One felt the thrill of a dramatic whitewater adventure as a teenager. Another saw a demonstration of a liquid damper in a college lecture. Others disassembled a nuclear aircraft carrier in the Navy, or grew up surrounded by a family of stone masons. And one survived not one but two opioid overdoses, rescued by Narcan. 

These are some of the defining moments and experiences that shaped this year’s ENR Newsmakers, chosen by the editors. Those moments inspired each of the industry change-makers to rethink their career trajectory, come up with clever new solutions or galvanize a team to accomplish great feats of design and construction. 

As varied as their backstories and accomplishments are, these 25 Newsmakers are united in their efforts to make the industry—and their communities—better places to live and work. Read their stories on the pages that follow and meet them in person at ENR’s Award of Excellence gala on April 13 at Pier 60 in New York City. Visit enr.com/aoe to register. 


 



Kevin Antonelli

 

Kevin Antonelli

Senior Director of Construction
Google
Mountain View, California

Click here to read more about Kevin Antonelli





Chad J. Basinger

 

Chad J. Basinger

Vice President Project Management
Swank Construction Co.
New Kensington, Pennsylvania

Click here to read more about Chad J. Basinger





Sean P. Clifton

 

Sean P. Clifton

Senior Principal
Magnusson Klemencic Associates
Seattle

Click here to read more about Sean P. Clifton





Matt Compher

 

Matt Compher

Vice President, Safety, Health, Environmental and Quality
Quanta Services
Houston

Click here to read more about Matt Compher





Rick Cotton

 

Rick Cotton

Executive Director
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
New York City

Click here to read more about Rick Cotton





Ron DeGregorio

 

Ron DeGregorio

CEO
Net Power LLC
Durham, N.C.

Click here to read more about Ron DeGregorio





Carlos Diaz

 

Carlos Diaz

Project Director
McCarthy Building Cos.
Phoenix

Click here to read more about Carlos Diaz





Brian Golden

 

Brian Golden

Former Director, Boston Planning and Development Agency and Partner, Keegan Werlin LLP
Boston

Click here to read more about Brian Golden





Thomas S. Gunning

 

Thomas S. Gunning

Executive Director
Building Trades Employers' Association Northeast (BTEA Northeast)
Boston

Click here to read more about Thomas S. Gunning





Andrew Hallett

 

Andrew Hallett

Senior Project Manager Infrastructure
Cianbro
Pittsfield, Maine

Click here to read more about Andrew Hallett





Ryan Hamrick

 

Ryan Hamrick

Division Manager
Superior Construction
Tampa, Florida

Click here to read more about Ryan Hamrick





Tom Hunter

 

Tom Hunter

CEO
Toronto Seniors Housing Corp.
Toronto, Ontario

Click here to read more about Tom Hunter





Jesse D. Jenkins

 

Jesse D. Jenkins

Assistant. Professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dept. and Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
Princeton University
Princeton, New Jersey

Click here to read more about Jesse D. Jenkins





Michael H. Jones

 

Michael H. Jones

Principal Engineer, Associate Vice President
HNTB
Los Angeles

Click here to read more about Michael H. Jones





Burcin Kaplanoglu

 

Burcin Kaplanoglu

Vice President, Oracle Industry Lab
Oracle Vertical Industries
Chicago

Click here to read more about Burcin Kaplanoglu





Rosemary J. Knight

 

Rosemary J. Knight

George L. Harrington Professor of Earth Sciences, Stanford Universiay; Senior Fellow, Woods Institute for the Environment
Stanford, California

Click here to read more about Rosemary J. Knight





Jerry Lea

 

Jerry Lea

Senior Advisor
Hines
Houston

Click here to read more about Jerry Lea





James Litwin

 

James Litwin

Vice President of Construction
Harbor Bay Ventures
Northbrook, Illinois

Click here to read more about James Litwin





Tony Mazzo

 

Tony Mazzo

President Urban Foundation/ Engineering LLC
New York City

Click here to read more about Tony Mazzo





Valerie McCain

 

Valerie McCain

Hanford WTP Project Director and Senior Vice President
Bechtel National Inc.
Richland, Washington

Click here to read more about Valerie McCain





Marty Parichand

 

Marty Parichand

Founder
Outdoor New England
Franklin, New Hampshire

Click here to read more about Marty Parichand





Sarah Cherry Rice

 

Sarah Cherry Rice

Founder and Executive Director
Digital Ready
Boston

Click here to read more about Sarah Cherry Rice





Mario Rodriguez

 

Mario Rodriguez

Executive Director
Indianapolis Airport Authority
Indianapolis

Click here to read more about Mario Rodriguez





Don Scott

 

Don Scott

Structural Engineer
Don Scott Consulting
University Place, Washington

Click here to read more about Don Scott





Wil V. Srubar III

 

Wil V. Srubar III

Co-founder and Chief Technology Advisor, Prometheus Materials Science Engineering, University of Colorado Boulder
Boulder, Colorado

Click here to read more about Wil V. Srubar III