organizations, including the World Bank and the RAND Corporation. Among his support to efforts here at home in New Mexico, Trujillo’s service has ranged from being a co-founder of the Rocky Mountain Youth Corps to more recently being an advisor to New Mexico Counts 2020, the Thornburg Foundation’s good government efforts, and the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission in its co-leadership of the Water Policy and Infrastructure Task Force and implementation of the Water Security Planning Act.