Entrepreneur Ashley Goeken has been appointed to the city of Aurora’s Innovation and Technology Advisory Commission.
The appointment was put forward by Mayor Richard Irvin and unanimously approved by the Aurora City Council at its meeting last Tuesday. Goeken is a co-founder of Opalus, a consulting firm that helped Aurora develop its Sustainability Plan 2019, according to the company’s website.
“Ashley is a third-generation entrepreneur, technology expert and voice of the global smart city revolution,” Clayton Muhammad, Aurora’s chief communications and equity officer, said at the meeting.
Goeken also serves as an ambassador of the United Nations Association, Chicago chapter, where she works to collaborate with policy makers, local government officials, businesses and educational institutes in an effort to make cities and communities more sustainable, according to the resume she provided to the city.
The Innovation and Technology Advisory Commission was created by the Aurora City Council in January to research significant new technologies that may benefit or impact the city, according to officials.
In 2020, Goeken co-founded Opalus with her sister after being inspired by the UN’s sustainable development goals, according to her resume. With the company, she hopes to create more sustainable cities by partnering with universities, working with tech startups and advising on environmental policy, her resume says.
She previously worked at Go Green LED as its chief development officer for three years, where she helped the company partner with other sustainability technology companies and did market research, according to her resume.
Her mother, Sandra Goeken, founded Go Green LED in 2008, according to the company’s website. Before founding Go Green LED, she worked in a number of different telecommunications companies, including Airfone, where she served as president.
Sandra Goeken was named the Chicago Business Leader of the Year in 1993.
Ashley Goeken’s grandfather, Jack Goeken, was himself an influential telecommunications entrepreneur who founded MCI telephone company, Airfone and others.
rsmith@chicagotribune.com
