Energy Systems and Social Justice
Dr. Erin Baker is recruiting PhD students!
Students will be a part of the NSF-funded ELEVATE project, focused on energy, social equity, and climate change resiliency. Dr. Baker is looking for students with a commitment to racial justice, an interest in energy, and a math background that will allow them to jump into modeling. This program gives the student flexibility to define their research direction. Examples of current projects include examining the environmental justice impacts of carbon capture in the electricity system; and harnessing consumer-side energy storage for social equity and grid value. Examples of potential future projects include community co-design of algorithms and policies to enhance demand response opportunities for low-income and marginalized communities; and using climate ensembles and energy equity metrics to support robust decision making under deep uncertainty and multiple objectives for long-term planning of electricity infrastructure.
Dr. Erin Baker is the Faculty Director of The Energy Transition Institute at UMass Amherst, a radically interdisciplinary organization focused on research at the intersection of the technological aspects of the energy system and social justice. She is a Distinguished Professor of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research. Dr. Baker applies mathematical modeling to decision making.
What we are looking for.
- Students with a clear commitment to social equity; and in particular racial justice and equity.
- Students with examples of grit, determination, and curiosity
- Students who are highly collaborative and willing to work with a group that is diverse in discipline, race & ethnicity, and economic background.
- We are particularly looking for students who will submit an application by Jan 1, 2025, and start the program in Fall 2025; but we are happy to talk to students at an earlier stage too.
Please contact Dr. Baker if you are interested!
ELEVATE: https://www.energytransitionumass.org/elevate
Energy Transition Institute: https://www.energytransitionumass.org/
Wind Energy Fellow: https://windenergyigert.umass.edu/