National Utilities Diversity Council (NUDC) Hosts 11th Annual Summit in Charlotte, NC

CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Utilities Diversity Council (NUDC) convened its 11^th-annual conference, The Queen City Quorum: The NUDC Summit on Supplier, Workforce, and Governance Diversity, on Thursday, May 30, 2024.  Hosted by Duke Energy at its headquarters in uptown Charlotte, the conference brought together 100 leaders from across the utilities sector – regulators, industry executives, suppliers, academics, and association leaders – to have meaningful discussions that manifest into actionable outcomes to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging across the utilities and communications industries.

The theme of the conference was Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging: Why Now So Important? and it included six topics for in-depth "solutioneering" selected from 87 topics proposed by the Queen City Quorum Honorary and Advisory Committees. Among the topics were the still-present glass ceiling for women in the utilities industry, the role of the regulatory sector in advancing equity, and how to address recent challenges to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives. 

The Honorable Charlotte Mitchell, North Carolina Utilities Commission Chair, welcomed attendees, and the event's keynote speakers included The Honorable Maida Coleman, Commissioner of the Missouri Public Service Commission and Chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners' Select Committee on Regulatory and Industry Diversity, and Lynn Good, Chair and CEO of Duke Energy. Good shared this insight: "Delivering reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy to our customers and communities is a complex undertaking. To be successful, we need a diverse and inclusive culture to strengthen ties across communities and create opportunities to innovate in a way that reflects all stakeholders and supports economic vitality."

NUDC Co-Chair Harry Sideris, President of Duke Energy, was host of the Queen City Quorum: "It's vital that we keep advancing diversity, equity and inclusion across the utility sector," said Sideris. "Bringing together regulators, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and academics from around the country to discuss practical solutions is one of many important steps to move this business imperative forward."  

About NUDC
The National Utilities Diversity Council educates, develops best practices and guides efforts that will promote diversity in the utilities and communications industries in the areas of governance, employment, procurement, language access/customer service, and philanthropy.

The NUDC is governed by a 21-member Board of Directors, chaired by Harry Sideris, President, Duke Energy and The Honorable Davante Lewis, Commissioner, Louisiana Public Service Commission.  It is made up of corporate leaders, regulators and regulatory staff members, suppliers, and non-profit professionals committed to encouraging diversity in utilities, telecommunications, and cable industries. Since its inception, NUDC has provided resources through webinars, toolkits, conferences and research.  The majority of NUDC's programs are made available at no charge to the user.

For more information, please contact Laurie Dowling – [email protected] 323-982-7223

SOURCE National Utilities Diversity Council