History and Background

Paul Kling co-founded kW River Hydroelectric in 2013 and continues as the Chief Executive Officer of the firm. Previously Mr. Kling has held leadership roles with Duke Energy and its predecessor organizations for over 30 years. His career focused primarily in the areas of Engineering and Project Management, with extensive experience in strategic, business, and organization development. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and a Masters in Business Administration from Xavier University. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Ohio and Its a certified Project Management Professional. He has taught Project Management as an adjunct professor at Xavier University and was a 9-year member of the Executive Advisory Board of Xavier University’s Willams College of Business – Department of Management & Entrepreneurship. Mr. Kling has contributed to the college level textbooks, ‘Contemporary Project Management’, Strategic Leadership of Portfolio and Project Management’, and ‘Achieving Success in Non-Profit Organizations’.

Mr. Fred E. Williams Jr. is the inventor of the Williams Cross-Flow Turbine and has been awarded three US Patents related to Hydrokinetic Technology. Mr. Williams holds a degree in Mathematics from Dillard University in New Orleans, LA, and a Masters in Communications Electronics from the United States Air Force. Fred is also a Sport Pilot and attended Undergraduate Pilot Training through the USAF

Mr. Collidge-Asad is a recognized leader in the renewable energy, environmental finance, and related industries. He has extensive leadership, investment, strategy, and governance experience with diverse private, public and multinational organizations in the U.S. and globally. Most recently, he has led teams delivering innovative project development, technology, and financing solutions to resolve complex challenges across energy, environment, the CRE industry, and ventures at the intersection of technology and real assets. Mr. Collidge-Asad’s prior experience as a Senior Officer with the World Bank Group includes leadership and core team roles for a multi-billion dollar portfolio of complex investments involving integrated infrastructure and property development, climate related investment funds, renewable energy and biodiversity programs, and microfinance. Additionally, Mr. Collidge-Asad has co-founded or played key roles for start-up and early stage entities that he helped develop into multi-million dollar organizations. He has completed a Harvard B-School Executive Management program, and holds a JD and MBA from the University of Maryland. He is multilingual: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and others.

Bio Coming Soon

Subramania I. Sritharan PhD, P.E. – Dean College of Science and Engineering, Central State University

Among his many other responsibilities as Dean, Dr. Sritharan has led the efforts to develop and test the Williams Cross-Flow Turbine at Central State University’s McLin International Center for Water Resource Management. His leadership oversaw the construction of test facilities in the University’s laboratory utilizing funding provided through a grant from the Electric Power Research Institute. Under his direction, laboratory testing that confirmed the performance and scalability of the design was conducted and published.

Vance V. VanDrake III – Intellectual Property Attorney – Ulmer & Berne, Cincinnati, Ohio

Mr. VanDrake brings a progressive and creative approach to the development of intellectual property and business strategy for emerging businesses and start-up companies. His clients are predominantly start-up firms and venture-backed companies. He helps develop comprehensive strategies in a broad range of technologies including software, medical devices, and mechanical and electrical innovations assisting clients with patent drafting and prosecution, trademark registration and clearance, and copyright and trade secret protection. His experience includes providing clients with patentability, validity, and infringement opinions, and serving various intellectual property litigation and regulatory (FDA) needs. Mr. VanDrake has worked in-house for a Fortune 500 company, has co-founded three start-up companies, and has helped two of his companies go public. Vance is the President of the Greater Cincinnati Venture Association, was appointed by the Mayor of Cincinnati to the Small Business Advisory Committee, and was recognized as one of Cincinnati’s “Top 40 under 40” by the Cincinnati Business Courier.