Charging Up: A chat with Sandra Henry, president of…

Canary Media’s Charging Up column chronicles gender diversity in the climatetech sector. Part one is a short Q&A with an industry role model about their career path. Part two features updates on career transitions. Please send feedback and tips to [email protected]​canarymedia.​com. Canary thanks FischTank PR for its support of the column.

Sandra Henry: A mechanical engineer with a vision for sustainability that includes everyone

Sandra Henry is president of Slipstream, a nonprofit working on energy efficiency and renewable-energy program deployment. This interview has been edited and condensed for brevity.

How did you end up on this career path? 

I’m a mechanical engineer by training, and I’ve always worked in the energy and energy efficiency sector. I got my start in Minnesota working for Xcel Energy as an engineering intern, and I found I really enjoyed the technical parts of the job combined with the consumer side. I gravitated toward energy efficiency in buildings, and around 2008, I learned that ComEd in northern Illinois was about to kick off its first portfolio of energy efficiency programs and was looking for program managers. I got that position and decided to move to Chicago to help set up those programs. 

After some years, I was hired to be the chief sustainability officer for the city of Chicago, where I was happy to be able to pass a resolution that is still having an impact on the city today, requiring the city to run on 100% renewable energy by 2025. That position helped me broaden my view of resilience and sustainability because I had to think about all 2.5 million residents. It became clear to me that sometimes in the industry we are not always thinking about everyone. Since then, I’ve had the chance to work in the affordable housing space and see how important it is to decarbonize and electrify the buildings where our most vulnerable people live. It set me on this broader path of inclusivity when we talk about technologies and making changes to how we live, work and play in our buildings and neighborhoods. 

I am so excited about my new role at Slipstream helping to build a strategy around our mission, accelerating climate solutions for all and deploying that vision in the communities where we work.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Say yes to new opportunities. That could be an opportunity for growth; it could be an opportunity to take on a new role — but I think that it’s also important to be naturally curious. And another one is to remember that I have all the tools I need to be successful within myself. I think as women sometimes we don’t hear that enough.

What is a barrier you faced, and how did you overcome it? 

I was an engineer in this industry when there were not many women of color, and I feel like folks doubted my technical abilities or didn’t take my suggestions or input seriously, even though I had the same body of work that other colleagues had. And I’ve experienced that at different levels of my career, not just early on, but over time — it has been a continuing theme. The way I chose to respond was just to be persistent and not go away. And to build strong connections and relationships with colleagues who didn’t look like me but where I could have a chance to demonstrate my abilities and skill sets and knowledge and help them become advocates and supporters. I think that’s how I did it, or how I’m currently doing that, because it doesn’t stop.

What do you think are some interesting, overlooked career opportunities in climatetech? 

There is a big gap in our industry when it comes to people who will actually install these technologies. We talk a lot about heat pumps, for example, but not a lot of contractors and workforce members are familiar with heat pump technology and what it takes to install and maintain them. So there’s a huge opportunity for everyone that is wanting to get into this trade and who will be comfortable with the new technologies, both installing them and also having conversations with their customers about why this technology is superior to traditional fossil-fuel-burning equipment. 

What is your superpower?