Advance Climate Solutions brings senior experience from government, national NGOs, finance, engineering, and coalition leadership.
Our team haS
Advised on the evolution of Canada’s industrial carbon pricing and contracts-for-difference mechanisms
Engaged in the design and implementation of the Clean Technology and CCUS Investment Tax Credits
Helped embed carbon dioxide removal into Canada’s Greening Government Strategy
Delivered Canada’s first federal carbon removal procurement commitment
Designed and launched Canada’s first coordinated demand-side carbon removal coalition
We understand how federal systems work because we have operated within them.
Ed Whittingham
Principal & Founder
Ed Whittingham is a passionate, results-oriented climate and energy professional who specializes in navigating high-stakes, technologically complex files at the leading edge of climate mitigation. Over 25 years, he has worked collaboratively with companies, governments, universities, and NGOs in Canada and internationally – helping advance practical solutions and durable policy progress. He is the former CEO of the Pembina Institute, Canada’s widely respected energy and environment NGO, and was named one of Alberta’s 50 Most Influential People in 2016. Ed is also a widely published commentator and frequent speaker, with op-eds appearing across Canada and internationally, and he hosts Canada’s most popular climate-themed podcast, Energy vs Climate.
ed@advanceclimate.ca
linkedin.com/in/ed-whittingham
Dave Hochhalter
Senior Associate
Dave Hochhalter is a multidisciplinary climate and sustainability professional with a background in Biosystems Engineering and 15 years of experience spanning finance, engineering, product and technology development, and strategic consulting. He brings hands-on technical and commercial project development experience across nature-based carbon removal pathways, with a practical focus on what makes projects financeable, scalable, and verifiable. At Advance Climate Solutions, Dave works across the carbon removal value chain, bridging project development, buyer needs, and policy design. He also serves as Coordinator of the Advance Carbon Removal Coalition, where he led the coalition’s design and launch to help catalyze a credible domestic carbon removal market.
dave@advanceclimate.ca
linkedin.com/in/davidhochhalter
Carlos Pena
Senior Associate
Carlos Pena is a mission-driven climate policy leader with a proven record of advancing frontier climate solutions at the intersection of government decision-making, market development, and advocacy. He previously served as Senior Policy Advisor to the President of the Treasury Board of Canada, where he championed the integration of carbon dioxide removal into the Greening Government Strategy and helped launch Canada’s national carbon removal procurement program. Since joining ACS, he has supported demand-shaping and coalition efforts to scale carbon removal, authored foundational policy materials for the sector, and played a central role in building practical alignment across government, NGOs, funders, and industry to move complex files forward.
carlos@advanceclimate.ca
linkedin.com/in/carlospenavallecillo
The next phase of climate progress will not be driven by slogans or standalone technologies. It will be shaped by durable policy design, credible demand, and capital disciplined enough to scale what works.
If you are navigating a high-stakes climate file where policy, markets, and implementation must align, let’s talk.