- DAVID STEWART, President & VP Engineering
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
David Stewart has 25 years of experience in research and development and in growing manufacturing operations. David has managed operations in multiple locations with 200 employees and P&L responsibility for $50M in revenue. He has driven down cost and improved quality using lean manufacturing techniques combined with best in class supply chain management. He has directed product development and marketing of products with industry leading performance and analyzed the marketplace trends, competitive strengths and product requirements to guide next generation of products.
For the past six years David has been working on the development of food processing waste as a biomass feedstock for biofuels. He has multiple patents pending. During that time he built a pilot scale plant on USDA premises to process 1,000 gallon batches of citrus waste and then built a demonstration scale plant at a Citrus Processor's premises which processed 10,000 gallon batches of citrus waste. He has also reduced enzymatic hydrolysis cost of citrus waste feedstock to $0.30 per ethanol gallon.
David founded Citrus Energy LLC to commercialize a new citrus waste to ethanol process and has established relationships with Citrus Processing partners and is in the process of raising funding to build the first commercial scale plant. Prior to his involvement in biofuels David was President of a small publicly listed high technology company and he currently resides in Florida with his wife Lesley and their six children.
- RON SILVER, Advisory Board
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
Ronald A. Silver was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1978, and continued his tenure in that body until 1992. While in the Florida House Silver served in major positions including Majority Whip (1984-1986) and Majority Leader (1986-1988). He also chaired various committees including the Select Committee on Juvenile Justice, Criminal Justice, Ethics and Elections and the Subcommittee of Appropriations on General Government. He was then elected to the Florida Senate in 1992 and subsequently re-elected, serving as the Majority (Democratic) leader for the 1994 session. During his term in the Senate he was designated by both the House and Senate as the Dean of the Legislature recognizing his standing as the longest serving member. His career as a lawmaker has yielded a vast and extensive knowledge of public policy issues and the legislative process, allowing him to be an advocate and servant for his diverse community. Throughout his tenure in the Senate, Mr. Silver has been known to tackle tough issues, transcend partisanship and build strong coalitions. As Senator, he served on a variety of committees, and was chairman of both the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services and Criminal Justice. His career in the Senate has earned praise from his colleagues, in both the legislature and other branches of government throughout the nation. In 1993 Mr. Silver was elected Chairman of the Southern Legislative Conference (17 Southeastern States) of the Council of State Governments. Most recently, a new prescription drug plan for Medicare-eligible senior citizens in the State of Florida has been named "Silver Saver" in his honor. Since his retirement from the Senate in 2002, Mr. Silver also functions as President of his own consulting firm (Ron Silver & Associates) and maintains his law practice in Miami Beach, Florida.
Mr. Silver is married with two children and three grandchildren.
- RONALD L. BOOK, Advisory Board
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
Ronald L. Book is President and CEO of Ronald L. Book, P.A., a law firm that specializes in government affairs. The firm is considered one of the premier lobbying firms in the state, with unparalleled experience in the appropriations process. Ron has drafted and successfully lobbied for passage of, literally, dozens of laws, including the creation of several tax incentive packages, tax exemptions, tort reform measures and economic development/sports related issues. The firm’s client list is a “who’s who” of business and industry, local governments and professional associations.
Ron is an active participant in numerous South Florida professional and civic associations and provides pro bono services to the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, Lauren's Kids Foundation, the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, and many others. Ronald L. Book, P.A. is located in Miami and Tallahassee, Florida.
Ron has a Juris Doctorate degree from Tulane University and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Florida International University. Additionally, he ran track for three years at the University of Florida.
Ron is the proud father of three children, Lauren, Samantha and Chase.
- MANNY KADRE, Advisory Board
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
Manuel Kadre is the Vice President and General Counsel of the de la Cruz Companies (Eagle Brands, Inc., Coca-Cola Puerto Rico Bottlers, Caribbean Bottlers Trinidad & Tobago, CCPRB (Jamaica) Ltd. and Coca-Cola St. Maarten). Recently Mr. Kadre assumed the role of President of CC1 Caribbean Importers LLC, the Companies' import company for the Caribbean. In addition, as the result of a merger involving the Companies' automotive division, Mr. Kadre also serves in an executive role with AutoNation, Inc., a publicly traded Fortune 500 company headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with over $20 billion in annual sales. Mr. Kadre plays a key leadership role in the Companies' acquisition and buyout activities, investment sourcing, resource allocation, asset oversight and Company administration. For over a decade, he has led the organization, structuring and financing of more than 100 acquisitions.
- AARON HOLLANDER, VP Marketing & Communications
SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS
Aaron Hollander is President and founder of Electronic Marketing Services, Inc., a full-service marketing and advertising agency with a special emphasis on direct marketing and Internet based marketing services. The goal of EMS is to enable its clients to acquire new customers, to retain and increase profits from current customers, to increase web traffic, and to support sales efforts.
Aaron has over ten years experience in the Direct Response and Electronic Retailing industries. Mr. Hollander was Media Director for a national advertising agency where he worked closely with various clients to implement and evaluate various advertising and marketing plans utilizing research, market analysis, planning, placement and assessment of campaigns both domestic and international. Mr. Hollander's complete knowledge of markets, local broadcast, national cable, network and syndicated media insured ROI optimization for budgets that exceeded 1.5 million dollars per week, grossing 350 million dollars a year. Aaron's expertise includes offline and online media placement, inbound and outbound telemarketing, direct mail, print media, data mining, list management, permission based email marketing, merchant services, retail and customer relationship management.
Aaron is a native South Floridian and currently resides in Weston, Florida with his wife Elayne and their three children.