The Energy and Resources Group trains interdisciplinary leaders and thinkers that are defining and solving the systemic, inextricably linked, social, environmental, and technological challenges facing the globe. ERG has built an unparalleled reputation for rigor and relevance through its unique interdisciplinary model. While ERG alumni share a common skillset in practical problem solving, their areas of substantive expertise and their employment interests are amazingly diverse.

Alumni

Setiawan, Rachman

Rachman Setiawan

MS

Rachman Setiawan is a Master’s student for the Energy and Resources Group, focusing on energy sectors. He worked as an engineer in a Solar PV company where He conducted surveys, ... Continue Reading »

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Sharada Prasad Chitradurga Srinivasa Murthy

Sharada Prasad Chitradurga Srinivasa Murthy

MS, PhD

When the Pit Fills Up: Fecal Sludge “Management” in Urban India (PhD ’18) Sharada’s research is focused on recovery of nutrients, primarily Phosphorous, from human waste, particularly septage, and their ... Continue Reading »

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Shaw, Britt

Britt Shaw

MS

At ERG, I am exploring the barriers to renewable projects that are stalled or abandoned in emerging markets and potential solutions. By striving to answer that question, I hope to help move electricity sector development forward — especially in East Africa.

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M. Rebecca Shaw

PhD

Ecosystem and Plant Community Consequences of Climate Warming in a High-Altitude Meadow (’97 PhD)

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Gwen Shearer

MS

Material Flows of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle (’78 M.S.)

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Shears, Esther

Esther Shears

MPP, MS, PhD

Dr. Esther Shears recently started a position as the Deputy Chief Economist at the Division of Petroleum Market Oversight in the California Energy Commission. She earned her PhD from the ... Continue Reading »

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Sheikh, Imran

Imran Sheikh

MS, PhD

Decarbonizing Residential Space and Water Heating in California (PhD ’17) Imran Sheikh is interested in creating business-led solutions to environmental problems, with a particular focus on energy efficiency. His current research ... Continue Reading »

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Karin Shen

MS, PhD

A Microclimate Model to Investigate Greenhouse Warming of a Sub-Alpine Ecosystem (MS, ’92) A Modeling Study of Experimental Warming of a Sub-Alpine Meadow (PhD, ’98)

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Michael Shepard

MS

Straw into Gold: The Promise of Anaerobic Digesters on California Dairy Farms (’85 MS)

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Emma Shepherdson

MS

Understanding feed’s climate impacts on beef production through the lens of three different beef production systems in the United States (MS, ’12)

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Sherman, Luke

Luke Sherman

MPP, MS

Increasing the spatial resolution of the Human Development Index using satellite imagery (MS ’22) Luke’s research aims to encourage the use of innovative technology and management systems in order to ... Continue Reading »

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Suzie Shin

MS

An Empirical Assessment of the California Utilities’ Energy Efficiency Programs (’09 MS)

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Shirley, Rebekah

Rebekah Shirley

MS, PhD

Rebekah Shirley believes that there is more than one path to a bright, energy secure future. Developing nations strive to connect more and more of their communities to energy. Many have emulated the fossil fuel intensive model of developed nations, but Rebekah believes that this is not necessarily the only way.

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Shiyayo, Lynn

Lynn Shiyayo

MS

Lynn is a MS student and researcher in the Energy and Resources Group at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research lies at the intersection of transportation, climate, and equity ... Continue Reading »

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Anne Short

MS, PhD

Understanding Urban Food Access (’05 MS) Governing Change: An Institutional Geography of Rural Land Use, Environmental Management, and Change in the North Coastal Basin of California (’10 PhD)

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Leslie Shown

MA

The Impacts of Deforestation upon Rural Women in Developing Countries: Patterns of Concern in Recent Development Literature (’93 M.A.)

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Siddique, Samira

Samira Siddique

MS, PhD

Development for the Stateless: the Displacement-Development Nexus and Implications for the Future (MS ’19) Samira Siddique is a PhD candidate and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow in the Energy ... Continue Reading »

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Siegner, Alana

Alana Siegner

MA, PhD

Growing Environmental Literacy: On Small-Scale Farms, in the Urban Agroecosystem, and in School Garden Classrooms (PhD ’20) Alana Siegner graduated from Tufts University in 2012 with a double major in ... Continue Reading »

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Siegner, Alana

Alana Siegner

MA, PhD

Alana Siegner received her B.A. from Tufts University in Environmental Science and International Relations, and served as an AmeriCorps National Teaching Fellow in Boston for two years after graduating from ... Continue Reading »

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Sifuentes, Froy

Froy Sifuentes

MS, PhD

The world is witnessing a rapid advance in renewable energy with China as one in the forefront. However, adding enough renewable energy to satisfy China's growing power needs is quite complex. ERG Ph.D. candidate, Froy Sifuentes, focuses on the challenges of integrating wind power to help make China's grid cleaner. Read on and learn more about Froy and his work (and fun) at ERG.

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Thomas Sikor

MA, PhD

Participatory Methods in Rural Development: ‘Bottom-Up’ or only ‘Close-To’ Development? (’94 M.A.) The Political Economy of Decollectivization: A Study of Differentiation in and Among Black Thai Villages Of Northern Vietnam ... Continue Reading »

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Jelena Simjanovic

MA

Mind the Gap. Public-Private Financing Mechanisms for Bridging Valleys of Death and Accelerating Transition to a Clean Economy (MA, ’10)

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Sims, Michelle

Michelle Sims

MS

At ERG, Michelle is interested in environmental and equity challenges within global food systems. In particular, her research focuses on the dynamics of land use change in agricultural landscapes in ... Continue Reading »

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Jonathan Sinton

MS, PhD

Indoor Air Pollution in China (Compilation of a Database of Results of Research 1982-1991; with an Application to Residential Energy Supply Options in Shenyang, Liaoning Province) (’92 M.S.) Energy Efficiency ... Continue Reading »

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Adam Smith

PhD

Facets of Biological Conservation: Appropriate Ecology, Policy, and Ethics for Ensuring the Perpetuity of Biodiversity (’09 PhD)

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Smith, Lydia

Lydia Smith

MS, PhD

Subsurface Controls on Carbon Dynamics in a Changing Arctic Ecosystem (PhD ’18) Terrestrial Biological Carbon Dioxide Removal: An Ecological Perspective (MS ’12) Lydia’s research takes her to the Alaskan Arctic, ... Continue Reading »

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Sognnaes, Ida

Ida Sognnaes

MA

Ida Sognnaes is a PhD student in the Energy and Resources Group. She is originally from Norway and came to Berkeley for the first time as part of her five ... Continue Reading »

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Anna Sommer

MS

The Water and Energy Nexus: Estimating Consumptive Water Use from Carbon Capture at Pulverized Coal Plants with a Case Study of the Upper Colorado River Basin (’10 MS)

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Sparti, Chelsi

Chelsi Sparti

MS

Chelsi belongs to the Winnemem, Nomtipom, and Nomsus bands of the Northern Wintu people, and is of European settler descent. She carries out collaborative research with Puerto Rican residents to ... Continue Reading »

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Matthew St. Clair

MA

The Renewable Robin Hood: How Taking from Natural Gas Producers and Giving to Energy Consumers Softens the Economic Impact of a Renewable Portfolio Standard (03 MA)

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Stack, Stephen

Stephen Stack

MA

Stephen graduated 2024 with his Master’s from the Energy and Resources Group. His work focuses on the social, economic, and political dimensions of the clean energy transition. He is currently ... Continue Reading »

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Michael Starkey

MA

Wilderness, Race, and African Americans: An Environmental History from Slavery to Jim Crow (’05 MA)

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Thomas Starrs

MA, PhD

Legislative Incentives and Energy Technologies: Government’s Role in the Development of the California Wind Energy Industry (’87 M.A.) Regulating Innovation and Competition in Emerging Technology Markets: The Effects of Utility ... Continue Reading »

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Norman Stein

MA

Utility Financial Incentive Program: A Financial Incentive Scheme Designed to Stimulate Greater Levels of Conservation Achievement by Investor Owned Utilities (’82 M.A.)

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Corina Stetiu

MS, PhD

The Effect of Simplifying the Building Description on the Numerical Modeling of its Thermal Performance (93 MS) Radiant Cooling in US Office Buildings: Towards Eliminating the Perception of Climate-Imposed Barriers ... Continue Reading »

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Zachary Subin

MS, PhD

Greenhouse Gas Abatement Supply Curves for California’s Transportation Sector (MS ’08) Interactions of Water and Energy Mediate Responses of High Latitude Terrestrial Ecosystems to Climate Change (PhD ’12)

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Szinai, Julia

Julia Szinai

MPP, MS, PhD

Julia studied economics and Spanish at UC Berkeley as an undergraduate, and realized her interest in energy and environmental issues while a research assistant at the UC Energy Institute. After ... Continue Reading »

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Tabone, Michaelangelo

Michaelangelo Tabone

MS, PhD

Michaelangelo Tabone (MS 2012) is a PhD student in ERG advised by Dr. Duncan Callaway. His research focuses on applying novel statistical methods to topics in energy analysis. Most recently, ... Continue Reading »

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Tadepalli, Sanjana

Sanjana Tadepalli

MA

Sanjana (she/her) is a Master’s graduate from 2024. She is interested in climate justice, participatory methods, and environmental communication. Before coming to ERG, Sanjana was a researcher at the Disaster ... Continue Reading »

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Marika Tatsutani

MS

Unocal Corporation’s SCRAP (South Coast Recycled Auto Project): An Experiment in Corporate Environmental Initiative (’91 MS)

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Kim Taylor

MA, PhD

Water Quality Monitoring for Effective Regulatory Enforcement: A Review of Options for the NPDES Program in the San Francisco Bay Region (’90 MA) Redefining Environmental Management Problems: The Shift in ... Continue Reading »

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Testa, Monica

Monica Testa

MA

Monica obtained her Masters in 2015 from the Energy and Resources Group. She is interested in electric vehicle adoption, alternative energy policy, and sustainable energy development. Her research involves modeling ... Continue Reading »

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Michael Ting

MS

The Silver Bullet with Brown Baggage? Scenarios of the Emissions Impacts of Demand Response in California (05 MS)

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Tome, Emma

Emma Tome

MS

Who Governs a Sustainable Neighborhood? Planning a Community-scale Retrofit in Oakland, California (MS ’18) Emma’s interests are at the intersection of climate change adaptation, environmental justice, and science and technology ... Continue Reading »

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Kathy Tonnessen

MA, PhD

Integrated Assessment of Environmental Impacts: A Regulatory Approach to the Problem (’79 MA) The Potential Effects of Acid Deposition on Aquatic Ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada, California (’83 PhD)

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Margaret Torn

MS, PhD

The Threats to Biological Diversity in California (’90 MS) Environmental Controls Over Methane Flux from Ecosystems and the Potential for Feedbacks with Climatic Change (’94 PhD) See Faculty Profile

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Sarah Trainor

MA, PhD

Money Talks, But What Can it Say?  Bridging the Economic and Philosophic in Wilderness Values & Valuation (98 MA) Conflicting Values, Contested Terrain: Mormon, Paiute and Wilderness Advocate Values of ... Continue Reading »

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Derrick Tucker

MA

Appropriate Technology and Soft Energy as Perspectives on Technology – Society Interactions (’86 MA)

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Brian Turner

MS

E85, Flex-Fuel Vehicles, and AB 1493: Integrating biofuels into California’s vehicular greenhouse gas regulations (06 MS)

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Matthew Turner

PhD

Life on the Margin: Fulsse Herding Practices and the Relationship Between Economy and Ecology in the Inland Niger Delta of Mali (’92 Ph.D.)

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Alyce Ujihara

MA

Transfer of State-Owned Energy Resources in California (’87 M.A.)

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Tony Usibelli

MS

The Geopressured Geothermal Resource of the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast; A Technology Characterization and Environmental Assessment (’80 M.S.)

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Adriana Valencia

MS, PhD

Improved Cookstoves in Michoacán, México:  A Search for an Integrated Perspective that Promotes Local Culture, Health, and Sustainability (’04 MS) Missing Links:  Demystifying Alternative Energy Use and Improving Decision Making ... Continue Reading »

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Susan Valentine

MS

Kern County, California–A Potential Contributor to Acid Deposition (’83 MS)

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Van Dyke, Catherine

Catherine Van Dyke

MA

Catherine is a second year Master’s student at ERG studying California agriculture and climate change. Her research focuses on water governance, resource allocation, and equity for farmers and ranchers in ... Continue Reading »

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Vásquez, Váleri

Váleri Vásquez

MS, PhD

Váleri Vásquez is a PhD candidate in the Energy and Resources Group with a Designated Emphasis in Computational Data Science and Engineering. Váleri conducts most of her work in the ... Continue Reading »

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Nikhil Vijaykar

MS

Consolidation as a Solution for Central Valley Water Woes: An Exploratory Study in Tulare County (’13 MS)

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David Von Hippel

MS, PhD

The Effect of Intensive Organic Matter Utilization on Soil Quality: Protecting the Soil Resource Without Giving Up On Biomass (’83 M.S.) An Analysis of an Ethanol-Producing Solar-Bioconversion Process Using the ... Continue Reading »

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Von Meier, Alexandra

Alexandra Von Meier

MA, PhD

Grid-Connected Photovotaics: A Comparison of Three Siting Strategies (’90 M.A.) Cultural Factors in Technology Adoption: A Case Study of Electric Utilities and Distribution Automation (’95 Ph.D.)

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Wadia, Cyrus

Cyrus Wadia

MS, PhD

"In a sense, we’re going through a tran­si­tion here. The indus­try is going through a tran­si­tion that we’re only see­ing the begin­ning of,” says Dr. Cyrus Wadia (PhD’08). Cyrus knows about transitions. He has been a policy advocate, business entrepreneur and scientific innovator for clean energy and human welfare prior, throughout and since his time at ERG. He has not only observed but has been part of the change in the world’s switch to solar. His multiple hats and his work on the frontline edge of policy, economics and science made him a perfect fit for the interdisciplinary program at ERG.

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Wagner, Tzipora

Tzipora Wagner

MS

The Role of Stakeholder Networks in Urban Water System Innovation (MS ’20) Tzipora’s is interested in water resources and the role of technology in promoting sustainability, especially in the developing ... Continue Reading »

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Lucy Wamukonya

MS

Classification of Biomass Fuels for Fouling & Slagging Using Principal Component Analysis (’96 M.S.)

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Dina Washburn

MA

Competing in the California Power Market: Bonneville’s Struggle to Overcome the Barriers (’86 M.A.)

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Robert Weisenmiller

MS

Electricity Consumption in California for Residential Heating and Cooling (’77 M.S.)

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West, Justin

Justin West

MS

Justin’s background in botany and agroecology informs his research in perennial crop farming systems and woody biomass coppice. Most recently he has been researching tropical fodder bank systems in South ... Continue Reading »

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Lee Wexler

MS

Population Growth, Global Warming, and the Carbon Externality to Childbearing (’95 M.S.)

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Charles White

MS, PhD

Closing the Material Loop:  Investigating the Dynamics of, Motivations for, and Obstacles to Material Recycling through a Case Study on Product Recovery and Demanufacturing in the Computer Industry (’99 MS) ... Continue Reading »

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