Emily Grubert, associate professor of sustainable energy policy in the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, will give the talk, "Public Support for Energy and Climate Technology Deployment," at 4 p.m. on Monday, April 14, via Zoom. The talk is part of the Penn State Earth and Environmental Systems Institute's spring 2025 EarthTalks series.
"Transitioning a mostly fossil fuel-based energy system to a non-fossil system that can support net-zero, and later net-negative greenhouse gas emissions goals, requires significant effort to develop not only new technologies, but also new ways of integrating systems, new forms of governance, and new metrics for success," Grubert said. "Transition requires attention not only to the end state of a clean energy system, but also to the mid-transition period during which new and old systems must function together even while each forces the other into suboptimal operating conditions. Failing to manage this integration risks critical and often life-safety energy services, putting society at risk."
Grubert will discuss the role of government in supporting and promoting effective research for society. In her talk, she will describe potential roles for public ownership, research on new governance models, and novel ways of thinking about technology integration and governance, in addition to more conventional technology deployment.
Grubert is a civil engineer and environmental sociologist who studies how we can make better decisions about large infrastructure systems, particularly related to justice-centering decarbonization of the U.S. energy system.
Grubert earned bachelor of science degrees in mathematics and in atmosphere/energy engineering from Stanford University; a master of arts in energy and earth resources and a master of science in environmental and water resources engineering, both from the University of Texas at Austin; and a doctorate in environment and resources from Stanford University.
