Ryan L. Churchill
Ryan Churchill is currently President & Chief Operating Officer of Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc. (MLP), located in Kahului, Maui, where he is responsible for its day-to-day operations and its operating divisions of Kapalua Land Company, Ltd., Community Development and Asset Management. Prior to his appointment to his current position, Mr. Churchill served in various positions within MLP’s resort and land development operations. Before he joined MLP, Mr. Churchill worked with KPMG, LLP in its real estate consulting group in Honolulu and with Fieldstone Communities, a Southern California homebuilder.
He serves on various community organizations’ boards including the Maui Economic Development Board, Inc. and the Hawaii Nature Center, and is a member of the Hawaii Chapters of the Urban Land Institute and the Building Industry Association of America. Mr. Churchill has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Arizona in Tucson and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Irvine.
Warren Haruki
Warren H. Haruki is currently President & Chief Executive Officer of Grove Farm Company, Inc., a privately held company located in Lihu'e, Kaua'i, a position he has held since February 2005. Mr. Haruki also is the Chairman of the Board for Maui Land & Pineapple. He concluded a 26-year career with GTE Hawaiian Tel -- Verizon Hawai'i , serving as its President & Chief Executive Officer from 1991 until his retirement in October 2003. Mr. Haruki also serves as a Trustee for the Parker Ranch Foundation Trust, a land development and cattle ranch company headquartered on the Big Island of Hawai'i.
He serves on the Boards of Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Pacific Guardian Life Insurance Company, and First Hawaiian Bank. Mr. Haruki serves on various community and non-profit organization boards, including the Blood Bank of Hawai'i , which he chaired from 2002-2003. Mr. Haruki has a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Management from Purdue University, a Master’s of Business Administration from the University of Hawai'i, and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Jerry Caulder
Often referred to as the "father of agricultural biotechnology," Dr. Jerry Caulder is the executive chairman of Finistere Partners, LLC. Dr. Caulder is also currently Executive Chairman of Chlorogen, Inc., a venture backed therapeutic plant company based in St Louis; Athenix Corporation, a venture backed plant sciences company based in Research Triangle, North Carolina; and PhytaGro, Inc., a plant sciences company based in California and New Zealand. Dr. Caulder is also director of Catharos, Inc., an early stage Bay Area medical devices company.
Until June 2005, Dr. Caulder was Executive Chairman of Advanced Stent Technologies, Inc., a cardiac intervention medical devices company based in Pleasanton, California. He also serves on the board of advisors to both of Burrill & Co's agbio venture funds and was involved in the founding of many local, state and national biotech industry groups and initiatives. Dr. Caulder is internationally well recognized and is a frequent speaker at industry forums.
Kirk Belsby
Kirk Belsby serves as the Vice President for Endowment of the Kamehameha Schools. He has more than 10 years of management and senior management experience, with a proven track record in directing regions, departments, teams, and projects, and experience in developing comprehensive strategic plans.
Belsby was with Arthur Andersen, LLP from 1993 to 2002, ending his tenure there as Western United States Regional Managing Partner for real estate consulting. Prior to that, he was managing partner for Andersen's Pacific Southwest business from 1997 to 1998, and senior manager of real estate valuations, Pacific Southwest from 1993 to 1997. He had a direct role in the divestiture of Castle & Cooke from Dole Foods, including conducting a comprehensive valuation of all Castle & Cooke properties on Lana‘i.
He was vice-president of real estate valuations for Michael Frauenthal & Associates from 1988 to 1992; a project feasibility analyst and asset manager for American Diversified Capital Corp. from 1984 to 1987, and a stockbroker with Shearson Lehman from 1982 to 1983.
Kyle Datta
Kyle Datta is the general partner of Ulupono Initiative. He was recently the CEO of U.S. Biodiesel Group, a national biodiesel firm funded by private equity. Prior to this role, Mr. Datta was Managing Director of Research and Consulting at the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI). He is co-author of RMI's last two major books on energy, "Winning the Oil End Game" and "Small is Profitable." Mr. Datta was formerly a vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton and served as managing partner of the firm’s energy practice in Singapore, and as leader of the U.S. Utility practice. During his twelve years at Booz Allen Hamilton, Mr. Datta worked with Fortune 100 energy companies on strategy, operations, and environmental sustainability in the U.S., Europe, Japan, Asia and Latin America. Mr. Datta received a master’s degree in public and private management from the Yale School of Organization and Management and a master’s degree in environmental science in resource economics from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.
Paul Zorner, Ph.D.
Paul S. Zorner, Ph.D., joined Hawai‘i BioEnergy in 2008 as its President and Chief Executive Officer.
Paul most recently was the Chief Scientific Officer and Executive Director of Principle Energy Limited, a venture oriented to establish sugarcane conversion to ethanol and power in Mozambique. Prior to joining PEL, Paul held scientific development, operations and senior administrative positions with both start-up and Fortune 500 companies that include BASF, The Dow Chemical Company, Mycogen Corporation, Diversa Corporation, CellFor, and Telanetix.
Paul also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Kuehnle AgroSystems, a Hawaiian company specializing in the research and development of algae as a source of renewable fuels; on the Board of Principle Energy Limited (Mozambique); on the Board of Godavari Sugar Company (India), and on the Board of Directors for The KISS Institute for Practical Robotics, which aims to attract students to science through robotics. Paul also is involved with working groups of Environmental Entrepreneurs and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Paul is an Adjunct Professor of Horticulture and a member of the graduate faculty at North Carolina State University.
Paul received his undergraduate degree from Lewis and Clark College in Ecology and Secondary Education and his Ph.D. in Botany and Plant Pathology from Colorado State University, where he worked on the development of cropping systems for dry-land agriculture.
He is an inventor with over 30 issued US patents. He has been presented with several awards that include: 2006 Queensland Champion for service to the State of Queensland Australia (the first American citizen to be so honored), the 2001 San Diego Science Alliance Partner of the Year, and as a Fellow of the Weed Science Society of America.
Paul and his wife, Nancy, live in Honolulu and have four grown children.
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