ERG’s sixty plus graduate students are geographically and ethnically diverse. About half are in the masters-degree program and half in the PhD program. The students come from a wide variety of disciplinary backgrounds in engineering, natural sciences, social sciences, and the humanities; the characteristics they have in common are an ability to cross disciplinary boundaries, an interest in the complex problems at the interface of technology and society, and the intellectual credentials to succeed in a rigorous academic program. Graduates of the program are employed across the United States and around the world in governmental and international agencies, legislative staff positions, national laboratories, public and private utilities, other energy and resource companies, consulting firms, public-interest organizations, and universities.
Nkiruka is an engineer who graduated Summa cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in petroleum engineering from the University of Oklahoma. Her professional career placed her in the different sectors of the energy industry, from production to distribution and marketing. Her current interests include researching sustainable energy development, renewable energy integration and rural electrification. […]
Anne-Perrine is a PhD student in the Energy and Resources Group and a research fellow within the energy company Areva. In the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, her research focuses on long-term capacity expansion planning for the power sector in China, and quantitative methods to adjust least-cost energy transition pathways by taking forecast uncertainty into […]
Gordon is broadly interested in the intersection between sustainable technology and individual behavior, and how the use of technology can be influenced to optimally achieve sustainability goals. Climate change arises not just from flawed technology, but also from society’s interaction with it, and any solutions must pay heed to these interactions as well. Prior to […]
Dennis has focused his career on technology and sustainability policy in emerging and developing economies. His research interests include technology and innovation policy and impacts to resource and rural development, technology transfer and the political economy of land use management. He has led programs with the Paris based International Energy Agency, as an official of the […]
High-resolution weather and climate data is fast becoming cheap and ubiquitous. As a National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellow, Ian works to capitalize on this increasing availability of data to drive improvements in forecasts of the impacts of climate change on water and energy resources. In parallel to this work, he is also […]
Anna is an MS/PhD student at ERG. She is interested in enabling high-penetration renewable energy on the electricity grid while ensuring cost-effectiveness and preserving grid reliability. Previously, Anna was a SunShot Science & Technology Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office in Washington, DC. While at the SunShot Initiative, her […]
Sharada’s research is focused on recovery of nutrients, primarily Phosphorous, from human waste, particularly septage, and their reuse in Indian agriculture. His work focuses on understanding policies and regulations that encourage businesses to facilitate reuse of septage as fertilizer. He is interested in knowing why some farmers do not use faecal sludge irrespective of its […]
Bodie’s interests lie at the intersection of health, environment, and energy access. To date, Bodie has primarily focused on modernizing cooking in South Asia and Sub Saharan Africa. This work has taken him from rural villages building mud “chulhas” to high-tech cookstove manufacturing and testing facilities. Presently, he is working to understand the social, economic, […]
Since graduating as an electronics engineer in 2004, JP Carvallo has been working, studying, and researching different aspects of the energy field. His current interests relate to varied topics in sustainable development for less industrialized economies, with a geographical focus in Latin America and Asia. He brings together different disciplines – engineering, economics, political science, and […]
Jack Chang is interested in researching new strategies for communicating sustainability policy and science, as well as for improving renewable energy development and environmental governance in developing countries. He has worked as a journalist for two decades in California, Washington, D.C., Latin America and China, for companies such as The Associated Press, McClatchy and The […]
Yoshika has a B.S. and M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Stanford University. She combines methods from environmental engineering and public health to study safe water and sanitation, with a focus on South Asia. In particular, she is interested in implications for gender equity and improvements in maternal, neonatal, and child health. Her previous work has […]
John is interested in the geographic dimensions of environmental politics and policy. As an undergraduate researcher, he used geospatial tools to connect the environmental history of North Georgia to observed changes in land use. As a Masters candidate, his research explored the politics of distributed solar energy in conservative-leaning states. He is also very interested […]
Nick earned his BS in Hydrology along with a minor in Environmental Policy from UC Davis in 2013. Since graduating, he spent over three years working for the Stockholm Environment Institute based in their Davis, CA office participating in watershed modeling and management projects for river basins in California, Perú, and Ecuador. He then worked […]
Alex Dolginow is a Master’s degree candidate interested in understanding appropriate design and conditions for ‘environmental markets,’ such as trading of carbon, water, and conserved land. He hopes to combine economic, policy, and technical approaches to analyze such markets in places like Brazil and Indonesia. Prior to Cal, Alex worked as a strategy consultant with […]
Contact: ddombrowski@berkeley.edu
Salma is a first-year MS/PhD student. She is interested in electrification and renewable energy planning and integration in community and industrial contexts, as well as community-level energy access. Before ERG, Salma was living and working in Edmonton, Canada, where she graduated with a BSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Alberta and worked as […]
Frank grew up on the central New Jersey coast, completing a B.A. in Political Science with a concentration in Environmental Policy & Sustainability from the Richard Stockton College. He went on to earn an M.A. from Columbia University’s Climate and Society Program, focusing on atmospheric science and international economic development. Upon graduation Frank worked on […]
Isa is a MS/PhD student in the Energy and Resources Group. She is interested in the impact of renewable energy on rural electrification, global development, and the domestic energy sector. Previously, Isa gained experience on both the technical and applied sides of renewable energy. She researched innovative energy materials at Duke University and the National […]
Jess’s research is motivated by fundamental questions about the way we value environments and urgent questions regarding the equitable distribution of clean water in complex environments. In this vein, she is currently researching (1) ecosystem and biodiversity valuation in the European context, drawing on science & technology studies, ecological economics, and geography and (2) affordability […]
As a NSF, Chancellor’s, and InFEWS Fellow in the Energy and Resources Group (ERG), Pierce investigates frameworks, methodologies, and contexts for evaluating innovation for social change. By understanding how socially-minded organizations integrate, support, and channel innovation-incentivizing processes to generate value for end consumers, he characterizes current best practices for developing novel products, agnostic of geographic, […]
Will’s primary research interests involve assessing the opportunity for distributed energy resources to participate on the electric system while investigating their technical impact on the grid. Prior to joining ERG, he worked for the Brattle Group’s utilities group in Boston studying electricity markets and renewable energy. He holds a B.S. in chemical engineering and a […]
Anaya is a PhD student in the Energy and Resources Group (ERG) at UC Berkeley. Prior to joining ERG, Anaya attended the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University where she earned a Master of Science in Agriculture, Food and Environment and a Certificate in Water Systems. As an InFEWS and DS421 […]
Cecilia is a MS/PhD student at ERG. Cecilia received her BS in environmental science from Brown University. For several years, she worked in Washington, DC on international climate, energy, and agricultural policy at Climate Advisers, a politics and policy firm. Cecilia is particularly interested in energy-intensive commodities in Asia, and the economic, social, and political […]
Adam is interested in how climate change and biodiversity loss can be mitigated through agriculture, forestry, and conservation strategy. Prior to joining ERG, Adam worked with an early stage agriculture technology company called TerViva where he conducted research and business development to expand the adoption of novel, sustainable crops on marginal land. This work exposed […]
Sasha Harris-Lovett is a PhD candidate in the Energy and Resources Group and a NSF Graduate Research Program Fellow. Her research focuses on urban water and wastewater management, decision analysis for socio-environmental problems, and collaborative environmental planning. She is dedicated to making science accessible to students, policy-makers, and community members. Outside of school, she works […]
Zeke is an energy systems analyst and data scientist with a strong interest in climate science and policy. He is currently the VP of Energy Science at Essess, Inc, an energy efficiency startup that develops vehicle mounted thermal imaging systems, a research scientist at Berkeley Earth, and the senior climate analyst at Project Drawdown. He […]
Anushah is interested in studying the factors that affect consumer adoption of sustainable technologies. Prior to ERG, Anushah worked at the nonprofit research institute RTI International on a variety of technology adoption projects spanning sanitation, agriculture, and advanced vehicle technologies. Anushah graduated in 2015 from UC Berkeley, with degrees in History and Economics. Contact: anushah.h@berkeley.edu
Chris Hyun comes from a decade of experience in South Asia, focused on water, pollution, culture, religion, and development, particularly in the Ganges River Basin. He has been involved with a variety of NGOs, working on income generation, education, watershed management, and river advocacy. Though he has a variety of interests in the water sector, […]
Veronica Jacome is a PhD student in the Energy and Resources Group (ERG) and holds a BS in Engineering Physics from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At ERG, Veronica focuses on the terms of access within electricity services – investigating how policy, supply and infrastructure shape access and how access shapes vulnerabilities. Veronica’s work draws […]
Kripa earned a BS in Botany from the University of Delhi, and a Masters in Environmental Studies from TERI University. Since 2007 to 2012, she worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in their Climate Change and Sustainability division. There, she managed several Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and Climate Change advisory assignments for international organizations, corporate clients, and […]
Stephen is an MS/PHD student at the Energy and Resources Group. He came to Berkeley after three years working for Ofgem, the UK’s energy regulator. Stephen is currently working on a project to create a dataset mapping global energy consumption at fine spatial scales. He is also interested in conducting research on wholesale electricity market […]
Seigi’s primary research interests include the political economy of drinking water access and distributive justice vis-a-vis natural resources. He holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies from UCLA (2011) and an M.A. in International Studies from the University of Tokyo (2013). In the past, Seigi was: a TEDx organizer in Japan; a graduate intern in […]
Noah is an MS/PhD student at ERG. After graduating with a BS in Environmental Science from UNC-Chapel Hill, Noah was a Fulbright Fellow at the Joint Graduate School for Energy and the Environment in Thailand researching technical and policy aspects of solar electricity and sustainability assessment. He has installed solar panels in Mexico and conducted […]
José Daniel Lara was born in San José, Costa Rica. He received a B.Sc. and Licentiate in Electrical Engineering in 2009 and 2012 from the University of Costa Rica; both with an emphasis in power systems and electrical machines and MASc degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Waterloo in Ontario Canada. Research […]
Eli is an Ecological Economist working toward the development of a metric combining the elements of sustainability, efficiency, and welfare as core values. He is interested in the potential of re-framing and quantifying value beyond the market mechanism in order to address the most profound problems we face as a species. Most recently, Eli was […]
Catherine received a BA in Economics from Dartmouth College, with a minor in Environmental Studies. Prior to coming to ERG, she worked on issues related to U.S. energy policy and integrated assessment modeling at the Joint Global Change Research Institute. At ERG, she is interested in using statistical techniques to explore the impacts of climate […]
Jonathan studies transitions in electric power systems and electricity markets, specifically microgrids and distributed energy resources, the role of new technologies in grid planning, and the effects of the physical structure of power systems on social equity. He is interested in both industrial contexts and unelectrified rural areas, and has done electrification work in Nicaragua, […]
Michelle is a concurrent degree student at the Goldman School of Public Policy and the Energy Resources Group. Prior to graduate school, she worked in political, legal, and regulatory advocacy at the Natural Resources Defense Council and NextGen Climate America. Michelle is currently interested in the financial impacts of climate change, but also likes to […]
Inspired by ecological economics, Niklas is focused on global governance of production and consumption. At ERG, he is combining data analysis with case studies to examine the apparel industry’s attempt to improve environmental outcomes and to acquire political legitimacy. Niklas is a part of a NSF NRT for data science, and has contributed to data-based […]
Jason is interested in optimization and control of distributed energy resources to support renewable energy integration into the electricity grid. He works at Lawrence Berkeley National lab researching wholesale electricity market integrated demand response and electric vehicles, particularly to provide fast reliability services. He graduated with from University of Michigan with an MS in Natural […]
Sophie Major’s interests are found at the intersection between political economy and social justice. She is currently investigating theories of ideology, justice, and power in the context of international climate politics. Prior to joining ERG, Sophie completed her interdisciplinary B.A.S. at Quest University Canada, where her thesis research assessed the role of First Nations’ activism […]
Christian is fascinated by energy end-uses’ effect on communities’ economic and political well-being. While his formal scientific background is in biorenewable resources, his focus is on the sustainable development of holistic energy solutions based on socioeconomic, geographic, and natural resource characteristics for communities both domestic and developing abroad. As well, Christian is interested in the […]
Laura earned her B.S. degree from UC Berkeley in Conservation and Resource Studies with a concentration in Environmental Education. While an undergraduate, she initiated and led several campus programs relating to green building and recycling, including the Building Sustainability at Cal Program. They aimed to educate and engage students while reducing the campus’ environmental impact. […]
Sara is an architect who delved into distributed generation while developing fuel cell projects for Bloom Energy. She became interested in the energy industry in general, and specifically the regulatory and finance conditions that make markets more open to uptake of innovative technologies. While her focus is in energy, she is also interested in how […]
Adam returned to graduate school after a career as an attorney specializing in environmental, energy, and natural resources litigation. He came to Berkeley to focus on what the law can be, and should be. His research interests – ranging across the environmental, energy, and natural resources sectors – include public policy analysis and development, public […]
Gauthami’s research interests focus on how social networks influence health behaviors and decisions around access and use of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructures and its implications on the health and dignity of women and children in developing countries. More broadly, she is interested in exploring the intersection of urban planning and women’s health. Previously, […]
Phillippe is an MS student at ERG. His research interests are in the integration of distributed energy resources and the decarbonization of the electricity sector. In 2005, Phillippe enlisted in the US Navy where he worked on an aircraft carrier as a nuclear power plant electrician. After six years, he left the Navy to obtain […]
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I’m a first years master’s student and received a B.S. & B.A. from UC Berkeley in Integrative Biology and Molecular Environmental Biology. Prior to coming to ERG, I worked on quantifying rates of nitrogen fixation by bacteria associated with conifer foliage in Western U.S. forests. I’m broadly interested in the dynamics of community-level responses to […]
Jess studies the impact of and adaptation to climate change on Latin America’s coasts. Currently, she travels on her 39-foot sailboat, Oleada, down the Pacific coast of Mexico and Central America, through the Panama Canal, and into the Caribbean to document local climate knowledge through GIS mapping and personal narratives. You can follow her journey […]
Lisa is interested in using computer science to explore issues related to the economic impacts of climate change. She has spent the past three years working at an environmental consulting firm called Industrial Economics Inc. where she leveraged data analysis, computer programming, and GIS to work on projects related to the economic affects of climate […]
Laura studies the environmental impacts of transportation in the developed world. She focuses on new methods of data collection and analysis to better understand the various levers behind driving behavior, the effectiveness of policies to reduce driving, and the interaction of freight and driving-for-shopping. Laura has been a Berkeley Fellow and a Research Fellow of […]
Esther is interested in integrated assessment models and the role of tropical forests and land cover in climate change mitigation. She also studies sustainable agroforestry and the environmental governance of global supply chains. Prior to beginning her graduate studies at UC Berkeley, she worked for the U.S. Department of Justice as a statistician in the […]
Samira’s research focuses on the social, economic, and physical processes of urbanization and climate change in Asia. She was previously an international development researcher at Mathematica Policy Research, where her work included an evaluation of the Global Protocol for Community-scale Greenhouse Gas Emissions in cities worldwide. Prior to that, she was a researcher at the […]
Alana Siegner graduated from Tufts University in 2012 with a double major in Environmental Studies and International Relations. She was the Local Outreach Chair of the Tufts-Engineers Without Borders chapter, and spent 3 summers traveling to Uganda to work on an EWB clean water storage project. Before coming to ERG, Alana served for 2 years […]
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.
I grew up in the rural North Bay, in a small town called Monte Rio, along the Russian River. I moved to Providence, RI to study at Brown University, where I majored in Anthropology and Latin American Studies. After graduating, I spent the next seven years or so doing community and labor organizing work, first […]
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 consulting in the energy and finance sectors, she worked at Pacific Gas & Electric forecasting electric generation and its cost for customer rates. She focused […]
Emma’s interests are at the intersection of climate change adaptation, environmental justice, and science and technology studies, with a focus on renewable energy technology adoption in under-resourced communities. She received her B.A. in Geography and B.S. in Environmental Sciences at UC Berkeley in 2011, and her undergraduate research focused on critical approaches to GIS technology […]
Valeri Vasquez is a student with the Energy and Resources Group. She is interested in the application of data science toward smart urban growth. Her current research employs integrated assessment models to better understand the impact of climate change-induced human health effects on the economy. Valeri grew her early career in international and domestic climate […]
Peter is interested in investigating the market and regulatory barriers to technological solutions to renewable energy generation, net-zero buildings, and sustainable manufacturing. He is a research assistant at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab contributing to projects on electric grid load forecasting and commercial building demand response. Prior to studying at ERG he was an engineer […]
Inspired by the possibility of ecologically-bounded growth, Grace is interested in water and land use impacts of energy technologies; water management that sustains agriculture, energy production, and biodiversity; and the role of policy analysis in decision-making. She is currently merging life cycle assessment, GIS, and optimization methods to anticipate non-GHG environmental impacts of electricity generation. […]
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. […]