EEM Newsletter Fall / Winter 2020
News of EEM Students and Graduates
EMSE Visiting Scholar Jimmy Jia was a facilitator of the Western States Innovation Workshop in Seattle, WA. Sponsored by the Western Interstate Energy Board and the CleanTech Alliance, it included attendees from energy offices of the Western states, Canadian provincial policymakers, representatives of national labs, and other commercialization organizations from throughout the West. The workshop provided an opportunity to strengthen and broaden collaborations among Northwest energy innovators to improve commercialization pathways for technologies emerging from R&D institutions.
EEMI Hosts the U.S. Department of Energy for a Clean Energy Talks Seminar
On September 24, 2019, the EEMI hosted a standing-room-only lunchtime seminar in the Lehman Auditorium of the Science and Engineering Hall (SEH) on clean energy. The purpose of the event was to help the Department of Energy advance its mission to ensure America’s security and prosperity by addressing its energy, environmental and nuclear challenges through transformative science and technology solutions. The Department of Energy plays an important role in the innovation economy, through the development of advanced energy technologies.
EEMI Conducts Advisory Board Meeting
On January 17, 2020, EEMI Co-Directors Joe Cascio and Jonathan Deason, along with EEMI Program Directors Scott Sklar, Dr. Jigar Shah, Dr. Ed Saltzberg, Dr. Victoria Lawrence and Dr. Rachael Jonassen, led a meeting of the SEAS Environmental and Energy Management Institute Advisory Board. At the meeting, three novel EEMI undertakings were presented and discussed. The first of these was our recent proposal to lead specific GW research initiatives on de-carbonization through the application of 4th industrial revolution technologies such as artificial intelligence, transport de-carbonization, nanotechnology, and the internet of things.
Loren Denton Successfully Defends Doctoral Dissertation
On September 30, 2019, Doctoral Candidate Loren Denton defended his doctoral dissertation research on the topic of “Improving Environmental Enforcement Effectiveness in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Drinking Water Program.” Loren, who is Chief of the Municipal Enforcement Branch in the Water Enforcement Division at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, examined the Environmental Protection Agency’s currently implemented 2009 Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) with regard to the effectiveness of state and national enforcement and remediation of the most significant drinking water violations.
EEM Graduate Leads Worldwide Panel Discussion on Climate Change NDC Implementation and Enhancement
EEM graduate Kristin Deason led a 90-minute panel presentation entitled “Regional Approaches to Supporting NDC Implementation and Enhancement” at the Virtual Island Summit in October 2019. Kristin presently is the Lead Caribbean Representative of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), headquartered in St. Lucia. She previously served with the International Renewable Energy Agency in Abu Dhabi, UAE; the renewable energy forecasting company Gnarum LLC in Washington, DC; the German hydrogen energy/fuel cell company Nationale Organisation Wasserstoff- und Brennstoffzellentechnologi Gmbh in Berlin; and the renewable energy company consulting company Sentech in Washington, DC.
EEMI Co-hosts Science Change Science Education Program for Federal Judges
On July 12, 2019, the Environmental and Energy Management Institute and the GW Environmental Law Program co-hosted a day-long symposium entitled “Climate Science for Judges.” EMSE Research Professor Joe Cascio and EMSE Professor Jonathan Deason were participants in the event, which was sponsored by the Climate Judiciary Project. The purpose of the symposium was to educate senior Federal and State judges about the science behind global climate change issues to prepare them for a rapidly increasing caseload of climate-related legal cases. Among the 25 legal luminaries at the event were 10 U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges, U.S. District Court judges, and State Superior and Appellate Court judges.
EEMI Hosts Preview Screening of Global Climate Change Film “Tidewater”
On October 1, 2019, the Environmental and Energy Management Institute held a preview screening of the global climate change film “Tidewater” in the Lehman Auditorium. EMSE Professor Jonathan Deason gave a welcoming address and EMSE Research Professor Joe Cascio coordinated a discussion panel after the screening. Panelists included Melissa Deas, Climate Program Analysts, Government of the District of Columbia; Dr. Stephen Dornbos, AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow, US Department of Defense; Kristiane Huber, Resilience Fellow, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions and Shana Udvardy, Climate Resilience Analyst, Union of Concerned Scientists.
Domenico Amodeo Successfully Defends Doctoral Dissertation
On December 10, 2019, Doctoral Candidate Domenico Amodeo successfully defended his research work focused on an “Empirical Study of the Role of Human Cognition in the Resilience Management of Inland Waterway Transportation Systems.” In his research, Dr. Amodeo examined the inland waterway system in the United States, which are complex socio-technical systems characterized by decentralized governance, dense dependency on limited collective resources, a highly interdependent network of transactional relationships, and susceptibility to natural and manmade hazards and disruptions.
Newsletter Editor: Seth Barna
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