ERG is a col­lab­o­ra­tive com­mu­nity of grad­u­ate stu­dents, core fac­ulty, over 150 affil­i­ated fac­ulty and researchers across the cam­pus, and over 500 alumni across the globe. Our stu­dents work­ across dis­ci­plines and depart­ments to cre­ate poten­tially trans­for­ma­tive knowl­edge for the planet. ERG is a world-renowned pro­gram with a 40-year his­tory of out­stand­ing research, edu­ca­tion and […]

ERG has a small core faculty but a much larger group (100+) of affiliated faculty. Affiliated faculty are based in other departments on campus or at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and share ERG’s commitment to shared learning and interdisciplinary work.  They are advisors, mentors, or employers to ERG students, and serve on master’s project, […]

Equity and inclusion banners in Sproul Plaza — a project initiated, designed, and temporarily installed by the ERG Diversity Student Committee. (C. Hyun, January 2017)   Equity, inclusion, and diversity (EID) at ERG The mission of ERG is a sustainable environment and a just society. ERG actively promotes intellectual, racial, ethnic, and gender inclusion. To […]

Give Big to ERG on Thursday, March 12 during UC Berkeley’s annual Big Give fundraiser! Big Give is UC Berkeley’s annual fundraising blitz—24 hours when we celebrate all of the moments that make Berkeley such a big deal by sharing the love on social media, supporting all of our favorite schools and programs, and competing […]

The purpose of the ERG Master’s program is to educate the next generation of interdisciplinary leaders. Specifically, students are taught the range of methods and subjects they should be able to understand, advance, and critique to address critical issues stemming from the interaction of humans and the environment. To that end, the requirements for the […]

Summer 2020 Curriculum ERG’s minor and certificate require a minimum of five courses and 15 total units of coursework, typically completed over two summers (or for a UC Berkeley student, a summer and a fall semester). All minor or certificate students must take EITHER Energy and Society (ENERES W100/ PUBPOL W184) or Climate Change Economics […]

The Energy and Resources Group summer instructors understand the complex and interdisciplinary nature of sustainability. All have significant experience teaching and/or professional experience in the subject areas of their courses. For course descriptions and schedule, visit our Summer Curriculum and Schedule page. Unless otherwise stated, office hours take place at 310 Barrows Hall. Instructors listed […]

Summer 2020 registration is open! We are preparing to offer all of our courses through remote instruction for summer 2020 due to concerns about COVID-19. Interested students are encouraged to continue to register. The 8-week Sustainability Minor/Certificate program runs from June 22-August 14. Registration is open for all students, domestic and international, and the public. […]

  ***Summer 2020 registration is open! We will offer all of our courses through remote instruction for summer 2020 due to concerns about COVID-19. Interested students are encouraged to continue to register. Please note that two courses, Energy and Society (W100/W184) and Water and Sanitation Justice (W174) are already well-designed exclusively for online instruction. We […]

A Brief History of ERG For thirty years, the Energy and Resources Group (ERG) at the University of California, Berkeley has provided its outstanding graduate students and exceptional faculty the scholarly conditions in which to:  study the environmental sciences, analyze the social causes of our energy and environmental problems, undertake field research in a variety […]

Jesse Ribot Awarded 2018 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship

  Congratulations to ERG alum Jesse Ribot, who received the 2018 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship in the field of  Geography and Environmental Studies. The award aims to further the development of scholars and artists by assisting them to engage in research in any field of knowledge. Jesse Ribot is an Africanist scholar specializing in rural […]

Kammen: UC Divestment is a “no-brainer”

UC faculty, alumni and student activists say it's time to take divestment seriously. Professor Kammen gives insight into why in the East Bay Express.

Brown Schwarzenegger

Kammen speaks at Schwarzenegger's climate pep rally where both parties agree that it's time to fight the dark side.

Reem Rayef

Reem is a concurrent MPP/ERG student at UC Berkeley. She is broadly interested in leveraging energy policy toward the decarbonization of transportation and transit systems in urban settings. Previously, Reem consulted on energy and climate policy at National Journal, in Washington, DC. She is a native of New Jersey, and is in constant search of […]

Jenny Rempel

Jenny grew up in Fresno, California, and graduated from Stanford University with an interdisciplinary environmental science and policy degree in Earth Systems. She has supported community-led social justice movements through philanthropy, policy, organizing, and research, most recently at the grassroots nonprofit organization Community Water Center. Previously, Jenny worked at the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation and […]

Nancy Freitas

Nancy Freitas grew up in Tucson, Arizona and received her B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of Arizona (UA). She worked in environmental conservation with Peace Corps Paraguay and then helped run the Bio/Diversity Project, a STEM outreach and education program, at the UA. At ERG Nancy’s research focuses on how carbon cycling in […]

Kelsey Alford-Jones

Kelsey is interested in how global economic and climate policies influence national environmental governance and impact vulnerable communities, particularly in developing economies and conflict environments. At ERG she looks forward to exploring interdisciplinary approaches to developing energy policies and project implementation that are rights-based and community-driven. Kelsey spent the last 10 years advocating on related […]

Jesse Strecker

Jesse is a student in the concurrent Master’s degree program at ERG and the Goldman School of Public Policy. His research focuses on the political economy of energy transition. He graduated from Brown University with a degree in Anthropology focused on Latin American Studies, and spent the next 7 years working as a labor and […]

Hilary Yu

Hilary received her B.A. in Government and Biological Sciences, with a concentration in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in the latter, from Cornell University, where she graduated in 2015. At ERG, Hilary is interested in exploring the science-law nexus and the factors – political, economic, and social – that inform the translation of science into legislation. […]

Esther Shears

Esther researches how climate change will impact the financial sector and how the private sector and regulatory agencies are responding to climate-related financial risks. She is interested in the assessment and valuation of these risks, as well as the extent to which pre-competitive collaboration among firms can advance sustainability and climate-conscious efforts. Prior to beginning […]

Rebecca Coates-Maldoon

Assessing Instream Flow Standards Under Climate Change Implications for State-Level Policy in the U.S. (MS/MPP ’17) Rebecca completed a Master’s degree in both the Energy and Resources Group and the Goldman School of Public Policy (MA/MPP). Her research interests focus on the sustainable use of water resources, integrating work in ecology, equity, and climate change […]

Seigi Karasaki

Seigi is really, really into drinking water access. He is particularly passionate about mulling over why and how drinking water disparities have emerged in California (hint: systemic racism and classism). He hopes these interests and beliefs will translate well into academic publications. The majority of his free time is spent climbing in Yosemite, throwing pottery, […]

Rachel Golden

Achieving Long-term Climate Goals in the US: Unlocking the Potential of High-Efficiency Electric Technology in Our Homes and Buildings (MS/MPP ’16) Rachel is interested in advancing policies that can help integrate large amounts of renewable energy and electric vehicles onto the grid. As such, she studies mechanisms that increase flexibility on the load and resource […]