2025-2027 AABE Greater Boston Executive Board
President - Joyce Sanchez Fernandez
Joyce Sanchez Fernandez serves as President of AABE Greater Boston and is a mission-driven leader with extensive experience in organizational change, transformation, and stakeholder engagement across the energy and utility sector. She is a Transformation Change Manager on National Grid’s IT&D Performance, Change, and Workforce Strategy team, where she leads global change initiatives that strengthen workforce capability and support enterprise transformation.
Joyce holds a Master of Urban Affairs from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Georgia Southern University. She is also a Prosci Certified Change Practitioner, SAFe Scrum Master and holds Leading SAFe credentials.
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Committed to advancing energy equity and expanding pathways for emerging leaders, Joyce brings a collaborative and community-centered approach to her role, championing programs that enhance energy literacy, representation, and opportunity across Greater Boston.
Vice President & LIPP Chair - Monique Screen-Berry
Monique Screen-Berry is a Senior Project Manager who leads a team to achieve community outreach plan objectives for Transmission Capital projects at EVERSOURCE Energy, a Fortune 500 company providing electricity, natural gas, and water service to approximately 4 million customer in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. She is also a Civil Servant and sits on her local Zoning Board in the City of Brockton. Over the course of her profession, Monique has earned the name “Community Engagement Extraordinaire” for her deep experience in developing the vision, culture, communication, and activation of engagement strategies.
She has an established reputation for honesty, resilience, integrity, credibility, and a commitment to principle-centered leadership. Monique also has a passion for learning, with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Sociology and a Master of Science in Communication Management (MSC) from Simmons University, a Graduate Certificate in Public Administration from Suffolk University Sawyer Business School, and she is currently working on her Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Sustainability & Environmental Compliance at Southern New Hampshire University.
Treasurer - Nishaila Porter
Nishaila is the former AABE Greater Boston Revolutionary Power Fellow and currently works for the Department of Environmental Protection as the Environmental Justice Coordinator for the Bureau of Water Resources. Nishaila has several years of experience in the environmental sector. Working at the Charles River Watershed Association she has led green infrastructure trainings, assisted with nature-based solutions projects, and engaged with communities in advocacy efforts. She also worked with Shalanda Baker, Deputy Director for Energy Justice, at the U.S. Department of Energy as the Revolutionary Power Fellow, assisting on projects related to the advancement of state-level transitions to equitable renewable energy. Dedicated to serving her community Nishaila also serves on the LEAH Project advisory board and the Unitarian Universalist Urban Ministry board of directors. Nishaila holds a Master's degree in the Environmental Science & Policy Program from Northeastern University where she was an MLK Fellow through the African American Institute and a 2022 Switzer Fellow through the Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation. She also holds a B.A. in Earth and Environmental Science from Wesleyan University. In her spare time, she enjoys volunteering, working out, the great outdoors, and traveling.
Scholarship Chair - Stephanie Chery-Winder
Stephanie is currently the Secondary Education Specialist & Strategic Initiatives Manager at National Grid. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree of Arts in Psychology and Foreign Languages (French & Spanish) from Assumption University and a Master’s Degree of Science in Organizational Psychology from the University of Hartford. Steph has spent most of her career working with young adults, guiding them into a workforce that is equitable, sustainable, and inclusive. In her spare time Steph teaches Adult ESL classes, mentors and volunteers for community organizations and follow her puppy Cassie around.
Secretary - Barry Reaves
Serving as ACT's first Vice President for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice & Workforce Development, Barry leads the organization's efforts to ensure that the elements of DEIJ are embedded as imperatives in ACT's mission, vision, values, and strategic plan. He progresses and champions a truly diverse and inclusive culture for ACT as an organization, with the ACT Board and across the ACT ecosystem, including its partner and member organizations. Barry is a seasoned Diversity Practitioner with more than 18 years of experience. In his development and oversight role with the Boston Planning and Development Agency, he was charged with leading the organization's racial, equity and diversity priorities while working to establish collaborative partnerships with multiple stakeholders.
Barry is a graduate of the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI) which is the premiere Department of Defense school in Diversity, Inclusion, Equal Opportunity and Equal Employment, focused on training, education, and research. He also previously managed the Discrimination Complaints Program for the United States Naval Air Systems Command. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving on Active Duty for 18 years.
Events & Membership Chair - Jean Charles
Jean Charles is a community engagement and project communications professional with experience supporting major infrastructure and energy initiatives across Massachusetts. He currently serves as a Senior Specialist for Project Engagement at National Grid, leading outreach and stakeholder engagement strategies that strengthen collaboration between municipalities, customers, and project teams.
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Previously, Jean worked as a Community Engagement Specialist at Howard Stein Hudson, where he partnered with state agencies and local governments to design inclusive public engagement processes for transportation and infrastructure projects. His work centered on transparency, equitable communication, and ensuring community voices informed key decisions. Jean’s earlier roles at Boston University and within nonprofit organizations strengthened his foundation in community support, education, and sustainability.
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He holds a Master’s in City Planning from Boston University and is completing a Master’s in Data Analytics at Southern New Hampshire University, combining data-informed insights with a strong commitment to community-centered planning.
Partnerships Chair - Nicole Bowden
Nicole Bowden is a dedicated energy professional with a strong focus on equity-centered engagement, regulatory strategy, and expanding access for historically underserved communities across Massachusetts. She currently serves as National Grid’s Manager of Energy Access, where she leading efforts to operationalize equity within large-scale infrastructure projects and regulatory processes, ensuring communities are informed, supported, and meaningfully involved.
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With more than a decade of experience in utility permitting, stakeholder engagement, and community partnership development, Nicole has worked across the New England energy landscape, including roles at Eversource and Columbia Gas of Massachusetts, building a reputation for collaboration, integrity, and innovative problem-solving. Her work spans complex siting processes, environmental justice integration, and the development of new frameworks to improve transparency and community trust.
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As a lifelong Greater Boston resident, she brings a deep understanding of the region’s diverse communities and a commitment to ensuring that energy policy, programs, and infrastructure truly serve the people they impact. She believes in meeting communities where they are, listening first, and leading with empathy. Outside of her professional work, Nicole is a devoted mother, and an avid traveler.
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Nicole is honored to serve on the AABE Greater Boston Executive Board and looks forward to strengthening partnerships that advance access, opportunity, and energy equity across the region
Sponsorship Chair - Pierre Charles Plaisir
Pierre Charles Plaisir is a technology and clean energy professional with a strong background in computer science, Building Automation Systems, and community-focused digital literacy education. He brings experience in teaching BAS, managing data systems, and speaking on clean energy opportunities for underserved and historically excluded communities.
As Sponsorship Chair for the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE), Pierre is committed to building strong partnerships that support workforce development, innovation, and equitable access to clean energy careers. He is deeply passionate about advancing an inclusive clean energy transition and applying technology to real-world challenges in smart buildings, energy efficiency, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and grid modernization.
Pierre thrives in mission-driven environments that value collaboration, sustainability, and community impact, and he is dedicated to helping AABE strengthen its relationships with sponsors who share its vision for a more equitable energy future.
Communications Chair - Sonali Anderson
Sonali Anderson is a creative climate strategist and founder of We Free Trees, a climate and innovation hub dedicated to strengthening the connection between climate and culture. She believes cultural relatability must be embedded in education, workforce, entrepreneurship, and innovation to drive long-term change within the climate space.
She has worked at Greentown Labs, North America’s largest incubator for climate tech companies via their BIPOC ACCEL Program, and helped nonprofits, for-profits, and municipalities develop DEI frameworks and action plans that advance climate and social equity goals. Collaborating with community organizations, entrepreneurs, and cross-sector leaders, she drives initiatives that strengthen regenerative local economies through climate innovation, workforce development, cultural relevance, and community ownership.
A Georgia native — a Southern Belle at heart — now based between Boston, Atlanta, and Uganda, Sonali is forging new paths that unite culture and climate through increasing awareness, driving direct investment, and creating long-term community impact for communities around the world in intentional ways.