Haas Newsroom

Sustainable Energy Initiatives Converge at New Institute at UC Berkeley’s Business School

October 19, 2009

Haas School Media Relations:

Ute Frey
(510) 642-0342
frey@haas.berkeley.edu

Recognizing the vital role business will play in responding to energy and climate change challenges, the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, is launching a new energy institute.

The new Energy Institute at Haas will address both the rising need for research and the growing student interest in the markets, policy, and technology for sustainable energy. Berkeley and Haas have long held a leadership position in this field. The new Energy Institute will advance related research and teaching, and offer a variety of events and initiatives for the community.

The Energy Institute at Haas is the result of a merger of two highly successful programs: the UC Energy Institute’s Center for the Study of Energy Markets and the Haas School’s Center for Energy and Environmental Innovation.

The Haas School will celebrate the creation of its Energy Institute with a launch event on October 30. Matt Rogers, senior adviser to US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, will discuss Department of Energy’s strategies for addressing the country’s energy and climate change challenges. See event details below.

“Sustainable energy is an area of tremendous growth and opportunity; it is also an area in need of new technologies and business models,” says Haas School Dean Rich Lyons. “Our Haas School has long provided deep competency in this area -- our depth and breadth are unsurpassed at any other business school. We’re proud to expand even further with our new Energy Institute at Haas.”

Haas School Professors Severin Borenstein, the E.T. Grether Chair in Business Administration and Public Policy, and Catherine Wolfram, a Barbara & Gerson Bakar Faculty Fellow, will serve as the Energy Institute’s faculty directors.

“We have a tremendously active and committed group of students interested in clean energy solutions,” says Professor Wolfram. “The more we can put them in touch with the great scientific research being done on energy on the Berkeley campus and at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the greater opportunity we have to bring real solutions to the marketplace.”

Among the Institute’s activities are:

Several energy-related courses, including its flagship Energy and Environmental Markets course, which has been taught since 1999. The course now includes state-of-the art computer simulation games in electricity markets and carbon trading.
Cleantech to Market (C2M), a partnership between graduate students and scientists to bring clean energy technologies to market. Initially created by Berkeley MBA students, this project has been expanded into a major program and a graduate course within the Institute. Solar technology researcher Cyrus Wadia, who won the MIT Technology Review Young Innovator Award this fall, and Beverly Alexander, former vice-president of Pacific Gas & Electric, serve as C2M’s co-program directors.
For the first time, Haas will offer an undergraduate course in energy markets.
The Energy Institute will continue to host the POWER Conference and the Policy Conference, which bring together researchers and industry representatives. The Renewable Energy Speaker Series will regularly bring policy and industry experts to campus.
Three courses in non-degree, executive education include Economic Fundamentals of Electricity Regulation and Markets, Economics of Energy and the Environment, and Advanced Energy Economics.
A regular newsletter disseminates the latest research findings.
The institute’s expertise is strengthened by its close collaboration with science and engineering departments at UC Berkeley and affiliated institutions, including the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; the Energy Biosciences Institute; CITRIS – the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society; and the Joint BioEnergy Institute, a San Francisco Bay Area scientific partnership.
Some of the Institute’s activities, including C2M, have grown out of The Berkeley Energy Resources Collaborative, an interdisciplinary student organization that was started by Berkeley MBA students and that hosts the annual Energy Symposium on campus. BERC will collaborate closely with the Energy Institute at Haas.

“Among top business schools, Haas has the broadest curriculum and most active student body in energy and environmental business,” says Severin Borenstein. “The Energy Institute at Haas will solidify our strength in this area.”

A growing number of Haas graduates also take clean-tech or energy-related jobs with a wide range of organizations from utilities to solar, energy efficiency, and other sustainable energy startups.

In addition to Professors Severin Borenstein and Catherine Wolfram, the Energy Institute at Haas counts among its key faculty experts:

Lucas Davis, assistant professor in economic analysis and policy;
Professor Paul Gertler, director of the Institute of Business and Economics Research;
Professor Dwight Jaffee, co-chair of the Fisher Center for Real Estate and Urban Economics;
Professor David Levine, chair of the Economic Analysis and Policy Group;
John Quigley, professor of public policy and business, and director of the Berkeley Program on Housing & the Urban Economy;
Chris Rosen, associate professor in business and public policy;
Richard Stanton, professor of finance and Barbara & Gerson Bakar Faculty Fellow;
Nancy Wallace, professor of real estate and finance.

Related faculty research is available on the Energy Institute at Haas web site.

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Energy Institute at Haas Launch Event

WHAT: Keynote address to celebrate the launch of the Energy Institute at Haas.

WHO: Matt Rogers, senior advisor to US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, who directs the disbursement of energy-related stimulus money.

WHERE: Haas School of Business, Andersen Auditorium, UC Berkeley campus
http://www.haas.berkeley.edu/haas/maps.html

WHEN: October 30, 11:30 to 12:30 pm, followed by a networking reception

The event will be open to the public. Representatives from the media are welcome to attend. To RSVP, please contact Ute S. Frey at 510-642-0342 or frey@haas.berkeley.edu.

ei@haas.berkeley.edu