About — I-Renew

Bringing Sustainability to The Corridor

Our mission is to make renewable and sustainable energy the primary source of energy in Iowa. I-Renew is located on the grounds of Prairiewoods Franciscan Spirituality Center in Hiawatha, IA. The Iowa Renewable Energy Association (I-Renew) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

Meet the Board of Directors.

Carrie Lane has been on the I-Renew board since January 2019. She grew up on a farm near Cascade, Iowa, then received her Bachelor’s degree at The University of Iowa. She is a teacher in Cedar Rapids and mom to two kids. Carrie loves the idea of making it easier for busy people and companies to make good environmental choices, which will benefit future generations. She believes renewable energy is one of the most effective solutions for a sustainable future.

Carrie represents I-Renew as a board member for Iowa Shares.

carrie@irenew.org

Michael joined the Board in June of 2023, and has been with I-Renew since the beginning of the year. Originally from Texas he moved to Iowa in 2014 to work at John Deere in Waterloo before eventually moving to the Cedar Rapids area. He has a B.S. from Texas A&M University – Commerce in Industrial Engineering, a discipline that emphasizes the improvement of the status quo. He also has a M.S. in Systems Engineering from George Washington University.

Michael hopes to support his local community in adopting renewable energy technologies where feasible, in an effort to reduce the impacts of climate change for all.

Tony Xiong

Tony Xiong joined the board in October of 2023.

Sonita Van Der Leeuw

Board Member

Sonita van der Leeuw has been on the I-Renew board since January of 2021. She is from Saint Paul Minnesota and recently graduated from Drake University with a degree in Environmental Sustainability and Resilience. Sonita believes in renewable energy being one of the solutions to our ongoing question on how to handle the future impacts of climate change. She also believes that renewable energy is a source that everyone deserves, she is a firm believer in fighting for the planet and all people that inhabit it, no habitat, plant, creature, or person should be left out.

Donna Suchy has been on the I-Renew board since January of 2022. She is from Tama County, an Iowa farm girl who comes from a family of farmers who have farmed in Iowa for over 150 years in a sustainable manner, windmill and all! With degrees in science, alternative and environmental engineering, including a master’s project centered around alternative energy for a village in Egypt and another on bioremediation and the environment, Donna has seen alternative energy projects succeed for over 30 years. She was part of a team that remediated the soil under an old refinery that is now part of the River Walk in Oklahoma City. Donna most recently worked for Kodak and Collins. Donna was one of the founding members of the Blooming Prairie in Iowa City. She helped organize the first solar energy day in Iowa City modeled after Earth Day, where a mock solar cooker was constructed on the mall. Donna believes that sustainable and renewable energy is critical to our future. She believes that we can do anything together and that today is the day to start. I-Renew is here to help you with any questions, or just to talk, and we would love to have you join us as a volunteer and member.

Michael Newton

Board Member

Michael D. Newton is a 5th-generation Iowan from Algona, Iowa. He holds a B.A. in English, and an M.A. in Non-Fiction Prose from the University of Iowa. He is a published and award-winning essayist and poet. His deep interest in--and profound commitment to--the environment, to sustainability, and to renewable energy is longstanding. A solar energy concept he developed won 1st Prize in MIT's Climate CoLab Urban Heat Island Contest.