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Olivia Kefauver (MBA ’25) has spent their career working in impactful positions in a variety of industries. Now, they are pursuing an MBA to drive impact at a larger scale and become a changemaker in the decarbonization space. Olivia has not shied from bridging clean energy connections in Colorado, having been selected as a Clean Energy Fellow for the Colorado Cleantech Industries Association and kickstarting the launch of Out in Climate’s Colorado chapter.

CESR recently reached out to Olivia to gain insight on their experience as a Hybrid MBA student, the Clean Energy Pathway, and their advice for individuals with an interest in clean energy.

CESR: What inspired you to pursue a career in clean energy?

Olivia Kefauver: After getting my B.A. in environmental policy I worked in a variety of regional nonprofits and B2C companies that operated in different capacities at the intersection of people and their environment, spanning agriculture and food & beverages to think tanks and the outdoor industry. I loved each of these roles because they allowed me to better understand the broader environmental, social, and political systems within which they operated and the levers with which people have made widespread change.

Soon after moving to Colorado, I began working at a Mountain West law firm with deep roots in domestic energy policy doing marketing and communications. I found myself working with colleagues who not only had an acute understanding of the history of energy policy in this country but were also helping major companies understand the evolving issues and, in some cases, contributing to the trajectory of our national energy transition. Seeing the scale of impact that was possible through clean energy development and policy regulation energized me to go back to school to better understand the current clean energy landscape and how I could contribute to moving levers at a larger scale to accelerate the clean energy transition.

"Learning from the experience and perspectives of my cohort - who have worked in commercial real estate, wealth management and finance, the armed forces, to being entrepreneurs to being new parents or making major career pivots - has been the most enriching part of my program so far, and has influenced how I think about issues within the clean energy space"

CESR: How has your background in environmental studies meshed with your business education at Leeds?

OK: I strongly believe it has enriched my experience and business education thus far at Leeds. I hope to some extent sharing my experience with my cohort has been additive to them as their diverse experiences have been to my own education and how I approach business and broader social questions.

I sought out Leeds for its academic strength and industry network in the climate and clean energy space and since beginning my program, I’ve found that these strengths have enhanced my education in the ways I had hoped. My coursework and extracurricular opportunities have given me a whole new suite of tools and frameworks to approach the same environmental issues that my undergraduate degree had approached from a different angle.

I will say, for all of Leeds’ strength in clean energy, learning from the experience and perspectives of my cohort - who have worked in commercial real estate, wealth management and finance, the armed forces, to being entrepreneurs to being new parents or making major career pivots - has been the most enriching part of my program so far, and has influenced how I think about issues within the clean energy space.

CESR: What has been the impact of CESR and the Clean Energy Pathway on your MBA experience?

OK: Pursuing my MBA degree through a Hybrid schedule has necessitated that I am acutely intentional with my time and energy as I, alongside my peers, balance full-time jobs, community and professional engagement, and our personal lives with the responsibilities of our MBA program.

CESR and the Clean Energy Pathway’s extensive programming and resources - from carbon accounting bootcamps to coursework like Commercializing Sustainable Energy Projects - have fast-tracked my ability to connect directly with the professionals and evolving issues within the clean energy sector in Colorado and beyond.

To be frank, pursuing these opportunities has also been a haul - adding the Pathway requirements on top of my existing commitments has challenged me, but I ultimately am grateful I’ve pursued this path for how it has added to my educational experience. This process has felt very much like “Type 2 fun” (not fun while you're doing it, but retrospectively rewarding) - a concept that I think many Coloradans embrace and often seek out.

CESR: Tell me about your experience with Out in Climate.

OK: In October 2023 Leeds had supported me to attend the Reaching Out MBA conference, a conference which organizes programming to educate and connect LGBTQ+ MBA students and alumni. It was the first time I had seen so many LGBTQ+ professionals in one place and importantly, the first time I had seen so many queer C-Suite and senior-level business leaders sharing their experiences. It was incredibly impactful for me, and when I returned home to Colorado, I was eager to find both LGBTQ+ peers and mentors in the climate sector in Colorado.

Not long after, the organization (OIC) popped up in my LinkedIn feed and I reached out to the leadership team to see if OIC had a presence in Colorado, and offered to help start one if they hadn’t. I was soon connected with one of OIC’s founding members, Johnny Daugherty, who helped build out the now-bustling New York City chapter under the same motivation I had - to cultivate the professional climate community he sought. He and I are currently planning out our 2025 events, which will touch on a wide range of exciting local climate initiatives with big reach. Today, the Colorado chapter joins several new OIC chapters across the United States planning clean energy treks, panels, and social events to gather and support LGBTQ+ climate professionals.

"Underrepresented groups have been revisioning what the world can be - regardless of current constraints - since the beginning of recorded history. I can’t think of an effort in more need of that drive and vision than the race to address the climate crisis and global clean energy transition."

CESR: What advice do you have for LGBTQ+ individuals and individuals of other underrepresented communities interested in pursuing clean energy?

OK: Acknowledging that I can only speak from my own experience - which by nature can’t and won’t be applicable to everyone’s identity or experience, what I’d say to folks in the LGBTQ+ community and other underrepresented communities pursuing clean energy as a career would be:

Find your people. Being connected to professional and community networks where you can see your identity and shared experience reflected can be foundational in the trajectory of your career and ability to see yourself in leadership positions. These networks will be both a springboard for opportunities as well as a salve for challenging points throughout your career.

While there are certainly identity- and experience-based MBA organizations, you may well find that your networks may not be formally established or geographically close and may take some time to find. “Your people” also includes committed allies - Leeds has a wealth of resources and highly qualified folks to help you succeed - be proactive in reaching out to them and articulating what you want to do and what support you need in order to get it done.

If what you want doesn’t exist, consider building it. With the caveat that underrepresented groups are often juggling a lot while pursuing graduate degrees, if you have the bandwidth and the professional network you want or need doesn’t yet exist in a way that’s accessible to you, make it happen.

Each time that I have steeled myself for what felt like it would be an inevitably awkward or cringey process of putting myself out there to organize events or build a network, I’ve been floored by the positive reception I was met with, and how - in the best way - completely unoriginal my desire for community and mentorship had been.

Your experience and skills are critical to the clean energy transition. Underrepresented groups have been revisioning what the world can be - regardless of current constraints - since the beginning of recorded history. I can’t think of an effort in more need of that drive and vision than the race to address the climate crisis and global clean energy transition. This is an effort so awesome and consequential that it necessitates the lived experience and perspective of many diverse communities in order to have a hope at being successful. I can’t think of any better group to vision and deliver a just, equitable, and lasting solution to our climate crisis.

CESR: Where do you see yourself after wrapping up your MBA?

Interested in learning more about the Clean Energy Pathway? Visit our page and to stay updated on upcoming events throughout the semester.