By Ed Karvoski Jr., Contributing Writer
Hudson – Mark Durrenberger of Hudson first became interested in solar energy while in high school.
“When Jimmy Carter was president, he put solar panels on the White House and I thought getting power from the sun was really cool,” he explained.
Now, Durrenberger is the president of New England Clean Energy, a Hudson-based company that installs solar electricity and hot water systems for homes and businesses.
He graduated from the University of Lowell (now UMass Lowell) with a master's degree in energy engineering and a bachelor's degree in nuclear energy. His varied career path began with nuclear engineering. Then he shifted to information technology at a small firm before progressing to a large corporation where he managed programs. Later, he became a project management consultant.
Durrenberger's career path took a U-turn in 2006.
“I got tired of not making a difference in the project management world,” he said. “I wondered what I's do next. I was really interested in energy back when I was in high school and college. Then the light dawned on me that I should open a solar business. It was a roundabout way back to where I started.”
In 2007, he was trained by former Vice President Al Gore in Nashville, Tenn., to deliver the climate change presentation “An Inconvenient Truth.” The Hudson Climate Action Network arranged for him to present the program twice at the Town Hall. He ultimately delivered the program at about 30 venues to over 1,400 people.
Named the small business leader of 2012 by the Worcester Business Journal, Durrenberger shares the same interests and career experience as his company's co-workers.
“All of us are in this business because we'se environmentally conscious people,” he said. “We'se all worked for big corporations and we don's want to go back to that environment. We all want to be connected with our customers and to the end result.”
While working as a consultant, Durrenberger would instruct his corporate clients how to manage projects and saw little improvement when returning for follow-up consultations. Conversely, he sees ongoing results with his current business.
“We'se installed over 300 solar systems all over eastern Massachusetts,” he said. “They'se all still there, and still making electricity and offsetting carbon. We'se making a lasting difference.”
Durrenberger regularly represents his company with displays at annual events such as the Hudson Community Fest and Marlborough Earth Day Fair where he spreads his environmentally friendly message. Equally important to him is the chance to mingle within his community.
“Community is really important to me,” he said. “I grew up in a suburb of Hartford that didn's have the level of culture and diversity in the community that my kids have experienced here in Hudson.”
His children – Marcelle, Russell, and Curtis – grew up performing in shows produced by the Hudson-based River's Edge Arts Alliance (REAA). After observing their enjoyment of the local arts, Durrenberger made his stage debut in 2008. He has continued performing in shows with the REAA each year since and now serves as a board member of the nonprofit organization.
“There's a lot of talent in the community and the REAA does a really good job of getting that out,” he said. “The arts is a really important part of keeping people in the community connected. Two people who are diametrically opposed politically can work together onstage in the same production.”
As Durrenberger's interest in the local arts scene has grown, so has his passion for solar energy.
“I had a very simple understanding of solar energy back in high school,” he said. “Now I think it's cool and it's really important.”