Hopi Utilities Corporation Receives Senior Fellow to Support Energy Projects

New program pairs displaced senior energy experts with Tribal energy initiatives

January 15, 2026

Flagstaff, Arizona – Tribal communities across the United States need strategic energy development expertise.  With international climate and energy programs from the federal government being scaled back, 7Skyline and Native Sun Community Power Development recognized the opportunity to repurpose the skills and talents of senior energy experts domestically.  The two organizations invited philanthropies to invest in these experts to act as fellows for interested Tribal organizations.

 

“Tribes face significant barriers in executing energy projects.  This is due to limited access to expert support in technical planning, financing, project management, and stakeholder coordination—resources essential to turning Tribal energy goals into realities,” said Jennifer Rouda, CEO of 7Skyline. “Repurposing the skills of these energy experts to support growing Tribal energy programs solves a lot of these issues, and provides meaningful work for the fellows.”

 

The Hopi Utilities Corporation will host one of the first senior energy fellows, sponsored by The Nature Conservancy in Arizona.  The Hopi Utilities Corporation (HUC) is a tribally owned utility of the Hopi Tribe based in Flagstaff, Arizona.  The organization is focused on developing energy infrastructure and solutions for the Hopi Reservation, with a particular emphasis on renewable energy, grid resilience, and community economic development.  HUC provides specialized services to federal agencies through targeted grant programs, demonstrating a strategic approach to addressing energy, infrastructure, and environmental challenges specific to tribal lands.

HUC will host senior fellow Dr. Tegan Blaine.  By funding fellowship costs to place highly skilled energy and climate experts within Tribal organizations, The Nature Conservancy is accelerating Tribe-led and Tribe-owned infrastructure and development projects in support of our shared climate resilience goals.

“The Nature Conservancy supports Arizona tribes in their pursuit of energy sovereignty and climate resilience, said Nicole Hill, TNC Arizona’s Climate and Energy Program Director. “The Hopi Utility Corporation is investing in new energy infrastructure to sustain and support the needs of the tribe for generations to come.”

 

Dr. Blaine is trained as a climate scientist and has more than 25 years of experience building and climate, energy, and water projects and managing climate risk overseas, as well as engaging in policy development around climate, energy, and conflict.  She also serves as a part-time lecturer and doctoral advisor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

“Tribal leaders have expressed a clear need for specialized expertise in energy planning, development, energy project finance, and Tribal utility formation—areas in which these professionals have proven expertise and cultural sensitivity when working with sovereign nations,” said Marissa Sisk, energy manager for 7Skyline.