Feb 1, 2010

Dan Asher joins the staff and residents of EnergyXchange in 2010.

Category: Home News

Posted by: dasher

After four years of blood, sweat, smiles and tears, we say fare thee well and thank you to Heather Dawes for all of her hard work to keep EnergyXchange a truckin'.

In the fall of 2009, Heather and the EnergyXchange board began the search for a new director to fill Heather's shoes.  Many qualified candidates jumped on the opportunity to take the healm of this outstanding organization.  As we recall, over 40 applications were reviewed, 3 candidates were interviewed by the board and in January of 2010, our next leader was selected by unanimous decision.

Meet Dan Asher, our new Executive Director.  Don't let his youngish looks fool you (see our photo gallery); this guy has been "around the block" and around the world when it comes to energy and he's not one to sit around on his laurels either (or his azalea...see our Project Branch Out section to get the joke and reference to plants).  Part visionary, part pioneer, part businessman... both EnergyXchange and the community are very pleased to have him on board.

To describe his youth briefly, think honors student meets a two sport state champion athlete with a passion for nature and the outdoors.

Dan graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration.  His focus of study was geared toward green business with classes in the areas of Energy and the Environment, Sustainable Consumerism, Transportation and Environmental Costs, etc.

While in college, Dan interned at a global top 8 public relations firm in New York City.  For fun, he moonlighted as an althletic model, representing sponsors of the Atlanta Summer Olympics in international television ad campaigns.

Upon graduation, he set out west to pursue his dreams of a career in the clean energy industry.  Alas, he was ahead of the current renewable energy wave.  So he ultimately landed in Seattle to work as a non-profit environmental educator and fund raiser.

In early 2000, he caught wind of newly emerging clean energy programs in development on the east coast.  Dan got his foot in the door of the industry as a renewable energy system installer and marketer for a residential installation company.  Soon after, he was courted with job offers from numerous solar module manufacturers, commercial installers and solar integration firms.

In his mid-twenties, he hit the ground running as the Marketing Officer at World Water Corporation (now World Water and Power).  There he promoted large-scale solar powered water pumping and industrial process systems to agriculture, municipal, utility and business clientele, regionally, nationally and internationally.  Dan was instrumental in bringing the publically traded company out of debt through public speaking engagements, prospecting and client relations, grant fund procurement, product testing and quality control and business development.  He proved himself an excellent partnership builder with government, academic and utility bodies as well.

In 2003, Dan relocated to Western North Carolina for its natural beauty, great people and overall excellent quality of life.  He joined with a young start-up company by the name of Home Energy Partners.  From building science training at Advanced Energy in Raleigh to energy efficiency field work, Energy Star and low income home energy construction program inspection and certification, to marketing, bidding and sales...Dan's contributions to the company's dynamic and stellar team, helped propel energy efficiency into the popularity now seen in Western NC.

Since then, Dan has enjoyed his part in making a success of sustainability events such as Global Exchange's "Green Festivals" and The Solar Living Institute's "Sol Fest".  Along those lines, Dan chipped in on the initial ground work to make the City of Asheville's Bele Chere music festival, boasting over 350,000 visitors, a green event.  He's consulted to Fortune 500 marketing, PR, media and investor relations firms around the country.  Lastly, in recent years, Dan has also administered and developed a utility-owned Energy Star construction program.

Dan has served on the boards of the WNC Green Building Council and the WNC Disc Golf Association.  He has further volunteered for numerous committees, non-profits and academic institutions that focus on energy and environment.

He has obtained the Home Energy Rater System (HERS) certification and is currently sponsored by the NC Energy Office to earn the Professional Energy Management (PEM) diploma from NC State University.

In his free time, Dan mostly enjoys activities that involve sports and the outdoors, such as disc golf, cycling, tennis, swimming, hiking, camping and gardening as well as educational and creative pursuits.

While not exactly an artist gone pro, Dan does share the creative gene with the resident artists at EnergyXchange.  He's taken the thermal infrared imaging technology used in his energy inspection and reporting work and has crossed it with 'digital painting'.  He calls the original form, "Thermal Expressionism", appropriately where energy and education meets art and creativity.  Dan says, "Its like looking at life through the eyes of a dragon."

In "Catch the Sun" by Dan Asher, the original photo is a thermal image of the Sun in the sky. The colors represent a scale of temperature.  The hot to cold scale is white, then red, orange, yellow, green, blue and black in this image.  The Sun registers hot white whereas the cool black and blues reflect an opening in the air to the absolute zero temperatures of cosmic space. The midrange colors of green, yellow and orange represent atmospheric gases and temperatures.  In the foreground originally were pine trees, absorbing the heat of the sun, showing red in the body of the trees. The pixels in the original photo have been transformed here to add movement and symbolism.  The dark chasm of space takes on the form of a human face just about to consume the sun.  Look for other hidden images in the work.

Visit the "Director's Corner" photo gallery to view more of Dan's images and artwork:

Photos

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