 "Photo: Courtesy of Raymond Lee Orbach")
UT is taking a step toward solving some of the most pressing energy-related issues with the formation of the Energy Institute, a new multi-disciplinary program that will pull some of the University’s top colleges together to achieve a sustainable future.
The Energy Institute, which will begin its groundwork this year, will use the resources and experts from different colleges to achieve a broader goal of energy conservation and research. The participating schools are the School of Architecture, the McCombs School of Business, the Cockrell School of Engineering, the Jackson School of Geosciences, the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Natural Sciences and the UT School of Law.
Raymond Lee Orbach, former Department of Energy under secretary for science under the Bush administration in 2006, was named director of the institute. He also worked as director of the Office of Science with the Department of Energy. Orbach will begin his tenure on August 1.
“He could have done a lot of things after his years of federal service,” said Gregory Fenves, Cockrell School of Engineering dean. “But his unique combination of high-level federal service and university service makes him exactly the kind of person we need.”
The engineering school will be one of the undergraduate colleges that will play a role in the formulation and execution of the institute because of its focus on sustainability and energy research.
“The deans have been working together to develop integrated programs in education, research, seminars and outreach so students have the opportunity to understand this global concern,” Fenves said. “For engineering students, we think it is important to encourage the development of undergraduate research programs in areas such as biofuels, electric power smart grids and transportation because research is the best predictor of future success.”
The Energy Institute will incorporate a variety of different energy experts from all fields and will use these resources to establish overarching, joint programs between different schools.
The engineering school and the Jackson School of Geosciences plan to establish more joint programs, such as a joint petroleum program, called the Geosystems Engineering and Hydrogeology Program.
The business school will attempt to utilize the Energy Institute to connect finance and energy for business students.
“An important contribution of McCombs will be in helping to understand the economic implications of new and emerging technologies,” said UT finance professor Ehud Ronn. “For example, how do the new technologies stack up in terms of cost? What, if any, taxes or subsidies are required to make these new technologies economically competitive?”
The administration hopes to lay down much of the preliminary groundwork within the next year with initiatives to formulate a strategic plan and identify major federal funding and private sector support, Fenves said.
3 comments