December 3, 2024
The third annual Symposium on Energy and Society took place at the Irving Institute on Tuesday, December 3, 2024. The symposium offered a chance for attendees to learn about the exciting research being advanced under the Irving Institute's three research priorities: 1) Accelerating Clean Tech Deployment, 2) Harnessing Data, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence to Accelerate the Energy Transition, and 3) Centering Health and Equity in the Clean Energy Transition as well as opportunities to connect with colleagues and find new opportunities to collaborate for impact.
Agenda
MORNING SESSIONS
8:30 – 9 am
Coffee and networking
9 – 9:05 am
Opening Remarks
Geoff Parker, Charles E. Hutchinson '68A Professor of Engineering Innovation
Interim Faculty Director, Arthur L. Irving Institute for Energy & Society
Barbara Will, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs; A. and R. Newbury Professor of English
9:05 – 9:35 am
Keynote
Kyle McEneaney, Head of Strategic Investments, Astera Institute
9:35 – 10:10 am
Research focus: Health and Equity in the Clean Energy Transition
Moderator: Robert McLellan, Emeritus Professor of Medicine and of Community and Family Medicine
Panelists:
- Robert Cramer, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology
- Cheryl Anderson, Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics
- Charis Boke, Lecturer, Anthropology
10:15 - 10:50 am
Research focus: Data and Electrification for the Energy Transition
Moderator: Geoff Parker
Panelists:
- Vikrant Vaze, Stata Family Career Development Associate Professor of Engineering; Faculty Director, Master of Engineering Management Program
- Junbo Zhao, Visiting Associate Professor of Engineering
10:50 - 11:05 am
Coffee Break
11:05 – 11:40 am
Research focus: Carbon Sequestration
Moderator: George O'Toole, Professor of Microbiology & Immunology
Panelists:
- Mukul Sharma, Professor of Earth Sciences
- Ekaterina Pletneva, Professor of Chemistry
11:40 am – 12:20 pm
Irving Institute Faculty Seed Grant Pitches
Geoff Hautier, Hodgson Family Professor of Engineering
Joshua Landis, Senior Research Scientist, Earth Sciences
Kimberly Rose Clark, Lecturer and Researcher, Psychology and Brain Sciences
Yan Li, Assistant Professor of Engineering
12:20 – 1:05 pm
Lunch and Poster Session (Atrium)
AFTERNOON SESSIONS
1:05 – 1:50 pm
Partnerships and Implementation Panel
Moderator: Joerg Matschullat, Senior Fellow, Irving Institute
Panelists:
- Jai Asundi, Executive Director at the Center for Study of Science, Technology, and Policy (CSTEP)
- Sarah Kelly, Research Scientist, Geography; Program Manager, Irving Institute Energy Justice Clinic
- Ivan Beckman, Acting Director, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory
1:50 – 3 pm
Lightning Talks
- Miguel Gonzalez, Assistant Professor, Chemistry
- Klaus Keller, Hodgson Distinguished Professor of Engineering Program
- Laura Paulin, Associate Professor of Medicine and of Epidemiology
- Charles Midgett, Research Assistant Professor of Chemistry
- Sarah Preum, Assistant Professor of Computer Science
- Amit Chakrabarti, Professor of Computer Science
- Joanna Slawinska, Research Assistant Professor, Mathematics
- Smitakshi Goswami, Grad Student in Physics and Astronomy
- Meifang Li, Research Scientist, Geography
- Aleah Sommers, Research Scientist, Thayer School of Engineering
- Erich Osterberg, Associate Professor of Earth Sciences
- Varvara Korkina Williams, Arctic Innovation Fellow, Institute of Arctic Studies
- Sarah Crockett, Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine
- Jonathan Winter, Associate Professor, Geography
- Sadia Sultana, Postdoctoral Fellow, Microbiology and Immunology
3 – 4 pm
Reception (Atrium)