CALSTART Names New California Strategy Chief, Promotes Bus Initiative Lead

CALSTART, the Pasadena-headquartered clean-transportation nonprofit, announced that Alycia Gilde will join the organization as Executive Vice President, California and Regional Market Acceleration, and that Jared Schnader has been promoted to Executive Vice President, Initiatives.

Both appointments take effect June 15, according to a press release issued June 9 from CALSTART’s headquarters at 48 S. Chester Ave.

The organization said the moves are intended “to accelerate CALSTART’s next phase of market impact, ensuring agility in a rapidly evolving commercial and policy landscape.” The appointments are the first executive expansion announced since CEO Michael Berube took the helm in November 2025, succeeding longtime CEO John Boesel, according to CALSTART’s prior announcement. CALSTART administers more than $1 billion in vehicle incentive and technical-assistance programs for the State of California and works with more than 210 member companies.

Gilde, who previously held senior leadership roles at CALSTART before leaving the organization, returns after federal and county service. According to her CALSTART staff page, she most recently served as Chief Strategy Officer for Climate Action Partnerships at the Los Angeles County Internal Services Department, after roles as Senior Director for Transportation at the White House Domestic Climate Policy Office and as National Manager for Zero-Emission Vehicle Partnerships and Engagement at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office.

In her new role, Gilde will lead California strategy and oversee CALSTART’s regional offices on the West Coast, in the Midwest and in the Northeast, the release said, while driving growth in emerging markets such as the Southeast and Texas. The release said Gilde brings more than 20 years of experience in climate change and clean transportation and has advanced the nation’s largest emissions reduction programs.

“Alycia is an inspired hire,” Berube said in the release. “She brings deep cross-functional expertise, having shaped clean transportation strategy at the White House and U.S. Department of Energy after serving in multiple senior leadership roles at CALSTART. As a key thought partner, she will help identify and scale the most-successful strategies and programs to accelerate clean technology adoption in states.”

Schnader has been with CALSTART for nearly a decade and recently served as Vice President, Bus Initiative, according to the release. In his expanded role, he will lead five programmatic initiatives — Trucks and Off-Road Equipment, Buses, Clean Fuels and Infrastructure, Innovative Mobility, and Light-Duty Vehicles — and have significant operational and financial alignment responsibilities across them. He continues to host Transition to Zero, a transit-focused podcast designed for senior-level expert discussions.

“Jared has advanced our capabilities across a host of programs and provided a real strategic spark,” Berube said in the release. “What truly sets Jared apart is his proven ability to deepen and inspire our team of subject matter experts — the backbone of our organization.”

According to the release, the new executive structure is intended to bridge regional market acceleration with CALSTART’s cross-cutting initiatives.

CALSTART, founded in 1992, maintains offices in California, New York, Michigan, Colorado, Florida and Europe, according to prior Pasadena Now reporting.

The appointments take effect Monday.