Environmental Youth Leadership Summit

Dave Fork

Dave Fork is an inventor, engineer, and community leader who believes the best solutions for the planet often start small—like on two wheels. He is the Founder and President of the Silicon Valley Bicycle Exchange (SVBE), a non-profit community bike shop that diverts hundreds of bikes from landfills, teaches repair skills, and provides vital, sustainable transportation for the community. During his day job as a Staff Research Scientist at Google, Dave focuses on one of the most critical challenges of our time: adapting to extreme heat and climate change. He leads research using satellite data and advanced modeling to map the urban heat island effect, providing the information cities need to plant trees and protect vulnerable communities. Dave has a long history of making technology work for a better future. He spent years on projects to make solar power cheaper than coal and designed the intelligent power systems that feed reliable energy back into the grid. A prolific inventor, Dr. Fork holds over 80 issued US patents for everything from new micro-devices to solar technology. Dave holds a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Stanford University and degrees in Physics and Electrical Engineering from the University of Rochester.