Irving Institute Joins University Energy Institute Collaborative

More than 150 university-based energy institutes around the country have formed a first-of-its-kind partnership to address the critical challenges facing America's energy systems. The University Energy Institute Collaborative creates a national network of energy researchers and experts who will provide both localized and global experience in energy infrastructure, policy and climate research. The Collaborative is also working together to align training and educational objectives to support students as they prepare to manage future energy systems.    

In a joint leadership statement signed by 67 energy institutes and released on August 1, 2021, the group underscores that energy systems are intertwined with complex issues — including climate change and access to affordable energy — but ill-designed for effective operation in a world facing these pressures. The statement also recognizes the responsibility that American universities have in finding solutions to these problems, preparing students to be the future energy workforce, and creating a sustainable energy future. 

"We have seen significant ground swell around this initiative, with many new scholarly and practical opportunities coming to light," said Collaborative co-founder Jay Whitacre, director of the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University. "With the growing urgency of climate change and the critical importance of energy infrastructure, now is the time for researchers to come together in this way."   A two-year Sloan Foundation grant is supporting the facilitation, operation, and convening of the Collaborative, and includes funding to spark and seed university-level projects within the group.      

"Our hope over the next two years is to continue to gain momentum around the effort, connecting decision-makers within the Biden Administration, DOE, and industry directly with universities at a deeper level. We have yet to fully leverage the collective strength this network now holds," according to Anna J. Siefken, Collaborative co-founder, who serves as executive director for the Collaborative as well as at Carnegie Mellon's Scott Institute. "The partnership opportunities are infinite."  

The collaborative traces its origin to the September 2019 University Energy Institute Leadership Summit, which drew 101 leaders representing more than 67 academic energy institutes and centers from across the U.S. to Pittsburgh, PA. Co-hosted by CMU's Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation and the Colorado School of Mines' Payne Institute for Public Policy, the summit was part of a research study to explore opportunities for collaboration among U.S. university energy institutes. The full report from that research effort is available at www.ueic.org.    

"With the domestic and global focus on addressing climate change and just and equitable energy transitions, the time is ripe to make big changes in these socio-technical systems," commented Morgan Bazilian, Collaborative co-founder and director of the Payne Institute for Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines. "This university group is ideally placed to help support and guide such a generational set of changes."  

The Irving Institute's Academic Director Amanada Graham sits on the Collaborative's Education and Energy, Equity, and Justice Committees.