driving Research

Mary Ann Piette, interim Associate Lab Director for the Energy Technologies Area (ETA), got an early start at Berkeley Lab. As a UC Berkeley undergraduate, she interned at the Lab following a class she took with Art Rosenfeld, California’s godfather of energy efficiency. With this introduction to energy efficiency, Mary Ann launched her career at the Lab, where she has made significant contributions in the last 30 years. She was honored with the Director’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.

Reiner Kruecken has lived in many places – in Germany, Canada, and the U.S. east coast. In June 2022, he returned to Berkeley Lab where he was a postdoc 25 years ago, to become the division director for Physical Sciences’ Nuclear Science Division. He shares his thoughts about the importance of nuclear science and offers advice to postdocs at the Lab.

Jessica joined Berkeley Lab 15 years ago as a postdoc. In October, 2022, she was named interim director of the Energy Technologies Area’s Building Technology and Urban Systems Division (BTUS). Jessica recently returned from a year-long appointment with the Building Emissions Team at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. She shares some of her experiences there and what’s going on at BTUS.

Harshini Mukundan joined Berkeley Lab this summer with dual roles. She is a scientist with the Biosciences Area as well as a program manager in the Lab’s Office of National Homeland Security (ONHS) to help the Lab explore and take advantage of rapidly expanding national security opportunities.