Our Team Adria Wilson Director of Zero-Carbon Innovation Policy, U.S. Policy and Advocacy

Adria leads the zero-carbon innovation and emerging policy team within the U.S. Policy and Advocacy program at Breakthrough Energy. In her role she guides development of strategies to accelerate breakthrough clean energy innovations to market and to enable global deployment of affordable clean technologies. Her team partners with business leaders, philanthropy, advocates, policymakers, and startups to champion policy solutions that reduce the cost of clean energy and drive the widespread global adoption of cutting-edge clean energy technologies.

Prior to joining Gates Ventures and Breakthrough Energy, Adria was program lead for Chain Reaction Innovations, Argonne National Laboratory’s lab-embedded entrepreneurial program, helping to develop the then-nascent fellowship program and to build strategic partnerships across the cleantech innovation ecosystem. She also served as a manager in the Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Office, overseeing R&D programs aimed at advancing the widespread adoption of hydrogen technologies and advancing departmental innovation and commercialization efforts. She began her career in energy and environmental policy in the Senate as an AAAS Congressional Fellow. Adria has a PhD in Chemistry from Duke University and a B.S. in Chemistry from Drexel University. She is based in Washington DC, where she lives with her wife and two dogs. Aside from getting into nature whenever possible, she aspires to get better at lifting heavy weights and to paint more often (not at the same time) and is on a lifelong search for classic Italian movies to enjoy.