Karen Baker has been named chief for the Office of Renewable Energy Programs for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
Baker will bring more than two decades of strategic planning, energy and environment policy and public affairs expertise to the role, according to a June 28 news release. Her hiring occurs as the nation works on its first two commercial-scale, offshore wind projects approved by the Biden administration in the past year.
“We’re very excited to add Ms. Baker to our team at such a pivotal time in offshore wind development,” BOEM Director Amanda Lefton said in the release. “I know she will bring her demonstrated commitment to excellence and extensive leadership experience to our renewable energy program as we work toward achieving the administration’s goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030.”
Baker previously worked as the regionals program director for the North Atlantic Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the release reported. She was honored by the White House in 2007 for helping develop a strategy that has been fundamental towards sustainability initiatives for the Army.
“I’m excited to have this opportunity to join the BOEM team,” Baker said in the release. “We will be focused on achieving the administration’s goal in a way that protects our environment, fosters economic growth and respects the concerns of tribes and impacted communities.”
Baker is committed to implementing energy solutions that can solve many problems simultaneously, according to the release.
“Renewable energy is a powerful tool in our nation’s portfolio that does just that – it reduces our carbon emissions, decreases our reliance on foreign sources of energy and has the potential to create new jobs for our economy,” Baker said in the release.
