Who Are the Rock Stars of Renewables?

Quick when you think of high-profile people in the respective renewable industries--or the renewable sector as a whole--who comes to mind?

For some, it may be someone who isn't even the renewable sector: Google executive Eric Schmidt, who has championed replacing fossil fuels with wind, solar and geothermal as well as hybrid and electric cars.

It's easy to rattle of names of the "rock stars" in other energy sectors: Rex Tillerson at Exxon, Jim Rogers at Duke Energy, Mike Morris at American Electric Power, oil and natural gas tycoon T. Boone Pickens, to name a few.

Energy Secretary Stephen Chu is a proponent of renewables and arguably has star power. But when it comes to the kings and queens of the renewable sector's corporate world, few people come to mind.

Maybe Jim Gordon, who has been fighting the good fight for nearly a decade to get the Cape Wind offshore project built? Or how about First Solar's CEO, Rob Gillette?

Perhaps it's a challenge because in the U.S., there are few, if any, multi-billion dollar renewable energy companies whose leaders regularly make headline news. 

Groups of all sizes need strong leaders. That's not to say that they have to always be in the spotlight. Indeed, some of the best leaders are the ones who conduct their work well without attracting media attention. But it seems that it would help the U.S. renewable energy sector if there were identifible leaders within the industry.